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Title	Ralph Steele Boggs (interview)
Description	This interview is included in the Indiana University Folklore Institute, 1987 Collection at the Indiana University Center for the Study of History and Memory. In this interview, Ralph Steele Boggs, born on November 17, 1901, discusses his interest in folklore. His interest in linguistics in college introduced him to folklore by way of Professor Archer Taylor who convinced him to do his dissertation in this area. Through Taylor and the dissertation, he became acquainted with Stith Thompson. This friendship brought Boggs in contact with Indiana University, where he helped to develop the first folklore institute, using the same methods he had developed in the past developing folklore institutes at other institutions. He discusses what made the folklore program so strong at Indiana University, including its international appeal, and the zest of both Stith Thompson and Richard Dorson that helped make the program strong. Boggs talks about his dislike of the artificiality that is often connected with folklore. He also discusses some terms in folklore, particularly the definition of folklore itself. This collection is part of the Indiana University Folklore Institute, 1987 collection which is available at the Indiana University Center for the Study of History and Memory. It consists of: 64 page transcript, 3 tapes (1 7/8 ips, 2 hours 45 minutes), index and the correspondences of the interviewee. This collection is closed until 2015 except to authorized project personnel. The IU Folklore Institute, 1987 collection deals with the beginning, the building, and the growth of the Indiana University (IU) Folklore Institute into an internationally recognized program. The interviewees are mostly students and/or faculty of the folklore program from the 1940s to the 1980s. They discuss those who most influenced and impacted the institute, namely Stith Thompson and Richard M. Dorson. They share their memories and experiences of the time they spent, or continue to spend, in the IU Folklore Institute.
Interviewee	Boggs, Ralph S. (Ralph Steele), 1901-1994;
Folklorist's Area of Focus	Spanish and South American folklore
Where the folklorist taught	University of North Carolina
Interviewer	Harrah-Conforth, Jeanne, 1954-
Other Contributors	Harrah-Johnson, Jeanne, 1954-;
Subject (LCSH)	Taylor, Archer, 1890-1973 Thompson, Stith, 1885-1976 Folklorists--United States--Interviews
Subject Keywords	International reputation Teaching Folklore definitions Fakelore Academic program funding Indiana University Folklore Summer Institute
Genre	Interviews Transcripts Sound recordings Oral histories
Publisher	Indiana University Center for the Study of History and Memory;
Original Date	February 20, 1987
Geographic Location of Interview	Indiana University, Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana, United States, http://sws.geonames.org/4259408/
Geographic Locations discussed	Indiana University, Bloomington, Monroe County, Indiana, United States, http://sws.geonames.org/4259408/
Time periods covered	20th century 1980-1989
Language	eng
Where can I find the original?	This collection is available at the Indiana University Center for the Study of History and Memory under the call number 87-029. Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office. ;
Access	Not available online - held remotely at Indiana University Center for the Study of History and Memory
Source URL	Original interview: http://webapp1.dlib.indiana.edu/findingaids/view?brand=general&docId=ohrc070&chunk.id=d1e720&startDoc=1 . This item is only available in a cassette audio format or a paper transcript. It is currently not available in digital format.
Physical Collection Information	IU Folklore Institute, 1987
This collection is part of the	Indiana University Folklore Institute, 1987 Collection, available at the Indiana University Center for the Study of History and Memory
Rights	Copies of transcript pages are available only when such copies are permitted by the deed of gift signed by the interviewee. Scholars must honor any restrictions the interviewee placed on the use of an interview. Since some of our earlier (pre-computer) transcripts do not yet exist in final form, any editing marks in a transcript (deletions, additions, corrections) are to be quoted as marked. Tapes may not be copied for patrons unless the deed of gift permits it. Because our interviewees edit their transcripts, the transcript (if one exists) is the only version of the interview that may be quoted for publication. Interviews may not be reproduced in full for any public use, but excerpted quotes may be used as long as scholars fully cite any Indiana University Center for the Study of History and Memory data in their research, including accession number, interview date, interviewee's and interviewer's names, and page(s). Please see http://www.indiana.edu/~cshm/copycost.html for more details.
Digital History Collection	Collecting Memories - Oral Histories of American Folklorists
Type	Image StillImage
Format	image/jpeg
Search Date	1987-02-20
Identifier	DNO-IU-Logo.jpg
Checksum	3045718801
File Size	15558 Bytes
Color Space	RGB
Height	390
Width	512
Scanning resolution	600

Ralph Steele Boggs (interview)

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