The Museum at Bethel Woods

The Museum at Bethel Woods will build upon its oral history initiative to document personal stories of the Catskills, the Woodstock festival, and community activism during the 1960s and 1970s. The museum will partner with the Borscht Belt Museum and the Borscht Belt Marker Project to organize oral history pop-ups and conduct long-form interviews. Museum staff will process and transcribe oral histories and contract with an outside advisor to ensure adherence to ethical standards and best practices. The project will result in 60 videotaped oral histories that will be used by all three institutions in exhibits and public programs to help commemorate the 250th anniversary of America. This collaborative project will expand partnerships and contribute to organizational capacity-building. Documenting these rapidly disappearing personal accounts will enhance public understanding of a formative period in our country's history.