Scope and Content
The collection contains sound recordings and photographs made by Anne and Frank Warner that document musicians and storytellers from numerous traditions. The materials were collected during field trips to Illinois (1941), Massachusetts (1941), Missouri (1941), New Hampshire (1940-1941), New York (1939-1941, 1946, 1949-1952, 1961, 1969), North Carolina (1938-1941, 1944, 1951, 1959),Vermont (1940), and Virginia (1940).
The collection focuses on the extended Hicks family living on or near Beech Mountain, North Carolina. The family's song and story repertory, and its dissemination by the Warners, played a significant role in the folk revivals of music (1960s) and storytelling (1970s). Other recordings include songs collected from descendents of English and Scots Irish immigrants, African Americans, and Mohawk songs recorded on the St. Regis Mohawk Indian Reservation in New York state. Also included are recordings of lectures and readings by Carl Sandburg in the 1950s.
The Warners had no institutional support and limited financial means. As a result, they often recorded only part of a song in order to conserve materials. Anne Warner would then transcribe the remainder of the song in shorthand, later to be typewritten.
The disc recordings were made on a Wilcox Gay Recordio disc recorder and a Philco disc recorder. The reel-to-reel tapes were made with a variety of recorders.