Society for Storytelling

Libraries and Archives

The purpose of these notes is to help Storytellers and others interested in the art of storytelling, to find and use significant collections of materials. I have listed libraries that contain collections of stories, books about storytelling and folklore and other background material. In particular I have tried to identify archives that contain field recordings of traditional stories and storytellers. I have limited this fact sheet to libraries in the United Kingdom.

PUBLIC LIBRARIES

The wealth of material that is available through the local library service should not be underestimated.

You can join the library service where you live, study or work. You can use any public library for reference purposes. Most library services will have at least one main or central library which has the widest range and depth of material. It is worthwhile finding out how to use the library catalogue (which may be computerised) and even more useful to talk to the librarian about your interest.

Most libraries will be organised using the Dewey Decimal Classification system. The main numbers of interest are:

291 Religious Myths
375.82 Storytelling in Education
398 Mythology and Folklore
808.543 Storytelling (literature)

In most cases, if the library does not have the particular book you want, it can be borrowed for you on inter-library loan. The librarian will be able to help you check the details of any book you may want to find. Storytellers will find the children’s library an invaluable source of collections of stories, modern versions of traditional stories and wonderfully illustrated versions which can inspire and enrich your understanding. If you want to browse in the children’s library you should introduce yourself to the staff on duty; librarians have to be wary of adults ‘loitering’ in the children’s area.

Most libraries have an audio-visual or music library and may stock recordings of storytellers. If your library does not hold this material the librarian will be happy to consider your suggestions for suitable material.

The British Humanities Index is an index for newspapers and magazines. In it you will find articles indexed under the headings Folk Lore, Folk Tales, Legends, Oral Tradition, Riddles and Storytelling.

NATIONAL LIBRARIES

The British Library and the national libraries of Scotland and Wales can be used as libraries of ‘last resort’, i.e. to gain access to books that are not readily available elsewhere. They also contain special collections including important manuscript collections. Much of their stock is available via your local library through the inter-library loans scheme. Further details and tickets are available from:

The British Library
Great Russell St. London
Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru / National Library of Wales
Aberystwyth, Dyfed, SY23 3BU
National Library of Scotland
George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EW

LIBRARIES IN UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES

You may find that a college or university near you runs courses on storytelling and/or folklore, in most cases their libraries will provide materials to support these courses. This material will be available to students on the courses but they may also be available to the public, possibly at a charge and almost certainly for reference use only.

SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

NATIONAL SOUND ARCHIVE

The National Sound Archive is the part of the British Library responsible for the national collection of sound recordings. This includes published recordings, broadcasts and unpublished material. The holdings of material relating directly to storytelling is limited but includes for example recordings of the 1989 International Storytelling Festival in London. However the collections on oral history, drama and literature make it a valuable resource.

The library can be used by anyone. There is no charge and no need for a users pass.

The library is open 10.00 am - 5.00 pm Monday to Friday. Late opening till 9.00 pm Thursdays.

British Library National Sound Archive
29 Exhibition Rd. London, SW7 2AS
Tel: 020 7412 7430

FOLKLORE SOCIETY LIBRARY

The Folklore Society was founded in 1878 for the study of traditional culture. This includes customs and beliefs, narrative, drama, music, song and dance, language, foodways, arts and crafts and childrens folklore. The library houses the Norton Collection used by Katherine Briggs for the ‘Dictionary of British Folk-tales’.

The library is accessible to members of the Folklore Society and students at UCL. Non-members may apply to the UCL issue desk for a day pass, but these are limited to two per year.

The library is housed in storage at the University Colleges so it is vital that you contact them in advance to let them know what you wish to consult. The easiest way of doing this is via the website which can be accessed via

Folklore Society Library
University College London, Gower St. WC1E 6BT

VAUGHAN WILLIAMS MEMORIAL LIBRARY

This is the library for the English Folk Dance and Song Society. The library covers British folk culture and elements of British based culture in other lands, particularly N.America and Ireland. Although it is best known for materials on folk song and dance it has a major collection covering folk-tales, myths, legends and traditional storytelling. There is also a sound library.

Use of the library is free to members of the English Folk Dance and Song Society who may borrow some of the material. Non-members are charged a daily fee for reference use only.

The library is open 9.30 am - 5.30 pm Monday to Friday

The sound library is closed 12.00 noon - 2.00 pm every day and the whole library is sometimes closed for lunch.

Vaughan Williams Memorial Library
English Folk Dance and Song Society
Cecil Sharpe House, 2 Regents Park Road
London NW1 7AY

KENSINGTON CENTRAL LIBRARY

This extensive collection of Folktales and Folklore materials, 5,000 items, has not been added to since 1974. It is housed in the reference library but is available for loan.

The library is open from 9.30 am £5.00 weekdays, late opening till 8.00pm on 3 evenings a week. No appointment is necessary as the items are held on open access.

Kensington Central Library
Phillimore Walk
London W5
Tel: 020 7937 2542

THE TINA BILBE COLLECTION

This collection of folktale collections, picture-books and related material contains over 2000 items and is still growing. It is currently housed adjacent to the Society for Storytelling office and can be used as a reference collection. Photocopying facilities are available subject to copyright conditions. Contact Tina Bilbé for a booklist or appointments.

Tina Bilbé
12 Belle Avenue,
Reading, RG6 7BL
Tel: 0118 935 1381

WELSH FOLK MUSEUM LIBRARY

This library holds collections of Welsh folk customs, lore and tales, and selected books about the folk tale as a genre. The archive contains much primary source material relating to folklore, the material is nearly all in Welsh. There is also a sound archive containing over 7,500 field recordings of information about Welsh folk life.

Admission is granted to bona fide researchers by prior arrangement. To use the library contact the librarian. To use the sound archive contact Beth Thomas, several days notice is required.

Welsh Folk Museum Library
Llyfrgell Amgueddfa Werin Cymru
St. Fagans, Cardiff, CF5 6XB
Tel: 029 2056 9441

CENTRE FOR ENGLISH CULTURAL TRADITIONS AND LANGUAGE and INSTITUTE FOR FOLKLORE STUDIES IN G.B. AND CANADA

The Centre for English Cultural Traditions and Language is a research institution which acts as a national repository for materials on all aspects of language and cultural traditions throughout the British Isles.

The Institute for Folklore studies in Great Britain and Canada is a joint venture with the Department of Folklore, Memorial University of Newfoundland. The Centre’s archives include a reference library and an audio-visual section including photographs, slides, audio-tapes, films and video-tapes. Folk narratives, anecdotes and jokes are well represented.

Requests for access to materials in the archives and library of the Centre should be made in writing.

Centre for English Cultural Traditions and Language
The University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S10 2TN
Tel: 0114 268 1270

CHARLES PARKER ARCHIVE

Charles Parker (1919 - 80) was a BBC Radio producer who was a pioneer of the Oral History movement. He is probably best known as the producer of The Radio Ballads, a series of radio programmes created by Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger which describe the lives and experience of working people in their own words and music.

Charles Parker built up a collection of tape recordings, transcripts, production books, notebooks, newspaper cuttings, letters and books. On his death this collection was deposited with the Birmingham Reference Library. The collection is currently being catalogued and contains much of interest to students of oral history, folk culture and storytelling.

Charles Parker Archive
Central Reference Library
Chamberlin Square
Birmingham
B3 3HQ
Tel: 0121 303 4217

THE BOAT MUSEUM

The boat Museum contains an extensive archive of Oral History recordings and transcripts relating to life on Britain’s canals.

For more information on opening times contact:

The Boat Museum
Dockyard Road
Ellesmere Port
South Wirral
L65 4EF

Tel:0151 355 5017

Email:

ULSTER FOLK AND TRANSPORT MUSEUM

The museum possesses an excellent library and archive covering all aspects of folk life in Ulster. The library has an extensive collection of superstitions, folklore and stories collected in Ulster. This includes audio recordings, many of which have been transcribed and classified, according to the Aarne-Thompson index, by Linda M. Ballard.

Members of the public are welcome to use the library on a reference only basis during office hours.

Ulster Folk and Transport Museum
Cultra, Holtwood, Co.Down, N.Ireland, BT18 0EU
Tel: 028 8224 3292

ULSTER - AMERICAN FOLK PARK LIBRARY

The library of the Ulster - American Folk Park is primarily a centre for migration studies, concentrating on emigration from Ireland to America in the 18th and 19th centuries. The collection includes a selection of published works on folklore and folklife and volumes of stories covering both sides of the Atlantic.

This is a reference library open to the public for research. It is advisable to telephone in advance.  The library is open 9.30 am - 4.30 pm Monday to Friday excluding Public Holidays.

Ulster - American Folk Park Library
Mellon Rd. Castletown, Omagh, Co.Tyrone, BT78 5QY
Tel: 028 8225 6315

SCHOOL OF SCOTTISH STUDIES

This is a specialist sound archive which includes the largest body of traditional storytelling on tape in the British Isles. Most of this is in Scots Gaelic including the long hero-tales. The collection also holds recordings of lowland Scots travellers, including the original tapes for all of Duncan Williamson’s published collections and most of those from other travellers, Jeannie Robertson, Betsy White, the Stewarts of Blair, Willie MacPhee, Stanley Robertson and others. There is a good deal from the rich dialect tradition of Shetland and Orkney. There are a number of manuscripts, nearly all of Gaelic tales, and a small collection of films and video-tapes.

The School of Scottish Studies aims to make this material available to the public by publishing collections of stories. They are considering releasing some of the material on audio or video cassette if there is sufficient demand.

Direct access to the collection is limited to students of the university or people working on approved research projects. Application forms are available from the School but for any extensive use of the material the permission of the storytellers or their heirs would be required.

School of Scottish Studies
The University of Edinburgh
27 George Sqare
Edinburgh, EH8 9LD
Tel: 0131 650 3060

Factsheet compiled by Carl Clayton 1995

Updated by Tina Bilbe 2004