Collections : [Center for Documentary Research and Practice]

The interviews in this project focus on the history of the Council on Foundations, its history and development, its function and goals, and its mission. Central to many of the interviews is the 1969 Tax Reform Act, which had a profound impact on the structure and practice of American foundational philanthropy. The majority of the interviewees are philanthropists or professionals with strong connections to the Council; they share their insights, criticisms, and descriptions regarding the Council in many areas, including diversity, philanthropic ethics, principles and practices, the role of the government, and sources of division within the field of philanthropy.

In the interview, Charles S. Hyneman discusses the evolution of the political science discipline in the twentieth century, curriculum development, and Indiana state politics. Also discussed are Hyneman's careers in the academic field and the United States War Department, and his tenure as president of the American Political Science Association.

The project, Dubois County: A Home for God's People, consists of interviews of residents, most of whom could trace their ancestry back to the original German settlement of the area. The interviewees shared their German heritage and discussed the almost clan-like German Catholic communities, and how they grew and changed over the years since there first establishment. The Catholic church was discussed as a central point of the communities, as was the German language and its various dialects and farming as a way of life.

This project consists of Southern Indiana inhabitants discussing their life histories and their affiliation with area churches. Many of the interviewees discuss growing up on a farm and community cooperation during butchering and threshing seasons. Throughout these interviews they discuss church history, church picnics, and the church community. They also talk about the merger of the Congregational, Reformed and Evangelical churches into the United Church of Christ. The interviewees discuss the changes this had on the church ceremonies and activities. Two of the interviewees attend the Catholic Churches in the area and they discuss traditions and changes that they have seen in the Catholic Church since Vatican II and throughout their lifetimes.

The project, Dubois County: German Americans, deals with an area in Indiana rich with German Heritage. The interviewees discuss the history of the area, their lives and lifestyles, and the importance of religion, usually German Catholicism. They also discuss German dialects still spoken in and around the county, as well as how the language has influenced their English speaking.

This collection of interviews deals with life in Hoosier communities in southern Indiana, primarily during the mid-twentieth century. Emphasis is placed on the use of the German language, German culture, and religion, and how they have molded the community.

This collection of interviews deals with the role of religion and ethnicity, specifically German-American, in Dubois County, Indiana. Subjects range from church celebrations and events to the use of nuns as teachers in the public schools. The use of the German language in the community is also widely covered, such as where it was used, who spoke it, and when it began to change primarily to English.

This collection of interviews delves into several areas of Dubois County history between the two world wars. The most spoken of topics are religion, church events, and the use of German in various locales within the community. Also discussed are Prohibition and the notoriety of the county's moonshine industry, the Great Depression, and education in one-room schoolhouses.

This collection contains 5 interviews with 7 people conducted by John Bodnar in 1981 for the Pennsylvania State Archives oral history project "Nanticoke Women Oral History Project." The people being interviewed were born in the late 19th and early 20th century and lived in the mining towns of Nanticoke and Plymouth, Pennsylvania. These towns were involved with the coal mining unions and strikes of the 1920's and 1930's. Some of interviewees worked in the mines while others had other occupations. Of the 7 people interviewed, 6 are of Polish descent with either their parent(s) or grandparent(s) immigrating to the U.S., while the other person was born in Italy and moved to the United States at the age of 15. Among the topics brought up, there is a lot of emphasis on the strikes that went on in the 1920's and 1930's involving the United Mine Workers and the union that broke off from them, the United Anthracite Miners. Many key figures from this time are discussed including John L. Lewis, Thomas Maloney, John Fine, Judge W. A. Valentine, and Rinaldo Capellini. The interviewees discuss the impact that the strikes and politics of the coal mines had on their jobs and towns. They speak of the violence that occurred at the time including dynamite attacks, fighting during the strikes, and the assassination of Thomas Maloney, who was a president of the United Anthracite Miners.

Interviewees discuss working at the Bloomington RCA plant from the 1940s until the plant's closing in 1978. They describe the unions, family life, immigration, Brown County farming, and work life.