UA Libraries Sponsor Conference on Mary Celestia Parler, Famed Arkansas Folklorist

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Special Collections Department of the University of Arkansas Libraries is hosting a conference on the late Mary Celestia Parler, a significant collector of Arkansas folklore and the wife of another outstanding folklorist, Vance Randolph. The conference, which is co-sponsored by the UA Center for Arkansas and Regional Studies, will begin with a keynote speech on Friday evening, Nov. 11, and continue the next day. All sessions will be held on the UA campus, and all are open to the public and free of charge.

Parler (1904-1981) taught in the UA English department from 1948 to 1975.  Her course in Arkansas folklore was extremely popular with students. In addition to teaching, Parler traveled the state conducting interviews and recording folk music. The Parler Ozark Folk Song Collection numbers 3,640 field recordings made between 1949 and 1965 of musicians performing on front porches, in barber shops, and even in the state penitentiary. It is one of the largest and most significant collections of folksongs in the nation.

Among the speakers at the conference is Alan Spurgeon of the University of Mississippi, who is a national authority on Parler and her collection. Spurgeon will give the keynote address on Friday evening. Other speakers will address such topics as Parler as a teacher, Parler as a collector, and how the large Parler Collection can be preserved for use by future generations. Other features include an airing of “The Search,” a 1954 CBS television program documenting Parler’s quest for an Ozarks version of the traditional English ballad “The Two Sisters,” and a Friday evening performance by “Two Cents’ Worth,” a Siloam Springs band that will be playing traditional folk music such as that collected by Parler.

To register or for more information, call the UA Libraries’ Special Collections Department at (479) 575-5577, or visit http://libinfo.uark.edu/specialcollections/news/ParlerConference.asp.