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Lyle and Mary Dorsett Oral History Collection

Barfield and Dorsett in study, August 1984

Above: Owen Barfield and Lyle Dorsett in Barfield's study, August 1984. Image owned by the Wade Center.

The Oral History Project was established by Wade director Lyle W. Dorsett in 1983 in order to record the personal recollections of people who knew the seven authors of the Wade Center, or were impacted by them, and preserve those recollections for future research use. Interviewees include friends, family members, acquaintances, scholars and, in the case of Owen Barfield, the author himself. The intent of the project was explained to each person being interviewed before the interview was conducted.

In 2023, the Wade’s oral history collection was named in honor of Lyle and Mary Dorsett in recognition of their tremendous work in building the foundations of this significant archival resource. When Dr. Dorsett began his tenure as the second Director of the Wade Center in 1983, one of his main objectives was to conduct oral history interviews with those who had personal memories of one or more of the seven Wade authors. An accomplished historian and researcher, Dr. Dorsett came to the Wade with a wealth of experience interviewing individuals for his own books and articles. He used this expertise to develop a detailed procedure and guidelines for successful oral history interviews that are still used by the Wade Center today.

The majority of the interviews were recorded on audio (SR), video (VR), or both, and all of the oral histories have been transcribed. Interview content is only available for on-site use at the Wade Center. Permission to publish or reproduce any part of these interviews must be applied for in writing to the Marion E. Wade Center.

Lyle and Mary Dorsett

Lyle and Mary Dorsett Oral History Collection

Learn more about the background of the Dorsett Oral History Collection

Lyle and Mary Dorsett Oral History Collection Listings

Lyle Dorsett conducted forty-five of the oral history interviews that were recorded from 1982 to 1989. The collection now has over ninety recordings. Chronologically the first interview (five-hours in length) was with Douglas Gresham, C.S. Lewis’s stepson. The recording took place on Wheaton's campus on June 4, 1982, a year before Dorsett became director.

A brief listing of the collection provides basic information on each of the recordings and the full listing below includes summaries of the topics covered in each interview. The list is arranged by name of person interviewed and interview date.