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Mission Statement and Collectin Development Policy

Mission: The Fife Folklore Archives acquires, preserves and makes available folklore materials, as they are defined in the Fife Folklore Archives Collection Development Policy, to university students, faculty and staff and the public.


Fife Folklore Archives Collection Development Policy: The Austin E. and Alta S. Fife Folklore Archives (hereafter FFA) is an arm of Utah State University’s Special Collections and Archives Division and houses all the folklore materials described herein. The FFS interface closely with Utah State University’s Folklore Program, with faculty members from the program serving on the Fife Folklore Archives’ Collection Development Committee. The materials in this collection are purchased by the library and acquired through donations to the FFA. A major portion of the FFA is made up of student and faculty fieldwork collections that may be consulted in the Archvies. The book collections are accessible through the University Libraries’ online catalog and are available during scheduled library hours. All collections are closed-stack, non-circulating.


FFA is one of a number of leading research facilities that acquire, preserve and make available the materials in folklore fields that constitute particular areas of institutional focus and strength. The FFA collects field data, oral histories, monographs, slides, photographs, periodicals, books, audio recordings and non-commercial video recordings on the subject of folklore, particularly but not exclusively in the areas of regional folklore (including the Intermountain West, especially Utah and Idaho); folk groups (including ranching culture, Native American culture, Latino culture, and Mormon culture); genres (including belief, folksong, foodways, proverbs, and legends) and themes (including family, ethnic, and religious folklore). As well, the Archives maintains a basic research and reference collection in folklore.


The Archives is also the repository for the manuscripts, books, and periodicals of the American Folklore Society over its entire history from 1888 to the present. The American Folklore Society manuscript collection is held and referenced by the manuscript section of USU’s Special Collections and Archives Division.