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The National Public Housing Museum preserves a growing collection of more than 170 powerful personal narratives of people with meaningful connections to public housing, the majority of which were also conducted by residents.
These oral histories center lived experiences and are incorporated into Museum exhibits and shared through our podcast, Out of the Archives. They also help inspire the future of memory work through related oral history training programs, resources, and other creative collaborations.
With the oral history archive, the Museum aims to share and activate stories from the people who call public housing home, becoming a source of power, knowledge, strength, and nuanced humanity in the struggles for housing justice.
Listen to stories from the archive
Activating the archive
These creative projects by Museum staff, partners, and Oral History Collective members curate and activate clips from interviews in our archive. We strive to foster reflection and conversation by uplifting and unpacking stories from public housing.
Out of the Archives
Out of the Archives is the National Public Housing Museum’s oral history-based podcast, which centers the voices and experiences of current and former public housing residents from across the country.
When the Market Isn’t an Option
When the Market Isn’t an Option is our four-part zine series that unpacks U.S. housing history, including redlining, neoliberal housing policies, and community activism.
These histories are interwoven with oral history excerpts that exemplify, public housing residents’ resilience and power.
A floor plan for the heart:
2023 Beauty Turner Academy Mixtape
What comes to mind when asked, what does home mean to you?
Written, produced, and edited by Cosmo, jellystone, and Nedra, the first cohort of Beauty Turner Academy Archive & Activate Apprentices (2023), this is a floor plan for the heart.
Taylor Street Memories
As you walk down Taylor Street, you will meet one of our founders, Commissioner Deverra Beverly, and learn about the changing neighborhood through the stories of past residents. These exhibits are accessible from the outside of the Museum, even when the building is closed.
Animal Court
Experience the enchanting seven-piece sculpture Animal Court by Edgar Miller, which has been lovingly restored and placed in our courtyard. This physical exhibition features an archive activation of residents’ memories of the Animal Court throughout its history.
Silent Voices Among Us: A Montage of Chicago’s West Side
Silent Voices Among Us is a photojournalistic series by Dr. Cranston Knight, a former public housing resident from the Henry Horner Homes in Chicago’s West Side. The photos in the series were taken between June and July 2020 in the Austin and Garfield Park communities. The project documents decades of systemic inequities put into place by unfair housing practices, school closures, healthcare access, and more.
Other Community-Based Memory Projects
We’re not the only organization working to preserve the histories and present-day stories of public housing! Check out some of the brilliant projects created by or with our partners.
Guiding Principles
Our oral histories are intimate conversations with people, primarily public housing residents, who have generously agreed to share some of their life stories with the National Public Housing Museum. By using this archive, you are committing to interacting with the interviews with humility, respect, and care for the narrators and the greater public housing community.
Oral History Resources
From interview preparation and audio recording tips to guidelines for taking a trauma-informed approach to oral history interactions, the National Public Housing Museum maintains a library of resources for oral historians, narrators, and other memory workers.
Oral History Programs at the National Public Housing Museum are generously supported by the Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation.
Contact Us
Please email Liú Chen, Senior Programs Manager, Oral History Archive & Collective, with any questions, concerns, or if you’re interested in getting involved.
