Monday, April 26, 2010

Throwaway History: The Broadside in American Culture

Throwaway History: The Broadside in American Culture

Although broadsides may seem like a thing of the past, this Tennessee Virtual Archive mentions they are used still to this day, and have broadsides in their collection that are from the 1980s. Visitors should go to the "About the Collection" link to read some background on what broadsides were used for and how they were distributed. The information disseminated via broadsides was varied, including everything from a recruitment announcement to help fight the Creek Indians in Tennessee to a lecture on the perils of school desegregation to a promotion for an African-American radio station--the very one where Oprah Winfrey got her start. Visitors can view the 90 digitized broadsides by clicking on the "View Collection Images" link. A thumbnail of the broadside is given, along with the title, subjects, and description. Visitors can sort the images by the aforementioned categories simply by clicking the desired heading. Visitors should check out the very well- illustrated broadside, "Columbia Gives to Her Son the Accolade of the New Chivalry of Humanity, World War I", which is dedicated to a fallen soldier. The Historical Note in the full record explains when and how broadsides were used to memorialize fallen soldiers. >From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout Project 1994-2010. http://scout.wisc.edu/

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