When you embark upon an oral history project, you should first answer the question: Why do I want to conduct oral histories? There are many excellent reasons to conduct an oral history project. Does your intended project include any of the below conditions?
If so, then conducting an oral history project may be the right thing to do!
It is also important not only to consider the subject matter, but also what means are available to devote to the project. Oral history projects can be very labor intensive and the dedicated commitment and investment of time and resources necessary to see a project to fruition is an additional reason to determine if you should conduct oral histories.
Project goals are centered around how you would like your oral histories to be shared publicly, the final step in an oral history project. All oral histories create primary resources that contribute to the historical record. These recordings can be shared on organization websites or via digital libraries/projects (such as the Lowcountry Oral History Initiative) or archival repositories.
The primary goal of documenting and preserving personal experiences to contribute to the historical record should be addressed prior to any secondary goals. If your oral history project is not properly preserved, then it won't be available for both your projects and for researchers in the future.
For examples of oral history projects, see Recommended Readings and Resources: Oral History Projects.
It is important to think about now how you are going to share your project later. Different means of sharing your recording may impact how your plan your project. For example, organizations that are partnering with the Lowcountry Oral History Initiative (LOHI) may not need to purchase any recording equipment, as partners are provided with an oral history field kit. Additionally, sharing your oral history on the LOHI platform will require partners to submit some descriptive information about each recording.
If you are planning on donating your oral history recordings to an archive for preservation, it's important to contact that archive ahead of time to ensure that the archive is accepting donations and to learn what type of access they will provide to your project.
If you want to host your oral history project on your own website, it's important to make sure you have the storage and bandwidth to make the recordings accessible.
For more information on sharing your project, see Step 5: Share Your Project.
An oral history project can be as small as interviewing one person to as many as 500. Note that it is common to interview a person more than once for a project. To establish the project's size, you should develop a list of potential interviewees. Additionally, the number of interviews you conduct largely influences the amount of time that it will take to complete the project. You may find it helpful to draft a timeline.
For more information on finding people to interview, see the Related Materials column on this page. The "Tips for Locating and Contacting Interviewees" document can help.
Traditionally, oral histories were recorded in person; the interviewee and interviewer(s) in a room with a voice recorder or camcorder to tape the interview. While oral histories are still conducted face to face, modern technology (and the Covid-19 pandemic) has opened the door to conduct oral histories in ways other than in person. Modern technology has also improved the quality of interviews, and has provided ways to conduct interviews at a much lower cost. Before conducting your oral histories, research the various recording formats, and consider the pros, cons, and costs of each to help make your final decision. Please note that it is perfectly acceptable to use a combination of formats.
For more information on recording formats, see the Related Materials column on this page. The "Pros and Cons of In Person and Remote Oral History Interviews" document may be helpful. If you plan to conduct in person interviews, you may also find helpful the Arranging In Person Interviews document.
Depending on its size, you may need a team to carry out an oral history project or you might be a team of one. In most projects, one person can fill more than one role. For example, one of the oral historians might serve as the Technical/Equipment Coordinator. Here are some roles that, at a minimum, should be filled:
In addition to time, oral history projects cost money. Therefore, you should plan a budget for your project. (Budgeting may already be pre-planned if you have a grant or other funding source). At a minimum, costs should cover:
