Primary Source: Lasting Impacts of the Great Depression

This oral history interview with Stan Hyatt was conducted in 2000. Hyatt was born after the Great Depression, but the consequences of the economic collapse affected his family for years. In this interview, Hyatt describes how the Great Depression shaped the lives of his grandmother and father. He also discusses how the financial struggles of his family, brought on by the Depression, influenced the way he sees the world.

  • Stan Hyatt talks about his family history and his father’s employment during the Great Depression. 
  • Stan Hyatt talks about growing up in Madison County, North Carolina and living with his grandmother on her farm. 
  • Stan Hyatt recalls how his grandmother raised six children on her own during the Great Depression and reminisces about growing up poor.
  • Stan Hyatt describes how his father had a hard time finding steady work after the Great Depression. Because his father had to move the family to Ohio for work, Stan reminisces how he came back to western North Carolina during two different years to live with his grandmother. 
  • Stan Hyatt comments on the value of passing down traditions, especially those that lead to self-sufficiency. He describes the people of Madison County, North Carolina and remarks upon their incredible self-sufficiency. 

 

Credit text

Rob Amberg, Interview with Stan Hyatt, November 30, 2000. Interview K-0249. Southern Oral History Program Collection, UNC Libraries.