The David and Barbara Pryor Center of Arkansas Oral and Visual History, in the Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas, will collect oral histories at the upcoming Bradley County Pink Tomato Festival. As part of the Pryor Center’s Arkansas Traditions collection, Pryor Center staff will be on the Bradley County Courthouse lawn to record stories from festival attendees on Saturday, June 15.
“What better way to collect oral histories than to set up a tent on the Bradley County Courthouse lawn and document the stories people have about the time-honored tradition that is the Pink Tomato Festival,” John Davis, executive director of the Pryor Center said. “The Pink Tomato Festival is a perfect opportunity to learn about a wonderful Arkansas community and its people—through the lens of this annual event. We are seeking stories from anyone who appreciates the value and history of the festival and who is willing to share their Pink Tomato stories for our archives.”
The David and Barbara Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History is an oral history program with the mission to document the history of Arkansas through the collection of spoken memories and visual records, preserve the collection in perpetuity, and connect Arkansans and the world to the collection through the Internet, TV broadcasts, educational programs, and other means.
The Pryor Center records audio and video interviews about Arkansas history and culture, collects other organizations’ recordings, organizes these recordings into an archive, and provides public access to the archive, primarily through the website at pryorcenter.uark.edu.
The Pryor Center is the state’s only oral and visual history program with a statewide, 75-county mission to collect, preserve, and share audio and moving image recordings of Arkansas history.