The Wpa Arkansas Slave Narratives Collection

Book excerpt: The Complete Arkansas Slave Narratives Collection. A Folk History of Slavery in the United States from Interviews with Former Slaves. This volume consists of Parts 1 & 2 of Volume II of the Arkansas Slave Narratives and interviews conducted by the Works Progress Administration. These slave narratives/interviews represent some of the only sources of information from former slaves in the United States, as many slaves were not allowed to learn to read or write, therefore only a small number of former slaves were able to document their experiences while in bondage as a slave in America. Although, there are some criticisms of these interviews, they do offer some valuable insights into the daily lives of those who were slaves in America. Prepared by the Federal Writers' Project of the Works Progress Administration for the State of Arkansas