GET GRANTS Wiregrass Archives, Wiregrass Black History Channel complete project AdminAugust 8, 2025010 views The Wiregrass Archives at Troy University Dothan and Mit Kirkland of the Wiregrass Black History Channel have completed a collaborative project funded by the Society of American Archivists. Titled “Capturing Black History in the Wiregrass,” the project features nine video interviews with African American residents of Dothan who lived through the era of racial segregation and desegregation. Seven interviews focused on places. Five interviewees discussed their childhoods in the former Southside neighborhood, razed in 1960 for Dothan’s first urban renewal project, and two discussed the former business and entertainment districts of Baptist Bottom and downtown’s Five Points. The last two focused on people. Dr. W. Charles Lewis talked about his book, “28 Black History Makers: Dothan, Alabama,” which he presented at the April 2025 John Woodham Memorial Lecture. Themar Long remembered his father Ted Long, “Stylist to the Stars,” who claimed 23 movie hair and makeup credits including “The Wiz,” “Dead Presidents” and “Hustle and Flow.” Director of the Wiregrass Archives Dr. Marty Olliff said this project is key to preserving oral history that would otherwise be lost. “Local history that stays locked in the memories of residents gets lost,” he said. “Capturing those memories first-hand and making them available to the public is important for institutions like the Wiregrass Archives. We’re so pleased that Mit Kirkland agreed to lend his expertise to this work.” Charles Hayes leads a tour of the Baptist Bottom neighborhood in Dothan. He points out locations of homes and businesses before most were removed after falling into disrepair. Kirkland, creator of the Wiregrass Black History Channel and longtime Dothan businessman and videographer, edited the interviews into individual stories for the YouTube channel. The Wiregrass Archives hosts the unedited footage and transcripts at the project website. The guided version, recorded as collection 298, is also available online. “Projects like this are rarely ‘one-and-done.’ They connect communities and cultural institutions in ways that spark more work and other projects,” Olliff said. “We already see some of that with proposals to capture history that’s held close and is in danger of being lost.” The nine interviewees include: Dr. Myland Brown; Curley Bruner, Jr.; Elmaree Gordon; Charles R. Hayes; Delois Lee; Dr. W. Charles Lewis; Themar Long by Billy Causey, Jr.; Robert “Cookie” Potter; and Dorothy Taylor-Muhammad. About the SAA Foundation Catalyst Grant The Society of American Archivists (SAA) Foundation Catalyst Grant program (formerly Strategic Grant Fund) provides funding to support complex archives projects. The Foundation prioritizes applications that demonstrate how the project will both advance one or more of the strategic goals of the SAA and SAA Foundation and articulate how the project can benefit the archival profession at large. Source link