The Kenneth D. Rose Sheet Music Collection contains first editions and imprints of sheet music pertaining to a variety of subjects, including the American Civil War (particularly the Confederacy), politics and presidents, wars, ships and shipping, sports, minstrels, and comic songs. The collection has more than 20,000 pieces of music, most of which was acquired by the Tennessee State Library and Archives prior to 1956. The remainder of the collection was bequeathed in 1956.
Perhaps no other single structure among Nashville’s buildings so epitomizes Music City’s spirit as the Ryman Auditorium. Recognized around the world as the “Mother Church of Country Music,” the Ryman is best known for having hosted the Grand Ole Opry, a weekly radio show, for decades. However, the history of the Ryman transcends genres and is closely intertwined with the history of Nashville itself.
The Tennessee Arts Commission established its Folk Arts Program in 1984. From the beginning, program director Dr. Robert Cogswell photographed artists, sites, and events related to program activities. These items are a small sampling of approximately 22,000 images that document folkways and unique Tennessee styles, characters, and art.
The Tennessee State Parks Folklife Project produced more than 500 hours of audio tape, 9600 slides, and 2200 black and white negatives, including duplicates of scores of historic photographs which had been cached for years by their owners. Several years ago, the Tennessee State Library and Archives initiated a project to digitize selections of the audio recordings and photographs from the collection in order to improve public access.
