ASPI helped document the voices of Appalachian elders through various oral history projects in the 1990s, and we are renewing our commitment to gathering and preserving regional stories, traditions, and knowledge.
Archived Oral History Collections

From the early-to-mid-1990s, ASPI conducted several oral history projects with elders (over 65) about different aspects of Appalachian life, culture, technology, and ecology. Two of these oral history projects are housed and catalogued at the University of Kentucky Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History:
  1. "Appalachian Appropriate Technology Oral History Project," conducted from 1992-1994, documenting "the 'appropriate technology' experience of Kentucky older people in areas of food growing and preparation, building techniques, waste utilization, and other areas."
  2. "Appalachian Simple Lifestyle Expression and Experience Oral History Project," conducted in 1994, documenting "the way life used to be growing up in the Appalachian mountains …. changes that have taken place in their lifetimes, the skills that were developed naturally in daily mountain living, and the creativity and utility of early mountain people regarding the basic necessities of life."
In the mid-1990s, Mark Spencer and Timi Reedy conducted another ASPI video oral history project with elder Appalachians about their recollections of the forest in the mountains of Eastern Kentucky. The "Appalachian Historic Forest Conditions" Oral History Project is among ASPI's organizational records housed in the Berea College Special Collections & Archives.

In 2020, we successfully partnered to apply for a Preservation Grant from the Kentucky Oral History Commission to digitize these analog interviews, which are now available online. This collection includes some notable Appalachian folk figures all of whom have now passed, including wood carver and shingle river William McClure, banjo player and performer Dora Mae Wagers, Bluegrass musician and songwriter Frances Reedy, and Minnie Yancey, weaver and spinner of yarns.  
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Frances Reedy talking about the Appalachian forest with her granddaughter Timi Reedy, April 19, 1996
Current Oral History Projects

ASPI's strategic plan includes designing and implementing new regional oral history projects as well as providing ethical and technical training for conducting oral history interviews.

Before long-time residential volunteer Father Jack Kieffer retired in 2020, Board President Timi Reedy conducted five oral history interviews about his life and 28 years working on behalf of ASPI. In 2023, Timi and Mark Spencer also completed a series of “life history” interviews with ASPI founder Father Al Fritsch before his retirement, and they began conducting a new series of interviews with Appalachian author, activist, and icon George Brosi. ASPI received a 2022 Creative Aging and Lifelong Learning grant from the Kentucky Arts Council to conduct a community-engaged interview project with creative elders and artists who exemplify an active commitment to and practice of lifelong learning. All of these interviews will become part of our organizational archives at Berea College.
In summer 2023, ASPI served as the organizational site of a pilot hybrid (in-person and virtual) version of the Kentucky Community Scholars Program in partnership with the Kentucky Arts Council and the Kentucky Folklife Program. Four new graduates (Aaron Banther, Bugz Fraugg, Kyra Higgins, and Mark Spencer) completed folklife and fieldwork training, presented their projects, and joined more than 250 certified Kentucky Community Scholars!
Regional Oral History Networking

In 2022, ASPI collaborated with the University of Kentucky Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History to host two regional meet-ups of oral historians from Kentucky and Central Appalachia with funding support from the national Oral History Association.

With funding support from the Oral History Association (OHA), the University of Kentucky (UK) Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History and Appalachia-Science in the Public Interest (ASPI) collaborated in 2022 to host two regional meet-ups for oral historians in Kentucky and Central Appalachia to socialize and discuss important topics such as funding, archiving, the impact of COVID-19, new technologies, and projects. This joint effort initiated a regional networking effort for oral historians to explore additional opportunities for mutual support and collaboration. These events were free and open to the public (OHA membership not required) and included light refreshments.

UK Nunn Center oral history archivists Jennifer Bartlett and Kopana Terry co-chaired the first meet-up on Friday, August 12, 2022 at the William T. Young Library in Lexington. The event included a range of people from UK, Lexington, Pike County, Scott County, Rockcastle County, Martin County, and beyond. Jen and Kopana also created a new KYOH-NET list-serve as a result of group discussions to continue connecting a "Loose knit, informal group of Kentucky oral historians and anyone interested in oral history": https://groups.google.com/g/kyoh-net/about.

ASPI hosted the second oral history meet-up on Saturday, September 17, 2022 at the main ASPI office in Mt. Vernon. Fifteen participants represented a range of ages, identities, organizations, and local communities, and they are engaged in many interesting projects around Berea and the state. Participants included ASPI staff, volunteers, and board members; UK; Berea College; East Tennessee State University; Kentucky Historical Society; Lexington Public Library, as well as local artists and community historians. ASPI also provided handouts with links to selected oral history resources (see bottom of page).

In 2023, we again collaborated to help coordinate three more oral history meet-ups in Central, Southeastern, and South Central Kentucky. The Lexington Public Library hosted another oral history meet-up on Friday, June 2, 2023 at the Central Library branch in downtown Lexington. The first half hour included a brief visit to the Kentucky Room to learn about Kentucky and Fayette County genealogy and local history research resources followed by a lunch meeting and informative discussions. ASPI and the Southeast Kentucky African-American Museum & Cultural Center (SEKYAAMCC) co-hosted the second 2023 oral history meet-up on Saturday, August 26 at the Perry County Public Library in Hazard. The Western Kentucky University Department of Folk Studies & Anthropology hosted a third meet-up in Bowling Green on Friday, November 17 with a visit to local African American Museum afterward. All these events are free and open to the public, include refreshments, and welcome people with all levels of interest in and experience with oral history (OHA membership is not required).

Meanwhile, stay connected by joining the KYOH-NET list-serve, introducing yourself, and sharing projects and resources. For more information, email [email protected], [email protected], or [email protected].
ASPI Oral History Meet-up: Selected Oral History Resources