Talkin' Music - Episode 1: Taking Root, Voices Heard, Part 1

Fri, 03/07/2025 - 6:30am

In this episode, we hear about the origins of the Our Own Thing Chorale and Instructional Program with founder and special guest Dr. Willis C. Patterson. Dr. Patterson recalls the importance of music in his own development, especially as a member of the Dunbar Community Chorus.
 

Sesquicentennial Interview: Linnia Knox Carpenter

Wed, 11/06/2024 - 11:49am

This interview was conducted in 1974 as part of the I Remember When  television series produced by the Ann Arbor Public Library.

Black Foodways

Wed, 10/02/2024 - 8:02pm

In this video compiled from dozens of interviews from the Living Oral History Project and the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive, participants share their memories of food and food traditions in their families, including fishing on the Huron River, hosting Fourth of July barbecues, and even starting a restaurant.

The Living Oral History Project is a partnership between the African American Cultural & Historical Museum of Washtenaw County and the Ann Arbor District Library, providing a permanent home for 50+ interviews with Black community members collected over the past decade. The collection continues to grow with interviews added each year.

The There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive contains 35 interviews that went into the research and making of a documentary film about the closing of Jones School, produced by the Ann Arbor District Library and 7 Cylinders Studio.

There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Martha Monk Hill

Sat, 08/10/2024 - 5:51pm

Martha Monk Hill attended Jones School from kindergarten through sixth grade, and she grew up on North Fifth Avenue with her foster parents Arnell and Bill Ridley. She recalls how her neighbors supported one another, especially parental figures like Carroll and Annette McFadden and Waltstine Perry.

More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.

There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Mary Hinton-Branner

Sat, 08/10/2024 - 5:37pm

Mary Hinton-Branner attended Jones School in the 1950s, from kindergarten through sixth grade. She remembers going to the Dunbar Community Center and playing in the neighborhood with her eleven siblings. She recalls how the rise in public housing led to the gentrification of “The Old Neighborhood.”

More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.

There Went The Neighborhood - Studio Interview: Alma Wheeler Smith

Wed, 08/07/2024 - 2:06pm

Alma Wheeler Smith grew up in post-WWII Ann Arbor with two activist parents, Albert and Emma Wheeler. She recalls participating in picketing and demonstrations against segregation and redlining in Ann Arbor. She shares her perspective on her parents’ involvement in the decision to close Jones School.

This interview was filmed during the making of the documentary film There Went The Neighborhood: The Closing of Jones School, produced by the Ann Arbor District Library and 7 Cylinders Studio. More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.

There Went The Neighborhood - Studio Interview: Russell Calvert

Wed, 08/07/2024 - 2:01pm

Russell Calvert attended Jones School from kindergarten through sixth grade in the post-WWII era. He recalls the strong influence of Black business owners like his father, Burgess Calvert, and Charlie Baker. He tells the story of “The Old Neighborhood” before it became known as Kerrytown.

This interview was filmed during the making of the documentary film There Went The Neighborhood: The Closing of Jones School, produced by the Ann Arbor District Library and 7 Cylinders Studio. More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.

There Went The Neighborhood - Studio Interview: Cheryl O'Neal

Wed, 08/07/2024 - 1:58pm

Cheryl (Jewett) O’Neal grew up in “The Old Neighborhood” before moving to the North side of Ann Arbor in 1960. Although she only attended Jones School in kindergarten, she had strong ties to friends and family in the neighborhood. She remembers the Dunbar Center and the Student Parent Center in the Jones building.

This interview was filmed during the making of the documentary film There Went The Neighborhood: The Closing of Jones School, produced by the Ann Arbor District Library and 7 Cylinders Studio. More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.