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People of Indianapolis

1983

43 interviews



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This project consists of interviews about life and history in Indianapolis. The subjects include family migration patterns to Indianapolis, racial discrimination, school segregation, labor union activity, the quality of city services both past and present, and neighborhood security. Most people interviewed are senior citizens who have lived a majority of their adult lives in Indianapolis.

Interviewees

Anderson, Naomi

Birdsong, Elbert

Boshura, Lenora

Bradford, Georgann

Brooks, Clara Florence

Coney, Mattie

Dinkins, James Cecil

Downey, Virtea

Golder, Morris E.

Hardin, Boniface

Hawkins, Thomas Potter

Heilman, Helen Iris

Jamerson, Arbie

Johnson, Edna L.

Jones, Sam H., Sr.

Jordan, Merle

Lilly, Naomi

Monroe, Lois Aletha

Morgan, Cammie

Padilla, Hilda S.

Parker, Admiral Duarey

Pointer, Gladys Sadler

Price, Berniece

Ransom, Willard B. "Mike"

Richardson, Henry

Roark, Arkie

Schilling, Joann

Shadowens, Oma

Shobe, Frank

Shortridge, Al "Hubert"

Smith, Ethel

Smith, Ethel

Taylor, Annie L.

Thompson, George J.

Tookes, Thelma

Torres, Maria Catalina

Waldo, Winifred; Hyldan, Esther

Walker, Margaret Jane

Wilborn, Elnora

Williams, Carl Thomas

Williams, Eddie

Williams, O. D.

Womack, Robert Walter


Interviewee: Anderson, Naomi
Call number: 83-049
Date(s) of Interview: November 10, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 60 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Harrah-Conforth, Jeanne

Naomi Anderson discusses her life history in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Keywords

Place Names

Indianapolis, Indiana

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Interviewee: Birdsong, Elbert
Call number: 83-026
Date(s) of Interview: June 7, 1983
Physical Description: 22 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 30 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Elbert Birdsong, born August 31, 1900 and died March 31, 1990. He was born in Mount Pleasant, Tennessee, where his father worked in the phosphate mines. At the age of seventeen Mr. Birdsong moved to Kentucky to work in the coal mines. From there he travelled from place to place, working as a general laborer in Tennessee, Chicago, Illinois, and Florida. After he married his wife, Selonia Sloss, he moved to Indianapolis to be with her family. They built a home in Brightwood on Martindale Street where many of his friends and co-workers were living. While in Indianapolis Mr. Birdsong first worked for International Harvester where he belonged to the union. He then got a position driving a truck for the Indianapolis Parks and Recreation Department, where he worked until retirement in 1966. His wife worked for a housing finance company as a custodian until she was too ill to continue. He attended the Missionary Baptist church off and on for many years. Mr. Birdsong remembers some racial discrimination throughout the years, but does not feel it has affected him personally.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Indianapolis Department of Parks and Recreation

International Harvester Company

Personal Names

Sloss, Selonia

Place Names

Indianapolis, Indiana

Chicago, Illinois

Florida

Mount Pleasant, Tennessee

Providence, Kentucky

Pulaski, Tennessee

Occupation Names

coal miner

contractor

laborer

Subjects

coal mines

African-Americans

Great Depression

World War I

World War II

black lung disease

housing discrimination

phosphate mines

road construction

unions

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Interviewee: Boshura, Lenora
Call number: 83-025
Date(s) of Interview: April 15, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 38 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Restricted: permission of interviewee is required to use quotations in publications
Interviewer: Lopez, Consuelo

Lenora Boshura, born in 1901, discussed her life history, family, and career.

Keywords

Place Names

Indianapolis, Indiana

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Interviewee: Bradford, Georgann
Call number: 83-010
Date(s) of Interview: March 15, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 72 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Cornish, Erin

Georgann Bradford, born January 18, 1911, tells about her life in Mississippi, her migration to St. Louis, Missouri and finally to Indianapolis, Indiana.

Keywords

Place Names

Mississippi

St. Louis, Missouri

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Interviewee: Brooks, Clara Florence
Call number: 83-004
Date(s) of Interview: March 10, 1983
Physical Description: 65 pp.; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 80 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Wolford, John

Clara Florence Brooks, born March 25, 1916 and died July 2, 1999, discusses her early life with her family in Giles County, Tennessee as tenant cotton farmers. After her father died, her family moved to Indianapolis to join two older brothers who had already moved there. Her son, who died of appendicitis at the age of 9, was born shortly after she moved to Indianapolis in 1936. Over the years, Mrs. Brooks worked a variety of jobs including general labor and sewing. In order to raise her daughter, she sometimes had to work two jobs and seven days a week. Mrs. Brooks also speaks of the Brightwood neighborhood where she lived for many years. Although it was mostly a white neighborhood when she first arrived, more African- Americans have moved in. She comments on the race relations in her neighborhood, in her working life, and in the schools. Finally she discusses her love of Indianapolis, Indiana's culture, people and overall atmosphere.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Arsenal Technical High School

Indiana State Fairgrounds

International Harvester Company

Mouver Foundry

United States Army

Place Names

Giles County, Tennessee

Occupation Names

laborer

seamstress

Subjects

African-Americans

Primitive Baptist church

World War II

appendicitis

baseball

basketball

divorce

epilepsy

race relations

racial discrimination

railroad workers

school integration

spousal abuse

tenant farming

welfare

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Interviewee: Coney, Mattie
Call number: 83-031
Date(s) of Interview: June 30, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 81 minutes; no index; February 1982 copy of Citizen's Forum, Inc. newsletter; article by Elmo G. Coney; brochure about the Citizens Forum; article about interviewee and husband
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Mattie M. Coney, born May 30, 1909 and died August 1988, touches upon her childhood growing up in Tennessee and working her way through college. Her experiences as an Indianapolis, Indiana public school teacher led her to form the Citizens Forum, Inc., a neighborhood improvement program. Mrs. Coney discusses the goals of the Citizens Forum and her experiences as its director.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Citizens Forum, Incorporated

Lilly Endowment

Personal Names

Coney, Elmo G.

Occupation Names

teacher

Subjects

African-Americans

Civil Rights Movement

Sagamore of the Wabash

civic responsibility

neighborhood block clubs

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Interviewee: Dinkins, James Cecil
Call number: 83-011
Date(s) of Interview: March 24, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 37 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Cornish, Erin

James Cecil Dinkins, born August 31, 1913 and died September 1, 1998, discusses his life in Kentucky and Indianapolis, Indiana, working in factories and under unions.

Keywords

Place Names

Kentucky

Occupation Names

factory worker

Subjects

unions

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Interviewee: Downey, Virtea
Call number: 83-038
Date(s) of Interview: July 15, 1983
Physical Description: 45 pp.; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 70 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Virtea Downey, born in 1913 in Indianapolis, Indiana, attended Crispus Attucks High School and then A & I State College (later Tennessee State College) in Nashville, Tennessee. She then moved back to Indianapolis, Indiana and married. She worked in various factories during World War II after her husband was drafted. She then attended Butler University and the Jordan Conservatory of Music to receive a teaching degree honored by Indiana schools. She spent her teaching career in the Indianapolis Public School System, first teaching in elementary classrooms and then changing to special education. Throughout the interview she lists famous African- Americans from Indianapolis, including the Ink Spots, singer Dink Watson, race car driver Charles Wiggins, and Sam Cooke. She comments on the segregation and then integration of the Indianapolis school system during her tenure as a teacher. She mentions the activities of the Ku Klux Klan, the Black Muslims, and the Black Panthers, and their influence on politics during the Civil Rights Movement.

Keywords

Corporation Names

A & I State College

Butler University

Cato Tabernacle

Crispus Attucks High School

Fisk University

Ink Spots

Jordan Conservatory of Music

Ku Klux Klan

National Council of Negro Women

Personal Names

Cooke, Sam

Watson, Anna

Watson, Dink

Wiggins, Charles

Place Names

Nashville, Tennessee

Occupation Names

musician

teacher

Subjects

African-Americans

Civil Rights Movement

World War II

car racing

land grant colleges

racial segregation

school integration

special education

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Interviewee: Golder, Morris E.
Call number: 83-028
Date(s) of Interview: June 21, 1983
Physical Description: 39 pp.; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 94 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Morris E. Golder, born January 23, 1913 and died July 22, 2000, was born in Indianapolis and attended Crispus Attucks High School. He then moved to St. Louis, Missouri to pastor a congregation for 13 years. When he returned to Indianapolis he founded the Grace Apostolic Church, of which he was still the pastor. Mr. Golder discusses his experiences with school segregation and housing discrimination in Indianapolis. Although Mr. Golder himself was not involved with the Civil Rights Movement in Indianapolis, he discusses some of the people he remembers as leaders. Mr. Golder also touches upon the political situation in Indianapolis, and the fact that many African-Americans in Indianapolis belong to the Republican Party in contrast to the rest of the nation. Mr. Golder ends the interview discussing the charismatic Christian movement, and the differences between apostolic Christians and Pentecostal Christians.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Crispus Attucks High School

Grace Apostolic Church

Republican Party

Personal Names

Brokenburr, Robert Lee

Richardson, Henry

Place Names

St. Louis, Missouri

Occupation Names

pastor

Subjects

African-Americans

Civil Rights Movement

Indianapolis automobile manufacturing

Pentecostal church

apostolic church

charismatic Christian movement

housing discrimination

racial discrimination

racial segregation

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Interviewee: Hardin, Boniface
Call number: 83-037
Date(s) of Interview: July 18, 1983
Physical Description: 69 pp.; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 68 minutes; no index; article by interviewee; article about Martin Center College; flyer from Martin Center College; article about African-American Catholics; copy of Afro-American Journal
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Father Boniface Hardin, born November 18, 1933, grew up in Bardstown, Kentucky and Indianapolis, Indiana attending Catholic schools. He then attended St. Meinrad monastery and became a monk. In the nineteen sixties he requested a post working with a congregation. He worked in an Indianapolis Catholic church. After being involved in protesting a police shooting of an African-American youth and almost being recalled by St. Meinrad monastery, he founded the Martin Center College, a four-year institution for returning students, especially African- Americans. Father Hardin discusses the philosophy of the Martin Center College, where he is currently president. He touches upon segregation and then the desegregation of schools. He discusses racial discrimination in the clergy, both toward African-American parishioners and African-American clergymen. He talks about issues he is concerned about in Indianapolis, such as poverty, police brutality, and abortion. He also discusses the influence of African-Americans in Indianapolis politics.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Afro-American Journal

Catholic Youth Organization

Ku Klux Klan

Martin Center College

St. Meinrad Monastery

Place Names

Bardstown, Kentucky

Occupation Names

college president

priest

Subjects

Affirmative Action

African-American Catholics

African-Americans

Benedictine monks

abortion

police brutality

racial segregation

white supremacists

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Interviewee: Hawkins, Thomas Potter
Call number: 83-005
Date(s) of Interview: March 22, 1983 - March 23, 1983
Physical Description: 37 pp.; 3 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 138 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Wolford, John

Thomas Potter Hawkins, born December 5, 1898 and died November 29, 1989, was born in Bowling Green, Kentucky. He started working at the age of ten on farms as a general laborer. While in Kentucky he worked mostly on tobacco farms and lived in tenant farm houses. After a bad series of crops impoverished his family, they moved to Indianapolis, Indiana in search of better paying jobs. While in Indianapolis, Mr. Hawkins worked as a trackman on the railroad, handled muratic acid at a foundry, worked as a custodian at a bank, and finally as a bellhop at Stouffer's Inn. Mr. Hawkins comments on the difficulty in finding a house for his family when they first moved to Indianapolis. He discusses the consequences of crime, prison conditions, and prisoner quality of life as he observed it as a visitor. He also describes unemployment as being the most pressing problem facing Africa-Americans in Indianapolis today, especially when compared to the ease with which he was able to find work when he first moved to Indianapolis.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Stouffer's Inn

Place Names

Bowling Green, Kentucky

Occupation Names

bellhop

laborer

Subjects

African-Americans

prison life

railroad workers

tenant farming

tobacco farming

unemployment

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Interviewee: Heilman, Helen Iris
Call number: 83-006
Date(s) of Interview: March 16, 1983
Physical Description: 31 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 60 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Wolford, John

Helen Iris Hull Heilman, born November 11, 1983 and died March 28, 1992, grew up in North Vernon, Indiana on a farm. As a child she suffered from rheumatic fever, which effected her health for the rest of her life. She moved to Indianapolis originally to gain independence from her family and to become a nurse. She did not finish the course work and instead became the caretaker of an older woman. She married in 1941 and moved into the house she still lives in. Mrs. Heilman discusses the racial makeup of the neighborhood and the gradual decline of the appearance of the neighborhood over the years. She discusses the more recent problems of high school dropouts and lack of steady work for them, which she feels contributed to the increase in vandalism and other crimes. She also discusses the death of her husband from a massive stroke.

Keywords

Place Names

North Vernon, Indiana

Occupation Names

caretaker

Subjects

high school dropouts

rheumatic fever

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Interviewee: Jamerson, Arbie
Call number: 83-044
Date(s) of Interview: December 5, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 120 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Arbie Jamerson, born February 11, 1940, discusses his experiences as a young African-American growing up in Indianapolis, Indiana in the nineteen fifties and sixties.

Keywords

Occupation Names

factory worker

Subjects

African-Americans

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Interviewee: Johnson, Edna L.
Call number: 83-042
Date(s) of Interview: October 10, 1983
Physical Description: 80 pp.; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 103 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Mrs. Edna L. Johnson, born March 1, 1918 and died October 15, 1999, discusses her involvement throughout her life in the Civil Rights Movement and the labor movement. She discusses her time at National Malleable and Steel Castings in Indianapolis, Indiana where she helped vote in the UAW-CIO labor union. Later she became president of the local chapter. The union combatted both racial and sex discrimination in the workplace, advocating equal pay for equal work and desegregation of the work areas. During this time Mrs. Johnson was also an active member of many different civil rights organizations in Indianapolis. She discusses her political involvement as a lobbyist and poll worker for many years. She touches upon her work as a real estate broker. She initially struggled to find a sponsor to get a license to become an agent. She also had to overcome discrimination from other real estate brokers and agents, banks, mortgage lenders, and house sellers and buyers. She describes the problems of unemployment and police brutality in Indianapolis. Mrs. Johnson closes the interview by summing up her lifelong struggle to gain equal rights for African-Americans.

Keywords

Corporation Names

National Malleable and Steel Castings

Crispus Attucks High School

Human Rights Commission

Indiana Civil Rights Commission

NAACP

National Labor Relations Board

Progressive Party

UAW-CIO, Local 761

Personal Names

Hayes, Earl C.

Jones, Jim

Ransom, Willard B. "Mike"

Wallace, Henry A.

Place Names

Haughville, Indiana

Occupation Names

factory worker

real estate broker

union president

Subjects

African-Americans

Civil Rights Movement

Great Depression

housing discrimination

labor movement

police brutality

racial discrimination

racial segregation

unemployment

unions

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Interviewee: Jones, Sam H., Sr.
Call number: 84-034
Date(s) of Interview: July 7, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 84 minutes; no index; brochure about Indianapolis Urban League; resumé of interviewee; issue of June/July 1981 Dollars & Sense magazine
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Sam H. Jones, Sr., born March 3, 1928, discusses his experiences as an African-American professional. He discusses his career as a social worker and his involvement as president of the Indianapolis Urban League.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Indianapolis Urban League

Occupation Names

social worker

Subjects

African-Americans

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Interviewee: Jordan, Merle
Call number: 83-050
Date(s) of Interview: November 20, 1983
Physical Description: 46 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 60 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Harrah-Conforth, Jeanne

Merle Jordan, born September 16, 1920 and died July 31, 1999, was born and raised in Indianapolis as an only child. He discovered at an early age he was proficient at mathematics and decided after high school to become an accountant. He attended Butler University through a special program allowing him to work as a groundskeeper in exchange for free tuition. He finished a few semesters but was unable to continue for financial reasons and so got a full time job while finishing up the degree part time. Mr. Jordan worked a variety of jobs over the years as a taxi cab driver, an accountant at RCA, and an agent for the Internal Revenue Service. He took an early retirement from RCA and spends his days socializing with friends, taking long walks with his dog, reading, and occasionally doing some accounting work for friends and neighbors.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Butler University

Internal Revenue Service

RCA

Occupation Names

accountant

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Interviewee: Lilly, Naomi
Call number: 83-051
Date(s) of Interview: November 22, 1983
Physical Description: 43 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 60 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Harrah-Conforth, Jeanne

Naomi Lilly, born March 7, 1924, was born and raised in Kentucky, where her father worked in coal mines. In the nineteen fifties she and her husband came to Indianapolis, Indiana in search of better paying jobs. She first worked in a laundry, but then got a position in a nursing home as a nurse's aide. She worked there for about ten years before retiring. Three years after the death of her first husband, Mrs. Lilly met and married Arnold Lilly. Mrs. Lilly quilts and does applique and fabric painting on shirts. Mr. Lilly enjoys oil paint-by-numbers.

Keywords

Personal Names

Lilly, Arnold

Place Names

Kentucky

Occupation Names

nurse's aide

Subjects

coal mines

nursing homes

quilting

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Interviewee: Monroe, Lois Aletha
Call number: 83-023
Date(s) of Interview: April 20, 1983
Physical Description: 25 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 25 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Cornish, Erin

Lois Aletha Monroe, born September 3, 1911 and died December 19, 1995, discusses her life in Indianapolis, Indiana. She was born in Columbus, Indiana, but she moved to Indianapolis at an early age with her family. She left high school at the age of 16 to find work to help support her family. She worked at Blocks Department Store in various positions for over forty years. She met her husband there, and stayed with him even through a bout with alcoholism until he died of a stroke at the age of 61. Her two sons finished high school and are living in different states. As a retired woman, Mrs. Monroe took care of her mother until her death. Currently Mrs. Monroe enjoys reading and visiting the senior citizen's center.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Block's Department Store

Subjects

alcoholism

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Interviewee: Morgan, Cammie
Call number: 83-019
Date(s) of Interview: April 13, 1983
Physical Description: 19 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 23 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Cornish, Erin

Cammie Morgan, born November 14, 1983 and died September 12, 1993, grew up in Kentucky where her family worked as tenant farmers. She married at the age of 16. She and her family moved to Indianapolis before the Great Depression in search of better paying jobs. Her husband worked a variety of jobs including with the light company, with the Works Progress Administration, and with a canning factory. Mrs. Morgan got a job at Goodwill Industries after her husband died in 1942, where she stayed until she retired. Although Mrs. Morgan initially did not like Indianapolis, she has become settled in her home and enjoys visiting Fletcher Place, a community center for senior citizens.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Fletcher Place

Goodwill Industries

Place Names

Kentucky

Subjects

senior citizens

tenant farming

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Interviewee: Padilla, Hilda S.
Call number: 83-020
Date(s) of Interview: April 20, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 34 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Lopez, Consuelo

Hilda S. Padilla, born June 1, 1958, was born in the Honduras and immigrated to Indianapolis, Indiana. Mrs. Padilla currently works as a secretary and is enrolled in an English as a second language (ESL) class. She enjoys interior decorating.

Keywords

Place Names

Honduras

Occupation Names

secretary

Subjects

ESL class

interior decorating

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Interviewee: Parker, Admiral Duarey
Call number: 83-007
Date(s) of Interview: March 15, 1983 - March 16, 1983
Physical Description: 59 pp.; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 65 minutes; index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Wolford, John

Admiral Duarey Parker, born February 14, 1904, was born in Georgia where his parents owned a farm. He and his family moved to Indianapolis in search of better work after boll weevils destroyed their cotton crop. Over the years Mr. Parker has held a variety of jobs in construction, in saw mills, and on farms. Mr. Parker currently lives with his niece.

Keywords

Place Names

Georgia

Occupation Names

laborer

Subjects

African-Americans

adultery

boll weevils

cotton farming

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Interviewee: Pointer, Gladys Sadler
Call number: 83-015
Date(s) of Interview: March 30, 1983
Physical Description: 30 pp.; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 75 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Wolford, John

Gladys Sadler Pointer, born March 10, 1917 and died April 11, 2001, speaks of her life growing up in Indianapolis, Indiana. She was born in Kentucky where her father was a farmer. She, her mother, and siblings moved to Indianapolis to live with a grandmother in 1923 after her father died. Mrs. Pointer's mother got a job as a laundress for the Boatright family, who were connected to the Ankrun Ice Cream Company. The entire family worked as janitors in the offices during the Depression. Eventually Mrs. Pointer's mother made enough money to purchase property on the west side of Indianapolis, where Mrs. Pointer and her sister still live today. Mrs. Pointer never had children, but she was the foster mother of three children who were removed from abusive homes. Mrs. Pointer's husband, Casey Green, was a cement contractor who belonged to Cement Workers Local #532 for many years. In the nineteen sixties, Mr. Green felt the calling to go into the ministry and started the New Life Baptist Church. Mrs. Pointer has been active in a few different churches over the years through music, signing in choirs, and playing the organ. She also has strong religious beliefs that guide her in her everyday life. When Mrs. Pointer was younger she was employed in the foundry at International Harvester. She was an active member of the union there and was the union's secretary for five years. Mrs. Pointer touches upon the racial make-up of the neighborhoods in Indianapolis, which she feels has gone from mostly segregated to integrated. She also comments on the quality of the public school system, which she feels has not improved over the years. She talks about the Indianapolis Police Department, which she feel protects her area pretty well. She does not think police brutality is a big problem. Mrs. Pointer discusses housing discrimination, especially about the eviction notice that was given to her foster daughter in 1982, which she feels was due to discrimination.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Ankrum Ice Cream Company

Crispus Attucks High School

International Brotherhood of Cement Workers Local 532

International Harvester Company

Magnolia Baptist Church

New Life Missionary Baptist Church

Shiloh Baptist Church

Village Temple Christian Methodist Episcopal Church

Family Names

Boatright

Personal Names

Green, Casey

Pointer, Howard

Place Names

Detroit, Michigan

Prospect, Kentucky

Occupation Names

factory worker

organist

Subjects

African-Americans

Great Depression

cement masons

child abuse

foster parents

housing discrimination

police brutality

school segregation

unions

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Interviewee: Price, Berniece
Call number: 83-022
Date(s) of Interview: April 6, 1983
Physical Description: 25 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 28 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Cornish, Erin

Berniece Price, born January 6, 1900, discusses her life history. Her family moved to Indianapolis from a small farming community in southern Indiana in 1910 in search of better paying jobs. Mrs. Price left school at thirteen and began work at a glove factory. She worked until she married at the age of seventeen. After a few years she divorced her first husband and went back to work. When she married a second time she quit work and became a full-time mother. After her second husband's heart attack, she worked at the Murat Shrine as a caterer until she retired. Mrs. Price is a member of the Baptist church, has eight children, and enjoys quilting.

Keywords

Occupation Names

homemaker

Subjects

quilting

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Interviewee: Ransom, Willard B. "Mike"
Call number: 83-036
Date(s) of Interview: July 18, 1983
Physical Description: 61 pp.; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 97 minutes; index; biographical data of interviewee; article in July 26, 1982 Indianapolis Magazine about interviewee
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Willard B. "Mike" Ransom, born May 17. 1916 and died November 7, 1995, was born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana, attended Crispus Attucks High School, and then Talladega College. In the late nineteen thirties he attended Harvard Law School. After graduating he returned to Indianapolis to practice law with his father, but instead was drafted into the United States Army during World War II. During the war he was first an Army pilot at the Edgewood Arsenal. He was then moved to the Tuskeegee Airbase to the chemical warfare division. He finished out the war in France and Belgium in the judge advocate general's office. Upon returning to Indianapolis in 1946 he joined his father's law firm once again and became involved in the early Civil Rights Movement and left-wing politics. Mr. Ransom was heavily involved with the Progressive Party, and even ran for Congress on the Progressive Party's ticket, earning him the distinction of being the first African-American to run for Congress in Marion County. He was also a member of the NAACP, serving as the president for the Indiana chapter for five years. As an attorney Mr. Ransom and his father handled the accounts of the Madame C.J. Walker Manufacturing Company. Mr. Ransom also worked on many bills dealing with civil rights issues for the Indiana legislature. He helped try a case of racial discrimination involving a mortgage loan denied to an African-American couple by the Railroad Federal Savings and Loan Association. Mr. Ransom touches upon the issues of housing discrimination and school segregation in Indianapolis over the years. He talk about the history of his family and speaks of his father's work as an African- American lawyer in Indianapolis. He also discusses his idea for an organization for African-Americans that promotes economic development . He sees the widening gap between the African-American upper middle class and lower classes as one of the biggest problems facing African-Americans today.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Black Business League

Columbia Law School

Communist Party

Crispus Attucks High School

Democratic Party

Edgewood Arsenal

Eli Lilly and Company

Galyans

Harvard Law School

Indiana Civil Rights Commission

Ku Klux Klan

Madame C. J. Walker Manufacturing Company

Marion County Bar Association

NAACP

People United to Serve Humanity

Progressive Party

Socialist Worker's Party

Talladega College

Tuskegee Army Air Base

UAW-CIO

United States Army

United States Army Judge Advocate General Corps

Personal Names

Brokenburr, Robert Lee

King, Martin Luther, Jr.

Ransom, Freeman B.

Richardson, Henry

Walker, Madame C. J.

Wallace, Henry A.

Occupation Names

attorney

Subjects

African-American economic development

African-American upper middle class

African-Americans

Civil Rights Movement

Great Depression

McCarthyism

United States Army pilots

World War II

chemical warfare

civil rights legislation

congressional candidacy

football

housing discrimination

military discrimination

racial discrimination

school segregation

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Interviewee: Richardson, Henry
Call number: 83-033
Date(s) of Interview: July 6, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 4 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 217 minutes; no index; issue of Summer 1970 Urban News; copy of protest against defeat of House Bill 114 presented by interviewee; newspaper article about interviewee; article from Indianapolis News about interviewee; letter to the editor from interviewee in December 23, 1982 Indianapolis News; Congressional Record proceedings from 93rd Congress session; booklet from ceremony honoring interviewee
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Henry Richardson, born June 21, 1902 and died December 1983, was an Indianapolis, Indiana attorney. He discusses African-American history to 1926, segregation in the South, and the Civil Rights Movement.

Keywords

Occupation Names

attorney

Subjects

African-American history

African-Americans

Civil Rights Movement

racial segregation

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Interviewee: Roark, Arkie
Call number: 83-027
Date(s) of Interview: June 7, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 60 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Arkie Roark, born April 14, 1914 and died July 6, 1998, discusses life in Indianapolis, especially regarding unemployment.

Keywords

Subjects

unemployment

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Interviewee: Schilling, Joann
Call number: 83-017
Date(s) of Interview: April 13, 1983
Physical Description: 32 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 45 minutes; index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Cornish, Erin

Joann Schilling, born July 8, 1911 and died October 15, 1998, was put into a foster home at the age of three after her birth mother died. At the age of 17 her foster parents died, and she moved to Indianapolis to be with her birth family. She married soon after and raised three stepchildren. She divorced her first husband after 25 years due to his alcoholism. She married another man, whom she left after six weeks, again due to alcoholism. Mrs. Schilling thinks the police department does not do a good job of protecting her neighborhood, but she feels that the fire department is wonderful. They called an ambulance for her when she fell on the street and broke her hip a few years ago. Currently Mrs. Schilling enjoys her cat, quilting, crocheting and visiting and acquaintance in Brown County, Indiana.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Columbia Cleaners

Fletcher Place

Lane Bryant

U.S. Rubber Company

Personal Names

Patton, Billy

Place Names

Brown County, Indiana

Lagrange, Indiana

Shelbyville, Indiana

Occupation Names

nurse's aide

Subjects

Great Depression

Korean War

World War II

alcoholism

church revivals

crocheting

divorce

foster children

quilting

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Interviewee: Shadowens, Oma
Call number: 83-009
Date(s) of Interview: March 23, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 40 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Cornish, Erin

Oma Shadowens, born January 30 ,1907, discusses her life on a small farm in Kentucky and her move to Indianapolis, Indiana.

Keywords

Place Names

Kentucky

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Interviewee: Shobe, Frank
Call number: 83-043
Date(s) of Interview: October 24, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 120 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Frank Shobe, born December 1, 1913 and died June 12, 1988, discusses his job at International Harvester, United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 226, and race relations in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Keywords

Corporation Names

International Harvester Company

United Auto Workers, Local 226

Occupation Names

factory worker

Subjects

racial discrimination

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Interviewee: Shortridge, Al "Hubert"
Call number: 83-018
Date(s) of Interview: April 13, 1983
Physical Description: 13 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 22 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Cornish, Erin

Al "Hubert" Shortridge, born June 6, 1906, in Southport, Kentucky and moved to Indianapolis at the age of four with his family who were searching for better paying jobs. His father left the family a few years later, leaving his mother to raise twelve children on her own. Mr. Shortridge left school at fourteen to find a job to support his family. He eventually got a job as an electrician and started singing in nightclubs in the evenings and weekends. Eventually he saved enough money from his singing career to purchase a Dairy Queen franchise. Mr. Shortridge comments on the Urbington neighborhood in Indianapolis, Indiana where he has lived for many years. He also describes the achievements of some the younger members of his immediate and extended family.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Dairy Queen

Personal Names

Jolsen, Al

Place Names

Southport, Kentucky

Urbington, Indianapolis, Indiana

Occupation Names

electrician

singer

Subjects

blackface performance

nineteen twenties

singing

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Interviewee: Smith, Ethel
Call number: 83-012
Date(s) of Interview: March 24, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 46 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Cornish, Erin

Ethel Smith, born July 20, 1899 and died October 1986, discusses her move from Kentucky to Indianapolis, Indiana. She also discusses African-American life in Indianapolis.

Keywords

Place Names

Kentucky

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Interviewee: Smith, Ethel
Call number: 83-047
Date(s) of Interview: November 7, 1983
Physical Description: 32 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 60 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Harrah-Conforth, Jeanne

Ethel Smith, born July 20, 1899 and died October 1986, was born and raised in the Louisville, Kentucky area on farms. As a young adult she moved to Indianapolis in search of better work. Later, her daughter and mother joined her. Mrs. Smith held a variety of jobs through the years, most recently as a supervisor at a juvenile center. She describes her duties there and the situations of some of the girls she supervised. Even though Mrs. Smith is retired, she continues to volunteer her time taking care of elderly neighbors and friends. Mrs. Smith also talks about her daughter, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Indiana State Library

Wishard Memorial Hospital

Occupation Names

caretaker

nurse's aide

Subjects

juvenile centers

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Interviewee: Taylor, Annie L.
Call number: 83-052
Date(s) of Interview: November 30, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 60 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Harrah-Conforth, Jeanne

Annie L. Taylor describes her life in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Keywords

Subjects

local history

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Interviewee: Thompson, George J.
Call number: 83-032
Date(s) of Interview: July 7, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 60 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status:
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

George J. Thompson, born September 9, 1922, talks about growing up and living in Indianapolis, Indiana. He also describes the history of the , where he currently works as the business manager.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Indianapolis Recorder

Occupation Names

business manager

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Interviewee: Tookes, Thelma
Call number: 83-008
Date(s) of Interview: March 23, 1983
Physical Description: 24 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 51 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Cornish, Erin

Thelma Tookes, born February 10, 1905 and died May 12, 1983, was born and raised in Oklahoma and grew up moving around Oklahoma and Texas, following the various jobs her father had. His work included tenant farming, oil drilling, and grocery store owner. Mrs. Tookes married an insurance salesman at the age of nineteen and moved to the Louisville, Kentucky area to live near his family. During the Great Depression the couple moved to Indianapolis, Indiana at the request of Mr. Tookes' company to train more insurance salesmen. She discusses her two children, a boy and a girl, and her stepsons. She touches upon the places she has lived in Indianapolis. Mrs. Tooke also talks about her hobbies, quilting and crocheting. She mentions her love of her job at Fletcher Place in the thrift store where she can interact with many different kinds of people.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Fletcher Place

Place Names

Louisville, Kentucky

Oklahoma

Texas

Occupation Names

thrift store manager

Subjects

Great Depression

Methodist church

boarding houses

crocheting

hoboes

midwifery

oil drilling

oil fields

quilting

stepchildren

streetcars

tenant farming

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Interviewee: Torres, Maria Catalina
Call number: 83-021
Date(s) of Interview: April 15, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 37 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Restricted: permission of interviewee to be granted prior to any use of quotations
Interviewer: Lopez, Consuelo

Maria Catalina Torres discusses growing up in Cuba and living in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Keywords

Place Names

Cuba

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Interviewee: Waldo, Winifred; Hyldan, Esther
Call number: 83-048
Date(s) of Interview: November 10, 1983
Physical Description: 45 pp.; 1 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 105 minutes
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Harrah-Conforth, Jeanne

Winifred Waldo, born May 18, 1922, discusses her life in Indianapolis, Indiana. She was born in northern Indiana but she moved to Indianapolis at the age of nine months. Before she was married Mrs. Waldo was able to complete two years of college at Butler University. She has been married three times and has two daughters and a son, whose accomplishments she describes. Mrs. Waldo's caseworker at Fletcher Place, Ethel Hyldan, speaks for the latter part of the interview. She describes her relationship with Mrs. Waldo and her other clients. Ms. Hyldan also discusses the history of Fletcher Place and the services it provides today. She also talks about the history of Fountain Square, the neighborhood where Fletcher Place is located.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Butler University

Clowes Hall

Emmanuel Baptist Church

Fletcher Place

Place Names

Indianapolis, Indiana

Asheville, North Carolina

Occupation Names

caterer

social worker

Subjects

Great Depression

alcoholism

mental illness

printing business

railroad workers

senior citizens

transient population

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Interviewee: Walker, Margaret Jane
Call number: 83-046
Date(s) of Interview: November 7, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette. 1 7/8 ips, 60 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Harrah-Conforth, Jeanne

Margaret Jane Walker, born October 3, 1919 and died November 1986, discusses living in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Keywords

Subjects

railroad workers

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Interviewee: Wilborn, Elnora
Call number: 83-024
Date(s) of Interview: April 20, 1983
Physical Description: 30 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 30 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Cornish, Erin

Elnora Wilborn, born May 10, 1915, has lived most of her life in Arkansas. She grew up on a tenant farm. She left school after third grade to help take care of her siblings. She married another farmer at the age of twenty. Mrs. Wilborn talks about cotton farming and harvesting. She also worked as a nurse's aide in a nursing home for many years. Mrs. Wilborn discusses midwifery, and her experiences delivering babies to friends and neighbors in their homes. Mrs. Wilborn only recently moved to Indianapolis to live with her brother after her husband died. She discusses her difficulty in learning to read and write her own name.

Keywords

Place Names

Arkansas

Occupation Names

farmer

nurse's aide

Subjects

cotton farming

granny women

literacy

midwifery

miscarriages

nursing homes

racial segregation

soap making

tenant farming

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Interviewee: Williams, Carl Thomas
Call number: 83-016
Date(s) of Interview: April 21, 1983
Physical Description: 53 pp.; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 57 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Wolford, John

Carl Thomas "Nookey" Williams, born July 17, 1920 and died October 30, 1991, discusses his life in Indianapolis, Indiana. Although he was born in Kentucky, he moved to Indianapolis at the age of six months. He finished high school and immediately went to work as a cook in various hotels across the city to support his ailing mother. After marrying young, he divorced his first wife Sarah Lee Laskey, and roamed the Midwest, supporting himself by gambling on poker games and picking up odd jobs. After the Great Depression he came back to Indianapolis to take care of his mother and worked a number of different jobs in the defense industry. During this time he also had six children by his live-in girlfriend, Hazel Woodford. They lived in Lochfield Gardens. Eventually he was able to buy a house and plot of land in Indianapolis. Mr. Williams discusses the medical conditions that kept him from being drafted during World War II. He talks about all his children. He also discusses housing discrimination and police brutality in Indianapolis.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Bethany Baptist Church

Personal Names

Laskey, Sarah Lee

Woodford, Hazel

Place Names

Indianapolis, Indiana

Louisville, Kentucky

Occupation Names

cook

custodian

Subjects

Baptist church

Great Depression

Underground Railroad

World War II

alcoholism

gambling

heart disease

homemade butter

housing discrimination

motorcycles

oil painting

poker

police brutality

slavery

tenant farming

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Interviewee: Williams, Eddie
Call number: 83-045
Date(s) of Interview: December 5, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 48 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Eddie Williams, born February 1, 1942, speaks of his involvement with United Auto Workers (UAW), Local 1111 at the Ford Motor Company.

Keywords

Corporation Names

Ford Motor Company

United Auto Workers, Local 1111

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Interviewee: Williams, O. D.
Call number: 83-029
Date(s) of Interview: June 21, 1983
Physical Description: untranscribed; 1 cassette, 1 7/8 ips, 31 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Reverend O. D. Williams, born September 4, 1905, discusses his life in Mississippi, and his moving to Indianapolis, Indiana and Akron, Ohio.

Keywords

Place Names

Akron, Ohio

Mississippi

Occupation Names

minister

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Interviewee: Womack, Robert Walter
Call number: 83-030
Date(s) of Interview: June 29 ,1983
Physical Description: 56 pp.; 2 cassettes, 1 7/8 ips, 90 minutes; no index
Physical Location: Interviews are housed in Weatherly Hall North, Room 122. Copies are also housed at the Indiana University Archives in Herman B Wells Library E460. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for the Study of History and Memory office.
Access Status: Open
Interviewer: Stone, Greg

Robert Walter Womack, born July 10, 1916 and died December 1984, moved around a lot during his childhood, following his father who was a Methodist minister. During high school and college Mr. Womack became interested in music and started performing in marching bands, big bands, jazz bands, and swing bands. After graduation from college he moved to Indianapolis, Indiana and formed a series of big band groups that performed across the country. Mr. Womack discusses the music scene in Indianapolis, mentioning many famous jazz musicians that he had the opportunity to work with. He discusses the problem of racial discrimination and how it affected his travels with the bands he performed with. He also discusses the Lockefield riot in Indianapolis. He talks about the depressed economic status of the African-American community and school violence. Mr. Womack also speaks of his family's history, including his father's participation in the NAACP and the National Council of Churches. He participated in civil rights marches in Washington, DC, and worked with Martin Luther King, Jr. Mr. Womack and his father are both mentioned in . Mr. Womack was employed as the music editor at the .

Keywords

Corporation Names

Black Panthers

Boy Scouts of America Bugle Corps

Charlotte High School

Crispus Attucks High School

Indianapolis Recorder

Indianapolis Musicians Local 3

NAACP

National Council of Churches

Southern Railroad

Spellman College

University of Illinois

Personal Names

Baker, David

Basie, Count

Blake, Clinton

Calloway, Cap

Carter, Benny

Cole, Nat King

Ellington, Duke

Goodman, Benny

Hampton, Lionel

Hike, Ernie

Johnson, J. J.

Smith, Floyd

Womack, Arthur Walter

Place Names

Bricknell Hill, Indiana

Charlotte, North Carolina

Indianapolis, Indiana

St. Louis, Missouri

Tennessee

Washington, DC

Occupation Names

journalist

musician

Subjects

1966 Lockefield Riot

Civil Rights Movement

Methodist church

Vietnam War

Who's Who Among African Americans

World War II

big band music

blues music

crime rates

jazz music

police brutality

racial discrimination

racial segregation

school violence

swing music

unemployment

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