William L. Paul Sr. Recording, 1965 | Sealaska Heritage Institute Archives

This collection consists of a 1965 audio recording of William L. Paul, Sr. speaking to Paul Rudolph, a fellow Alaska Native. The original self-recorded recording was captured on a three inch magnetic reel by William Paul, dated 3/27/1965, and contains the wording “Paul defends his record” written on the reel box. The reel was mailed by William Paul to Paul Rudolph in 1965. Paul Rudolph Jr. donated the original reel to SHI in 2011, and the reel has been migrated to CD for patron use.

In review of the recording it contains William Paul speaking about his past work and accomplishments for Alaska Natives generally and the Alaska Native Brotherhood. According to Paul, at this time there was a certain amount of animosity towards him from the Alaska Native community, which he discusses, and in this recording he seeks to “defend his record” and his labors on behalf of Alaska Natives.

The recording on CD is 26 minutes long. Patrons should know that during the migration process it was discovered that the recording was recorded at different speeds on the original reel. The CD contains a Side A and B, and each side is presented at two different speeds, and patrons will need to listen to both speeds to hear the full recording audibly. Importantly, because the audio quality of the recording is not overly audible, the recording has been transcribed and is included in this collection.

Researcher note: For those further interested in documents written by William L. Paul, Sr., the land claims movement, or the Alaska Native Brotherhood, see Sealaska Heritage Institute’s Curry-Weissbrodt Papers, the Walter A. Soboleff Papers, and the Andrew Hope and Ellen Hope Hays Papers. Patrons should know that William L. Paul Sr.’s papers reside at University of Washington Special Collections.