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Oral History Interview with Arthur Little, December 14, 1979. Interview H-0132. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007).
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  • Abstract
    Milk delivery boy Arthur Little hated getting up early to deliver milk and dreamed of owning a glove factory instead. In this interview he describes realizing that dream and details the glove making industry in Newton, North Carolina. Most of this interview focuses on Little's life as a factory owner and his observations about work in his mill. He describes a relatively unchanging industry, where work methods and the young, mostly female workforce have evolved little over the course of decades. Little disapproves of unions and government spending, which may reflect his struggles during the Great Depression and his hard-earned financial success. He sees the role of the Ku Klux Klan in the aftermath of the Civil War positively, however—a view that perhaps reflects the beliefs of many of his generation in the rural South. This interview will offer researchers a useful top-down look at the glove making industry in North Carolina.
    Excerpts
  • Reflecting on the Populist Party and the need for the Klan after the Civil War
  • Community and personal impacts of the Great Depression
  • From dreams of glove factory ownership to their realization
  • Small changes in the technology of making gloves
  • Gender traditions conscribe women's work
  • The need for labor forces glove factory owners to treat workers well
  • Little change in the glove-making industry over time
  • Resisting efforts to unionize the glove-making industry
  • Family dynamics on the factory floor and concerns about government spending
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  • Finding aid to the Southern Oral History Program Collection
  • Database of all Southern Oral History Program Collection interviews
  • Subjects
  • North Carolina--Race relations
  • Trade-unions--Textile workers--North Carolina
  • Textile workers--North Carolina--Social conditions
  • Women in the textile industry
  • The Southern Oral History Program transcripts presented here on Documenting the American South undergo an editorial process to remove transcription errors. Texts may differ from the original transcripts held by the Southern Historical Collection.

    Funding from the Institute for Museum and Library Services supported the electronic publication of this title.