The HistoryMakers® Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch



Overview of the Item

Repository: The HistoryMakers
1900 S. Michigan Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60616
(312) 674-1900
info@thehistorymakers.com
http://www.thehistorymakers.com
Interviewer: Julieanna Richardson
Videographer: Matthew Hickey
Title:Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch
Dates:September 05, 2003
Abstract: (ABSTRACT)
Quantity: 9 Betacam SP videocassettes, 1 half-Hollinger box containing (NUMBER) folders of accompanying materials.
Identification: A2003.212
Language: The interviews and records are in English

Biographical Note

Historian and educator Lonnie G. Bunch was born November 18, 1952, in Newark, New Jersey. After graduating from Belleville High School in 1970, Bunch enrolled in Howard University and later transferred to the American University in Washington, D.C. Bunch stayed at American, earning a B.A. in 1974, an M.A. in 1976 and a Ph.D. in 1979. His degrees are in American and African American history.

While working on his doctorate, Bunch went to work for the Smithsonian Institute as an educator and historian. After earning his Ph.D., he took a position with the University of Massachusetts as a professor of history, and remained there until 1983. Crossing the country, Bunch became the founding curator of the California African American Museum in Los Angeles in 1983, and he remained there until 1989. From there Bunch went on to become the associate director for curatorial affairs at the National Museum of American History, a position he retained until 2000. In 2001, Bunch became the president of the Chicago Historical Society, one of the oldest history museums in the nation.

Bunch has published numerous books and magazine articles on topics ranging from African American history to cultural experiences in Japan. Bunch serves as a trustee of the American Association of Museums and the Council of the American Association of State & Local History, and he is a member of the American Antiquarian Society. Recently, Bunch has been appointed by President George W. Bush to the Commission for the Preservation of the White House. Bunch and his wife, Maria, live in the suburbs of Chicago.

Selected Bibliography

Bunch, Lonnie G. The American Presidency: A Glorious Burden. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institute Press, 2000.

----------. Black Angelenos: The African American in Los Angeles, 1850-1950. 1989.

Biographical Note by The HistoryMakers®

Scope and Contents

This life oral history interview with Lonnie Bunch was conducted by Julieanna Richardson on 2003-09-05 in Chicago Historical Society, Chicago, Illinois and is recorded on 9 30-minute Betacam SP videocassettes. Access copies exist on Betacam SP, VHS, DVD and MPEG-1. The interview contains information on (COMPLETE ONE SENTENCE DESCRIPTION OF INTERVIEW). Accompanying materials in the collection include Lonnie Bunch's correspondence with The HistoryMakers® related to the interview; a copy of the signed release form and the production report; the biographical information used by the interviewer to prepare for the interview (DETAILS); paper copies of the interview transcripts, 3 1/2" floppy disks with electronic copies of the transcripts; selected quotes for video clips; photocopies of photographs captured on video; XML files with metadata created in editing and cataloguing the interview for The HistoryMakers Digital Video Library; and paper copies of these XML files.

Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

Access to paper records is restricted. Other restrictions may be applied on a case-by-case basis.

Restrictions on Use

All use of materials must be pre-approved by The HistoryMakers® and appropriate credit must be given. All use credits must be pre-approved by The HistoryMakers®. Copyright is held by The HistoryMakers®.

Index Terms

This record series is indexed under the following controlled access terms.
Contributors:
Bunch, Lonnie G. III
Hickey, Matthew
Richardson, Julieanna
Persons:
(PERSONS)
Corporate Bodies:
(CORPORATE BODIES)
Family Names:
Bunch
Places:
(PLACES)
Subjects:
(SUBJECTS)
Document Types:
Video oral history interview
Titles:
The HistoryMakers® Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch

Related Material

Accompanying materials: Accompanying materials are filed in (NUMBER) folders in a half-Hollinger box and shelved at The HistoryMakers® Archives and Collection Library by accession number, separately from the videos.

Administrative Information

Location of Originals

Betacam, VHS, DVD and MPEG-1 access copies are held for in-house use at The HistoryMakers®; Betacam SP, VHS and DVD playback hardware is provided for in-house viewing of the access copies; MPEG-1 copies are searchable and viewable via a digital video database.

Preferred Citation

The HistoryMakers® Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch, September 05, 2003. The HistoryMakers® African American Video Oral History Collection, 1900 S. Michigan Avenue Chicago, Illinois.

Detailed Description/Tape Listings

Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch, Tape 1, September 05, 2003, TRT: 00:30:02:23.

Lonnie Bunch details his early years and his parents' backgrounds. He discusses the difficulties his father faced as a chemist who couldn't find employment in his chosen profession. Bunch also describes how his grandfather had to attend dental school twice because the state of New Jersey refused to accept the credentials of Howard University Dental School because it was a black college.


Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch, Tape 2, September 05, 2003, TRT: 00:30:40:01.

Lonnie Bunch remembers his hardworking grandparents and parents and their lives in Belleville, New Jersey. Bunch describes life in a predominantly Italian neighborhood where his grandfather built their home in late 1918-1919. Bunch often felt alienated and found himself engaged in fisticuffs over insults and racial slights.


Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch, Tape 3, September 05, 2003, TRT: 00:30:02:14.

Lonnie Bunch shares all of the exhilaration, bewilderment and fear of beginning college at Howard University. After a secondary school experience of being one of a handful of black students, Bunch took to Howard like a fish to water. As part of the more leftist element on campus, Bunch joined the Black Panther Party and was part of several demonstrations and protests. He was also an eyewitness to the changing black aesthetic and embracing of black features and natural hairstyles.


Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch, Tape 4, September 05, 2003, TRT: 00:28:53:02.

Lonnie Bunch shares experiences from his undergraduate career at Howard and American Universities. He also details his intensive study of 19th century black history, focusing on 1830-1861. Bunch remembers studying with noted scholars like John Hope Franklin and Ben Quarles. Bunch also discusses the disciplines of American history and African American studies.


Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch, Tape 5, September 05, 2003, TRT: 00:29:17:17.

Lonnie Bunch details his life with the Smithsonian Institution and his scholarly and personal growth while there. After being tapped to head the new California African American Museum, Bunch and his new wife headed west to begin a new chapter in their lives. Bunch was initially apprehensive because Western American black history was not his area of concentration. However, he created a new path by focusing on his strengths in scholarship and planning, and the new museum opened to acclaim in 1984.


Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch, Tape 6, September 05, 2003, TRT: 30:46:16.

Lonnie Bunch details his career successes at the California African American Museum in Los Angeles as its founding director. After six years, he was asked to rejoin the Smithsonian Institution. Bunch discusses the first Smithsonian exhibit mounted outside the United States in Japan.


Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch, Tape 7, September 05, 2003, TRT: 00:30:50:10.

Lonnie Bunch details his professional career at the Smithsonian Institution and at the Chicago Historical Society. He speaks of his disappointment at the dearth of people of color involved in museums and non profit cultural organizations. Bunch also discusses several of his triumphs at the Smithsonian with the first exhibition mounted outside the United States and the first exhibit on U.S. presidents.


Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch, Tape 8, September 05, 2003, TRT: 00:29:11:19.

Lonnie Bunch offers his thoughts and philosophy on the state of black America, as it relates to representation in cultural institutions and the world in general. He worries about class divisions and the lack of opportunity for those caught in the lower classes. The segment closes with several photos of Bunch and his family.


Video Oral History Interview with Lonnie Bunch, Tape 9, September 05, 2003, TRT: 00:10:52:08.

Lonnie Bunch describes photos documenting moments in his professional career, and those of his family and their travels.