Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States from Interviews with Former Slaves, Volume VIII, Maryland Narratives

by United States. Work Projects Administration

"Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States from…" is a collection of oral histories compiled between 1936 and 1938 by the Federal Writers' Project. Over 2,000 interviews with formerly enslaved individuals were documented across seventeen states, preserving their memories before the last generation disappeared. The collection sparked controversy due to predominantly white interviewers potentially influencing accounts during the Jim Crow era. These narratives offer crucial insights into enslaved life while raising complex questions about historical documentation, racial power dynamics, and whose voices truly emerge from the archive.