Description of Project:
CGP Community Stories collects, preserves, and disseminates the diverse oral histories of the residents of Central New York State. A project of the Cooperstown Graduate Program (SUNY Oneonta), CGP Community Stories serves as a resource for local history researchers and a community record of significant transformations in the rural areas of New York State. We are committed to creating public programs that use oral histories to connect past and present and facilitate dialogue on critical social and environmental issues. Visitors to the website can explore themes central to the lives of the people who live and work in the agricultural heartland of the state. Key topics are: Environmental History, Family and Community Life, Farming, Tourism, Rural Healthcare, Social Justice and Activism, and Folklife.
For more information visit our about page.
How it was Made:
Graduate students from the Cooperstown Graduate Program approach oral history in a way that is influenced by the discipline of folklore. Folklore, through connecting communities to their past, is cultural DNA (American Folklore Society). Folklorists study the stories and knowledge of people; often, these narratives and practices have been passed through the generations by word of mouth. Oral narratives give opportunities for everyday people to share their viewpoints on the past. Each collection on this website includes the diverse stories of community members within Central New York State, such as farmers, healthcare workers, museum professionals, or even human rights activists. Oral history interviews are becoming increasingly crucial in recording a representative history and addressing gaps in written records of the past. Whether an oral history interview tells a story of a World War II veteran or a Danish migrant, listeners can begin to illuminate the past from the great storytellers who were once present.
