Williamsburg Documentary Project Guide to the Williamsburg Documentary Project UA 351

Guide to the Williamsburg Documentary Project UA 351


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Special Collections Research Center

William & Mary Special Collections Research Center
Earl Gregg Swem Library
400 Landrum Dr
Williamsburg, Virginia
Business Number: 757-221-3090
spcoll@wm.edu
URL: https://libraries.wm.edu/libraries-spaces/special-collections

William & Mary Special Collections Research Center staff.

Repository
Special Collections Research Center
Identification
UA 351
Title
Williamsburg Documentary Project Circa 1930-2015 2008-2015
Quantity
9.45 Linear Feet
Creator
American Studies Program
Language
English

Administrative Information

Conditions Governing Use:

Before reproducing or quoting from any materials, in whole or in part, permission must be obtained from the Special Collections Research Center, and the holder of the copyright, if not Swem Library.

Conditions Governing Access:

Portions of this collection may be restricted for privacy reasons. Consult a staff member for assistance. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, such as the Virginia Public Records Act (Code of Virginia. § 42.1-76-91); and the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (Code of Virginia § 2.2-3705.5). Confidential material may include, but is not limited to, educational, medical, and personnel records. If sensitive material is found in this collection, please contact a staff member immediately. The disclosure of personally identifiable information pertaining to a living individual may have legal consequences for which the College of William and Mary assumes no responsibility.

Preferred Citation:

Williamsburg Documentary Project Collection, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary.

Acquisition Information:

Acc. 2009.030 received 2/16/2009 from the Williamsburg Documentary Project via Jenna Simpson. Acquisition information for material received after 7/13/2009 is available by consulting a Special Collections Research Center staff member.

Processing Information:

Acc. 2009.030 accessioned and minimally described by Amy C. Schindler, University Archivist, in 2/2009. Acc. 2010.311 accessioned and minimally described by Steven Bookman, University Archives Specialist, in 5/2010. All accessions were integrated and processed by David Ward, SCRC Graduate Apprentice, from October 2013-January 2014. Acc. 2015.148 accessioned and minimally described by Steven Bookman, University Archives Specialist, in June 2015.


Historical Note:

The American Studies Program offers students the opportunity to engage with the complex and diverse histories of cultural, racial, and national encounters that, like those of our local area, have come to shape the past and present of the United States, and the Americas. In a rigorous, yet flexible environment of intellectual inquiry, students develop the critical skills that allow them not only to pursue rewarding careers, but to serve as responsible citizens of the 21st Century.

Scope and Contents

This collection is composed of material collected and created by the Williamsburg Documentary Project. The Williamsburg Documentary Project conducts oral history interviews and builds physical and digital archives, as well as other activities, through which it interprets the past of Williamsburg, Virginia.

The collection includes publications, news clippings, interviews, and planning documents about Merchant's Square, New Town, food, immigration, as well as events related to Williamsburg history. Events documented in this collection include the removal of a cross from the chapel in the William & Mary Wren Building at the direction of College President Gene R. Nichol.

Related Material

Digital content documents from the Williamsburg Documentary Project, including some interviews, are available at William & Mary Libraries Digital Collections .

Subjects and Indexing Terms


Significant Places Associated With the Collection

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Container List

id72229
Series 1: Oral History Interviews
circa 1995-2012
Scope and Contents

VERY IMPORTANT: Anyone quoting from or making substantial use of the oral histories collected here should consider THE SOUND RECORDINGS THE DEFINITIVE SOURCE. Transcripts, indexes, and key words are only tools meant to help guide users to the sound recordings. Most of these interviews were done by WDP student-interviewers. Most interviews combine a life history format with some questioning specific to a student-interviewer's research interests. As part of their training, WDP students do some group interviews and also interview one another, and the collection also contains these recordings. Additionally, the collection gathers some recordings that were done by other groups—for example, local volunteers helping commemorate Williamsburg's 300th anniversary. All oral history interviews conducted by the WDP are done following the Oral History Association's principles and best practices guidelines. Each record in the digital archive contains: a) a sound recording of an interview (WAV format; some MP3 format); a few recordings have been edited to reflect restrictions; some recordings are available for use only on-site in Swem Library's Special Collections b) an image of the Deed of Gift relevant to the interview (PDF or TIFF format) c) a "live index" to the recording (PDF format); these indexes were made by assistants to the main interviewer during the interview and, using time code, give a rough guide to major topics covered in the interview. d) a "headnote" (PDF format); written by the main interviewer, headnotes give some basic information on the circumstances in which the interview took place and highlight some key topics covered in the interview. Many records also contain: e) an interview transcript, which incorporates the headnote described above (PDF format); prepared by the main interviewer, transcripts attempt to render the dialogue of the interview in a way that is quickly searchable. SCHOLARS WISHING TO QUOTE, SYNOPSIZE, OR REFERENCE A WDP ORAL HISTORY SHOULD ALWAYS CHECK THE TRANSCRIPT AGAINST THE INTERVIEW RECORDING. Some records may also contain: f) scans of documents or photographs (TIFF files) related to the interviewee or topics covered in the interview.

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id27576
Series 2: Student Projects
2005-2012
Scope and Contents

Final papers for student projects consist of a variety of subjects on the community life and culture within Williamsburg and surrounding environs. Some of these topics have related oral history and digital materials in the William & Mary digital archive. This series contains student project map diaries from 2008-2012. Students track their locations and movements for a 24 hour period to construct a map diary of their day. There is no prescribed format for the map diary. The bulk of the series is arranged by project title.

Please note that select student papers are restricted from viewing due to privacy. Please consult with a staff member for assistance.

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id72224
Series 3: Research Materials
1953-2012
Scope and Contents

This series contains research materials on the following subjects: : Old Town/New Town, Food and Poverty in Williamsburg and Wren Cross controversy, Battle of Williamsburg Commemoration, J1 Work Visas, Retirement in Williamsburg and Development of Quarterpath Road. There are also oral history materials from the Grass Roots Theater (1998-1999). Old Town/New Town: Merchants Square material, Merchants Square Real Estate Operations, The NewTowner magazines, Next Door Neighbor magazine, and newspaper clippings for 2007. Food and Poverty in Williamsburg: USDA Brochures (2007), Statistics, Information, Advertisements (2010), SHIP (2010), Food Bank Study (2004), Community Health Report (2005) Wren Cross controversy: Emails, Websites and notes used in compiling final report. Battle of Williamsburg Commemoration: Notes J1 Work Visas: Briefings, Regulations, Court Case, and notes used in compiling final report. All from 2010. Retirement in Williamsburg: Reports and Brochures, Journal Articles, Tourism directory, and newspaper clippings.

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id227581
Series 4: Williamsburg Maps
Mixed Materials Folder: 1 1920-2006
Scope and Contents

Williamsburg, Virginia, Traffic Lights, 35 x 21 cm, color Williamsburg, Virginia, Original City and Subsequent Annexation, 28 x 43cm, Color, ca 1984 Williamsburg, Virginia,, Williamsburg in the '20 and '30s, 21 x 28cm, Black & White James City County, 29.5 x 43cm, color, 2006 Williamsburg, Virginia, Comprehensive Plan, 42.5 x 54.5 cm, color, 2006 Williamsburg, Virginia, Zoning Districts, 1 of 3, 42.5 x 34 cm, color, February 13, 2003 Williamsburg, Virginia, Architectual Review Distircts, 42.5 x 34 cm, 2 of 3, color, March 9, 2006 Williamsburg, Virginia, Zoning Districts, 3 of 3, 42.5 x 34 cm, color, February 13, 2003 Williamsburg, Virginia, Zoning Map, 91 x 58 cm, black & white, July 1, 1966, 2 copies Williamsburg, Virginia, Zoning Map, 91 x 58 cm, black & white, August,1972, Res'C', March 26, 1981 Williamsburg, Virginia, Zoning Map, 91 x 58 cm, black & white, August,1972, ' March 23, 1987, 2 copies Williamsburg, Virginia, Zoning Map, 91 x 58 cm, black & white, August,1972, January 1, 1975, 2 copies Williamsburg, Virginia, Zoning Map, 91 x 58 cm, black & white, July 1964 Williamsburg, Virginia, Real Property Grid Index, 91 x 58 cm, color, July 13, 2004

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id285686
Series 5: Acc. 2015.148
Mixed Materials box: 9 2013-2015
Scope and Contents

This series contains restricted material. Please consult a staff member for further assistance. This is a temporary series and will be deleted once it has been integrated with the existing collection. The series contains oral histories, final reports, and map diaries by students in the Williamsburg Documentary Project course at William and Mary.

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id308227
Series 6: Acc. 2016.176 and 2016.098, Student Projects and Oral History Interviews, 2016
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Series 7: Acc. 2018.229
2018 English
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Series 8: Acc. 2019.134
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Series 9: Spring 2020 Interviews
2020
Series 10: Acc. 2022.109, Spring 2021 and Spring 2022 Interviews and Class Materials
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Series 11: Spring 2024 Interviews and Class Materials
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Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 74 id227034
Cross, John Franklin III Oral History
2010 April 14