Sketch by cowboy poet Duane Kerr. Part of the documentation of the "Trementon Cowboy Poetry Roundup," found among Utah's Local Legacy projects.

Utah

The American Folklife Center was created by Congress in 1976 through Public Law 94-201 and charged to "preserve and present American folklife." Part of the Library of Congress, the Center incorporates the Library's Archive of Folk Culture, founded in 1928. The Center carries out its mandate through its collections, programs, and services, which have touched all fifty states.

Collections

The collections of the American Folklife Center contain rich and varied materials from Utah that document the diversity of the state's folk traditions. Among them are unique recordings of Mormon narratives and folklore; and recordings of Ute Indian songs dating from 1914. The Center has conducted extensive fieldwork in Utah, including the 1983 Grouse Creek Cultural Survey, which documented ranching culture in Northwest Utah, and the Italian- Americans in the West Project, documenting the culture and traditions of the Italian-Americans, which culminated in a traveling exhibition and companion book of essays. The material created during the latter project includes hundreds of hours of interviews, thousands of photographs, and transcriptions, some of which were made in Carbon County. The materials created during both these projects have been incorporated into the collections of the Folklife Center.

Utah participated in the Library's Bicentennial Local Legacies project, which includes documentation of local traditions and celebrations for the American Folklife Center's Archive of Folk Culture.

• View Utah's Local Legacies projects

Concert and Lecture Webcasts

September 14, 2006: "Cowboy Poetry: History, Origins, Influences, Forms." Lecture presented by David Stanley, professor of English at Westminster College.

November 16, 2005: Dineh Tah Navajo Dancers. Dances and songs of the Navajo Nation. Select the link for a description, event flier and essay, and a link to the webcast.

Field School

An ethnographic field shool was conducted in Utah Valley, near Provo, in 2004, co-sponsored by the Center and Brigham Young University. The focus was the history and traditions related to orchards in the Utah Valley. Follow this link to read an article about the field school by David Taylor, from Folklife Center News, fall 2004 . Follow this link to read an article by fieldschool participant Lisa Powell about her experience, from Folklife Center News Fall 2005.

Field Research Projects

• 1983 The Grouse Creek Cultural Survey
• 1989-90 Italian-Americans in the West

Publications

• Utah Collections in the Archive of Folk Culture (Finding Aid)
• Mormon Folklore and Folksong (Reference Aid)
• The Grouse Creek Cultural Survey
• Old Ties, New Attachments: Italian-American Folklife in the West