Brian H. Smith Chilean Oral History Collection
Scope and Contents
This collection consists of audio recordings made by Brian H. Smith in Chile in 1975. These include recordings of interviews with Chilean bishops and recordings of Smith’s audio summaries of interviews with bishops which could not be recorded. Each interview consists of responses to a structured set of 41 survey quesitons concerning the pastoral, social and political aspects of the Catholic Church in Chile from 1925 to 1975. Also included are recordings of conversations with clergy and laity involved with various ministries in the Chilean Church, Smith's reflections on his travels, and recordings of Sunday masses. Access copies of recordings are in MP3 format. Oral histories are also present in audiocassette or compact disc format.
Dates
- Creation: 1975-01 - 1975-11
Creator
- Smith, Brian H., 1940- (Person)
Conditions Governing Access
The collection is open for research. For access to files, contact the Department of Rare Books & Special Collections.
Conditions Governing Use
Copyright status for collection materials is unknown. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owners. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Biographical / Historical
Brian H. Smith visited Chile in 1975 in the course of field research for his doctoral thesis in Political Science at Yale. Smith, then a Jesuit priest, was affiliated with the Centro Bellarmino while in Chile. His research concerned church-state relations in Chile between 1925 and 1975. Smith was able to meet and interview all 30 bishops who were active in the country in 1975.
Brian H. Smith was a member of the Society of Jesus for 21 years. He is currently professor emeritus of Religion at Ripon College in Ripon, Wisconsin, where he taught from 1987-2020.
Extent
43 audio recordings. (43 digital files, 1 box of analog audio media)
Language of Materials
Spanish; Castilian
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Donated by Brian H. Smith in honor of the late Rev. Robert Pelton, CSC, in 2022.
Processing Information
Recording titles derived from creator’s inventory list.
Subject
- Catholic Church -- Chile -- History -- 20th century (Organization)
Genre / Form
- Audiocassettes
- Compact discs
- Electronic records (digital records)
- MP3
- Oral histories (literary works)
Geographic
Topical
- Date
- 2022 December 1
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
- Language of description note
- Description in English; audio recording titles in Spanish.
Repository Details
Part of the University of Notre Dame Rare Books & Special Collections Repository