Etta Mae Zimmerman and Robert Wood Interviews



F1: Austin? Well he finished school, but he didn't finish—

ETTA MAE ZIMMERMAN: I—

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GEORGE STONEY: Yeah we need to see it so that they can that they're short pants.

ZIMMERMAN: That's the reason I had it made all up.

GEORGE STONEY: Ok now turn the page.

ZIMMERMAN: Turn the page?

GEORGE STONEY: The other way.

JAMIE STONEY: The other page.

GEORGE STONEY: The next one.

ZIMMERMAN: Like this?

GEORGE STONEY: Yes.

ZIMMERMAN: Ok. This is the five girls.

GEORGE STONEY: No who is this over here?

ZIMMERMAN: This is my sister Carrie and Reuben. And there wasn't but 14 months difference in these two, and they were buddies. What one (inaudible). 00:01:00You ready?

GEORGE STONEY: Yes. Who are they?

ZIMMERMAN: This is-- the five girls. But this was an early picture of Lovella, she wasn't but 14. But this is Carrie, and Leona, or me, Leona, and Belle.

GEORGE STONEY: Sorry—

ZIMMERMAN: That's all of five of—

GEORGE STONEY: Let's do that again.

JAMIE STONEY: Okay right there.

GEORGE STONEY: Tell –yeah ok. Now hold it. Just tell me, point out yourself.

ZIMMERMAN: Oh, I'm in the center.

GEORGE STONEY: Put your finger on it, that's me.

ZIMMERMAN: Starting up her Lovella, this is me, this Lovella, Carrie, Leona and Belle.

GEORGE STONEY: Now point yourself out.

ZIMMERMAN: In the center. (Inaudible) I showed, the first time I showed this picture the woman said, if that's you, you better go out and have a picture made. This is another picture of my sister Carrie. Over here is Leona.

GEORGE STONEY: No, oh.

JAMIE STONEY: Lower it down. Lay the page flat please.

GEORGE STONEY: No.

JAMIE STONEY: When it flips it up there is—

GEORGE STONEY: Yup.

JAMIE STONEY: A major glare. Ok.

GEORGE STONEY: Now we can turn it.

ZIMMERMAN: Over here is Velma, that's our youngest sister, and for some reason I didn't have my oldest brother and his wife at that time. I got them later. But this is starting the families. His name was Virgil. This is the first grandchild, and this is the second, and this is the third. I can't see.

GEORGE STONYE: Ok turn the page now.

ZIMMERMAN: This is Virgil's children later. This is his oldest daughter. This is – her name's Thelma. This is his son, his name is William. This 00:04:00one is named Harold. This one is named, this girl is named Hallie. This is Hazel.

GEORGE STONEY: Go up on the woman on the upper left hand corner, and let's get a close up of that too.

ZIMMERMAN: This one?

GEORGE STONEY: Yeah good.

ZIMMERMAN: This is starting my brother. Second brother is named Leander this is him and his wife. And this is the first child, she's named Nelly. And a boy, second child is named Raymond.

GEOGRE STONEY: Turn the page.

ZIMMERMAN: Then we have Nelly and Raymond together.

GEORGE STONEY: Ok now, let's cut. I think we get the idea, Jamie.

JAMIE STONEY: What I'd like to do is to just flip through some pages –

GEORGE STONEY: Ok.

JAMIE STONEY: without—

GEORGE STONEY: Just turn

JAMIE STONEY: just in a wide shot here.

GEORGE STONEY: Just turn through the pages without…

ZIMMERMAN: Ok.

JAMIE STONEY: And just pause for a moment at each page. Ok.

GEORGE STONEY: Turn the next page.

JAMIE STONEY: Turn the next page.

GEORGE STONEY: That's a cute one. You can go in on that Jamie. Hold it, hold 00:06:00it just a moment. (Inaudible) snapshot really.

JAMIE STONEY: Ok.

GEORGE STONEY: Now the babies. Ah, ah, slowly.

JAMIES STONEY: (inaudible) I'm having trouble holding it.

GEORGE STOBEY: Yeah, alright the next page.

JAMIE STONEY: Ok.

GEORGE STONEY: Ok the next page. Ok the next page.

ZIMMERMAN: Open but.

JAMIE STONEY: Ok.

GEORGE STONEY: Ok close up this one Jamie on the bottom left.

JAMIE STONEY: That's the toughest one to get to.

GEORGE STONEY: Yeah I know. Ok?

JAMIE STONEY: Let me get the credit at the bottom.

GEORGE STONEY: Ok. I think that's enough Jamie, we got. Ok, thank you very much.

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M1: Rolling.

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GEORGE STONEY: (inaudible)

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JAMIE STONEY: Fuller Earle Callaway Sr. Born in LaGrange July 15, 1870, Fuller 00:17:00E. Callaway was a textile manufacturer, merchant, and philanthropist. In 1888, he established his first business on LaFayette Square just west of this point. Organizing and operating textile mills, banks, warehouses and department store, Callaway helped modernize LaGrange's economy. Examples of his concern for the social and educational development of employees and residents can be found throughout LaGrange and the State of Georgia. When he died in 1928, Callaway was one of the world's leading textile manufacturers. Kay?

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GEOGRE STONEY: Ok ready?

JAMIE STONEY: We're rolling.

GEORGE STONEY: Ok. Could you tell me how you got into the mills and whether or not your family had a textile background?

ROBERT WOOD: Well yes they had a background cause daddy was as I said, uh maybe I didn't, was killed when I was 2 years old.

GEORGE STONEY: Start, just say, my father was killed when I was 2 years old, ok.

WOOD: My father was killed when I was 2 years old and uh the children had to go to work as they got old enough. And, uh I was the last one, and uh by that time we had lived in LaGrange most of that time. And, uh my schooling was done here, all of it. And that uh in 1937 I had left school and uh, on regard of my health. And I went down they put me inside of the plant to, uh creel twisters. And I was very much delighted with that because the man that lived next store to me, was like a daddy, and I was going to work with him and he was going to teach me. And uh after 6 weeks the supervisor we had, called 6 of us boys together to his 00:20:00office and told us we were going to change jobs, effective the next week, doffing. And some of them started to crying. I couldn't see no reason to cry. And I just told, I let them get through it, I told them, I said, "Mister [Keeble?] I'm going out the gate when you go for supper tonight, cause I ain't coming back." He said, "What?" I said "I'm not coming back I'm not going to doff twisters." I said "I have some more time left in school and I don't intend to make my living doffing twisters." So, he didn't believe a word of it, but when he opened that gate, I went out. And he said I'd be back. But I don't know why I come home, I told her. She said," Well you got to go back." I said "Nuh-uh, I'll leave home, but I'm not doffing twisters." So, uh, me and her had a little misunderstanding, 00:21:00and, but I didn't go back. And, then in '38 I finished school, and I just piddled around at this little job and that little job. Till I was over in Thomaston, at my sisters, and uh, Mama called and said that they had an opening at the spinning mill in the office, on the third shift and wanted me to come. And I had to get someone to bring me home and I only had a short time to do it in. I was supposed to be here at work at 2 o'clock, and it was 12 then. I went down to the office and they said, "We don't have time to give you a physical, you just got to go to work." I went on, and then the next morning, I worked that evening from 2 till 10. The next morning I got up and went through personnel. I had worked 8 hours without any records. And they, uh, 00:22:00they after they got through with that, they carried me out into the plant to let me see what I was supposed to do. And then they called our job timekeeper. I had to go from one department to the other, uh, and um –

GEORGE STONEY: Hold it--

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JAMIE STONEY: Rolling.

M1: All set again.

JAMIE STONEY: We have speed.

GEORGE STONEY: Alright sir could you just tell me, and don't say, as I told you before, just tell me how you got into the mills. Ok? Mmmm-hmm.

WOOD: Uh in 19—you don't want me to go with, uh, from when I was called from Thomaston?

GEORGE STONEY: Yeah, just start right there.

WOOD: Well that won't take care of the first doffing job.

GEORGE STONEY: I want you talk to – just as if we hadn't recorded before. So I want you to tell your story again.

WOOD: Well uh in 1937, I went to –

GEORGE STONEY: You want to start my daddy died when I was two.

WOOD: Oh. My daddy died when I was 2 years old, and left Momma with nine children. And mother's health wasn't good, she was more or less a semi-invalid. And each child had to go to work as he came old enough to help out. And I was the last one to go to work, and I had been out of school, uh and still lacked about half a year of finishing. And I went down to the spinning mill, and uh, they gave me a job learning to creel twisters. And I, uh did that 00:24:00for about six weeks, along with others they'd hired. And uh, one night this uh department manager called us learners together and said he was going to change us from creeling twisters to doffing twisters. Well that upset most of them, but it didn't bother me. Because I had made up my mind before I went down there that doffing twisters was too hard for me. I had had some trouble, and had some surgery, I just wasn't up to doing it. And uh, so the supervisor told us to come on in the next day and took each one of us and put us with an experienced doffer. And I was the one that was selected to work with the best 00:25:00without a shadow of a doubt. Everybody down there told me that I had the one that was the best and that he didn't wait. So when he was showing me and he decided I wasn't fast enough, he decided he was supposed to doff one half of the twister and help me doff the other half. He'd get through, he'd come over and start on mine and I go sit down. And it didn't bother me, I'd just sit down. And someone said something about it, I said, "Well I'm getting paid for the hour." So it rocked along then about 3 or 4 week later they called us together again and told us we were definitely going to have to take the doffing job, and I told the supervisor that, it was about 5:30 then, "When you go open that gate to go to supper, I'm going too." He says, "You can't." I said, "If you open that gate I can." So when he went out the gate I did too. He was just positive that I was coming back. But I didn't. I 00:26:00went home and had it over with my momma and she said I had to go to work and I said I'd leave home. Cause I knew I already had a place to go. I could go to Newnan to my uncle's. And uh, so we, I didn't go in. Next day this big plant, uh department manager said, to my brother, where was I? He said, "He told you last night he wasn't coming back." He says, "When he says no he don't mean yes." He says, "He's not coming cause that's too hard." Well he couldn't take that for an answer so he went down and talked to one of my sisters. She says "He not like the rest of us, when he says no, you can kill him, but you can't make him do it." So I didn't last down there. From then I went on to go finish school, and I just piddled around at this job, 00:27:00and that job, and the other job. And then I was over at Thomaston, picking peaches and uh sister got word that there was an opening over at (inaudible) Spinning Plant, and they wanted me immediately. And I went, I had to go home from Thomaston, it was 12 o'clock that day and they wanted me to report for at 2. I didn't have time to go by personnel I just went in and went to work. And work carried me out into the plant. And uh he said, uh, he was introducing me to the people because I had to learn every person in the plant, and had to know what job they run, what machinery they was running. And had to learn what -- what kind of work they were doing. And he says, "You know more of these folks than I do, and I've been here 3 years." I said, "I was raised with them, 00:28:00you wasn't." So we got along real well. And, uh, he went from that uh one day to boss (inaudible) and says, the real boss in the office and says "I hate to put you on the third shift cause I just can't believe you're old enough." You had to be 19 to work the third. He says, "I know you are though cause I know when your daddy got killed. I know exactly all about it." But he was hesitant. I said, "Well I've got to work." And momma was worse than he was, she thought I wouldn't sleep. But I went on, I went on the third shift, and had no problems. I learned all the supervisors and all the people and the jobs. And what we did, by the way, I was making 30 cents an hour at that time. And then we got raised when they made the 40 cents an hour come 00:29:00in. And uh, the people in the office got furious because I got the same amount of money they did, and they'd been working for all these years. I said, "Well it wasn't my fault." I said, "Y'all just older than I am." And they just, uh they really got mad. And then I had the best set of bosses. And I never knew when they were going to get me to work 16 hours a day. And I of course had to do the same job over again, only with another set of people. And one of the most uh, unusual things was, was pay day. They required you to get a supervisor to go with you to pay off. To be sure they verified the people that you didn't give the wrong checks out. We had 2 women down there by the 00:30:00same name. Except one of them put a d in hers. And uh, I got to them and the supervisor says, "This is the one that had the d in her name." I says "Nuh-uh." I says, "It's not." He said "Yes." I said "That lady don't have any time, she didn't work." But I was supposed to go ahead and take his word for it, and I gave her the check. I went to the office, the boss called and said, "Robert, where's check for this lady?" I said, "Her supervisor said she was at work and I gave her the check. I said, "I told him she wasn't at work." And so they called it and later wouldn't give him the check.