Old Acquaintance Reunion

 M1: Five seconds, George.

GEORGE STONEY: Sure, OK.

M1: (inaudible)

M2: I said the [only thing that?] misrepresented just a little bit, because they said it was for pick 'em up to keep violence down, but there was no violence whatsoever. It was just a peaceful demonstration, and they picked up people, as a man said it right just now, some just bystanders. Just like people get up for curiosity and they picked 'em up, and carried 'em on, and put them in there. In other words, they just -- the intension was to break the strike, not to keep violence down, but to break the strike.

M1: OK. And I think we have someone else back here with a thought.

M3: This doesn't exactly tie in with what (inaudible) just said. I have a question for you and you. Is this, by any way, in regards to a conspiracy for or against organized labor at the present time or the present day?

M1: You mean, is that why we're here?

M3: Yes.

M1: We-- we're not taking a position. That's not why we're here.

M3: OK.

M1: Uh, we're simply exploring what happened, and obviously, any conclusions you want to draw from that, either way, is entirely up to you. Um, w--

M3: You -- you can understand my -- and I think maybe some of the others may have some, uh, thoughts too, along this line -- that it could be a conspiracy for or against, uh --

STONEY: Sure.

M3: -- that you could use in regards to organized labor. And I, for one, would certainly say that I certainly hope that it isn't.

M4: Amen.

M3: And I hope that -- and I hope the rest of you feel the same way that I do in regards to this. Because we don't want to be a forerunner for something to say that, "Well, these poor people, or these people that acted [during?], or the recession days of the '30s have a whole lot to say for or against, whichever case you could be on in regards to organized labor."

M5: (inaudible)

M3: Do you understand the point that I'm trying to make?

M1: Oh, we do, and, uh, it's up to -- you know, it's up to anyone to m-- draw their own conclusions. Uh, we're not trying to put words in your mouth, or take words away from your mouth, uh, or, in -- in any other way, interpret what you want, except to let you speak.

STONEY: I think --

M1: What do you think?

STONEY: -- (inaudible) the statement --

M3: I think the same way.

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M1: Sure. Yes.

M6: I wouldn't want to irritate anybody about any of this, but we've got to put ourselves back in the days when it was happening. Forget about today, because there's a completely different system, (inaudible). And at that time, the union was trying to get started. And they was poorly organized when they struck. If they had struck a little later, went away ahead and got little bit better organized, we might have saw different results. And I think it was premature, (inaudible) strike.

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M7: I could, too.

M6: (inaudible) dozen people couldn't think about getting out of there. But it was premature when they struck. And (inaudible)

M7: (inaudible)

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M8: Textile industry and family atmosphere (inaudible) that existed on these company villagesS, period. You're not interested in, uh, uh, too much of the details of, uh, pro-union, or anti-union or whatever. You are just involved in strictly from a historical standpoint. Is that correct?

M1: We simply view what you have to say. As I said earlier --

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F1: -- (inaudible) whether they were for the union, or whether for th-- they were against the union, love each other just as well today as they ever did. I think that's over and done with.

M9: Yeah, that's (inaudible) (applause)

F2: (inaudible)

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F1: (inaudible) all in the same boat. We were all in the same boat then, what one had, the other had. We all thought we was rich, because we all had the same thing. Didn't know no better. And so I think -- I still believe that love still exists, just as much between prop-- I don't know about Hogansville, but I'm sure in Hogansville. I'm glad I was raised -- I wasn't raised in East [Newnan?], but I moved there as a young girl. And I'm glad that I can say that I was brought up a long time in East Newnan. I love the East Newnan people. I love what the East Newnan village stan-- stood for. I still love what it stands for. And I've never been ashamed of the fact that I worked at a cotton mill.

GROUP: Amen.

M10: Well, I was raised there. So I learn a lot.

ETTA MAE ZIMMERMAN: We had good churches.

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JUDITH HELFAND: A lot of the people that we've interviewed have --

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M7: (inaudible)

ETTA MAE ZIMMERMAN: I'll tell you one thing, if somebody come to work there, 00:05:00you found out in a few days just exactly who they were, and where did they come from.

M7: You can go and (inaudible) Sunday (inaudible). They was easy. They didn't have to invite you. You just get your chair, pull up, and start eating. They didn't care.

STONEY: By the way, there's a very fine book. I'm sure your, your local library also has it. It was written, uh, uh, by a group of historians at the University of North Carolina who are also advising us on this film.

M2: (inaudible) first time that we had this reunion. This Old Acquaintance Reunion. It was, I think, was one of the highlights of my life. Because so many folks that we hadn't seen, and when I seen 'em, we hugged one another's neck just like we was lost brothers and sisters. So I think East Newnan was bound together in love and as the sister said, I still believe it existed in this day and time. Even though we've had opposition, we still are brothers and sisters, and in love and (inaudible) one another, now as we ever was.

M10: (inaudible)

F3: We all went to the same church.

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F4: -- he died when I was four years old. The, uh, Etta Mae and her family lay right beside of us. And she come -- they come down and got the -- us children, and take 'em over to a-- their house, and kept us so we wouldn't be, uh, in the way down at the house. And they were nice people. We loved them. I still love 'em.

M6: One more statement, then I'll shut up. I drove down here from North Carolina to be with this group today. And the first five minutes I'm here were worth the trip. (inaudible)

F5: (inaudible) the men that come from North Carolina (inaudible)

M6: This is the first one I've been to. I didn't know they were happening until this year. Found out last year when they was over with. First five minutes I was here was worth the trip.

STONEY: One other thing I'd like to do is that, as we're leaving, I'd like --

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M11: -- textile engineer bought out Uniroyal(inaudible) about a year ago. Uh, they have notified the employees -- it's down about 250 employees now -- that they will be closing the plant there in about six months. They also bought a plant in Thomaston at the same time they bought the one in Hogansville. And they are talking about carrying the machinery from Hogansville to Thomaston. My question is this. Will you do a follow-up on that, or would you do a follow-up on it, and perhaps interview the management in Hogansville and see, uh, if there's any possible -- possibility that they might keep it open and sell it, or whatever they plan to do with it? I'd -- that's right down your alley there, and it'd be a good, uh, follow-up story (inaudible) you have.

M1: Can we get your name? And we'd like to follow-up. Obviously there's a 00:08:00limitation on how much we can do --

M11: Yeah.

M1: -- but that's a good suggestion.

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M11: -- belong to the mill country anymore. It was sold years ago to individual people. Uh, it won't be as big a problem, I don't think, now, as it would have been 15 to 20 years ago, because we have so many different people that work outside our area, like Merriweather County, Katy County. I heard --

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M1: OK. Here's -- here's what you're referring to. I'm not so well educated. And I suppose maybe in terms of formal education, maybe he didn't have that much.

F6: Yeah.

M1: But he was no dummy.

F6: No, he was no dummy.

M1: He was no dummy by any means.

F6: (inaudible)

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M8: -- and [Margie?] said, she's coming next year if -- if she don't forget it. Well I'm going to see that she don't forget it.

M6: Well.

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M1: And then what? Did you lose it in the Depression?

M12: Yeah, yeah. (inaudible)

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F1: (inaudible) he'd look over and they'd (inaudible), and we got home that night, and he says, "I tell you, now that's one of the finest women I've ever (inaudible)."

F7: Yeah. [Essie?] was (inaudible)

M6: Good to see all of you.

F1: Good to see you.

M: (inaudible)

F1: I still say you got pretty blue eyes.

M6: Thank you.

F1: I think your wife's still alive. I told --

M6: [I do, too.?]

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M2: We appreciate seeing and talking to you guys. Take care of yourself. We see you again.

M1: All right. You take care.

M2: Okie-doke.

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M13: There you go.

F8: (inaudible) all the time.

M14: (inaudible) just beautiful. That's (inaudible). This is the first time -- this -- I've se-- this is the first time I've seen this family together in 50 years.

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F9: Did you want to see a picture (inaudible)?

M8: I never got to look at these [Margaret?]. (inaudible). You responsible for these?

F9: (inaudible) you know, partially.

M8: Yeah.

F9: Their mother is my daughter. And Pete will be 17 the 29th of this month. And he weighs 220 pounds. Plays football and wrestling.

M8: Notre Dame going to be down here looking for him, I bet you.

M6: (inaudible) playing with two big guys. (inaudible) just (inaudible) that other guy he saw. Finally he give a little, uh, relief. And he laid back and that man says, "Wait a minute." He said, "I ain't told you about my grandkids (inaudible)." And he said, "No you hadn't. And you don't know how much I appreciate it."

F9: Well, I just had to show him one picture since these were new.

M6: I thought you (inaudible).

M8: Are you a –(break in video) were you a -- (inaudible) first time that I have seen this family together in 50 years. And I don't -- I'm sure they have been together.

F9: We've seen each other since the -- in -- uh, (inaudible) time than that. But we were over their house two weeks ago in North Carolina.

M3: But we don't see each other as much as I would look forward to see each other.

F9: Yeah, me either.

HELFAND: Now where did the W-- where did the Wiles live? Did they end up near you? They lived (inaudible)?

M8: I, I know right where they lived, but, uh, they were -- they were neighbors. We didn't live right on the village. We lived in a little old house just off from the village.

F9: We didn't live next door to each other, but we were close enough that we could say we were neighbors.

M8: Oh, yeah. Yeah.

M6: (inaudible) my focus is, we was one big, happy family. All of us.

M8: That's exactly right.

M6: Whether you live out on the village or not. Everybody lived in the (inaudible). We all were just like a family.

M8: One time, uh, my family was the total commercial enterprise in East Newnan.

M3: Exactly right.

M8: My brother had a -- my brother had a little, old grocery store. My father 00:13:00had a barber shop. And, uh, my uh, daddy had a barber shop. And my brother-in-law had a little, old meat market right off of (inaudible). Remember that?

M3: Yeah, I sure do. That's why I said that his family had a lot to do with the majority of us in East Newnan as being able to make it. When he said a few minutes ago that, uh, his brother sold food, groceries, on credit? I would dare say that at least 90% of the people in our age group that are here today owed him money, and it took my mother a while to catch up with hers afterwards. My mother was a widow woman. It hurts my heart…

M8: Fine family of people. Fine family.

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M6: I'd seen times, but if it wouldn't have been for his brother, we wouldn't have had nothing to eat in our house, because we were buying food on credit. My mother was -- raised four of us, and she -- at times, when she got sick, she just couldn't pay the food bill. But he didn't cut us off. He 00:14:00just kept sending it to us.

F9: He knew mama was honest, and a Christian. And he knew he'd get his money when momma, uh, could get it.

M8: When they did pay off, we'd eat a little better, too, so.

F9: It's six of one, half dozen of the other. (inaudible)

M8: It's awfully good to see you.

F9: Oh, good to see y'all. Well, I'm afraid Fred and (inaudible) got a little distance to go.

M8: Hope to see you again. If we don't see you before, see you next year. Margie, you all be good.

M3: God bless you.

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HELFLAND: Olli?

OLLIE DENTON: Yes, ma'am.

HELFLAND: Olli? That's your name?

DENTON: O-L-L-I.

HELFLAND: OK.

DENTON: Olli [Denton?].

HELFLAND: Why don't you tell us what you remember of the 1934 strike, and your brother's involvement, and his name.

DENTON: Oh, yeah. Well, he lived in Hogansville. He worked in (inaudible). And I worked at East Newnan.

HELFLAND: OK, one second.

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DENTON: -- Olli.

HELFLAND: -- and where you were born.

DENTON: Olli [Layola Cassel?]. Born Oc-- November the 2nd, 1907.

HELFLAND: OK. And where you born, ma'am?

DENTON: In [Kaykaka?].

HELFLAND: When did you move? Really loud, huh?

M15: That's all right. OK. Rolling.

HELFLAND: As slowly and carefully as you can, tell me about when you came to the mill, and actually, tell me about what you saw. Those pictures and that strike in 1934, and what you remember about it.

DENTON: I came to East Newnan. Moved to East Newnan in 1925. And I worked 00:16:00there. And that was in '34. And we was working, and the strikers come from Hogansville. That's where they a-- from LaGrange (inaudible) that was there, but they all together met at hogansville. My brother was in it. [Pat Callie?]. My poor father was working. He had to come back all that. So the superintendent, Mr. Carl Mason, went home for lunch. And he saw him at the old mill in town. And he raced down there. He didn't tell anyone. It was so quick. He come in and pulled the switch and stopped the mill. And told us to hurry. (inaudible) find my brother, and I went.

HELFLAND: What was your brother doing?

DENTON: He wasn't doing anything, but he would have, I guess. (inaudible). I guess he didn't mean no harm. But to think that we had to come out, and him back, it broke our heart. But we left.

HELFLAND: Did your brother talk to you when you walked out of the mill?

DENTON: Uh-uh.

HELFLAND: What was your brother doing?

DENTON: He was just standing there, with the rest of them. With stick in his hand. That's all.

HELFLAND: Now, was your brother there that day when they came down with the National Guards?

DENTON: Yes, ma'am.

HELFLAND: And what happened to your brother then?

DENTON: He went back to Hogansville. Some of them couldn't. The national Guard got 'em(inaudible).

HELFLAND: Did your brother continue to be a member of the union?

DENTON: Yes, ma'am.

HELFLAND: Did he talk to you -- what -- what was your brother working for?

DENTON: I don't know.

HELFLAND: Did your brother go back to work at Hogansville?

DENTON: Yes, ma'am.

HELFLAND: How long did he work there after the strike?

DENTON: Well, till he got -- a long, long time. And then he became a policeman in (inaudible). He left the mill.

HELFLAND: Why did he leave the mill?

DENTON: I don't know.

HELFLAND: So you continued to work in the mill.

DENTON: At East Newnan. I did. But I got mad. I worked there 20 years. (inaudible). Opal Wilson I learned that girl to tell time. She was there young when she come to work.

HELFLAND: Was your brother the only member of your family in the union?

DENTON: Yes, ma'am.

HELFLAND: Tell me about what it was like to have someone in the family in the union and the rest weren't.

DENTON: Made us feel bad. I guess they didn't mean anything. But at that time, everybody was against it, almost. We wanted to have a job.

HELFLAND: Why do you think they were against it?

DENTON: I don't know.

HELFLAND: What did you know -- what were they trying to do?

DENTON: I just don't know. It put us out of a job for a little bit. Sure did.

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LEANDER ZIMMERMAN: Well, in 1909 --

STONEY: Wait, just a moment.

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STONEY: All right, sir. Tell us about your life in the mill.

LEANDER ZIMMERMAN: See, when I first worked in the mill, in 1909, it was just before Christmas that year. And I was -- and March, next March -- in March, I was 15 years old. So after I worked a while, I started off sweeping in the big alley in the mill. And then I -- after I'd done that a while, and I started to be a doffer in the spinning room. And I doffed a while in the spinning room. 00:20:00But I don't -- I, I never did get to be a good doffer. So I learned to spin. I spi-- I started spinning then, and I spinned a, a while in the mill in the spinning room. Spinning. And then af-- after I left the spinning, I went in the twist room. creeled twist awhile. And then from that, I got to running some twisters. Then, uh, I quit that mill, worked at another mill. And, uh, I went to work in that mill (inaudible) in the spinning room. And I stayed on that (inaudible) job a while. And then I decided I, uh, I didn't want to do that. And then I -- I went to, uh, uh, weaving shop. And I started working, 00:21:00uh, learning to weave. And they paid me 50 cents a day to learn to weave. Well I got to where I -- I was weaving -- done pretty good weaving, but the man that was running the -- the job laying up warps in in the weave shop. He, uh, I had had some experience before th-- before that, uh, working in -- working out in the woods cutting [salt tamer?]. And I got myself built up pretty good strength. And so at that time, still I wasn't a very big man, but they offered me that [work?] job. (inaudible) in the weave shop. Well I take that work -- that job -- and, and then after I take that job, the man that's running it says, "Well, you can't do it." Said, "It's too big a job for you to handle." Says, says, "I'll get the job back." But, I -- he 00:22:00didn't get it back from me. So I do-- I done that until I -- until I about just quit the mill all together. And I -- I quit the mill then and went, uh, went, went and farmed a while. Then I went back to the mill later, and went to weaving. I worked in a weave shop for a while, and well, during that time, I got to where I -- getting to where I was a pretty good barber. And after I quit that job there at -- and, uh, weaving, I went to barbering. And then later, th-- they wanted a, a man in, in the community building -- barber in the 00:23:00community building. So I went th-- went and opened my shop in the community building. (inaudible) shop down there. And I was working it by myself then. And Depression got so bad in the mill that I thought I was going to lose -- I couldn't -- I had to come out of the -- the shop. And at that time, one of the mills shut down completely. It wasn't running anything at all. And others were running two h-- two, two -- uh, two days a week. [Euis Rawling?] come along and bought that mill. And what they did, is start it up 24 hours a day. And at that time, I, I was still running my barber shop. I wasn't paying no rent on it because I wasn't making enough money to pay rent. Well, op-- things opened up, and then I hired me another barber to work with me in 00:24:00there. And we were both very good. Mr. Belson come down and says, "(inaudible) looks like things are moving pretty good for you -- for you, now." I said, "Yeah. Thank God we're doing pretty well." He said, "Well, you can start next Monday and start paying rent on your barber shop again."

STONEY: Now -- so you were not --

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LEANDER ZIMMERMAN: I was in the barber shop and the troops stopped the mill. And that's once reason (inaudible) cut me out. I got out when the troops come in, and everything is shut down. So, till I was just -- I, I was out -- muchly out of a job. But I -- I was taking in about, about six dollars a week. And I was paying three dollars and a half out of that for rent.

STONEY: How did you feel when, uh, you knew your father and sister were --

LEANDER ZIMMERMAN: Well, it, it, it looked pretty bad to me. See, and I couldn't understand why they, they would such a thing as that. That they would -- that, uh, well, I never did know -- uh, well I did know, too, is that 00:25:00they were scared off, and, and, and I don't know how many days they stayed up there. But I think Talmadge want to call it that. I don't know. But I think Mr. Talmidge calls that, that, uh, uh, and it did spread out all over the country. That views that only people in that -- in that mill at that time.

STONEY: Did, uh, how did other people in the town feel about your father and your sister being in the (inaudible)?

LEANDER ZIMMERMAN: They felt pretty bad about it. But there wasn't -- wasn't nothing anybody could do. Th-- that I know they felt pretty bad about it. And it was a large group of them that they -- that they locked up. And --

STONEY: Did you know any of the others?

LEANDER ZIMMERMAN: Well, yeah, I, well, I practically knew -- knew all about it 00:26:00-- (inaudible) the, uh, barber in the community and the cotton mills town -- you just got to know everybody. And I knew a-- them as (inaudible). So, I didn't like that idea, but and, and, and, it come might now put me out of business, too.

STONEY: What did the -- did the fellows talk about it in the shop?

LEANDER ZIMMERMAN: Yeah, they loved to talk about it. Lot of people talk about it. And, and it was -- they didn't like it either. But, so, it, it just, uh, it, it, it interrupted everything.

F10: [Nolan?]?

STONEY: Did you talk to your father about, uh --

F10: (inaudible) I'm waiting on them.

LEANDER ZIMMERMAN: Yeah. My father was a Talmadge man up till that time. But he was no Talmadge man from then on. Yeah. He (inaudible) a lot of Talmadge, but -- he thought he did -- but -- and he had voted for 'em. But he said, "I wouldn't have voted for 'em again."

STONEY: Did you hear -- was there much talk about the union at the time?

LEANDER ZIMMERMAN: Yeah, there's a lot of talk of a union, and, and, uh, they felt like that they was going to get organized unions. And then I can go get organized that time. But when all this happened, that stopped. And, well, in other words, it killed the union talk.

STONEY: Do you remember the fellows who came and -- to organize the union? Who were they, and where did they come from?

LEANDER ZIMMERMAN: I can't remember a name. No, I can't remember the name.

STONEY: Do you remember where they came from?

LEANDER ZIMMERMAN: I think it came from s-- uh, in Alabama. Now, or from Sh-- uh, down below West Point.

STONEY: Yeah, uh --

LEANDER ZIMMERMAN: In that section, down, I think.

F10: The ones that organized it moved down there with a crew.

STONEY: Why don't you come and join her -- your brother?