See Ourselves in the Movies: Jefferson County

Archive

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Jefferson County Museum

Name/Title

See Ourselves in the Movies: Jefferson County

Entry/Object ID

ARC73

Scope and Content

DVD and VHS copies of a film (with narration and music added) "See Ourselves in the Movies: Jefferson County." (62 minutes) The silent, 16-mm film footage entitled "See Yourself and Your Town in the Movies" was supervised by Tim Sinn in April 1941, and includes images of people (almost exclusively white) and places in Jefferson County, West Virginia (primarily Charles Town). Sponsored and released by the Charles Town Lions Club, the film was shown once at the Old Opera House before the start of World War II and then was shelved. This re-release in VHS, titled "The Way We Were: Jefferson County in 1941," added a sound track of 1940s music and a script written and narrated by Jim Surkamp and was produced in 1988 by the Jefferson County Oral and Visual History Association, with funding from the West Virginia Humanities Council. See article in Media, "The Way We Were: Jefferson County in 1941" by William D. Theriault ("Goldenseal: West Virginia Traditional Life," summer 1991), on Tim Sinn and the production of the original film and re-release. This DVD version was reformatted from the VHS version by the donor, using a commercial service. Physical Characteristics: Require VHS or DVD viewing hardware.

Acquisition

Accession

476

Source or Donor

Via, Mary

Acquisition Method

Gift

Archive Details

Creator

Jim Surkamp; Jefferson County Oral and History Association., Tim Sinn

Date(s) of Creation

1941

Archive Size/Extent

One VHS and one DVD copy of 62-minute film; includes

Archive Notes

Date(s) Created: 1941 (silent film), 1988 (narration and music added) Associated Material: See Accession file 476. Location of Originals: Original film was donated to the West Virginia Division of Culture and History.