The Reed Fund was established in 2004 in honor of the esteemed old-time fiddler Henry Reed with an initial gift from founding American Folklife Center director and fiddler Alan Jabbour. The Fund provides biennial awards to support activities directly involving folk artists, especially when the activities reflect, draw upon, or strengthen the collections of the American Folklife Center. The life and work of Henry Reed is documented in the American Folklife Center's online collection "Fiddle Tunes of the Old Frontier." Historically, Reed Awards have ranged from $1000 to $2000.

Reed Fund projects and activities might include:

• Payments to folk artists, their families, their descendants, or their cultural communities in connection with publication or dissemination of documents (audio recordings, manuscripts, photographs, etc.) in the American Folklife Center's collections.
• Honoraria or reimbursement to folk artists for programs, such as concerts, workshops, or exhibitions which feature those folk artists and their arts.
• Programs honoring and celebrating folk artists for their cultural contributions.
• Support for the costs of documenting distinguished folk artists and the acquisition of resulting documentation by the Library of Congress.

Proposals are reviewed by a selection committee composed of professional staff of the American Folklife Center. Follow this link for a list of Previous Henry Reed Fund Awardees and their research projects.