The Ask an Expert series features Q + A’s with people who are experts in a particular field or who have a depth of knowledge around historic preservation. We ask experts a variety of short answer questions and ask for their advice to Black preservation projects and leaders.
Would you be willing to be featured as an expert? Send us an email here.
Q: Introduce yourself! Tell us a little about you. How did you get started in your field? What kind of projects have you worked on?
I’ve taught U.S. History for the past 25 years and my field is African American experiences 1840-present. My love of stories started around five years old with visits that my great-grandmother and I made to her friends’ homes in rural North Carolina. I started doing oral interviews in 1987 in undergraduate school at North Carolina Central University. My first interviews were with African American administrators, teachers, and students at segregated schools. I’ve also worked with the Georgetown Public Library and the National Endowment for the Humanities on several projects. Short-term oral history projects have included Beaufort, Lincolnville, Greenville, Eastover, and Columbia. Each semester, I have assigned oral history projects to USC students.
Q: How does your work in oral history intersect with preserving Black historic spaces?
Oral histories preserve the experiences people had in historic spaces. For example, without oral interviews, documentation of who gave land to a Rosenwald School, who initiated the request, fundraised, and maintained the schools, leaves out the activism of many in the African American community.
Q: What do African American preservation projects and leaders need to know about oral history? How is it relevant to them?
Oral history is a powerful tool to better understand the silences in written accounts.
Q: What first steps would you recommend for people who are not professionals in oral history?
Get to know the subject of the study and the community members who may be familiar with its history.
Q: What is something many people may not realize about your area of work? (a helpful tip, rule, process, or insider knowledge that people new to this type of work might not realize?)
1) Typical costs vary depending on the size of the project. 2) Once you complete the interviews, share information with the community. 3) Interview family and other community members and provide access to the interviews to an institution capable of archiving and maintaining them!Websites such as the Oral History Association (https://oralhistory.org/) and USC Department of Oral History (https://sc.edu/about/offices_and_divisions/university_libraries/browse/oral_history/index.php) can provide resources for conducting interviews.
Q: If you had to give just one piece of advice to folks who are looking to bring oral history into their preservation project, what would it be?
When asking questions, silence is golden. Don’t rush to the next question or help the person answer the question. Let them think about what you have asked. Have patience, listen carefully! Their answers might lead you to a “mother load” not on your list of questions!
The Ask an Expert series features Q + A’s with people who are experts in a particular field or who have a depth of knowledge around historic preservation. We ask experts a variety of short answer questions and ask for their advice.
Q: Introduce yourself! Tell us a little about you. How did you get started in your field?
Alada Muima Shinault-Small – Charlestonian, Charleston area tour guide since 1982. Was introduced to Oral History in early 1990s while serving as Stableyards & African American History & Culture Interpretive Coordinator at Middleton Place National Historic Landmark in Dorchester County. At Middleton, I interviewed former Black employees who worked there during the earlier decades of the 20th century.
Q: What kind of projects have you worked on?
In addition to my work at Middleton Place, I also worked on an intergenerational project in Charleston called “Paint The Rhythm of My Story” for the Charleston Housing Authority in the early 1990s. In 2000, I was a part of a team interviewing South Carolina State University students who were impacted by the 1968 Orangeburg massacre. In 2020-2021, I coordinated the “Black Carolinians Speak” oral history project for WeGOJA Foundation to capture expressions of people affected by the Coronavirus pandemic. In 2022-2023, I coordinated the oral history project for the “Gullah Geechee Seafood Trail,” and I am currently interviewing Clarendon County residents who were involved or related to people associated with the Briggs v. Elliott school desegregation lawsuit that later evolved into Brown v. Board of Education, 1954.
Q: How does your work in oral history intersect with preserving Black historic spaces?
The grassroots approach to interviewing “everyday folk” can lead to insight on people, places, objects, events that have been off the radar & undocumented until these jeweled conversations occur and are recorded. Some people are very delighted to know that people want their stories.
Q: What do African American preservation projects and leaders need to know about oral history?
Interfacing with communities and their members to record their stories is a critical component of cultural preservation.
Q: If someone asked for your advice on the first step they should take on designing and implementing an oral history project, what would you say?
Consult with an expert on trending tips and techniques.
Q: What are typical costs for oral history interviews, transcriptions, and archiving?
There are too many variables to generalize, and geography needs to be factored in as well. Experts can help fine tune these.
Q: Other tips or thoughts you’d like to share with the South Carolina preservation community?
When implementing an oral history project, engage interviewers who can best bond and flow with interviewees to achieve robust and rich conversations.
By: McClaren Institute for Health & Quality of Life Gail Wilson Awan, President and CEO of Urban League of the Upstate
Apr 5, 2024
The Featured Projects series focuses on historic preservation projects focused on preserving Black history throughout SC. Each project is asked to respond to four prompts. We hope this series helps bring awareness to the stunning number and variety of preservation projects being undertaken across the state, highlights the dedication of our community leaders, and inspires future generations of projects.
Want to feature your preservation project? Send us an email here.
Provide a brief summary of your project, making sure to include why it’s important for African American historic preservation.
The Urban League of the Upstate’s McClaren Institute for Health & Quality of Life is focusing on addressing healthcare and wellness disparities for Black people and the underserved living in the Upstate of South Carolina by emphasizing programs around the five social determinants of health: economic stability, education access and quality, health care access and quality, neighborhood and built environment, social and community context. The physical location in the renovated, historic McClaren Medical shelter in downtown Greenville, SC will serve as a hub for services, education, and outreach efforts (and is receiving its Historical Marker status). The McClaren Institute for Health & Quality of Life is currently developing core programming (five programs are confirmed) and completing renovations on the facility in early 2025. The physical space will include a multimedia Cultural and Historical Literacy Center displaying historic contributions of Black citizens to the Upstate’s growth and development on the lower floor. This interactive center will educate, inspire, and motivate aspiring leaders towards building a better quality of life for the underserved communities in our region. The upper floor is a hub for ULUS and its partners to address Upstate health disparities—by offering programming on site and as a resource center for initiatives happening throughout the region.
The upper floor maintains its original design of “patient rooms” but is being renovated to provide multiple functions. Four spaces will be activated for specific health and wellness related services, bolstered by a reception/waiting area and the ULUS office.
What motivated you/your community/your team to begin this project?
The building where the Institute will be headquartered was built by Dr. Edward E. McClaren in 1949 and served as the only clinic for Black people in the area during the Jim Crow era. As part of the McClaren Apartments’ development project in that block of downtown Greenville, the building was moved to accommodate construction and then donated to the Urban League of the Upstate. After being given the McClaren Medical Shelter, this historically significant property to the cultural history of Black citizens in Greenville County, the moment was right to respond to the health and cultural literacy needs and requests of the communities we serve. It became an ideal moment to put into motion a plan to fight the health inequity epidemic as we experience it here in the Upstate. The Urban League of the Upstate (ULUS) has reorganized its work so that it is both nationally aligned and locally relevant, focusing on the National Urban League’s signature programs to enhance health and quality of life for the underserved.
The mission of the ULUS is to advance equity by empowering the Black community and underserved individuals throughout the region. The National Urban League is laser-focused on Health Equity as a key initiative, supporting local efforts through funding, advocacy, andprogramming. The McClaren Institute for Health & Quality of Life is fighting for change and equity, one partnership at a time. This new facility and programmatic hub will tackle health inequity head-on.
What challenges have you faced in this project?
Initially, the multi-faceted nature of the project with multiple partners and interests made it challenging to condense messaging in a way that was meaningful for potential donors and supporters. Now that we have coalesced our messaging, we are moving into a heavy fundraising phase with major needs to facilitate the physical renovation and construction efforts. We are hopeful the mission and goals of the project will attract the right funding bodies swiftly.
How have you solved problems and found solutions? What advice would you give to others doing this kind of work?
On a project like this with so many stakeholders, it is crucial to have the right leadership in place and we have that with our campaign committee. We also worked to find the right partners to help us with the specific messaging and fundraising challenges addressed. Communication and clarity are essential in a project with so many elements and interests.
