On June 29th, I offered the following presentation at the North Carolina Library Association’s Government Resources Section/Reference and Adult Services Section joint meeting/workshop:
HUAC Investigates North Carolina: How Federal Documents Can Help Uncover State and Local History
Federal government documents tend to be all too often overlooked when providing general reference assistance, especially on topics involving state and local history. Reasons include the unique and often arcane nature of federal publications; unfamiliarity and trepidation on the part of many non-specialist librarians; and a lack of awareness of how federal documents might prove relevant to researching state and local topics.
One good example is the history of the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC: 1934-35; 1938-69.) While many think of HUAC as a body that primarily affected politics at a national level, the committee held a number of hearings that directly discussed individuals, organizations, and events in North Carolina, and these hearings in turn impacted political and social developments in our state. This 50 minute presentation will discuss this neglected yet fascinating aspect of North Carolina history, while serving as a case study in how federal documents can shed light on state and local history. Time for questions will be included.
Here are the slides and supporting bibliography for this presentation:
HUAC Investigates North Carolina Final
In addition, here are several previous CWIS blog posts also relevant to this topic:
CWIS Bibliography: Investigations of Communist Activity in the American South
CWIS Bibliography: Paul Crouch (1903-1955)
CWIS North Carolina Topic 1: HUAC Investigates the Greenville Benevolent Association, 1965-66
CWIS North Carolina Topic 2: 1948: The Spy Who Ran for Governor
Please feel free to contact me with any questions or requests for additional information regarding this presentation.
Federal Documents & Social Sciences Librarian
J.Y. Joyner Library