Cultures & Communities - Overview
Furniture, cooking wares, clothing, works of art, and many other kinds of artifacts are part of what knit people into communities and cultures. The Museum’s collections feature artifacts from European Americans, Latinos, Arab Americans, Asian Pacific Americans, African Americans, Gypsies, Jews, and Christians, both Catholics and Protestants. The objects range from ceramic face jugs made by enslaved African Americans in South Carolina to graduation robes and wedding gowns. The holdings also include artifacts associated with education, such as teaching equipment, textbooks, and two complete schoolrooms. Uniforms, insignia, and other objects represent a wide variety of civic and voluntary organizations, including youth and fraternal groups, scouting, police forces, and firefighters.
"Cultures & Communities - Overview" showing 44 items.
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Accordian Player, Louisiana
- Description
- The first accordion was built in Germany in 1822. It took close to one hundred years before it was introduced into country music.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- negative
- 1977
- 2003
- maker
- Horenstein, Henry
- ID Number
- 2003.0169.027
- accession number
- 2003.0169
- catalog number
- 2003.0169.027
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Waylon Jennings
- Description
- Waylon Jennings's first single, the Cajun song "Jole Blon," was produced by Buddy Holly in 1958. Jennings (1937-2002) moved to a more hardcore country sound by the 1970s. Rejecting slick commercial conventions of the time and demanding more control of his music, Jennings's professional and personal lifestyle personified what became known as the Outlaw Country movement.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- negative
- 1975
- 2003
- maker
- Horenstein, Henry
- ID Number
- 2003.0169.029
- accession number
- 2003.0169
- catalog number
- 2003.0169.029
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Stringbean
- Description
- Nationally known by the 1950s, "Stringbean" David Akeman (1915-1973) was a country comedian and exceptional banjo player. He is credited with reviving interest in the banjo in bluegrass and country music. He made his first banjo from a shoebox and string, and later went on to play with Bill Monroe's Band. Uncle Dave Macon mentioned Stringbean in classic jokes and traditional tunes, and was among the first Opry members to join the cast of Hee Haw. Publicity photographs in the background of this picture include Jean Shepherd, Wilma Lee and Stoney Cooper, Stringbean himself, Bobby Lord, Bill Anderson, Flatt and Scruggs, the Browns, and the Four Guys.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- negative
- 1972
- 2003
- maker
- Horenstein, Henry
- ID Number
- 2003.0169.031
- accession number
- 2003.0169
- catalog number
- 2003.0169.031
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Holy Modal Rounders
- Description
- The Holy Modal Rounders, a folk/country band, was formed in 1961 by guitarist Steve Weber (right) and banjoist and fiddler Peter Stampfel in New York City's Greenwich Villiage. The popular music label, Rounder Records, owes its name to this innovative and controversial band.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- negative
- 1972
- 2003
- maker
- Horenstein, Henry
- ID Number
- 2003.0169.032
- accession number
- 2003.0169
- catalog number
- 2003.0169.032
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Jeannie C. Riley
- Description
- Best known for her crossover hit, "Harper Valley PTA," Jeannie C. Riley (b. 1945) is pictured her on her tour bus.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- negative
- 1973
- 2003
- maker
- Horenstein, Henry
- ID Number
- 2003.0169.033
- accession number
- 2003.0169
- catalog number
- 2003.0169.033
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Mack Magaha
- Description
- Mach Magaha (1929-2003) was a sought-after bluegrass fiddler. A member of Don Reno and Red Smiley's Tennessee Cut-Ups in the 1950s and 1960s, he next worked with Porter Wagoner for nearly twenty years.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- negative
- 1975
- 2003
- maker
- Horenstein, Henry
- ID Number
- 2003.0169.037
- accession number
- 2003.0169
- catalog number
- 2003.0169.037
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Stoney and Wilma Lee Cooper
- Description
- The Coopers welcomed Henry Horestein in their home, a great example of the accessibility of stars just thirty years ago. Wilma Lee (Leigh Leary, b. 1921) and Stoney Cooper (Dale Troy, 1918-1977) ranked as one of the great husband-wife teams in country music. Their musical careers helped to bridge older and newer styles.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- negative
- 1974
- 2003
- maker
- Horenstein, Henry
- ID Number
- 2003.0169.038
- accession number
- 2003.0169
- catalog number
- 2003.0169.038
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
"Hot Nuts" Fred's Lounge, Mamou, Louisiana
- Description
- Fred's Lounge was a well-known honky-tonk in the heart of Cajun country. The bar opened at 7 a.m. on Saturday mornings to host the droves of visitors who came to hear the local bands that played from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- negative
- 1977
- 2003
- maker
- Horenstein, Henry
- ID Number
- 2003.0169.039
- accession number
- 2003.0169
- catalog number
- 2003.0169.039
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Carol Lee Cooper
- Description
- Carol Lee Cooper (b.1942) provided vocal backup with her Carol Lee Singers for almost all the Grand Ole Opry acts beginning in the 1960s. Often without sheet music to work from and no time for a rehearsal, she devised a special system of hand signals for conducting the singers. On the dressing table is a lyric book in which she wrote the words of the songs and made notes. The photographer can be seen on the far right in the mirror.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- negative
- 1974
- 2003
- maker
- Horenstein, Henry
- ID Number
- 2003.0169.044
- accession number
- 2003.0169
- catalog number
- 2003.0169.044
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center
Minnie Pearl and Pee Wee King
- Description
- "How-dee! Ah'm so glad to be here," may be one of the most familiar and beloved radio greetings, Minnie Pearl (Sarah Ophelia Colley Cannon, 1912-1996) ranked among the premier comedians on the Grand Ole Opry and in country music. For decades she entertained audiences with gossip about the residents of her fictional town, Grinder's Switch. She joined the Opry in 1940 and later went on to star in the television show Hee Haw in the 1970s.
- Minnie Pearl's costume consisting of her famous straw hat with the dangling price tag, the pink and white gingham dress, and maryjane-style shoes became part of the National Museum of Amercian History's collection after she donated them in 1993.
- Location
- Currently not on view
- negative
- 1973
- 2003
- maker
- Horenstein, Henry
- ID Number
- 2003.0169.050
- accession number
- 2003.0169
- catalog number
- 2003.0169.050
- Data Source
- National Museum of American History, Kenneth E. Behring Center