Housed in an award-winning repurposed historic barn building on the Fairmont State University campus, the Frank & Jane Gabor West Virginia Folklife Center is home to the Ruth Ann Musick folklore archives, the Phyllis W. Moore West Virginia Authors archives, and the Patty Looman collection. These collections and additional archival materials can be made available for scholars and student researchers. The Center is part of the College of Liberal Arts and houses the University’s undergraduate programs in folklore and museum studies. The Center serves the University and the broader community through scholarship, publications, workshops, exhibitions, and outreach events.
The Frank and Jane Gabor West Virginia Folklife Center on the campus of Fairmont State University is dedicated to the identification, preservation, and perpetuation of our region's rich cultural heritage, through academic studies, educational programs, festivals and performances, and publications.
The Frank and Jane Gabor West Virginia Folklife Center will host a slate of traditional musicians as part of the Trunk of Traditional Tunes project funded by the West Virginia Humanities Council through a grant made possible by the 2021 American Recuse Plan Act. The goal of this project is to provide online resources to schools, individuals and community groups to educate West Virginians about their rich musical traditions.
The Frank and Jane Gabor West Virginia Folklife Center at Fairmont State University will host a virtual event with Joe Valencic where he will discuss collecting family history on Monday, October 18 at 7 p.m. Throughout the program, Valencic will cover topics including how to interview family members, what questions to ask and how to make the most of online resources.
Ginny Hawker will demonstrate and discuss traditional ballad singing at the Frank and Jane Gabor West Virginia Folklife Center at Fairmont State University on Sunday, October 17 at 2 p.m. The event is free and open to the public, sponsored by the West Virginia Humanities through a CARES Act grant.