Miscellaneous Newspaper and Magazine Articles Pertaining to Will McLean (1970s): Including WILL McLEAN TO APPEAR AT FLAGLER MUSEUM (March 15, 1970) in the Palm Beach Post Times, HE'S HAVING A LOVE AFFAIR WITH FLORIDA (April 11, 1976) by Al Burt in the Miami Herald, THE SAGA OF THE BLACK HAT TROUBADOUR (November 18, 1977) by Larry Shriner in the Tampa Tribune, WILL McLEAN IS GIVING THE GIFT OF A LIFETIME (January 13, 1978) by Ken Fish in the Florida Times-Union (Jacksonville), WILL McLEAN WILL BE DUBBED A LIVING LEGEND (April 21, 1978) in the St. Petersburg Independent, THE BLACK HAT TROUBADOUR (June 4, 1978) by Al Burt in the Miami Herald, NATIVE SON SINGS, LIVES IN TUNE WITH HIS FLORIDA (December 17, 1978) by Grace Allen in the Bradenton Herald, etc.

Spanning a period beginning with his genealogical roots in the late 19th Century and detailing the private and public life of "Florida's premier folklorist" from his birth until his passing in 1990, THE WILL McLEAN FLORIDA FOLK MUSIC COLLECTION consists of family history and photographs, handwritten song lyrics and poetry, promotional posters, handbills, brochures and programs, recordings (various formats), artifacts (his iconic black wool hat, harmonicas, a guitar, etc.) as well as correspondence between McLean and his family, musical collaborators and colleagues and his longtime companion and champion Margaret Mary Longhill. This fascinating research collection reveals a complicated, creative and eccentric activist who lived to sing the praises of his home and to bring attention to the history of Florida and the environmental damage that threatened the ecology of this beautiful and fragile landscape. The researcher will find a vast archive of primary source ephemera that chronicles the 20th Century Florida folk music world and the talented musical pioneers who paved the way for future artists who now entertain and inform at the many folk festivals across the state.