Willa Baum
Encyclopedia
Willa Klug Baum was an oral historian
whose pioneering work in oral history methodology and interview techniques served as the foundation for the establishment of oral history as a discipline.
Born in Chicago
, Baum attended Whittier College
, studying history under Professor Paul Smith, who once called Willa his second-best student ever, after Richard Nixon
. During her graduate studies at U.C. Berkeley, Baum learned of Hubert Howe Bancroft
's interviews conducted in the 1860s and 1870s. Recognizing the historical value of these accounts, Baum and fellow graduate student Corinne Lathrop Gilb
set up an Oral History program at U.C. Berkeley, which later became the Regional Oral History Office
. Baum became the director in 1958, a position she held until her retirement in 2000.
Under Baum's directorship, ROHO amassed over 1,600 oral histories, filled with first-hand accounts of the participants in significant historical events in California and the West. These eyewitness accounts of history are on deposit at over 800 libraries worldwide, and stand as an invaluable resource to researchers worldwide.
ROHO worked quickly to recognize and document historical movements; for example, ROHO’s Suffragists and Women in Politics series began in the early 1970s before most campuses had women’s studies programs. Similarly, ROHO’s early documentation of the disability rights movement now provides primary research materials for the new disability studies program at UC Berkeley.
Ongoing ROHO projects include oral histories of the wine industry, mining, the environmental movement, the Disability Rights Movement, the Free Speech movement, anthropology, UC history, engineering, science, biotechnology, music, architecture, and the arts. ROHO’s largest projects document California government from the Earl Warren Era to the present.
Upon her retirement, Baum was bestowed the Berkeley Citation for her service to UC Berkeley, the President’s Citation for her contributions to the University of California, and the Hubert Howe Bancroft Award for her leadership.
Oral history
Oral history is the collection and study of historical information about individuals, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews...
whose pioneering work in oral history methodology and interview techniques served as the foundation for the establishment of oral history as a discipline.
Born in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Baum attended Whittier College
Whittier College
Whittier College is a private liberal arts college in Whittier, California. As of January 2009, the college has approximately 1540 enrolled students.-Overview:...
, studying history under Professor Paul Smith, who once called Willa his second-best student ever, after Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
. During her graduate studies at U.C. Berkeley, Baum learned of Hubert Howe Bancroft
Hubert Howe Bancroft
Hubert Howe Bancroft was an American historian and ethnologist who wrote and published works concerning the western United States, Texas, Mexico, Central America, British Columbia and Alaska.-Biography:...
's interviews conducted in the 1860s and 1870s. Recognizing the historical value of these accounts, Baum and fellow graduate student Corinne Lathrop Gilb
Corinne Lathrop Gilb
Corinne Lathrop Gilb was an author, publisher and international lecturer. She taught history and urban studies at Mills College, San Francisco State College, and Wayne State University in Detroit. Gilb authored articles, essays, and books including Hidden Hierarchies: The Professions and...
set up an Oral History program at U.C. Berkeley, which later became the Regional Oral History Office
Regional Oral History Office
The Regional Oral History Office is part of The Bancroft Library at the University of California, Berkeley. The office was founded in 1954. ROHO conducts, analyzes, teaches about, and preserves oral history interviews on a wide range of topics related to the history of California and the United...
. Baum became the director in 1958, a position she held until her retirement in 2000.
Under Baum's directorship, ROHO amassed over 1,600 oral histories, filled with first-hand accounts of the participants in significant historical events in California and the West. These eyewitness accounts of history are on deposit at over 800 libraries worldwide, and stand as an invaluable resource to researchers worldwide.
ROHO worked quickly to recognize and document historical movements; for example, ROHO’s Suffragists and Women in Politics series began in the early 1970s before most campuses had women’s studies programs. Similarly, ROHO’s early documentation of the disability rights movement now provides primary research materials for the new disability studies program at UC Berkeley.
Ongoing ROHO projects include oral histories of the wine industry, mining, the environmental movement, the Disability Rights Movement, the Free Speech movement, anthropology, UC history, engineering, science, biotechnology, music, architecture, and the arts. ROHO’s largest projects document California government from the Earl Warren Era to the present.
Upon her retirement, Baum was bestowed the Berkeley Citation for her service to UC Berkeley, the President’s Citation for her contributions to the University of California, and the Hubert Howe Bancroft Award for her leadership.