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This collection has access restrictions. For details, please see the restrictions.
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held in the Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in our reading room, and not digitally available through the World Wide Web. See the Duplication Policy section for more information.
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Collection Overview
| Size | 20 items |
| Abstract | The Phil Jamison Collection consists of video recordings, audio recordings, and printed materials created by Phil Jamison for the North Carolina Arts Council Folklife Program-funded documentary project Western North Carolina: Buckdancers, Flatfoot Dancers and Charleston Dancers. The project documented the lives and dancing of buckdancers, flatfoot dancers, and Charleston dancers from several counties in western North Carolina, including Buncombe County, Henderson County, Swain County, Yancey County, Clay County, Jackson County, Burke County, Haywood County, Watauga County, and Madison County. Jamison collected the materials during 1992 and 1993; the project was completed in 1993. The video recordings are on Hi8 and VHS and consist of shots of dancers demonstrating dances to live music, descriptions of steps, and interviews with the dancers. Dances documented include the Hambone, the Turkey Trot, the Two-Step, the Charleston, and the Chicken. The video log documents the dancer's name, the dance style, the accompanying music, and the date of the performance recorded. The audio recordings are on audiocassette and consist of oral history interviews with twelve dancers. Of particular interest are the performances of L. C. King and John Reeves, who were featured in Mike Seeger's 1987 documentary film Talking Feet. |
| Creator | Jamison, Phil. |
| Curatorial Unit | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Folklife Collection. |
| Language | English |
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Information For Users
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Processing Information
Processed by: Alison Waldenberg, July 2006
Encoded by: Alison Waldenberg, July 2006
Updated by: Anne Wells, October 2016; Nancy Kaiser, February 2021
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Subject Headings
The following terms from Library of Congress Subject Headings suggest topics, persons, geography, etc. interspersed through the entire collection; the terms do not usually represent discrete and easily identifiable portions of the collection--such as folders or items.
Clicking on a subject heading below will take you into the University Library's online catalog.
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Related Collections
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Biographical Information
Musician, dance caller, and flatfoot dancer Phil Jamison (b. 1953) has been the coordinator of Warren Wilson College's Appalachian Music Program and the Assistant Director of the annual Swannanoa Gathering. He also served as contributing editor and writer for the traditional music and dance publication The Old-Time Herald.
Jamison began documenting the flatfoot, buckdance, and Charleston dance styles in 1992 with a grant from the North Carolina Arts Council Folklife Program. These methods of dance are variations on the traditional dance style which is widely known as "clogging" or "stepdancing." Though clogging in the Appalachian region developed out of the 18th century dances of Scottish and Irish settlers, the distinct styles documented in these materials evolved under other influences. Buckdancing has its roots in African dance; flatfoot and Charleston styles are thought to have developed out of African American folk dancing. There is very little documentation on the origins of these dances.
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Scope and Content
The Phil Jamison Collection consists of video recordings, audio recordings, and printed materials created by Phil Jamison for the North Carolina Arts Council Folklife Program-funded documentary project Western North Carolina: Buckdancers, Flatfoot Dancers and Charleston Dancers. The project documented the lives and dancing of buckdancers, flatfoot dancers, and Charleston dancers from several counties in western North Carolina, including Buncombe County, Henderson County, Swain County, Yancey County, Clay County, Jackson County, Burke County, Haywood County, Watauga County, and Madison County. Jamison collected the materials during 1992 and 1993; the project was completed in 1993.
The video recordings are on Hi8 and VHS and consist of shots of dancers demonstrating dances to live music, descriptions of steps, and interviews with the dancers. Dances documented include the Hambone, the Turkey Trot, the Two-Step, the Charleston, and the Chicken. The video log documents the dancer's name, the dance style, the accompanying music, and the date of the performance recorded. The audio recordings are on audiocassette and consist of oral history interviews with twelve dancers. Of particular interest are the performances of L. C. King and John Reeves, who were featured in Mike Seeger's 1987 documentary film Talking Feet.
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Series Quick Links
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Series 1. Video Recordings and Related Material, 1993.
Arrangement: by format.
Video recordings and supporting documentation related to the creation of Phil Jamison's Western North Carolina: Buckdancers, Flatfoot Dancers and Charleston Dancers. The videotapes identified in the video log as numbers 1 through 10 correspond to items number VT-20389/1 through VT-20389/10. The videotape identified as number 14 in the log lists the contents of VT-20389/11.
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Subseries 1.1. Video Recordings.
| Videotape VT-20389/1 |
Ruth Mosteller, Main Camera, 20 February 1993.Hi8 |
| Videotape VT-20389/2 |
Ruth Mosteller, Foot Camera, 20 February 1993.Hi8 |
| Videotape VT-20389/3 |
Berta Frady, Main Camera, 2 April 1993.Hi8 |
| Videotape VT-20389/4 |
Berta Frady, Foot Camera, 2 April 1993.Hi8 |
| Videotape VT-20389/5 |
Biss Honeycutt, Main Camera, 3 April 1993.Hi8 |
| Videotape VT-20389/6 |
Biss Honeycutt, Foot Camera, 3 April 1993.Hi8 |
| Videotape VT-20389/7 |
NCAC: Dance Steps, Main Camera, 22 April 1993-26 April 1993.Hi8 Includes dance demonstrations by Emma Lou Wambles, Pauline Zimmerman, Steve Rice, Rodney Sutton, Phil Jamison, Pat Maney, Betty Garland, Ruth Mosteller, Buck Buchanan, James Greer, Wayne Phillips, and Gene Moore. Music performed by John Herrman, Jerry Adams, Hilary Dirlam, Gar Mosteller, Phil Jamison, Gary Johnson, and Jim Ledford. |
| Videotape VT-20389/8 |
NCAC: Dance Steps, Foot Camera, 22 April 1993-26 April 1993.Hi8 Includes dance demonstrations by Emma Lou Wambles, Pauline Zimmerman, Steve Rice, Rodney Sutton, Phil Jamison, Pat Maney, Betty Garland, Ruth Mosteller, Buck Buchanan, James Greer, and Wayne Phillips. Music performed by John Herrman, Jerry Adams, Hilary Dirlam, Gar Mosteller, Phil Jamison, Gary Johnson, and Jim Ledford. |
| Videotape VT-20389/9 |
Maggie Valley, N.C., Dancers, 7 May 1993.Hi8 Includes dance demonstrations by Rodney Sutton, Phil Jamison, John Reeves, Robert "Chief" Howell, Troy Cutshaw, Alaska Pressley, Catherine McCrary, Pearl Owen, J. Claude Caldwell, Marlene Blalock, Hattie Caldwell Davis, Gene Ferguson, Dallas Mathis, Wilma Setzer, Richard Queen, and Soco Gap Dancers. Music performed by Liz Shaw, Trevor Stuart, Travis Stuart, and Lynn Shaw. |
| Videotape VT-20389/10 |
Valle Crucis, N.C., Dancers, 10 May 1993.Hi8 Includes dance demonstrations by Rodney Sutton, Robert Dotson, Ora Watson, Myrtle Dotson, and Phil Jamison. Music performed by Cecil Gurganus, Mary Greene, and Phil Jamison. |
| Videotape VT-20389/11 |
NCAC Dancers, Foot camera, 10 May 1993-12 June 1993.VHS Includes dance demonstrations by Mary Jane Queen, Rodney Sutton, Robert Dotson, Myrtle Dotson, Phil Jamison, Buck Finney, Sarah Jamison, Ruth King, Clementine DeVigne, Hattie Tribble, Juanita Jones, Viola Edgerton, Joan Kope, Lucille Smith, Ruth King, Harold Tribble, L. C. King, and Earl McElreath. Music performed by Cecil Gurganus, Mary Greene, Phil Jamison, Robert Morgan, George Buckner, and Lawrence Dillingham. |
| Videotape VT-20389/12 |
Western North Carolina - Buckdancers, Flatfoot dancers and Charleston dancers, 1993.VHS Includes dance performances by Robert Dotson, L. C. King, Earl McElreath, Hattie Tribble, Buck Buchanan, Wayne Phillips, Buck Finney, Robert "Chief" Howell, John Reeves, Berta Frady, Ruth Mosteller, Pauline Zimmerman, Jim Cooper, Camdler Cooper, Pat Maney, Myrtle Dotson, Ora Watson, and Biss Honeycutt. |
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Subseries 1.2. Video Log.
Processing information: Folder 1 was formerly in Southern Folklife Collection Field Notes (#30025), folder 1010.
| Folder 1 |
Video log: NCAC Folklife Documentation Project |
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Series 2. Audio Recordings, 1992-1993.
This series contains oral history interviews with dancers; the interviews were conducted by Phil Jamison for his project Western North Carolina: Buckdancers, Flatfoot Dancers and Charleston Dancers.
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Items Separated