Oral history interview with James "Jim" Mayo

James Mayo recalls the selection and renovation of the Carver Theater as the site for the Anacostia Neighborhood Museum (now Anacostia Community Museum), the grand opening, and his time serving as the Supervisory Exhibit Specialist. He describes several of the early exhibits including Doodles and Dimension, Black History month, and Evolution of a Community, and discusses the exhibit design production laboratory training program, which was funded by the Ford Foundation, and allowed ten community members to partake in exhibit design, many of whom went on to work professionally as exhibit designers. He describes his close relationship with John Kinard, and many of the conversations they had which led to exhibits and programs. He also describes how the museum has evolved since relocating to Fort Stanton Park, and its changing relationship with the Smithsonian over the years. The interview was recorded on July 2, 1991. The audio quality is clear throughout the recording with some minor background noise. Exhibitions mentioned: Doodles in Dimension, Evolution of a Community: 1972.