African Diaspora at Internet Archive: Strange Ways and Sweet Dreams

To finish up this week of 19th-century folklore collections, here is the monumental book edited by Donald Waters which collects folklore items from the Southern Workman published by the Hampton Institute: Strange Ways and Sweet Dreams: Afro-American Folklore from the Hampton Institute.

In the introduction to the book, Waters explains how the folklorists associated with the Hampton Institute (now Hampton University) gathered and disseminated African American folklore in the 1890s. Some of those materials were later republished in articles in the Journal of American Folklore (see this earlier post about Alice Bacon), but much of the material has not been published elsewhere. Dr. Waters has done a great service in preparing these materials for publication, and also for releasing the book with a CC0 (public domain) license, reflecting the public domain status of the materials reprinted in the book that were originally published between 1893 and 1900. Given that the other 19th-century books I was sharing this week were all created by white authors, it is such a pleasure to share the work here of so many African American folklorists who published their work in the Southern Workman. (Find out moare at Wikipedia.)

To get a sense of the contents, here are the titles of the items you will find in the book: Introduction to Student Papers on Conjuring ~ Excerpt of a Letter from a Hampton Graduate on the Habits of the People ~ Conjure Doctors in the South ~ Letter and Editorial Reply on Collecting Superstitions ~ Excerpt of a Letter from a Hampton Graduate concerning Conjuration ~ About the Conjuring Doctors ~ Correspondence about Conjuring ~ Editorial Introduction to the "Department of Folklore and Ethnology" ~ Circular Letter seeking observers ~ More Letters Concerning the "Folklore Movement" at Hampton ~ Folklore Meeting: Superstitions ~ Hags and Their Ways ~ The Conquest of a Hag ~ A Contribution from South Carolina ~ Folklore Meeting ~ Excerpt of a Letter entitled "A Lamp in a Dark Corner" ~ Some Side Lights on History. ~ News from Washington Workers. ~ Folk Medicine ~ The Asheville Folklore Society ~ Our Hampton Folk-Lorists: Games ~ Address by William Wells Newell, "The Importance and Utiity of the Collection of Negro Folklore". ~ Paper by Mrs.Anna J, Cooper ~ Bre'r Rabbit and Bre'T Elephant. ~ The Donkey, _the Dog, the Cat and the Rooster ~ Mr. Claytor's Story ~ Mrs. Spennie's Story. ~ Mr. Patterson's Story ~ Contributions from Correspondents ~ Old Time Courtship. ~ American Folklore Society ~ Negro Folk-Songs ~ Folk Medicine. ~ Hag Lore ~ The Witch Cats. ~ Religious Experience ~ Notes from Alabama ~ Riddles ~ Notes on Hords ~ Conjuring and Conjure-Doctors by Leonora Herron ~ Conjuring and Conjure-Doctors by A.M.Bacon ~ Conjuring and Conjure-Doctors by A. M. Bacon ~ A Religious Song of the Yoruba People of West Africa ~ Courtship Customs. ~ Superstitions about Animals. ~ Weather-Lore by J.H.Evans. ~ Courtship in Old Virginia. ~ The Rhode Island Vampire. ~ Brer Rabbit Outdone ~ The Ceremony of "Foot Wash" in Virginia ~ Why the Tiger is Striped. ~ The Foot-Wash in Alabama ~ The Foot-Wash in North Carolina ~ Why the Fox's Mouth Is Sharp, Why the Possum Has No Hair on His Tail, and Why the Rabbit Has a Short Tail and a White Spot on His Forehead ~ Annual Meeting of the Hampton Folklore Society ~ Folklore by Prof. W.H. Scarborough. ~ Folklore in an African's Life by Heli Chatelain ~ Captain Moton's Story ~ Lemar's Story ~ Creole Folk-Tale. ~ How Brer Wolf Divide de Hog. ~ How Brer Holf Caught Brer Rabbit ~ Old Saws. ~ A Difficult Courtship ~ Beliefs and Customs connected with Death and Burial ~ Some Conjure Doctors We Have Heard of ~ Why the Terrapin Has Red Eyes. ~ Why the Mole Has No Eyes. ~ Where de Owl Fus Come From ~ A Race for a Wife. ~ The Hog Thief. ~ Two Ghost Stories ~ Slave Marriages ~ Wednesday Night, Wife Night ~ How the Slaves Cooked and Ate ~ How They Were Dressed. ~ Morality and Relgion in Slavery Days ~ Fish Stories ~ The Rabbit and the Busard ~ The Rabbit and the Girl ~ How the Jays Saved Their Souls. ~ The Jay and the Martin ~ Why the Dog Cannot Talk, and Why the Rabbit Has a Short Tail ~ Why the Clay Is Ked ~ Snakes and Conjure Doctors ~ The Rich Ghost ~ The Boy and the Ghost ~ Why the Rabbit Has a Short Tail and the Dog a Wide Mouth. ~ The Goose and the Drake ~ A Navaho Indian Story of the Creation. ~ A Chost Story ~ Story of a Fox and a Pig ~ Proverbs and Sayings ~ Searching for Hidden Treasure ~ How the Rabbit and the Frog Caught a Deer ~ Conjuration by Daniel Webster Davis ~ Brer Rabbit's Box, With Apologies to Joel Chandler Harris by T.J.Bolden. ~ Why the Crab Has no Head. ~ Why the Buzzard Eats CarTion ~ Why There Are Moles. ~ Why Hens Are Afraid of Owls. ~ The Snail's Smartness. ~ Old Sayings ~ Echoes from a Plantation Party by Daniel Webster Davis ~ Sickness in Slavery Days by R.R. Moton ~ The Trick Bone of a Black Cat ~ How to Conjure ~ Remedies to Cure Conjuration ~ A Word of Courtship. ~ Why the Wren Does not Fly High. ~ Brer Rabbit_Beats Brer Fox. ~ Watch Meeting ~ Iyotandapi and the Black Horse ~ Irishman Storles ~ Editorial. ~ The Fool Hunter. ~ Jack and the King ~ A "Crazy Spell" ~ Chills Cured. ~ Palsy Cured ~ A Negro Ghost Story ~ Don'ts ~ Birds of Ill OTnen ~ Alabama Folklore by Susan showers ~ Alabama Folklore, II by Susan Showers ~ Sermon ot an Ante-Bellum Negro Preacher by Jerome Dowd ~ Why the Buzzard Has a Red Head. ~ How the Guinea-Hen Got Ahead of the Rabbit ~ Brer Rabbit and Brer Fox ~ Proverbs. ~ Signs. ~ Some Geechee Folklore by Monroe N.Work ~ Some Geechee Folklore (Concluded) by Monroe N.Work ~ The Theology of the Songs of the Southern Slave by H.H. Proctor ~ The Theology of the Songs of the Southern Slaves, Part II by H.H.Proctor ~ Some Slave Superstitions by Clement Richardson.

Conjuring, proverbs, superstitions, courtship... and (my favorite) animal stories. Just jump in and see what you can find!

 Strange Ways and Sweet Dreams:

Afro-American Folklore from the Hampton Institute

by Donald J. Waters