All Things Gullah ... Just in time for the Festival

The term "Gullah" or "Geechee" describes a unique group of African Americans descended from enslaved Africans who settled along the Atlantic coast, often on sea islands, between what is now Wilmington, NC to Jacksonville, FL. Gullah is a broad culture embracing the political, social, economic, linguistic, and artistic life of native African-American Sea Islanders.

The Gullah people have made (and continue to make) a lasting impact on this area's local culture and history.  Therefore, the Beaufort District Collection is home to an extensive Gullah/Geechee historical collection of books, manuscripts, pamphlets, vertical files, videos, and more! As Wilbur Cross noted in his book Gullah Culture in America (Praeger, 2008), Beaufort County Library "has one of the South's largest collections of materials on the Gullah language and the sea island culture." Here are just a few highlights to whet your appetite to learn more about Gullah/Geechee sea island culture:

305.8961 CAM Gullah Cultural Legacies by Emory Campbell

305.8961 CRO Gullah Culture in America by Wilbur Cross
398 JOH Folk Culture on St. Helena Island, South Carolina by Guy B. Johnson
427.9757 TUR Africanisms in the Gullah Dialect by Lorenzo Dow Turner
641.59757 ROB Cooking the Gullah Way: morning, noon, and night by Sallie Ann Robinson
641.59757 SEG My Gullah Kitchen by Eva Segar

975 POL The Gullah People and Their African Heritage by William S. Pollitzer
975.799 GOD God's Gonna Trouble the Water [DVD] by Teresa Bruce

Sweet Grass Baskets courtesy of Teri Norris

Don’t forget to view these Beaufort County History Moments segments about Gullah Culture presented by Emory Campbell, former Director of Penn Center and past chairman of the Gullah-Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor Commission, on YouTube: Gullah Language, Gullah Food, and Marsh Tackies.  (Beaufort County History Moments were a joint project of the Beaufort County Planning Department, Beaufort County Library, the County Channel, and Coastal Discovery Museum in 2011 - 2012.)

In addition to a vast array of book materials, we have some collections of newspaper and magazine clippings, culture reports, and other ephemeral materials in vertical files, among which are these:

Low Country Gullah Culture Special Resource Study
Festivals--Native Islander Gullah Celebration
Festivals--Gullah Festival
Gullah Culture, Pilot Study, 2000-2002. Ohio University, Southern Campus
Gullah Culture--Tours

Check out our list of links and materials on the topic of Gullah Culture in our Wordpress blog, too. 

The St. Helena Branch Library near Penn Center has a reference collection of Gullah/Geechee materials on site in addition to its BDC sponsored and managed local history section.

Several local organizations advocate and celebrate their Gullah roots. Additional information is available through Penn Center, the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition, and the Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor. And, of course, the 32nd annual Original Gullah Festival is being held May 25 - 27, 2018 at the Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park in downtown Beaufort. This year's theme is: "Come Home to a Celebration of Reconstruction ... The Untold Story."

Enjoy your holiday weekend! Please remember that all parts of the Beaufort County Library will be closed on Monday, May 28th in observance of Memorial Day. Regular hours resume on Tuesday, May 29th. 

SC Humanities Festival, June 9 - 11

You know how often I remind everyone that Dr. Rowland says "All American history begins in Beaufort, SC?" Well, as the events and activities scheduled by the SC Humanities Council illuminate, it does! 

The South Carolina Humanities Festival, June 9 - June 11,  is a prime opportunity to engage in some local history stay-cation activities that bolster Dr. Rowland's oft quoted statement. During the Festival, arts, cultural and educational organizations from Beaufort to Bluffton and Hilton Head will participate, presenting a wide variety of special events including lectures, films, tours, art shows, exhibits, performances and much more, around the theme of community collaboration, to demonstrate a sense of place. Among the many co-sponsors are the Beaufort County Library and other organizations in the Beaufort County Historic Resources Consortium (BCHRC). In other words, now is your chance to explore the area's museums and historic sites and cultural events within the whirlwind of a statewide sponsored festival atmosphere. A Stay-cation well worth considering if you relish local history, historic site visits, Gullah culture, natural history, archaeology or family history!

Check out the conference schedule.

•  Please note that some events require pre-registration.
• Please note that a couple of events are ticketed and require payment of a fee. 
• However, most of the events are free - if you register.  

You can register at the Beaufort Branch (311 Scott Street) or the St. Helena Branch (6355 Jonathan Francis Senior Road) libraries to pick up a button that allows free entrance at select  scheduled events. (I already did.)  

Maria Benac, Manager of the St. Helena Branch Library and I will be staffing the Beaufort County Library's table at the Opening Night Reception. Drop by to just say "Hello" or to ask us questions about how the Library supports local history and culture.

Heads up: An anticipated staff shortage on June 16th will affect our Research Room schedule a bit. The Research Room will be closed from Noon to 1 pm for hourly staff to get a lunch break. The Research Room will be open 9 am to 12:00 pm; closed Noon to 1 pm; and will re-open from 1 pm to 5 pm. 

Winding Down the Big Read and Winding Up for Spring

The Big Read winds down with the grand finale: Swing with Janie and Tea Cake!

Saturday, February 27 from 5:00-8:00pm | Ruby Lee’s Restaurant (Hilton Head)

 

Join us for the final act of The Big Read at Ruby Lee’s restaurant in Hilton Head! The evening will feature great music, swing dancing, tasty food from the land and the sea, and signature cocktails available for purchase. Jazz Age attire is encouraged. The event is open to the public, however dinner is $45/per person and cocktails are available for purchase. Reservations are required 843-681-7829 (Use code MPP). The Big Read closing event is sponsored by The Mitchellville Project. (BTW: We have a Mitchelville: List of Links & Materials page at http://bit.ly/1gYUQ1P )

In case you missed one of our book discussion groups about Their Eyes Were Watching God, Beaufort County Library's own librarians, Halle Eisenman, Ann Cox and Traci Cox, did a "Well-Read" podcast on the topic. They actually preferred the audio version for the first read because they experienced some difficulty with the variety of dialects that the characters use, though Traci Cox mentioned that the profound comments Hurston makes are sort of lost in the audiobook. She felt the lack of time to savor the profundity of statements. Each one loved the narration provided by Ruby Dee. As Halle Eisenman says "It has a richness in the language" and deep symbolism that one seldom sees in most modern novels. Each one recommended listening to the audiobook first and then reading a printed book to capture all the juicy details. Download this episode (right click and save)

But anyone reading local media knows that we are entering a very active phase of community life events. In February, Hilton Head hosts its Gullah Celebration and the Beaufort Film Festival draws in hundreds of film-makers and fans. March has some notable special events, too: The Landmark Conference of the Confederation of Local Historical Societies; a Living History Civil War Encampment at the Arsenal put on by the Beaufort History Museum; the Third Annual Sam Doyle Folk & Gullah Cultural Arts Festival to name but a few. April has Taste of Bluffton; Soft Shell Crab Festival; a celebration of the 450th anniversary of the Spanish settlement led by the Santa Elena History Center and the 48th Annual RBC Heritage golf tournament. May's end brings the Gullah Festival. Add in the arts festivals, school events, and architecture tours and one could spend almost every week exploring a different aspect of all that Beaufort County has to offer residents and visitors. (Forgive me if I failed to list your favorite event. There are just so many!)

(BTW: We have a Sam Doyle: List of Links & Materials page at http://bit.ly/1S0ngLh)

Archaeology Film Festival, Oct. 24 - 26

Archaeology is alive and well in Beaufort County as the two programs we've held with the Hilton Head Chapter, Archaeological Society of South Carolina and the Beaufort County Planning Department have indicated.  But there is something new and exciting this year - the Arkhaois Cultural Heritage and Archaeology Film Festival. 

Beaufort County is in for an extra special Archaeology Month treat, on October 24 - 26th, when the inaugural Arkhaois Cultural Heritage and Archaeology Film Festival kicks off at Coligny Theater on Hilton Head Island.  

Jean Guilleux, event founder announced there are several films that will be premiering at Arkhaios and the South Carolina Heritage film slots have been filled.

Guilleux says, ”We are pleased that so many SC film makers have shown interest in presenting their works on cultural, historical and archaeological subjects. The last movie shown each day is dedicated to South Carolina heritage. We will also have a daily audience participation vote for the Favorite Film of the Day.  All awards will be presented on Saturday , Oct. 26th at 5:45. All shows are free and open to the public.”

He adds that "We have many volunteers who are making this project flow on schedule and who are very generous with their time. We encourage our patrons to visit our Facebook page and website for updates.”


The festival schedule is online through the Coastal Discovery Museum website.  The Arkhaios Cultural Heritage and Archaeology Film Festival is on Facebook and will post updates on their Facebook page.  T
he page also displays  a video, trailer of the film, and a brief synopsis of each film.

Presenting sponsors include Coastal Discovery Museum, SC Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology of the University of South Carolina, the Humanities CouncilSC, the Arts Council of South Carolina, the Archaeological Society of SC, and The Savannah River Archaeological Research Program.

Reminders about This Holiday Weekend

• Don't forget the 26th Annual Gullah Festival going on this Memorial Day weekend in the Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park in downtown Beaufort.
• Don't forget that we are celebrating the 450th Anniversary of the Landing of Jean Ribaut and his Huguenots at Parris Island.  
• Don't forget that all Beaufort County government offices, including the Library system, will be closed on Mon., May 28th in observance of Memorial Day. 

Biblioburro = The Donkey Library

PBS is showing a documentary about a unique librarian and his unique way of sharing the love of reading and books in the untamed wilds of Colombia. Soriano is a librarian who passion for changing the lives of these children is so inspiring that he was chosen a "CNN Hero" in 2010.

Here's what POV says about the film:

Biblioburro is the story of a librarian — and a library — like no other. A decade ago, Colombian grade-school teacher Luis Soriano was inspired to spend his weekends bringing a modest collection of precious books, via two hard-working donkeys, to the children of Magdalena Province’s poor and violence-ridden interior. As Soriano braves armed bands, drug traffickers, snakes and heat, his library on hooves carries an inspirational message about education and a better future for Colombia. His simple yet extraordinary effort has attracted worldwide attention — and imitators — but his story has never been better told than in this heartwarming yet unsentimental film.

The trailer is in Spanish with English sub-titles:

Watch the full episode. See more POV.

The documentary airs on POV, Tuesday, July 19 at 10:00 PM (60 minutes). You can also view it online July 20, 2011 to September 18, 2011 on the POV website - in case you're chilling at the "Tropical Tuesday" event at the Beaufort Water Festival during the national broadcast time.

"River of Everlasting Memories"

Beaufort Water Festival makes its 54th appearance today and concludes on Sunday, July 19th. In between, there will be concerts, a parade, dance, races and competitions, crafts, talent and antique shows, watercraft tours, and plenty of libations, both of the alcoholic and non-alcoholic varieties.
Details can be found in a variety of media including the Beaufort Gazette, (yes, I know that this goes to the Island Packet website but that's just the lay of the land now), the [print only] Island News, the [online only] Beaufort Tribune, and on the Water Festival's website.

I posted local poetess, Edith Bannister Dowling's poem about the Water Festival on July 15, 2008.

For the more research minded, the Beaufort District Collection has a few relatively fragile scrapbooks about the Water Festival during the 1960s in our archival holdings. We'll be happy to show you the scrapbooks if you come in to the Research Room during our regular hours of operation.

Please note: Charmaine, our Beloved BDC docents, and I will show an in-house customer any in-house material we have (that is, if we can find it within a reasonable amount of time in this incredibly overcrowded workspace and public research room). Just don't come expecting to take home copies of any of the images or pages of the scrapbooks! For details why this is, read the "Eternal Conundrum" entry that immediately precedes this one.