Maddie Rainwater, Maurine Rainwater, Mildred Rainwater Interview 3

GEORGE STONEY: Okay could you tell me about working in the mill?

MILDRED RAINWATER: When I first started working? I first started working on the reel. I took the threads from the bobbin and put it on the reel to use the yarn for cleaning the machinery. That's what I did to start with. And then they give me a job learning to operate the winders, and my sister Maddie (inaudible) now, she taught me how to run the winders--

[break in video]

GEORGE STONEY: -- uh when was this?

MILDRED RAINWATER: I was sixteen.

GEORGE STONEY: Okay. Just start her, "I was sixteen."

MILDRED RAINWATER: I'm seventy-four now. So that--

GEORGE STONEY: Sixteen, twenty-I'm seventy-four so that's '26.

MILDRED RAINWATER: No, I'm sorry, I just turned seventy-five, I will Sunday.

GEORGE STONEY: Then it was 1932?

MILDRED RAINWATER: Well okay.

GEORGE STONEY: Okay.

MILDRED RAINWATER: 193--

GEORGE STONEY: Okay when you are ready Jamie.

JAMIE STONEY: We're rolling.

MILDRED RAINWATER: You want me to mention that about when I started working in 1932? I started to work in 1932. Operating a reel where I took the thread--

GEORGE STONEY: I'm sorry, start again and tell me how old you are. (inaudible) 1932. Okay?

MILDRED RAINWATER: I started working at sixteen years old in 19 and 32. And I was operating a reel. (phone rings) That I could take the waste from the bobbin (phone rings) (inaudible) from the bobbin and put it on a reel (phone rings) (inaudible). And that's all--

GEORGE STONEY: Okay hold it.

MILDRED RAINWATER: (inaudible)to that.

[break in video]

GEORGE STONEY: Okay now--

JAMIE STONEY: (inaudible)

GEORGE STONEY: Okay, start all over.

MILDRED RAINWATER: Um, now how did I start?

GEOGRE STONEY: I was sixteen.

MILDRED RAINWATER: And call my name? Would you say my name?

GEORGE STONEY: Sure.

MILDRED RAINWATER: Rainwater?

GEORGE STONEY: Mm-hmm.

MILDRED RAINWATER: Mildred Rainwater started working at Newnan—East Newnan Mills, in 19 and 32. I was sixteen years old, and I operated at reel. And it—you took the thread from the bobbin and put it on this wheel and it made a waste to clean machinery with. And then after I ran that awhile, they give ma little promotion to running winders. And my sister Maddie Rainwater, taught me how to run, operate the winders. And that was to put yarn, I mean thread, from a 00:03:00bobbin onto to a –

MAURINE RAINWATER: A cone.

MILDRED RAINWATER: A cone. Onto a cone. And we measured the cone, and when the cone got the measure we wanted it, well we just took it off the machine. And they call that, well they call that doffing. And then I helped – you want to know what I made? The started me off at $6.55 a week. Per week. For six days a week. Well I say six, five full days and then till eleven o'clock on 00:04:00Saturdays. And I, after I learned to operate that winder they put me, they had me go on to another winder machine, by myself. And operate it just by my, you know, myself. And we had knotters to put on our hands that would tie the knots with from the bobbin to the cone. We tie knots on that and fill the cone. When it was filled we doffed it off and set it on top of the machine.

GEORGE STONEY: Was it hard work?

MILDRED RAINWATER: Well no. It was not hard work. It was steady work, but not really hard, they expected us to make production you might call it. They had a certain amount they wanted out so, we had to work hard for that. But it was not what you'd call real heavy, not 00:05:00what you would call heavy work. It was just continuous, you know, continually operating machines.

MADDIE RAINWATER: Well they had a box to pack all this stuff in and they gave you a check, when – a check a little check we call it when--piece of paper anyway to know how many of them box she had to get out. And at the end of the day she had to give the checks to them to show she got production.

GEORGE STONEY: What about you?

MADDIE RAINWATER: Well I was kind of (inaudible). I tied a weavers knot. It wouldn't slip.

GEORGE STONEY: How old were you when you started? Tell us about that.

MADDIE RAINWATER: Well I was fourteen.

GEORGE STONEY: When was that?

MADDIE RAINWATER: I don't know.

MILDRED RAINWATER: What year?

MADDIE RAINWATER: I couldn't tell you the year.

GEORGE STONYEY: How old are you now?

MADDIE RAINWATER: Eighty-four.

MILDRED RAINWATER: So that's fourteen.

MADDIE RAINWATER: I went to work when I was fourteen.

MILDRED RAINWATER: Fourteen from eighty-four.

MADDIE RAINWATER: Oh I don't

MILDRED RAINWATER: Seventy years, innit?

GEORGE STONEY: How much did you get paid?

MADDIE RAINWATER: Huh?

GEORGE STONEY: How much did you get paid?

MADDIE RAINWATER: I guess I got about the same thing she did.

GEORGE STONEY: How much is that?

MADDIE RAINWATER: About $6.00 maybe a week, I don't know.

MILDRED RAINWATER: Six fifty-five was the amount we got started--

MADDIE RAINWATER: But they put our money in a little envelope. We didn't get a check like they pay off now. They put the money in a little small envelope. Put your name on it and how much you had in there and sealed it up.

GEORGE STONEY: Do you have any of those envelopes now?

MADDIE RAINWATER: No.

GEORGE STONEY: Now when did you get a lot more money?

MADDIE RAINWATER: Well—

MILDRED RAINWATER: How many years did you have to work?

MADDIE RAINWATER: I worked till I got married, then I moved to Grantville

(crosstalk inaudible)

MADDIE RAINWATER: Left Grantville and went to La Grange when they had the strike. We went to work then there.

MILDRED RAINWATER: But he wanted to know –

GEORGE STONEY: Okay--

[break in video]

MADDIE RAINWATER: My family? Well--

MILDRED RAINWATER: How many children I guess?

MADDIE RAINWATER: My mother had eleven children, five boys and six girls. And she always had to bring the lunch to work at dinnertime, you know. She had to fix everything for our dinner. And we had an hour off for lunch. And then we had--

GEORGE STONEY: What would she pack? Tell us what she'd pack for lunch.

MAURINE RAINWATER: You mean pack for dinner? Well just a regular meal, she would cook vegetables--

MILDRED RAINWATER: (inaudible)

MAURINE RAINWATER: She put it in a jar, bring bowls for each one to have a bowl, and a spoon, and she'd have our bread. And she'd bring it in a market basket you know. And then we'd get over there and we'd divided it up between us and sit there and eat it.

MADDIE RAINWATER: It'd be hot, hot, hot in there, in the summer.

MAURINE RAINWATER: Yeah in the summer time and in the wintertime, it was cold. I've worked many a day with my coat on for Newnan Mills, it was so cold. So finally they changed over, you know, they got better windows they used to raise them up but they got better windows and then got better heat. And so we just--

MILDRED RAINWATER: Enjoyed it.

MAURINE RAINWATER: Enjoyed our work then, but I worked many a day with my coat on to try to keep warm, and everybody else did too.

GEORGE STONEY: Well now, tell us about your family and working in the mills? How many of them worked in the mills?

MAURINE RAINWATER: Well, when we first moved here, we moved here in 1917, my daddy and my oldest, not my oldest brother, but next to the oldest brother, they came and got a job and we lived at [Tallapoosa?], Georgia. And they came and um, got a job and went to work themselves. So we moved here on a train. (inaudible) and momma had all of us kids expect my brother, you know he was at home, they came,and worked. We moved on a train. Brought the cow and all the furniture and everything, on the train. So they parked the train over there on the switch track until we could get all of our furniture out. And so we didn't have a house vacant for us when we moved here. So there was another family moved 00:10:00in with us. So we all had to move into one house together. We put furniture under the house, and in the house, and all of kids and so you can imagine what we had. So finally Mr. Wood, he got a vacant house for us so we moved in house by ourselves. And so we all went to work, well Maddie and Mildred they – Mildred wasn't working.

MADDIE RAINWATER: We were in school a little while.

MAURINE RAINWATER: I know we went to school, and then you went to work, first. And then my sister older than me, she got a job and then I wanted to work. So they let go before the principal of the school, and he let me read a little bit in a book, and he said, "Well, you can read real good." He said, "You can 00:11:00go to work." So Momma and Daddy give up for me to go to work. So I worked--leaned to run fly frames in the card room. And it wasn't too hard, we'd get our jobs started and doff about ever, every four hours. And we'd have to go take off all the fly frames and then doff it off and put it in a box. And then put new spindles on and I mean bobbins on and you know start it back up. And it would quill about twice a day so we had a real good job then and we could just sit around and let it run, keep the ends going.

GEORGE STONEY: Now when did that job change so you had to work harder?

MAURINE RAINWATER: Well it changed over 1960 I think Mount Vernon bought over.

GEORGE STONEY: But before then did didn't speed up that you recall?

MAURINE RAINWATER: No, not, no, it didn't speed up while Newnan Mills was there but after Mount Vernon. Now West Point came here in 1960, but Mount Vernon bought over before, but it began to speed up a bit with them, but West Point came in and so, it speeded up a good bit. It was heavier work, we did yarn for carpets. And so it was (inaudible) on our feet to keep the jobs going. And I--

GEORGE STONEY: Okay let's –

MAURINE RAINWATER: -- enjoyed working for them, they were good to us.

MADDIE RAINWATER: Well you didn't know any better did you?

MAURINE RAINWATER: No.

MADDIE RAINWATER: The only place you'd ever been.

MAURINE RAINWATER: And I worked in the same plant, East Newnan plant I worked 00:13:00there for 50 years. Of course different companies but I worked in that plant for 50 years, and I retired in '75. So…

GEORGE STONEY: Could you tell us about what happened in 1933, when Roosevelt came in? Do you remember that?

MAURINE RAINWATER: About when now?

GEORGE STONEY: When President Roosevelt came in. If there was –

MAURINE RAINWATER: Well he uh was president that's when we you got short hours and more pay. And it made us all happy. Everybody loved President Roosevelt for that.

GEORGE STONEY: Could you tell us how the hours changed and how your pay changed?

MAURINE RAINWATER: Well we uh, well at Newnan Mills we used to make about $11.55 a week. But then after Mount Vernon came in we got minimum wage.

GEORGE STONEY: But I mean when Roosevelt came in you got more money and short hours.

MAURINE RAINWATER, MADDIE RAINWATER, and MILDRED RAINWATER: Yeah.

MAURINE RAINWATER: We got more money than--we went on minimum wage then. It was about $3.35 I guess an hour. And so--

GEORGE STONEY: Do you recall what happened when Roosevelt came in?

MILDRED RAINWATER: Me?

GEORGE STONEY: Yes.

MILDRED RAINWATER: Well I remember we were proud that we were getting more money and shorter hours. We were proud of that.

GEORGE STONEY: Well now in 1934, there was a big strike all the way through textiles. Do any of the three of you have any idea why that strike happened?

MAURINE RAINWATER: Well I think the union came in and was wanting everybody to join the union. And some believed in the union and some didn't. And so the ones that was having--you know against it, they were striking. And so they were 00:15:00the ones that caused the trouble, I think. The one that wanted the union to come in. But we didn't join the union because we didn't believe in it and so we didn't join it.

GEORGE STONEY: Did you know anybody who was in the union?

MAURINE RAINWATER: Well no not particular, only I did hear a girl say [Jesse Buoy?] he belonged, he joined the union and he lost his job. For joining the union. He lost his job in East Newnan Mill.

MILDRED RAINWATER: I imagine that all of them that joined the union lost their job.

GEORGE STONEY: Have you heard any talk about that since?

(phone rings)

MAURINE RAINWATER: No not, not that I remember (phone rings) I didn't--(phone rings) I know the people (phone rings) that was striking they came in on a 00:16:00truck. And (phone rings) they had to have the National Guards to come down, so we could go into work (phone rings) at that time.

GEORGE STONEY: Did you see the National Guard here?

MAURINE RAINWATER: Yes I saw them (phone rings) the few that came at East Newnan.

GEORGE STONEY: Could you describe that?

MAURINE RAINWATER: Well no not particularly (phone rings). I know they came in and stood around the gate, like for us to go in. But I think there were more action up at the old mill than it was about at East Newnan.

GEOGRE STONEY: Do either of the other ladies remember anything about the National Guard? Did you see them around town or anything?

MILDRED RAINWATER: I don't remember it.

MADDIE RAINWATER: I can't remember--

(crosstalk inaudible)

MADDIE RAINWATER: We went to work in LaGrange and they was the National Guard, guarded this building so we could go inside and get our job. And after we all 00:17:00got our job, they had to leave.

GEORGE STONEY: Now you went over to LaGrange during the strike to get a job.

MADDIE RAINWATER: Mmmm-hmmmm.

GEORGE STONEY: Could you just say that for me?

MADDIE RAINWATER: I went to LaGrange, Georgia, while the strike was going on.

GEORGE STONEY: And?

MADDIE RAINWATER: And we got a job and were working eight hours a day.

MILDRED RAINWATER: About the National Guards though.

MADDIE RAINWATER: Huh?

MILDRED RAINWATER: Don't you want her to say something about the National Guard?

GEORGE STONEY: Yes.

MADDIE RAINWATER: Well all I could tell you--

MILDRED RAINWATER: Down there.

MADDIE RAINWATER: -- they just walked around with a gun.

MILDRED RAINWATER: Till you got in there.

GEORGE STONEY: Did you see any machine guns around there?

MADDIE RAINWATER: Well I won't say, I don't believe so.

GEORGE STONEY: I'm not sure there were ever--

MADDIE RAINWATER: No.

MILDRED RAINWATER: I'm not sure there were any machine guns.

MAURINE RAINWATER: I don't remember any myself. But they just had guns with them you know (inaudible).

MADDIE RAINWATER: Well you see LaGrange was a bigger town, and they had more action.

GEORGE STONEY: Now we have some film of some textile workers coming, call it a flying squadron that came here to try to shut down the Newnan Mills. From, they came from Hogansville and LaGrange and a couple of other places. And we are gonna put that on the TV in just a moment and ask you to see if you can recognize any of the people, alright? So Jamie let's cut just a moment and we'll move--

MADDIE RAINWATER: Try--

[break in video]

GEORGE STONEY: It will be up in just a moment. Does that look like--

MAURINE RAINWATER: I remember the truck coming in like that by East Newnan plant.

GEORGE STONEY: Now this is in Fort McPherson. Do you recognize any of these--

MAURINE RAINWATER: No.

MILDRED RAINWATER: No I don't know those.

GEORGE STONEY: Now Mr. Zimmerman is somewhere in here, maybe you could spot him.

(phone rings)

GEORGE STONEY: Where is that? Do you know?

MAURINE RAINWATER: No I don't know where that would be. Unless it's here up at the old mill. (phone rings) That wasn't at East Newnan.

GEORGE STONEY: Do you recognize this?

MADDIE RAINWATER: Is the (inaudible) with the coat on?

MILDRED RAINWATER: No I don't remember that place. We were young and our mother wouldn't let us get out too much to mix with them.

GEORGE STONEY: Did you know many people that were in the National Guard?

MILDRED RAINWATER, MAURINE RAINWATER, and MADDIE RAINWATER: No.

MILDRED RAINWATER: Not me.

GEORGE STONEY: Now this is at For Mac again.

MILDRED RAINWATER: Who is that crippled fellow?

GEORGE STONEY: Do you remember reading anything about this at the time?

MILDRED RAINWATER: Well I remember all about it when it happened, but I don't remember what I read. I can't remember.

GEORGE STONEY: What did people think about it?

MILDRED RAINWATER: Well they were all upset about it.

GEORGE STONEY: Did you know anything--

MILDRED RAINWATER: They was afraid we were all gonna lose out jobs if we had anything to do with it.

GEORGE STONEY: Know any of those young ladies?

MILDRED RAINWATER: That's the one I thought Etta Mae was on. Did she think that? Did she?

GEORGE STONEY: I'll show you where she thought she was. Her, her sister. Her eyesight is so bad now she couldn't tell. But her sister spotted her. I'll 00:26:00show you. They said that this girl was her, Etta Mae. You can watch her now--

MAURINE RAINWATER: The third one?

GEORGE STONEY: The dark haired one.

MAURINE RAINWATER: Left is her.

GEORGE STONEY: Yeah.

MILDRED RAINWATER: Is that, yeah that's her. That's one I recognized the other day (inaudible).

GEORGE STONEY: Tell me who you recognize. Want to reach over and point to the screen?

MILDRED RAINWATER: I thought maybe that was her. You say that is.

GEORGE STONEY: Uh-huh.

MILDRED RAINWATER: Might look more like her than the middle one. I think that's the one I thought was Etta Mae. But that does look more like her there.

GEORGE STONEY: Do you recognize anybody else?

MILDRED RAINWATER: I can't remember.

MAURINE RAINWATER: I don't.

MILDRED RAINWATER: A lot of those were from Hogansville I think. I don't remember.

GEORGE STONEY: Now we're back to--

MILDRED RAINWATER: I didn't really know them.

GEORGE STONEY: Well thinking back again when all of this was happening could you tell us what kind of talk went around about it?

MILDRED RAINWATER: Well there were a lot of people who didn't want the strike 00:28:00cause we all needed work so badly. We was afraid if we got into that we would lose our jobs completely. So our parents wouldn't let us get into it.

GEORGE STONEY: What about the local paper. The local church and the chamber of commerce and that kind of thing?

MILDRED RAINWATER: I really don't think they were for it either. As best as I can remember.

GEORGE STONEY: Here they are getting--

MILDRED RAINWATER: Did you know any (inaudible)?

MAURINE RAINWATER: No I don't know any of those.

MILDRED RAINWATER: We didn't know too many people at Hogansville except the ones that moved from East Newnan down there, and that was the Zimmermans.

GEORGE STONEY: Well now the Zimmermans thought, sisters, thought that a lot of 00:29:00these people came up from LaGrange.

MILDRED RAINWATER: They probably did.

MAURINE RAINWATER: They were kinda of mixed up I think, from LaGrange and Hogansville.

GEORGE STONEY: SO you might be able to recognize some of these girls here for example.

JAMIE STONEY: (inaudible)

GEORGE STONEY: Okay just a moment, if you can.

MAURINE RAINWATER: Just very few people that we knew in Hogansville and LaGrange, we just knew a few around Newnan, that was all.

GEORGE STONEY: Well why did you have to go to LaGrange to get work?

MADDIE RAINWATER: You had to go to the --

MILDRED RAINWATER: (inaudible)

MADDIE RAINWATER: -- I used to know what you called it. But it was a building where -- just had -- go up to a window and ask for a job and they would give you 00:30:00the job or say yes or no, one. But it was a nice building, office building. But I can't remember, it had a name, but I can't remember.

MAURINE RAINWATER: (inaudible) office or something like that?

MADDIE RAINWATER: No it wasn't like that. I'll say it wasn't a bee-do office but it was -- it had some kind of name. But when you got a job they said we'd have to bee-do. That meant we'd have to work hard.

MILDRED RAINWATER: And make a certain amount.

MADDIE RAINWATER: But we got a job and worked.

GEORGE STONEY: Do you remember the--