Background on Robert E. Brown
During the mid-1970s, Robert Brown worked as a fifth grade teacher at the West Street School, Southbridge, Mass., while pursuing a graduate degree in anthropology at UMass Amherst under Joel Halpern. Part of Brown's research involved conducting oral histories with Southbridge families identified as "ethnic," including Albanian, Greek, Polish, Portuguese, Italian, Puerto Rican, and Vietnamese, as well as the only African American family in town at the time. Brown published his work in local newspapers and ultimately in the book, The New New Englanders (Worcester, Mass.: Commonwealth Press, 1980).
Scope of collection
The Brown collection includes copies of his newspaper articles, profiles of the families he studied, and apparently complete transcripts of two oral history interviews. Also included are copies of two papers by Brown on Southbridge, possibly for an anthropology class, analyzing the education of Puerto Rican students and the lives of Rumanian Americans.
Inventory
Brown, Robert E.: Articles on Southbridge ethnic families (Polish, French Canadian, Greek, Albanian, Macedonian-Romanian). All printed in the Sunday Evening News Weekend Magazine
1976-1977
Brown, Robert E.: Letter from Robert E. Brown to Richard Martin (UMass Press)
1977 July 8
Brown, Robert E.: Profiles of Southbridge ethic families (based on interviews)
ca.1976-1977
Brown, Robert E.: A study of the relationship between teachers and students of Puerto Rican descent in grades five through eight in the public school system of Southbridge, Massachusetts
1977 July 8
Brown, Robert E.: A study of Rumanian-Americans in Southbridge, Massachusetts
ca.1973
Brown, Robert E.: Transcripts of oral history interviews, Southbridge, Massachusetts
ca.1976
Interview with Kostas and Anna Agathangelakis, daughter, and George
ca.1976
Interview with Gigli and Rosa Ciovacco, and daughter Anna, age 10
ca.1976
Administrative information
Search terms
Subjects
- African Americans--Massachusetts--Southbridge.
- Albanian Americans--Massachusetts--Southbridge.
- Greek Americans--Massachusetts--Southbridge.
- Immigrants--Massachusetts--Southbridge.
- Italian Americans--Massachusetts--Southbridge.
- Polish Americans--Massachusetts--Southbridge.
- Puerto Ricans--Massachusetts--Southbridge.
- Rumanian Americans--Massachusetts--Southbridge.
- Southbridge (Mass.)--History.
- Vietnamese Americans--Massachusetts--Southbridge.
Contributors
- Brown, Robert E. [main entry]
- Agathangelakis, Kostas
- Agathangelakis, Anna
- Ciovacco, Gigli
- Ciovacco, Rosa
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