American Folklife Center

On or about June 19, 1934, Alan Lomax arrived at Lake Arthur, Louisiana, to record the “Two Sweet Singers,” Becky Elzy and Alberta Bradford. The formerly enslaved spiritual singers had provided over a hundred songs for a previous collector's book, but they had not been recorded in an audio format. Alan and his father John A. Lomax had first sought the singers at Avery Island, but when they arrived, they found that Elzy had moved to Lake Arthur, which presented a problem. Alberta and Becky always sang together, so the Lomaxes needed both of them to get good recordings. But the previous day’s torrential rainfall had left the roads awash with mud. The recording equipment and batteries were heavy. Though Alan Lomax was a slender youth of 19, John and Alberta were both rather stout. The result was that the Lomaxes couldn’t be sure the car could carry all three of them as well as the equipment as far as Elzy’s new home and back without breaking down or getting stuck in the mud. The course of action was clear: the heftier Lomax was left behind, and Alan and Alberta drove off together. They found Elzy at her new home and recorded ten songs. These recordings of Bradford and Elzy may well be the first recordings Alan Lomax made alone without his father.

The date, of course, was Juneteenth, and it's remarkable that among other songs, Bradford and Elzy sang "Free At Last." We think hearing that song on Juneteenth, sung by people born in slavery, is a uniquely moving experience. Find all the songs and the story at the link!

https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2018/02/becky-elzy-and-alberta-bradford-spiritual-folklorists/?loclr=fbafc

Happy Birthday to Sir Paul McCartney! The singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist was born on June 18, 1942. He's known around the world as a member of The Beatles, but he got his start playing American folk tunes in the skiffle group The Quarrymen. He has been known to play traditional songs whose first recordings are in the American Folklife Center's archive, including "Midnight Special" and "Rock Island Line," which he learned from Lonnie Donegan, who in turn had learned them from Lead Belly. At the first link, watch a lecture and interview with Billy Bragg about the skiffle movement, in which he discusses Lead Belly, Donegan, and the Quarrymen.

https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2019/04/botkin-folklife-lectures-plus-billy-bragg/?loclr=fbafc

Paul McCartney is also the subject of several folk legends, including a story that he was killed in an accident in the 1960s and replaced by an impostor. That legend has also been attached to other celebrities. Read about Paul's reaction to the legend, and its connection to older versions of the story, in the post at the second link, over at "Folklife Today."

https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2017/02/fake-news-folk-news-and-the-fate-of-far-away-moses/?loclr=fbafc

Paul McCartney was awarded the Gershwin Prize by the Library of Congress in 2010. This photo was taken in the Coolidge Auditorium on June 1, 2010, by Abby Brack Lewis.

Happy Birthday Peggy Seeger! Born June 17, 1935, Peggy Seeger is a traditional folk singer and songwriter who has used her music and humor to further the cause of human rights. She has been a friend of the Archive of Folk Culture since her childhood, when her mother Ruth Crawford Seeger worked here transcribing songs for John and Alan Lomax.

She performed in the concert "Seeger Tribute: Pete, Mike and Peggy Seeger with the Short Sisters in concert" in 2007. Her solo begins at about 40 minutes into the video, and she presents her song "How I Long for Peace" at about 1 hour into the video (1:01:00): https://www.loc.gov/item/webcast-4337?loclr=fbafc

Peggy's song was the inspiration for an Archive Challenge classic by Crys Matthews, Rhiannon Giddens, and friends. Read about that and hear their version of Peggy's song at the second link:

https://blogs.loc.gov/folklife/2025/09/crys-matthews-peggy-seeger-rhiannon-giddens-and-how-i-long-for-peace-archive-challenge-spotlight/?loclr=fbafc

If you want to know more about Peggy you can also find a book talk by biographer Jean Freedman on "Peggy Seeger: A Life of Music, Love, and Politics," presented at the Library of Congress in 2017: https://www.loc.gov/item/webcast-8218?loclr=fbafc

Image: Peggy Seeger performing at the Library of Congress in 2007. AFC Robert Corwin Collection.

We had a blast at Saturday's fashion-themed Family Day. Thanks to our collaborators, the Legacy Collective, and all who attended the event. Be sure to join AFC again at the September 16th Family Day at the Library of Congress.

Photos featuring Legacy Collective members Diana N'Diaye, Camila Bryce-LaPorte, and Sehar Peerzada, taken by Dr. Andrea Decker.

Today, we were delighted to welcome students and faculty from the University of Nebraska at Omaha to the American Folklife Center. We had a great afternoon discussing our AIDS Quilt Memorial collection, the COVID-19 American History Project, and other public health-related collections at the AFC. Thanks for your visit and for the great questions!

AIDS Memorial Quilt collection: https://www.loc.gov/collections/aids-memorial-quilt-records/about-this-collection/

COVID-19 American History Project: https://www.loc.gov/collections/covid-19-american-history-project/about-this-collection/

This Saturday, beginning at 10:30am, the American Folklife Center will be at Family Day--a Library of Congress event to celebrate 250 years of American fashion for the entire family. AFC be joined by the Legacy Collective, a group of local multidisciplinary artists and members of the African American Craft Alliance, who will present a vibrant display of African and African American textile and fashion traditions. On Folklife Today, learn more about this upcoming event and this collaboration. See you there!

Join AFC and The Legacy Collective for June Family Day: 250 Years of American Fashion | Folklife Today On June 13th, the American Folklife Center joins June Family Day: 250 Years of American Fashion. We will be joined by The Legacy Collective, a group of local multi-disciplinary artists and members of the African American Craft Alliance, who will present a compelling display of African and African Am...

Right now in the Whittall Pavilion: Greg Harris, president and CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Harris is a folklorist trained in Museum Studies at Cooperstown. He’s lecturing on folklore, baseball, and rock and roll!

This Saturday, June 13, join the American Folklife Center for Family Day at the Library of Congress. From 10:30am - 3:30pm, AFC and other Library staff will organize family friendly events and display tables around the day's theme of American Fashion. For more information, visit: https://www.loc.gov/item/event-420863/june-family-day-250-years-of-american-fashion/2026-06-13/?loclr=fbafc

Family Day will also include an author talk from Carlotta Walls LaNier, the youngest of the Little Rock Nine, and illustrator Vanessa Brantley-Newton. They will discuss “Carlotta’s Special Dress: How a Walk to School Changed Civil Rights History,” a true story about a girl, home-made dress and the historic fight to attend an all-white school in Little Rock, Arkansas. Separate registration is required for the author talk, which can be accessed here: https://www.etix.com/ticket/p/76619225/family-daycarlottas-special-dressin-civil-rights-history-washington-events-from-the-library-of-congress

As the American Folklife Center turns 50 this year, we're continuing to look back on key moments in the AFC's history. On Folklife Today, read Steve Winick's third post about the AFC's opening party in 1976. The entry also features great recordings and photos of The Irish Tradition, John Jackson, and the Country Gentlemen--all of whom performed at the opening event.

The First Musical Evening Sponsored by the American Folklife Center (Part 3) | Folklife Today On February 19, 1976, in what could be considered the first official action of the American Folklife Center, the Library of Congress hosted a reception to celebrate the passage of the American Folklife Preservation Act, which established the Center as part of the Library. The event featured speeches...

It's the anniversary of a long-ago sea battle commemorated in the ballad "Wild Barbaree," sung by Carrie Grover on an AFC recording at the link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RwYf2tMvp8

On June 4, 1590, a sea battle occurred off Gibraltar between the English ships "George" and "Thomas Bonaventure" and a number of pirate vessels. A broadside song was published in July of that year with the title "A Ditty of the Fight upon the seas the 4 of June last in the Straits of Jubraltare between the George and the Thomas Bonaventure against eight gallies with three Frigates." That song is the ancestor of "The George Aloe and the Sweepstake," which in turn became the song "High Barbaree."

Hear another version sung by Ewan MacColl at the second link:

https://archive.culturalequity.org/node/57840

The image shows a sea battle in 1593. It's "Johannes Staden of Hessen fights with French ship at Buttugaris, Brazil" Reproduction Number LC-USZ62-45085