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This collection has access restrictions. For details, please see the restrictions.
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.
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Collection Overview
| Size | 87.5 feet of linear shelf space (approximately 93,500 items) |
| Abstract | The collection of white folklorist and UCLA professor D.K. Wilgus (1918-1989) contains professional correspondence and papers; personal correspondence; writings and publications about Anglo American folk music; teaching materials of both Wilgus and Eleanor R. Long-Wilgus; research files and discographies for folk music artists and record labels; photographs, many taken at the UCLA Folk Festival in Los Angeles, Calif.; project files and related publications about the Titanic and outlaw Jesse James; a personal card catalog with notes and discographical information about country and western music, songsters, blues, old-time music, Irish music, Rocky Mountain ballads, and other topics; and audio recordings made or collected by Wilgus, chiefly of ballads and songs by individual performers. Audio materials also include copies of radio transcription discs of artists such as Lulu Belle and Scotty, Texas Jim Lewis, Bluegrass Roy, and Faron Young; field recordings made by Wilgus between 1969 and 1972 in Ireland of ballad singers and instrumentalists; recordings of Anglo-American ballad singer Sara Cleveland and early country musician and steel guitar player Jimmie Tarlton; items related to Naomi Wise; and interviews with country musicians Ernest Tubb and Ernest Stoneman. |
| Creator | Wilgus, D. K. |
| Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Folklife Collection. |
| Language | English |
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Information For Users
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Processing Information
Processed by: Megan Bricker, December 2009
Encoded by: Megan Bricker, December 2009
Updated by: Anne Wells, March 2016;; Nancy Kaiser, January 2021
Updated: May 2019
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Subject Headings
The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.
Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.
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Biographical Information
D.K. (Donald Knight) Wilgus was born on 1 December 1918, in Mansfield, Ohio. He attended the Ohio State University, where he received a Bachelor of Arts in 1941, a Master of Arts in 1947, and a Doctorate of Philosophy in 1954. Wilgus worked briefly at Purdue University from 1941 until he joined the Army in 1942, serving until 1945. After an honorable discharge, Wilgus took a position as an instructor at the Ohio State University until 1950, when he left to become an associate professor of English at Western Kentucky State College (now Western Kentucky State University) until 1961. While at Western Kentucky State College, Wilgus founded the Kentucky Folklore Record in 1955. In 1961, he was promoted to full professor of English and Folklore, but left the position in 1962 to teach at the University of California, Los Angeles. At UCLA, Wilgus was a professor of English and Anglo-American folksong in the Center for the Study of Comparative Folklore and Mythology. He was the founding chair of the Folklore and Mythology program at UCLA in 1965 and served in that position for the next 17 years. In 1986, Wilgus married former student and long-time colleague Eleanor R. Long, with whom he collaborated on several projects. He remained at UCLA until his retirement in 1989. Throughout his career Wilgus helped pioneer the chronicling of popular musical forms, including Blues and "Hillbilly" music. D.K. Wilgus died on 25 December 1989.
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Scope and Content
The collection consists of the professional correspondence of D.K. Wilgus with individuals and organizations; extensive writings and publications by Wilgus and others on the subject of Anglo-American folk music, including photocopies and offprints of the many journal articles and book reviews that he and his colleagues produced for various folklore publications; materials related to Wilgus's involvement in numerous folk music festivals, seminars, and other professional activities throughout the United States and Europe; files and discographies for individual folk-music artists and record labels; tape transcriptions by the Irish Folklore Commission and related notes by Wilgus and Tom Munnelly; research notes and published articles and books related to projects about the sinking of the Titanic and outlaw Jesse James; sheet music and broadsides and student essays on songsters; Wilgus's personal card catalog with notes and discographical information about country and western music, songsters, blues, old-time music, Irish music, Laws, Rocky Mountain ballads; and miscellaneous personal materials, including obituaries, resumes, military discharge records, and some personal correspondence. Materials relating to Wilgus's academic career, particularly his tenure at UCLA, including lecture notes and syllabi for courses, are scattered throughout the collection, but are concentrated in Series 2.1, 3.3, and 8. The Eleanor R. Long-Wilgus series includes materials related solely to her research and teaching on Anglo-American and Irish ballads and folksongs, as well as joint projects with D.K. Wilgus. The photograph series primarily contains images of the UCLA Folk Festival and artist headshots. The audio series consists of open reel tapes recorded or collected by D. K. Wilgus. The tapes are primarily of individual songs and ballads and individual performers. There are also copies of radio transcription discs of artists such as Lulu Belle and Scotty, Texas Jim Lewis, Bluegrass Roy, and Faron Young; field recordings made by Wilgus in Ireland, 1969-1972, of ballad singers and instrumentalists; recordings of Anglo-American ballad singer Sara Cleveland and early country musician and steel guitar player Jimmie Tarlton; materials relating to Naomi Wise; and interviews with country musicians Ernest Tubb and Ernest Stoneman.
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Series Quick Links
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Series 1. Correspondence, 1958-1993.
Primarily professional correspondence of D.K. Wilgus. Includes correspondence with individuals active within the folklore community, folklore organizations, and university departments.
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Subseries 1.1. Individuals, 1958-1989.
Arrangement: Alphabetical by last name.
Note that original file names have, for the most part, been retained.
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Subseries 1.2. Organizations, 1969-1993.
Arrangement: Alphabetical by organization.
Note that original file names have, for the most part, been retained.
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Series 2. Writings, 1950-1993.
Arrangement: Alphabetical.
Includes extensive writings and publications by D.K. Wilgus and others on the subject of Anglo-American folk music, including photocopies and offprints of the many journal articles and book reviews that he and his colleagues produced for various folklore publications. Also includes excerpts from books and book manuscripts. The series is divided into the following subseries: 2.1. Writings by D.K. Wilgus; 2.2. Writings by Others; 2.3. Indexed Anglo-American Writings; 2.4. Study of Folklore; 2.5. Newsletters; and 2.6. Books and Manuscripts.
Note that original file names and order have, for the most part, been retained.
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Subseries 2.1 Writings by D.K. Wilgus, 1950-1991.
Arrangement: Alphabetical.
Includes book reviews, record reviews, lectures, teaching materials, article research, dissertation, and other writings. Topics include American, Anglo, and Irish ballads, folklore scholarship, folklore by region in the United States, folklore in popular culture, cowboys, and the American Folklore Society, the California Folklore Society, and the Kentucky Folklore Society.
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Subseries 2.2. Writings by Others, 1967-1979.
Arrangement: Alphabetical by author.
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Subseries 2.3. Indexed Anglo-American Writings, 1951-1984.
Arrangement: By index number.
This alpha-numeric index may be related to the ballad classifcation system created by G. Malcolm Laws to refer to native American ballads, but the relationship is unclear. Like the Laws classification system, Wilgus uses a letter and a number to arrange the ballads and related materials, including reviews, articles, and newspaper clippings. Following the alphanumeric code there are Arbeitstagung proceedings that discuss development of a european folk ballad type-index and additional reviews arranged in chronological order.
Note that there is significant overlap between the materials in this series and the materials in series 8.1 Ballads and Music: Subject files.
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Subseries 2.4. Study of Folklore, 1962-1985.
Arrangement: Alphabetical.
Materials are organized by headings created by D.K. Wilgus, and include archives, bibliographies, collections and collecting, fieldwork, offprints, organizations, theoretical concerns, and other subjects related to folklore as an academic subject.
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Subseries 2.5. Folk Music Newsletters, 1963-1972.
Arrangement: Alphabetical by title.
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Subseries 2.6. Books and Manuscripts, 1954-1993.
Arrangement: Alphabetical by author.
Manuscripts and whole copies of books sent to D.K. Wilgus either for proofreading or for his reseach.
Folder 1364-1368
Folder 1364Folder 1365Folder 1366Folder 1367Folder 1368 |
Cray, Ed: "The Erotic Muse: American Bawdy Songs"With reader report by D.K. Wilgus |
| Box 21 |
Henry, Sam: Dublin, Belfast and Washington copies |
Folder 1369-1371
Folder 1369Folder 1370Folder 1371 |
Holley, Morgiana P.: "Marine Disasters in Newfoundland Folk Balladry" |
| Box 21 |
Huntington, Gale: Index and references |
Folder 1372-1374
Folder 1372Folder 1373Folder 1374 |
Newman, Katharine: "Never Without A Song" |
| Box 21 |
O'Boyle: Index and notes |
Folder 1375-1377
Folder 1375Folder 1376Folder 1377 |
Randolph, Vance: "Unprintable Songs from the Ozarks" |
Folder 1378-1379
Folder 1378Folder 1379 |
Smyth, Jensen: "Traditional Humor on Knoxville Country Radio Entertainment Shows" |
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Series 3. Festivals, Seminars, and Professional Activities, 1958-1997.
Materials about folk music festivals, seminars, and other activities. Included are fliers and other literature relating to many folk festivals throughout the United States and from conferences in the United States and Europe.
Note that original file names have, for the most part, been retained.
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Subseries 3.1. United States Festivals, 1958-1983.
Arrangement: Alphabetical.
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Subseries 3.2. International Festivals and Seminars, 1966-1997.
Arrangement: Alphabetical by conference name.
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Subseries 3.3. Professional Activities, 1949-1989.
Arrangement: Chronological, then alphabetical by subject.
Includes teaching materials, speaking notes, and some research notes by D.K. Wilgus.
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Series 4. Artists, Record Labels, and Miscellaneous Discographical Information, 1964-1991.
Discographies for various artists and record labels. Also includes clippings about artists and performances.
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Subseries 4.1. Artists, 1964-1991.
Arrangement: Alphabetical.
Note that original file names have, for the most part, been retained.
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Subseries 4.2. Record Labels and Miscellaneous Discographical Information, 1974-1986.
Arrangement: Alphabetical.
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Series 5. Irish Folklore Commission, 1968-1987.
Tape transcripts compiled by the Irish Folklore Commission (IFC) between 1968 and 1971 and related notes by Tom Munnelly and D.K. Wilgus. The IFC was created in 1935 to collect information about the folk traditions of Ireland. It functioned until 1971, when its mission was taken over by the newly created Irish Folklore Department at University College, Dublin. The materials following the tape transcripts are research notes and articles related to ballads transcribed by the IFC.
Note that original file names have, for the most part, been retained.
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Series 6. Titanic Ballads Research, 1912-1981.
Materials related to D.K. Wilgus's research on ballads about the Titanic, including research notes, journal articles, sheet music, and books.
Note that original file names and order have, for the most part, been retained.
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Series 7. Jesse James Research, 1864, 1952-1958.
Materials related to D.K. Wilgus's research on outlaw Jesse James, including research notes and books published on the subject of Jesse James and other outlaws.
Note that original folder order and file folder titles have, for the most part, been retained.
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Series 8. Ballads and Music, 1962-1968.
Sheet music, hymnals, and song books related to D.K. Wilgus's research and teaching on American, Anglo, and Irish folk music. This series has been divided into two subseries: 8.1. Subject files and 8.2. Songster projects.
Note that original file names have, for the most part, been retained.
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Subseries 8.1 Subject Files, 1962-1968.
Arrangement: Alphabetical.
Files, including teaching materials about American, Anglo, and Irish folk music by genre, especially Laws ballads, Child ballads, lovers' ballads, blues ballads, and historical ballad theory. Many other folk music genre topics are included, as well as album liner notes and song books.
Note that there is significant overlap between materials in this subseries and the materials in Series 2.3 Writings: Indexed Anglo-American Writings.