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Occupational Folklife: Resources in the American Folklife Center

Searching the Collections

The American Folklife Center (AFC) has numerous collections that relate to the topic of occupational folklife. Using the Library of Congress Online Catalog, the searches below will bring you to a limited number of catalog records that can get you started. For more specific or focused research based on your interests we suggest you use the "Ask a Librarian" service in order to connect with one of our reference specialists .

Collection Finding Aids

Finding aids provide a gateway to this wealth of Library treasures, helping you discover and navigate through the thousands of boxes and folders that house each collection. These guides provide comprehensive overviews of unique Library resources. Progressively detailed descriptions of a collection's component parts summarize the overall scope of the content, convey details about the individuals and organizations involved, and list box and folder headings. Special service conditions are noted, including terms under which the collection may be accessed or copied. Links are provided to digitized content, when available.

Library of Congress finding aids are XML documents created using the Encoded Archival Description (EAD), an international standard maintained by the Library of Congress in partnership with the Society of American Archivists.

Selected Finding Aids

Collections of Interest

The following collection titles link to fuller bibliographic information in the Library of Congress Online Catalog. Links to additional online content, including finding aids for the collections, are included when available.

Selected Collections

These collections are illustrative of the kinds of materials the American Folklife Center houses for the topic of "occupational folklife."