In the 1930s and 40s, folklorists traveled the American South with recorders in hand and returned with seven hours of interviews with former slaves.
Those voices are now preserved at the Library of Congress’ American Folklife Center and were featured in a Nightline segment back in 1999.
This is the perfect time to hear these voices of the past.
Twenty-three interviewees, born between 1823 and the early 1860s, discuss how they felt about slavery, slaveholders, coercion of slaves, their families, and freedom. Several individuals sing songs, many of which were learned during the time of their enslavement. It is important to note that all of the interviewees spoke sixty or more years after the end of their enslavement, and it is their full lives that are reflected in these recordings.
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