America Works

Library of Congress
  • 5.0 (9)
  • SOCIETY & CULTURE
  • UPDATED BIMONTHLY
America Works

Features the voices of contemporary workers from throughout the United States talking about their lives, their workplaces, and their on-the-job experiences. Drawn from hundreds of longer oral history interviews collected by fieldworkers for the American Folklife Center's Occupational Folklife Project (OFP), America Works is a testament to the wisdom, wit, knowledge, and dedication of today's working Americans. These engaging oral histories, which have are preserved in the American Folklife Center's archive, are enriching and expanding America's historical record.

  1. OCT 17

    Dale Baumgartner, Head Cheese Maker, Tillamook Cheese. Tillamook, Oregon.

    Dale Baumgartener, long-time Head Cheese Maker at the Tillamook County Creamery Association, a farmer-owned cheese and dairy cooperative, talks with folklorist Jared Schmidt for his Occupational Folklife Project “Tillamook: Cheesemakers in Coastal Oregon.” He talks about growing up on a dairy farm, his start in the cheese industry, and his pride in working for a nationally respected brand like Tillamook Cheese.

    5 min

  2. OCT 10

    Phuong Mai Nguyen and Amp Phettaphong, Family Restaurant Owners. Columbus, Ohio.

    Phuong Mai Nguyen and her husband Amp Phettaphong, owners of the popular Indochine Café in Columbus, Ohio, came to the US as refugees and, after working a variety of other jobs, stared their own restaurant. The couple talk with folklorist Jess Lamar Reece Holler at their restaurant between lunch and dinner shifts by as part of Hollar’s Occupational Folklife Project “Back of House: Kitchen Workers in Central Ohio.”

    7 min

  3. OCT 3

    George Neiden, German sausage maker. Maple Heights. Ohio.

    German sausage maker George Neiden, who owns and runs the Old Country Sausage Kitchen in Maple Heights, Ohio, talks with folklorist Lucy Long about learning and plying his trade – (and the delight he takes in creating new sausage flavors!) — for her Occupational Folklife Project “Ethnic Grocers in the Urban Midwest.”

    6 min

  4. SEP 26

    Jade Sato, Asian American Farm Owner. Brighton, Colorado.

    Jade Sato, the founder and owner of Minoru Farm in Brighton, Colorado, talks with documentarian Katelyn Reuther about being part of a growing movement of Asian American farmers, many of them women, who are experimenting with raising and marketing Asian heritage crops, like sisho, ginger and gobo root, for a rapidly diversifying American palate. Their talk is part of Reuther’s Occupation Folklife Project “Finding Roots: Asian American Farmers in Contemporary America.”

    7 min

  5. SEP 19

    Emily Daniels, Agricultural Pilot. South Hampton, New Jersey.

    Emily Daniel, one of a small but growing number of female agricultural pilots – or, as they are often referred to, “crop dusters” – talks with documentarian Ellen Kendricks about learning to fly planes as a teenager, career challenges, and managing a small family-owned crop spraying business that services farms from New Jersey to Maryland and Texas and Kansas.

    6 min

  6. SEP 12

    Alfred Quijance, Fisherman and Subsistence Harvester. Seldovia, Alaska.

    Alfred Quijance talks with documentarian Josh Wisneski for the Alaska Marine Conservation Council’s Occupational Folklife Project “Beyond the Breakwater: Gulf of Alaska Small Boat Fishermen.” He talks about growing up in the remote Alutiiq/Sugpiaq community of Old Harbor on Kodiak Island; learning about traditional Native American seining, fishing and harvesting; and leaving at age 13 to find work on fishing boats and canneries throughout the state of Alaska.

    6 min

  7. SEP 5

    April Matson, Pitt Stop Food Concession Manager, Ransomville Speedway. Ransomville, New York.

    April Matson, Manager of the Pitt Stop food concession at the legendary Ransomville Speedway, a family-owned dirt track racecourse in western New York, talks with folklorist Edward Millar about her job, about why food is such an important part of the Speedway experience, and about preparing popular local specialties — including ‘flat dogs’ and hand cut fries.

    6 min

  8. AUG 29

    David Swett, Owner, Swett’s Restaurant. Nashville, Tennessee.

    David Swett, the owner of Swett’s Restaurant, a family-owned establishment and culinary landmark in Nashville, Tennessee since 1954, talks with documentarian Candacy Taylor about running an African American family business, working in the food industry and his pride in Swett’s history as part of her larger project “The Green Book: Documenting African American Entrepreneurs.”

    6 min
See All (25)

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
9 Ratings

About

Features the voices of contemporary workers from throughout the United States talking about their lives, their workplaces, and their on-the-job experiences. Drawn from hundreds of longer oral history interviews collected by fieldworkers for the American Folklife Center's Occupational Folklife Project (OFP), America Works is a testament to the wisdom, wit, knowledge, and dedication of today's working Americans. These engaging oral histories, which have are preserved in the American Folklife Center's archive, are enriching and expanding America's historical record.

Information

  • Creator
    Library of Congress
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2024
  • Episodes
    25
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Show Website
    America Works

To listen to explicit episodes, sign in.

Stay up to date with this show

Sign in or sign up to follow shows, save episodes, and get the latest updates.
Select a country or region

Africa, Middle East, and India

Asia Pacific

Europe

Latin America and the Caribbean

The United States and Canada