The Oral History Association (OHA) is a professional association for oral historians and others interested in advancing the practice and use of

oral history Oral history is the collection and study of historical information about individuals, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews. These interviews are conducted with people wh ...

American Historical Association The American Historical Association (AHA) is the oldest professional association of historians in the United States and the largest such organization in the world. Founded in 1884, the AHA works to protect academic freedom, develop professional s ...

. historians.org. Retrieved 5 November 2022. It is based in the United States but has international membership. Its mission is "to bring together all persons interested in oral history as a way of collecting and interpreting human memories to foster knowledge and human dignity."

History

In 1966 James V. Mink, director of the

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

Oral History Program, planned and staged the First National Colloquium on Oral History, which was held in California, at the Lake Arrowhead Conference Center, on 25-28 September. Retrieved 5 November 2022 (subscription/registration required). Panelists at the meeting included Louis M. Starr, director of the

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

oral history program; Elizabeth Mason, associate director of the Columbia University oral history program;

Allan Nevins Joseph Allan Nevins (May 20, 1890 – March 5, 1971) was an American historian and journalist, known for his extensive work on the history of the Civil War and his biographies of such figures as Grover Cleveland, Hamilton Fish, Henry Ford, and J ...

, writer and historian; Samuel Hand, history professor at the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...

; and Saul Benison, writer and history professor at

Brandeis University , mottoeng = "Truth even unto its innermost parts" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = NECHE , president = Ronald D. Liebowitz , pro ...

.K'Meyer, T. E. (1999). An interview with Samuel Hand: "Reel life: The early years of the OHA/''OHR''." ''Oral History Review'', 26 (2), 107-125. The founding of an oral history association was first discussed at this meeting, and James Mink served as the Chairman of the new association from 1967 to 1968. In its first newsletter, in June 1967, the association announced that it had been incorporated as a registered non-profit educational organization in New York State. In 1968 Louis Starr organized the Second National Colloquium on Oral History which was held at

Arden House Arden is a historic estate outside Harriman, New York, that was owned by railroad magnate Edward Henry Harriman and his wife, Mary Averell Harriman. By the early 1900s, the family owned in the area, half of it comprising the Arden Estate. The m ...

in Harriman, New York. Starr served as the Oral History Association's first president. In 2017 the association established its headquarters at

Middle Tennessee State University Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU or MT) is a public university in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Founded in 1911 as a normal school, the university consists of eight undergraduate colleges as well as a college of graduate studies, together off ...

for a term of at least five years. In October 2022 it was announced that in January 2023 the association would move its headquarters to the Institute for Oral History at

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the fir ...

, in

Waco, Texas Waco ( ) is the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a 2020 population of 138,486, making it the 22nd-most populous city in the ...

Leadership

OHA Executive Office Kristine M. McCusker and Louis Kyriakoudes, Co-Executive Directors Faith Bagley, Program Associate OHA Officers and Council Members Amy Starecheski, Columbia University Vice-President/President-Elect Tomas F. Summers Sandoval, Jr., Pomona College First Vice President Kelly Elaine Navies, Smithsonian, National Museum of African American History and Culture Past President Dan Kerr, American University Council Sarah Milligan (2018-2022), Oklahoma Oral History Research Program Yolanda Chávez Leyva (2019-2022), The University of Texas at El Paso Cynthia Tobar (2020-2023), Bronx Community College Zaheer Ali (2021-2024), The Lawrenceville School Alissa Rae Funderburk (2021-2024), Jackson State University Treasurer Troy Reeves, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Activities

OHA holds an annual meeting that focuses on different oral history topics, hosts a Wiki for sharing resources, and hosts an online OHA Network for finding other members with similar interests. OHA gives out the following awards: *Emerging Crises Research Annual Fund *Stetson Kennedy Vox Populi ("Voice of the People") Annual Award *Book Award (biennial) *Oral History in Nonprint Format (biennial) *Martha Ross Teaching Award (biennial) *Article Award (biennial) *Postsecondary Teaching Award (biennial) *Elizabeth B. Mason Project Award (biennial) OHA encourages its members to participate in its seven committees: *Committee on Diversity *Education Committee *Finance Committee *International Committee *New Media and Digital Technology Committee *Publications Committee *State and Regional Forum

Publications

''The Oral History Review'' is the official publication of OHA and was first issued in 1973. Its founding editor was Samuel Hand. Released annually from 1973 - 1986, it is now released biannually by Oxford Journals. Newsletters are released in the spring, fall, and winter each year. A Pamphlet Series provides information about topics such as oral history in the classroom and oral history for the family historian.

Affiliates

* International Oral History Association * Michigan Oral History Association * Midwest Oral History Group * New England Association for Oral History * Northwest Oral History Association * OHMAR – Oral History Mid-Atlantic Region * Southwest Oral History Association * Texas Oral History Association

External links

* Leading oral historia
Martha J. Ross papers
at the

University of Maryland Libraries The University of Maryland Libraries is the largest university library in the Washington, D.C. - Baltimore area. The university's library system includes eight libraries: six are located on the College Park campus, while the Severn Library, an of ...

, President of the OHA in the 1980s.

Notes

{{Authority control Professional associations based in the United States History organizations based in the United States