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Lyric and melodic transcriptions of Ozark folksongs, 1926-1950

Manuscript Collection 952

• Information about the Collection
• Contents of the Collection

INFORMATION ABOUT THE COLLECTION

Vance Randolph of Fayetteville, Arkansas, donated these transcripts to the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, October 28, 1952.  They were originally placed in the "A" Collection and then transferred to the Manuscript Collection on July 10, 1989.
 
Vance Randolph was born February 23, 1892 in Pittsburg, Kansas, and died November 1, 1980 in Fayetteville, Arkansas.  He received a BS in Education from Kansas State University, now Pittsburg State University, in 1914 and an MA from Clark University, Worcester, Massachusetts, in Psychology in 1915.  In 1951, he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.

Encouraged by both Herbert Halpert and Carl Sandburg, Randolph began collecting folklore in the Ozarks; his fieldwork spans about thirty years, from the 1920's to the 1950's.  Based on his fieldwork, Randolph wrote over twenty books and numerous articles for publications including the Arkansas Historical Quarterly, Ozark Folklore, and the Journal of American Folklore.  In addition, under various pseudonyms, he authored many "Little Blue Books" for the Haldeman-Julius press in Girard, Kansas.

In 1962, he married Mary Celestia Parler, professor of English and supervisor-coordinator of the Folklore Research Project at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville.  Their collaboration was both personal and professional.  Vance Randolph was of great assistance to Mary Celestia Parler Randolph and her folklore students, and the Folklore Research Project can also be said to bear his mark.  She in turn worked tirelessly for the Arkansas Folklore Society of which he was co-founder (with John Gould Fletcher) in 1949 and first president, and proofread and edited many of his manuscripts and transcripts.

Among the honors he received in his lifetime, none was as important to Randolph as being elected a Fellow of the American Folklore Society in 1978, which meant academic recognition for his work.  In addition, he was proclaimed "Poet Laureate of the Ozarks" in 1975 by Greater Ozarks Hall of Fame, and June 12, 1976 was proclaimed "Vance Randolph Day" by then Arkansas Governor David Pryor.

The collection consists of transcriptions of lyrics and music (melody only) and annotations of Ozark folksongs recorded and collected from 1926 to 1950 in the Ozarks by Vance Randolph.  In addition, folklore-related correspondence, research notes, and clippings are included.

RESTRICTIONS:   The original transcripts are restricted.  Photocopies are available for the use of the researcher.

Processed by Norma Ortiz-Karp, Special Collections Division, University of Arkansas Libraries, Fayetteville, Arkansas, in July, 1989.

Series 1.  Ozark Songs (Boxes 1-2)
Series 2.  Ozark Folksongs (Boxes 3-5)

Series 1.  Ozark Songs (Boxes 1-2)
 
This series contains mainly text transcriptions of songs from Arkansas, Kansas, and Missouri collected and annotated by Vance Randolph between 1926 to 1950.  Volume 3 contains Randolph's research notes, correspondence, and clippings pertaining to Ozark folklore and songs.  These have been left in the topical order found.  In a note from volumes 1 and 2, Randolph stated that he did not use any of these materials in Ozark Folksongs, and, that in 1949, he gave the originals to Dr. R.A. Musick with permission for her to use the materials.

Box 1   Ozark songs.

 1-3. Volume 1.
 4-6. Volume 2.
 7-10. Volume 3.

Box 2   Researchers duplicates.

 1-3. Volume 1.
 4-6. Volume 2.
 7-10. Volume 3.

Series 2.  Ozark Folksongs (Boxes 3-5)
 
This series contains transcriptions of folksongs recorded, transcribed, and annotated by Vance Randolph.  The recordings were made for the Library of Congress in southern Missouri and northwest Arkansas between 1941 and 1943 and are deposited in the Library of Congress.  The transcriptions, including many melodic musical transcriptions using traditional notation, are not found at the Library of Congress.

Box 3   Ozark folksongs.

 1-3. Volume 1.
 4-6. Volume 2.
 7-10. Volume 3.

Box 4  Ozark folksongs.

 1-3. Volume 4.

Box 5  Researchers duplicates.

 1-3. Volume 1.
 4-6. Volume 2.
 7-10. Volume 3.
 11-13. Volume 4.