Audio-Video Barn

The Audio-Video Barn is a production of the Illinois State Museum's Oral History of Illinois Agriculture (OHIA) project. The mission of the Illinois State Museum is to promote discovery and learning about Illinois' natural, cultural, and artistic heritage. In accord with this mission, Museum curators are interested in exploring the historical relationships between climate, landscape, biota, and human endeavor. The Oral History of Illinois Agriculture project is a natural outgrowth of this research orientation. Although the focus on recent agricultural history is new, the subject matter is a logical extension of the Museum's longstanding interest in human interactions with the natural world.

The OHIA project, funded by a federal grant, is a partnership of the Illinois State Museum (ISM) with four educational institutions: the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum (ALPLM) in Springfield, Brookens Library at the University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS), Founders Memorial Library at Northern Illinois University (NIU), and The Randforce Associates LLC, University at Buffalo Technology Incubator, State University of New York (SUNY).

• Illinois State Museum
• Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum
• University of Illinois at Springfield
• Northern Illinois University
• Randforce Associates LLC

Institute of Museum and Library Services

The Oral History of Illinois Agriculture project is generously supported by a two-year National Leadership Grant to the Illinois State Museum Society from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The mission of the IMLS is to create strong libraries and museums that connect people to information and ideas. The IMLS works at the national level and in coordination with state and local organizat ions to sustain heritage, culture, and knowledge; enhance learning and innovation; and support professional development. Without IMLS support, it would not have been possible to develop the many oral-history interviews residing in the Audio-Video Barn website. Special thanks to Dr. Anne-Imelda Radice (IMLS Director), Marsha Semmel (IMLS Deputy Director, Museum Services), Mary Estelle Kennelly (IMLS Associate Deputy Director, Museum Services), Dan Lukash (IMLS Senior Program Officer, Museum Services), and Jennifer Headley (IMLS Program Specialist, Museum Services) for their enthusiastic support of our project.

Illinois State Museum

The Illinois State Museum is the lead institution behind the Oral History of Illinois Agriculture project and the Audio-Video Barn website. ISM staff procured IMLS grant funding; developed partnerships with other institutions; hosted an Oral History of Illinois Agriculture Workshop for ISM staff, partners, and consultants; conducted 47 new interviews with 51 interviewees; processed and digitally indexed old and new interview recordings; and created the website.

Illinois State Museum Project Staff

• Dr. Robert E. Warren (Curator of Anthropology), Principal Investigator
• Michael Maniscalco (Research Associate), Project Coordinator
• Sue Huitt (Web Associate), Education and Web Development
• James Oliver (Research Associate), Digital Indexing
• Dr. Erich Schroeder (Associate Curator of Technology Learning Center), Webmaster
• Pat Burg (Librarian), Metadata
• Doug Carr (Museum Photographer), Photography
• Beth Shea (Chair of Education), Education
• Interviewers: Michael Maniscalco (ISM), Dr. Robert Warren (ISM), Charlyn Fargo (Illinois Department of Agriculture)
• Interns: Ashley Abruzzo (University of Illinois at Springfield), Tony Colantino (University of Illinois at Springfield), Amy Moore (University of Illinois at Springfield), Lee Scropos (Illinois College), Rachel Thompson (University of Illinois at Springfield), John Zimmerman (Illinois College)
• Volunteers: Linda Brand (Springfield, IL), Wendi Butler (Springfield, IL), Christina Goings (Decatur, IL), Angie Dunfee Hall (Springfield, IL), Erin Richey (Springfield, IL), Dennis Sweatman (Springfield, IL), Marjorie Wallé, Ed.D. (Springfield, IL), Jack Warren (Springfield, IL), Jennifer Wyatt (Springfield, IL)

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and MuseumThe Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum is ISM's main partner on the Oral History of Illinois Agriculture project. ALPLM staff hosted a workshop on oral-history methods and techniques, conducted 31 new interviews with 33 interviewees, coordinated the transcription of new interviews, and assisted with editing the website. The ALPLM also incorporated a number of new ISM and ALPLM interview recordings in a new temporary exhibit — "How Vast and How Varied a Field" The Agricultural Vision of Abraham Lincoln — that runs from June 15, 2009 to August 31, 2010.

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum Project Staff

• Dr. Mark R. DePue (Director of Oral History), Co-Principal Investigator
• Sam Cooper (Technical Director), Technical Support
• Trey McGhee (Communications Information Officer), Information Technology Support
• Interviewers: Dr. Mark R. DePue (ALPLM), Dr. Richard Hull (ALPLM Volunteer), Philip Pogue (ALPLM Volunteer), Don Shandrow (ALPLM Volunteer)
• Videography: Tony Bateman (Illinois Information Services), Norman Ibarra (Illinois Information Services), Gregg Lipe (Illinois Information Services), Mark Suszko (Illinois Information Services)
• Interns: Megan Coyle (University of Illinois at Springfield), Kathleen Ebeling (Eastern Illinois University)
• Volunteers: Ann Countryman (Springfield, IL), Rozanne Flatt (Springfield, IL)

University of Illinois at SpringfieldBrookens Library at the University of Illinois at Springfield provided access to digital audio recordings in its vast oral-history collection. This collection, founded in 1971 by Dr. Cullom Davis (UIS Emeritus Professor of History), contains 42 interviews with significant agricultural content that were recorded between 1972 and 1993. One remarkable example is a 1975 interview conducted by Horace Waggoner with a retired 97-year-old farmer, Mr. Bert Aikman. This interview recording, which spans 25 hours, is the longest in the Audio-Video Barn. Thanks to Thomas J. Wood (University Archivist, Brookens Library, UIS) for his enthusiastic support of the project. We are also grateful to Tom for recommending that we interview Jacqueline Jackson.

 Northern Illinois UniversityThe Regional History Center at Founders Memorial Library, Northern Illinois University, provided access to analog audio recordings in its oral-history collection. The collection includes 18 interviews with 19 interviewees that have significant agricultural content. All were recorded in 1986 by student interviewers in an oral-history class taught by Dr. Valerie Yow (Independent Scholar, Chapel Hill, North Carolina). Thanks to Dr. Glen A. Gildemeister (Former Director, Regional History Center, Founders Memorial Library, NIU) for his contributions to the IMLS grant proposal. Thanks also to Cindy Ditzler (Acting Director, Regional History Center, Founders Memorial Library, NIU) for her many contributions to the ongoing project.

 Randforce Associates LLCAnother key partner in the OHIA project is The Randforce Associates, LLC, located at the University at Buffalo Technology Incubator, State University of New York (SUNY). Randforce is an oral-history and multi-media documentary firm that has played a pioneering role in the digital indexing of audio and video recordings. Randforce was instrumental in making the Audio-Video Barn searchable by theme, topic, and keyword. Conversations with Dr. Michael Frisch, Randforce Principal, were very helpful in designing the project and preparing our IMLS grant proposal. Dr. Frisch and Douglas Lambert later presented an on-site Digital Indexing Workshop for ISM and ALPLM staff. They also assisted with the subdivision of interviews into segments and clips, the development of a hierarchy of control words and other indexing terms, and the application of search terms to the interview recordings. We are also grateful to Doug Lambert for participating in our special session on the OHIA project at the 2009 Oral History Association annual meeting in Louisville, Kentucky.

Randforce Associates, LLC

• Dr. Michael H. Frisch, Principal, Randforce Associates LLC, University at Buffalo Technology Incubator; Professor of History & American Studies, University at Buffalo, State University of New York (SUNY)
• Douglas Lambert, Associate, Randforce Associates LLC, University at Buffalo Technology Incubator (SUNY)

CONSULTANTS

We are grateful to professional conultants in Evaluation, Oral History, and Agriculture for their invaluable help with constructing the Audio-Video Barn. Each of the people listed below assisted with one or more phases of the project — from initial design and planning to staff training, interview production, data processing, and website development.

     Project Evaluator:

• Dr. Tom Clark, TA Consulting, Springfield, IL. As Project Evaluator, Tom produced visitor-interest and needs assessments, a logic model for evaluating project outputs and outcomes, and an outcome-based evaluation. Tom also presented a paper in our special session on the OHIA project at the 2009 Oral History Association annual meeting in Louisville, Kentucky.

     Oral History Consultants:

• Dr. Jane Adams, Professor, Departments of Anthropology and History, Southern Illinois at Carbondale (SIUC). Jane helped with the design and planning phases of the project. She also presented a paper entitled "Southern Illinois Farming in Historical Context" at ISM's Oral History of Illinois Agriculture Workshop in January, 2008.
• Dr. Cullom Davis, Emeritus Professor, Department of History, University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS). Cullom assisted with project design and staff training. He presented a Workshop on Oral History hosted by the ALPLM in May, 2007.
• Dr. Michael H. Frisch, Professor, Departments of History and American Studies, University at Buffalo, State University of New York (SUNY). Mike assisted in all phases of the project, from theory and conceptual design to implementation and production. He also presented a paper entitled "Digital Indexing of Oral History Recordings" at ISM's Oral History of Illinois Agriculture Workshop in January, 2008. Without Mike's help, the Audio-Video Barn would not exist.
• Dr. Deborah McGregor, Professor, Department of History, University of Illinois at Springfield (UIS). Deborah provided useful advice and key references during the planning phase of the project.

     Agriculture Consultants:

• Dr. LeRoy Biehl, Emeritus Professor, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). LeRoy assested with the planning phase of the project and also served as an interviewee in an interview conducted by Dr. Richard Hull.
• Charlyn Fargo, Bureau Chief, Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA). Charlyn, a former Agribusiness Editor for Springfield's State-Journal Register newspaper, was an invaluable resource in the planning and production phases of the project. She provided dozens of names of interview candidates, one of whom (Jim Burrus) she interviewed for the project in May, 2008. Charlyn also presented a paper entitled "Illinois Department of Agriculture" at ISM's Oral History of Illinois Agriculture Workshop in January, 2008.
• Dr. Douglas Parrett, Associate Chair, Department of Animal Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). Doug served as an invaluable guide to agricultural research and education at the University of Illinois. His recommendations led us to Dr. LeRoy Biehl at UIUC and Dr.  Edward Runge at Texas A&M University. Doug also presented a paper entitled "Current Research in Illinois Agriculture" at ISM's Oral History of Illinois Agriculture Workshop in January, 2008. Finally, Doug served as an interviewee in sit-down and walk-and-talk interviews conducted by Dr. Mark DePue at UIUC Round Barn #3 and at the Illinois State Fair.
• Dr. Edward Runge, Professor, Department of Soil & Crop Sciences, Texas A&M University (TAMU). Ed, an Illinois native, served as a consultant on crop sciences and soil sciences. He also participated as an interviewee in an interview conducted by Dr. Mark DePue.
• Dr. Debra A. Reid, Associate Professor, Department of History, Eastern Illinois University at Charleston (EIU). Debra is an Illinois farm girl who teaches history at EIU and a course on the history of Illinois agriculture at UIUC. She presented a paper entitled "History of Illinois Agriculture" at ISM's Oral History of Illinois Agriculture Workshop in January, 2008.
• Steven A. Simms, Promotion and Graphic Arts Director, Illinois Farm Bureau, Bloomington (IFB). Steven was instrumental in developing a detailed list of more than ninety interview candidates representing people of different backgrounds and agricultural experiences from throughout the state. He also gave a presentation entitled "History of the Illinois Farm Bureau" at ISM's Oral History of Illinois Agriculture Workshop in January, 2008.

DEDICATION

Richard "R.B." WarrenThe Audio-Video Barn is dedicated to the memory of Richard "R.B." Warren (1925-2003), a renowned Professor of Animal Science at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL). After completing an M.S. degree in Animal Breeding at Oklahoma State University, R.B. became an Assistant Professor of Animal Husbandry and coached the livestock-judging team at Michigan State University. He joined the UNL Animal Science faculty in 1956, where he taught animal-science classes, coached livestock- and horse-judging teams, and developed the Nebraska 4-H Horse Program for UNL Extension. He served as President of the National Livestock Coaches Association and the National Block & Bridle Club. He was a nationally approved Quarter Horse and Appaloosa judge, and also judged breeding and market shows in beef, swine, and sheep. Among his numerous awards are the Ak-Sar-Ben Agricultural Achievement Award, an Award of Merit from the Nebraska Department of Agriculture, and the UNL Distinguished Teaching Award. UNL honored his teaching career in 1983 with the "R.B. Warren 4-H Horse Educational Scholarship."  UNL later memorialized him with the "R.B. Warren Judging Team Scholarship" and the 2006 dedication of the "R.B. Warren Arena" in the UNL Animal Science building. After retiring from UNL as Professor Emeritus in 1990, R.B. joined the National Senior Pro Rodeo circuit to compete in calf roping and team roping. R.B. Warren was a source of inspiration during the design and production of this website.