As part of a nationwide campaign to recognize the importance of archives to teaching and research, in October the IU Libraries will present a month-long series of events that documents the Great Depression.

 

The celebration features exhibitions, film showings, a sing-along of popular music from the 1930s, and discussions.

 

“Our troubled economy clearly provides context for the theme this year,” says Indiana University archivist and organizer Phil Bantin. “Archives and special collections, in their many forms, help us better understand our shared history.”

 

This is the fourth year IU and community organizations have participated in the nationwide observance organized by the Society of American Archivists. In 2008, the Society of American Archivists recognized IU’s campaign as the best in the country.

 

Related exhibitions are sponsored by the Monroe County History Center, IU Art Museum,IU Press, Fine Arts Library, Lilly Library, and Herman B Wells Library.

 

All events are free and open to the public.

 

For event details visit: www.indiana.edu/~libevent/09

 

Panel Discussion: Monday, Oct. 5, 7–8:30 p.m., Dealing with Hard Times: Popular Music During the Depression, Monroe County Public Library Auditorium.

 

Keynote Speaker and Reception: Wed, Oct. 7, 5 p.m., Mildred Kalish, author, Little Heathens: Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm During the Great Depression, Monroe County Public Library Auditorium.

 

Film Series: Beginning Tuesday, Oct. 6, 7 p.m., and weekly thereafter,“The Great Depression in Black and White,” sponsored by the Herman B Wells Library and Black Film Center/Archive, Wells Library E174.

 

Noon Talk: Wednesday, Oct. 7,  12:15–1:00 p.m., Modern Art and Politics: Stuart Davis and the Federal Art Project, Sponsored by the IU Art Museum, Gallery of the Art of the Western World, Doris Steinmetz Kellett Gallery of Twentieth-century Art, first floor.

 

Noon Talk: Monday, Oct. 12, 12 p.m. Conservation, Communities, and Cameras, Herman B Wells Library E174.

 

Film Series: Beginning Tuesday, Oct. 13, noon, and weekly thereafter, Farm Security Administration Documentaries, Herman B Wells Library E174.

 

Open House: Tuesday, Oct. 20 2:00 – 5:00 p.m.^, University Archives, Herman B Wells Library E460.

 

Presentation: Tuesday, Oct. 27, 12 – 1 p.m., “WPA Federal Radio Project Recordings and the Sound Directions Project, ” Morrison Hall 006.

 

Noon Talk: Wednesday, Oct. 28,12:15–1:00 p.m., Faces and Farms: Photographs of Rural America in the Depression, IU Art Museum,Gallery of the Art of the Western World, Doris Steinmetz Kellett Gallery of Twentieth-century Art, first floor.

 

Performance and Reception: Thursday, Oct 29, 5 p.m., “Brother Can You Spare a Dime: Popular Music from the Great Depression”.