Sterling A. Brown Papers on Black culture and society available for research

Howdy world! This is your friendly neighborhood processing archivist, Irene, with an exciting update about the Sterling A. Brown (SAB) papers: materials are now available for use in the Weber reading room through our finding aid

I had the great opportunity to begin working on the SAB papers in August 2024. With some dedicated time and effort, the first batch of materials are now available for research use with an updated finding aid to reflect arrangement and description. These materials relate to SAB’s efforts to document and research Black culture and society in early 20th century America. In particular, these materials cover two seminal projects: the Federal Writers’ Project (FWP) of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and the Carnegie-Myrdal Study of the Negro in America. SAB was the Editor on Negro Affairs for the FWP and oversaw a large scale research team dedicated to publishing works on Black history and community in various states and cities, some of which can be found in our library catalog. WPA/FWP materials include manuscripts, correspondence, research materials, and notes, primarily from the mid-1930s to the very early 1940s. The Carnegie-Myrdal Study was a research project funded by the Carnegie Foundation for the purpose of examining Black life in America. With the help of an extensive research team, which included SAB, Swedish sociologist, Gunnar Myrdal, published the noted monograph, “An American Dilemma: The Negro Problem and Modern Democracy.” Materials for the Carnegie-Myrdal Study mostly consist of research materials, manuscript drafts, and correspondence from the late 1930s to the early 1940s. SAB produced an unpublished research memorandum titled, “The Negro in American Culture” for the study. Given the close time frames, materials from both sections cover similar topics with additional materials also tangentially related to SAB’s interest in Black literature, arts, culture, and folklore in other areas of the collection.

While the Sterling A. Brown papers have been used by students and researchers for years, this is the first time researchers will have access to a finding aid that reflects the arrangement and description of materials. Usually, providing access to the SAB papers requires detailed discussions with Special Collections staff on what materials were needed and where they were located. These materials have now been properly labeled and indexed, which allows for much greater accessibility and use for everyone. Yet, there is still much work to be done! This is only the first series of materials to be released! Other series include Correspondence (letters to SAB); Teaching (materials related to SAB’s teaching career); Photographs; Financial Papers; Writings by Others; and Writings by SAB. These are all a work in progress and should be available by next spring. Please note that this means the finding aid will change as processing of other series are completed. 

The Social Research series of the Sterling A. Brown papers is available through our finding aid. Please contact us for more information. Please note that the finding aid (including arrangement and description) will change until processing has been completed in Spring 2025. Additional blog posts will be published to keep the Williams community and the public informed. 

–Irene Lule, Processing Archivist