Phil Primack Photographs and Papers

Collection — Multiple Containers

Identifier: BCA 0271

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This collection is comprised of photographs, correspondence, writings, interviews and subject files of Phil Primack.

Dates

created: 1964-2000

Creator

Primack, Phil (Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Records can be accessed through the Reading Room, Berea College Special Collections and Archives, Hutchins Library, Berea College. Select photographs and records from this collection can also be accessed online at: https://berea.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/SO_31f3d2bd-882b-4059-93bd-59fd05c5ad28/

Conditions Governing Use

The donor (Phil Primack) retains copyright and intellectual property rights to these materials. Use of materials within this collection for commercial purposes requires the donor's (Phil Primack) prior approval. Federal copyright regulations apply. Cite all information.

Extent

5.00 boxes_(general)

1 cubic foot other_unmapped

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

During his career as a journalist Phil Primack covered public policy, politics, and the economy for numerous news outlets, including The New York Times, the Boston Globe, Commonwealth, Boston, and Columbia Journalism Review. The Phil Primack Collection contains numerous photographs, most of them taken while Primack worked as a reporter for The Mountain Eagle in Whitesburg, KY. In addition to documenting coal mining, the life and work of coal miners, the Finley Mine disaster at Hurricane Creek (December 1970), and the Buffalo Creek disaster (February 1972), Primack’s photographs document the landscapes, people, history and culture of Appalachia.

Arrangement Note

Creator organized, the collection is arranged in series as follows:

Series I: Photographs (n.d., 1969-1977) - Creator-based subseries. Primarily b&w negatives and 35mm color slides in cardboard frames. Titles of photographs inside [] (brackets) are described by archivist; titles of photographs without brackets were titled by creator upon acquisition. Select photographs from all of Series 1 can be found at: https://berea.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/SO_7d3dfcd1-0b4d-4765-b527-5f5b74d7cfe1/

Series 1A: Scenic Eastern Kentucky (n.d.; 1970-1977) - Scenes of Eastern Kentucky and Central Appalacia including mnay photographs of Letcher Co., Ky. 35mm negatives and 35mm slides in cardboard frames. A select number of the photographs in this series have been digitized and can be viewed as a group at: https://berea.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/SO_5d328596-9715-43e6-88c1-5a0c32658f0c/

Series 1B: Eastern Kentucky Mining (n.d. 1969-1974) - Scenes of coal mining and mining activities in Eastern Kentucky. 35mm negatives and 35mm slides in cardboard frames. A select number of the photographs in this series have been digitized and can be viewed as a group at: https://berea.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/SO_7f82c477-2a04-4132-a8a2-5d47b59d2a57/

Series 1C: Strip and Surface Mining (n.d.; 1969-1973) - Photographs of strip and surface mining activity in Central Appalachia. 35mm negatives and 35mm slides in cardboard frames. A select number of the photographs in this series have been digitized and can be viewed as a group at: https://berea.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/SO_e9869124-f723-48e4-9b9f-854bac3b2e83/

Series 1D: Coal Mining (General) (n.d., 1969, 1971) - Photographs documenting coal mining activity throughout Central Appalachia. B&w film copy negatives. A select number of the photographs in this series have been digitized and can be viewed as a group at: https://berea.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/SO_d0fa6f5b-a400-41d7-8956-2306c0d2623c/

Series 1E: People and Places of Applachia (n.d., 1969-1977) - Photographs of various people and places of Central Appalachia. Include both 35mm color and b&w slides in cardboard frame and b&w film copy neg. A select number of the photographs in this series have been digitized and can be viewed as a group at: https://berea.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/SO_9a435dc7-cac8-4e16-9ac8-4fefb66b30ee/

Series 1F: The Mountain Eagle, Whitesburg, Ky. - Tom and Pat Gish (1970-1977) - Majority of photographs taken at the Mountain Eagle office on Main Street, Whitesburg, Ky. Includes 35mm color slide in cardboard frame and b&w film copy neg. A select number of the photographs in this series have been digitized and can be viewed as a group at: https://berea.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/SO_47f2295d-b90a-447b-891b-af6ec39d6749/

Series 1G: Millstone Sewing Center (n.d) - Photographs of the Millstone Sewing Center in Letcher Co., Ky., including those of Mabel Kiser. B&w film copy negatives. A select number of the photographs in this series have been digitized and can be viewed as a group at: https://berea.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/SO_d8ca1de1-6012-44dc-86a4-9baaf6450aac/

Series 1H: Print Photographs - Primarily black and white prints of various size; majority of prints are from negatives in Series 1A-G. Folder contents organized by creator.

Series II: Correspondence, Writings, and Interviews (n.d., 1964-1991) - Contains correspondence, writings and transcripts of interviews conducted by Primack. A select number of the records in this series have been digitized and can be viewed as a group at: https://berea.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/SO_b8812610-3221-4e51-b9d2-cc7c3b2134dc/

Series III: Subject Files (n.d., 1963-2000) - Materials and records collected and organized by Primack on various subjects and topics.

Series IV: Millstone Sewing Center (n.d., 1966-1983) - Records of the Millstone Sewing Center in Letcher County, Kentucky. Including writings and correspondence of Mabel Kiser, reports, histories, and business records. Also see Series 1G: Phototgraphs of Millstone Sewing Center. A select number of the records in this series have been digitized and can be viewed as a group at: https://berea.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/SO_e6f303df-ca07-41e4-b147-ff0029a133db/

Source of Acquisition

Phil Primack

Related Materials

Digital Exhibit at: http://appalachianphotography.digitalprojects.network. Created by Tim O'Doherty, Mellon Partners in Humanities Education Digital Project Assistant, Summer 2020.

Phil Primack Papers, Tufts Digital Library at: http://130.64.212.216/catalog/ead/tufts:UA069.001.DO.MS241

Other Descriptive Information

Collection number: BCA 0271

Processing Information

All materials were processed as organized by creator, Phil Primack. Collection processing occurred between March and July of 2020. Processing, finding guide, and digitization of select text materials completed by Lori Myers-Steele, Collections Archivist. Digitization of select photographs completed by Tim O'Doherty, Berea College student and Mellon Partners in Humanities Education Digital Project Assistant, Summer 2020. Digitization of select photographs and other collection guide work completed by Shay Steele, SCA volunteer, June-August 2020.

The collection was digitized as part of a Mellon Partners in Humanities Education Digital Project funded by the Mellon Foundation as part of a Faculty Collaboration Grants Project: A Cross-Campus Network for Digital Projects.