Primary Source: Life on the Land: Voices

These interviews were part of a larger collection of oral histories collected in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The interviewers were interested in capturing the experiences of the men and women who were part of the early textile industries in North Carolina at the turn of the twentieth century. The interviews were the part of the research conducted for a book entitled Like A Family: The Making of a Southern Cotton Mill World, published by University of North Carolina Press in 1987.

Eunice Austin

Eunice Austin interviewed by Jacquelyn Hall, Newton, North Carolina, July 2, 1980. Interview #H-107 in the Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007), Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Eunice Austin talks about growing up on a farm in Catawba County. (See transcipt)

Eunice Austin talks about the work she and her sisters did on the farm, often work that would ordinarily be done by boys. (See transcipt)

Eunice Austin talks about her mother's work on their family farm. (See transcipt)

Flossie Durham

Flossie Moore Durham interviewed by Mary Frederickson and Brent Glass, Bynum, North Carolina, September 2, 1976. Interview # H-66 in the Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007), Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Flossie Durham, born in 1883, describes her family's move from the farm to Bynum, NC. (See transcipt)

Flossie Durham talks about the crops her family planted on the farm. (See transcipt)

Flossie Durham explains how family friends helped her mother make the decision to move to Bynum after her father's death. (See transcipt)

Flossie Durham describes moving into the mill house in Bynum. (See transcipt)

Flossie Durham talks about her work on the farm as a child and about her brothers' work. (See transcipt)

Flossie Durham talks about the cotton gin her family where her family took their cotton. (See transcipt)

Flossie Durham describes helping her mother at home on the farm and describes her mother's work. (See transcipt)

George Dyer

George and Tessie Dyer interviewed by LuAnn Jones, Charlotte, North Carolina, March 5, 1980. Interview # H-161 in the Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007), Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

George Dyer describes his parents' financial situation when they got married and started farming. (See transcipt)

George Dyer talks about his parents' decision to leave their farm. (See transcipt)

George Dyer talks about the farm where he grew up. (See transcipt)

Gladys Hollar

Glenn E. and Gladys Hollar interviewed by Jacquelyn Hall, Conover, North Carolina, February 26 and 28, 1980. Interview # H-124 in the Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007), Southern Historical Collection, Wilson Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Gladys Hollar discusses her grandparents and farm life. (See transcipt)

Gladys Hollar discusses the work that her mother and the children did on the family farm. (See transcipt)

Gladys Hollar talks about the impact of her father's death on the family and their farm. (See transcipt)

Gladys Hollar describes her mothers worries about the family's survival. (See transcipt)


Source Citation: 

 "Life on the Land: Interviews." Like a Family, The Making of a Southern Cotton Mill World. Accessed July 10, 2019. hhttps://www.ibiblio.org/sohp/laf/landinterviews.html.

 

Credit text

Interviews from Like a Family: The Making of a Southern Cotton Mill World.