Depositories of collected folklore materials, including tapes, transcripts, photos, films, material-culture items, and so forth. Folklore-archive materials reflect different folklore genres as they are practiced among different peoples and in different geographic areas. Folklore archives have existed in Europe since the 1800s; however, not until 1928 was the Archive of Folk Culture founded in the United States. Housed in the Library of Congress, the Archive of Folk Culture benefited from Works Progress Administration (WPA) projects, in the 1930s and 1940s, and more recently has sponsored folk studies in various areas of the nation. Though technically a national archive, the Archive of Folk Culture does not function as comprehensively as its European counterparts. As a result, a folklore scholar in the United States needs to be familiar with smaller archives throughout the country. While there are archives affiliated with state folk-arts councils, the majority of folklore archives in the United States are connected to universities. Often starting in boxes that eventually take over the office of a folklore professor, archives need their own space to be effectual. Such archives rapidly expand, composed primarily of materials submitted by students to fulfill class requirements, as well as items collected by professional folklorists. Collecting leads logically to archiving, which in turn fosters research. Students visiting folklore archives are able to see how their collections are used by other students and scholars. However, archivists generally do not allow students unlimited access to an archive. A folklore archivist secures archive materials so that no precious information is lost. Some archives have material that is restricted, and limitations are often put upon documents folklorists use for personal research. In addition, the informant and the collector may also place restraints on material. Despite such restrictions, a well-organized and extensive archive will contain a wealth of easily procurable material. Maintaining an archive is a never-ending process. A folklore archive needs to have folklore material readily available in order to be useful for scholarly research by both the student and the folklore professional. Ideally, folklore archives should be used by scholars of varying disciplines, creating camaraderie rather than competition. The magnitude of material submitted to an archive requires organization by diligent archivists to see that items are available and that the archive runs smoothly. Well-organized submissions and careful use of archive materials are essential in developing a well-run archive. However, no matter how well organized or well supported an archive is, its success hinges, ironically, upon both the flexibility and the consistency of methods employed by the archivists. The first step in building an archive is to gather a large enough body of material to warrant a collection and from which to be able to draw valid conclusions. Some archives contain private collections of one person’s life research. Other archives, such as those in the public sector, contain material collected from the community, while archives at universities and colleges often contain items collected by students.
One of the most critical tasks in establishing and maintaining an archive is that of preservation. The archivist must be aware of the types of paper used, the boxes in which they are stored, the manner of storing recorded tapes, and the temperature and humidity of the archive, among other things. If an archive has hundreds of narratives about the fishing community in a given area, but stores copies on low-quality paper, that collection may be useless within twenty years because the printing may begin to fade or the paper to crumble. Once the material in the archives is in good condition and ready to be filed, a system must be established so that patrons and employees can easily access this material. The best possible system depends on the nature of the collections and on the needs of the users. One traditional method of narrative classification is represented by the Aarne- Thompson Type Index and the Thompson Motif-Index. Another way to classify material, not limited to narrative, is described in William A.Wilson’s 1993 article, “Mormon Folklore: Cut from the Marrow of Everyday Experience.” There is no one technique perfect for every archive, and types of indexes vary from one archive to the next. Until recently, most archives compiled their indexing systems on a series of index cards, similar to a card catalog in a library. As computers have become more popular and more readily available, archives across the country have begun to index their material on computer. With a system of indexing in place, the archivist must evaluate the collection and determine the best placement of each item. This step is one of the most time-consuming and often most frustrating for the archivist. Most items slide easily into the niches devised for them, but there are many that resist classification. This is why the archivist is forced to keep constantly informed of current scholarship and genre classification issues. As time passes, genres are interpreted and perceived differently, and adjustments are made to definitions. At all times, the archivist must keep in mind that the archive is only valuable if a researcher can easily access the material. Patrons of a folklore archive can maximize their research time by having a specific topic in mind, with key words and phrases that will help the archivist locate the needed material. The more information provided the archivist, the more he or she will be able to help in research. Flexibility is also important because folklore is not always classified as one might expect. Those collecting material that will eventually be archived should contact the particular archive intended as the recipient in order to find out what format to use and what contextual information to include. In this way, archive contributions will be more valuable. There are several ways to find an archive in a specific area. The Folklife Source Book, available through the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress, has an extensive list of archives in the United States. Those who have Internet access can find a list through the Library of Congress LC Marvel gopher. Kristi Bell Alana Paige Kimbel References Archive Sources. 1989. In Folklore, Folklife. Washington, DC: American Folklore Society, pp. 17– 18. Bartis, Peter, and Hillary Glatt. 1993. Folklife Sourcebook: A Directory of Folklife Resources in the United States. 2d ed. Washington, DC: American Folklife Center.
Camp, Charles, ed. 1989. Time and Temperature. A Centennial Publication of the American
Folklore Society. Washington, DC: American Folklore Society.
Wilson, William A. 1993. Mormon Folklore: Cut from the Marrow of Everyday Experience. BYU
Studies 33 (3):521–541.