The Elayne Zorn Collection measures 11 linear feet and contains thousands of photographic objects including negatives, slides and prints. The collection material spans the years of Zorn's professional and student activity in the fields of anthropology and Latin American studies from around 1975 until 2010. The material in this collection reflects Zorn's long association with the community in Taquile, Peru which led up to the publication of her book, Weaving a Future, in 2004. Zorn also spent a significant amount of time conducting field research in Andean communities in Bolivia examining the relationships between tourism and textiles. Zorn's additional professional activities included serving as a textile collector and expert advisor for museum collections and exhibitions as well as performing academic duties at the University of Central Florida.

These records consist of departmental correspondence and office memoranda from 1976 to 1991. Files for 1984 and 1988 are missing. The records were created mostly by Milton Sonday and Gillian Moss, and concern subjects such as exhibition loans, textile scholarship, catalogs and publications, public inquiries, the donation and acquisition o...

Account book of an unidentified merchant living in an unknown location; includes entries for dry goods and other items purchased and sold.

This accession consists of flag files created and maintained by the Division of Home and Community Life. The flag files consist of research and documentation of the various versions of the United States flag as well as textile examinations of flags conducted by curators. Staff represented included Katherine Dirks, associate curator; Rita ...

The papers of weaver, textile designer, and businesswoman Dorothy Liebes are dated circa 1850-1973 (bulk 1922-1970), and comprise 25 linear feet. Biographical information, subject files, correspondence, writings, artwork, financial records, scrapbooks, textile samples, printed material, sound recordings, and photographs document Liebes' career and personal life. Her second husband, Associated Press Reporter Relman "Pat" Morin, is also represented in the collection, although to a much lesser extent.

Photographs depicting indigenous peoples, antiquities, implements, textile types, and scenery in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, and other areas of northeastern India. Represented photographers include Elizabeth Bayley Willis, Verrier Elwin, Panna Pal, R. Pyngrope, and other photographers.

The papers of contemporary Color Field painter and educator Sam Gilliam measure 7.9 linear feet and date from 1957 to 1989. The papers include biographical material, correspondence, writings, business records, printed material, subject files, a scrapbook, artwork, and photographic material that document Gilliam's life from his time as a student through his teaching, professorial, and artistic career. The collection highlights Gilliam's close involvement with the art institutions, racial politics, and artistic innovation taking place in 1960s through 1980s America, specifically in Washington D.C.

The Charlene Hodges Byrd collection measures 43 linear feet, and dates from circa 1750-2009, with the bulk of the material dating from 1880-1960. The collection documents the personal life and professional career of Charlene Hodges Byrd, an African American teacher from Washington, D.C., along with material for several related families from Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. Family members prominently represented include Sarah A. Shimm, teacher and essayist under the name Faith Lichen; her daughters Erminie F. Shimm and Grace E. Shimm Cummings, both teachers; and Byrd's mother, Joyce Ethel Cummings Hodges, also a teacher. Correspondence and writings chiefly discuss family life, religion, race, education, and the relationship with Frederick Douglass and his family. The collection is arranged in 10 series: Biographical Material, Correspondence, Writings, Subject Files, Financial and Legal Records, Printed Material, Volumes, Memorabilia, Textiles, and Photographs.

This finding aid was digitized with funds generously provided by the Smithsonian Institution Women's Committee.

The Scurlock photographic studio was a fixture in the Shaw area of Washington, D.C. from 1911 to 1994, and encompassed two generations of photographers, Addison N. Scurlock (1883-1964) and his sons George H. (1920- 2005) and Robert S. (1916-1994). Subseries 4.8 consists of black and white silver gelatin negatives. An overview to the entire Scurlock collection is available here: Scurlock Studio Records