DC Public Library, The People’s Archive

Scope and Contents

D.C. Oral History Collaborative (DCOHC) is a citywide initiative to train community members in oral history skills, fund new and ongoing oral history projects, connect volunteers with oral history projects, and publicize existing oral history collections. DCOHC is a project of DC Public Library, HumanitiesDC, and the Historical Society of Washington, D.C. This collection contains oral history interviews, transcripts, and indexes produced by DCOHC grantees.

Content Description This oral history project documents the Deaf Community in Washington, D.C. during a time when educational, employment, and recreational activities were limited due to communication barriers between Deaf and hearing people and misconceptions about what Deaf people can accomplish. The project explores how the Deaf Community created organizations to fill the social, recreational, educational, and spiritual needs which were inaccessible due to communication barriers. The project was conducted by...

Content Description

Digital audio recordings and PDF transcripts of 10 oral history interviews recorded by Shaw Library staff to document the Shaw neighborhood and the effect of the 1968 riots on its community.

Content Description

Digital recordings of 20 oral history interviews by DCPL Special Collections Librarian Kelly Navies and related digital documents. 18 of the recordings are about the U Street cultural corridor. All of the U Street interviews have logs and two of them also have transcripts. Digital photographs and other documents were also included in the U Street transfer. There is also an interview with DC author Edward P. Jones, in 2 parts.