Kentucky State University

The Center of Excellence for the Study of Kentucky African Americans (CESKAA) recently acquired the papers of E. (Elizabeth) B. Delaney & Son, which have already been a rich source of material for Gayle Graham of the W. T. Shumake & Daughters Funeral Home in Louisville.

Graham has received a grant to research the history of African American funeral directors in Kentucky with a focus on females in the profession. She is traveling to the nineteen cities in the state where African American funeral directors have been identified and will be taping interviews when possible.

Submitted by Betsy Morelock

Mount Saint Joseph Archives

Our holdings increased greatly over the summer as a result of changes in leadership. Every four years the Community elects new leaders, and the documents created during the past four years are sent to the archives. The documents sent to the archives included the following: records from the Chapter of Election and the Chapter of Affairs; and records of actual election processes, council goals, proceedings, and the usual historical events and happenings.

Besides these documents, other materials were added to our archival holdings. Our current files were updated because changes in the mission field brought new names and places, and we received photographs from various missions and personal collections. Our holdings also increased because twenty-two Sisters celebrated Jubilees during 1999-2000. These events always add to our archival holdings as personal papers as well as community events and celebrations.

Submitted by Sr. Emma Cecilia Busam, OSU

Eastern Kentucky University

Special Collections and Archives received a $2,000 grant from the Training Resource Center of the College of Justice and Safety to organize the Correctional Photograph Archives Collection. The collection contains over six hundred photographs and about three hundred negatives. The items span from the 1890s through the 1970s, although the majority of photographs were taken in the 1930s and the 1970s. Both American and foreign prisons are represented. The photographs exemplify the changing face of prison systems, from the old systems of chain gangs and quarries to vocational education and other forms of rehabilitation. The collection has several photographs from the federal prisons of Atlanta, Sing Sing, and Auburn, and it includes some photographs of women in prisons. One photograph shows a prison ship from 1907.

The collection also includes the memoir of William Bain, who originally assembled the photographs. Bain was a staff member of the American Correctional Association (ACA), and he worked in several state and federal prisons. Between 1975 and 1980, he trained guards for the Kentucky Bureau of Training, which is affiliated with Eastern Kentucky University. A web site is being created for the collection.

Special Collections and Archives recently acquired minute books from Mt. Pleasant Baptist Church at Kirksville, Kentucky. The minutes of this rural black church span from 1892 to 1949, and they include information about church services, financial matters, and church policies. A photograph of some of the early members of the church was also acquired.

Submitted by Deborah Whalen

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