A rising Senior from the University of Notre Dame, Ashley Estelle has dove in head first, working as a Summer intern, developing a finding aid for unprocessed ephemera and updating the collection for the Birmingham Black Radio Museum.
With family originally from the historically Black neighborhood of Collegeville, Ms. Estelle, was born and raised in Birmingham and grew up in the West End community, graduating from Ramsay High School in 2022.
“I love learning about the history of my state,” says Ashley. “I hope after I finish school, I’ll be able to come back home and do work here.”
With a major in History and minors in Africana and Poverty Studies, Ashley has a great interest in African American history and its representation in American public history. At Notre Dame, she works as a library assistant in the University’s Rare Books and Special Collections division. The work she has done there has inspired her to pursue a degree in the Library Science and Archival field.
“This is truly fun for me to do,” reports Ashley. BBRM Director Bob Friedman has asked Ashley to take on organizing and highlighting documents related to Rev. Erskine Faush and his contributions to the Birmingham community, including his broadcast career and concert promotions during the 1960‘s and 70‘s.
One of Estelle’s favorite finds so far is a Western Union telegram to Rev. Faush from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in December of 1965. The telegram urged Faush to attend a meeting at St. Paul’s Methodist church with other local leaders within Jefferson County to address reconstructing
Alabama’s politics, King believed that Jefferson County held “the key that can open Alabama’s political door…”
As Estelle continues to organize this collection surrounding Faush, she mentioned the great knowledge she’s obtaining through working on the documents: “I’m learning about the history of my city, about radio’s involvement in the community, and the importance of archiving and preserving documents.”
“We are happy to have Ms. Ashley Estelle here for the summer,” commented BBRM Director Bob Friedman. “She’s very careful with the materials and meticulous recording content. She loves Birmingham, really enjoys her work making a significant contribution to the BBRM collection and we’re glad to have her this summer.”