About the Oral History Collections

Begun in 1973, the BHS Oral History Collection currently contains interviews with over 300 narrators and continues to grow. The collection consists of both legacy projects conducted from 1973 - 1998, and new projects undertaken by the BHS Oral History Program instituted in 2006. The majority of interviews in the collection were conducted as part of projects centered on a specific theme, such as the Neighborhood of Crown Heights, Puerto Rican Community, Brooklyn Navy Yard Workers, or the Williamsburg Giglio Festival. There are also a significant number of individual interviews with Brooklynites that are not associated with a larger project.

Whenever possible, BHS gives researchers access to the audio/video of the interview, not just the transcript, because voice contains so much information that cannot be translated into text. Transcripts and recordings of interviews can be accessed in the library. For more information about identifying oral histories relevant to your research, see our search the collections page.

Highlights from our Oral History Collection are available on our blog.

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