Eunice Austin and Jacquelyn Hall, conducted by Oral History Interview with Eunice Austin, July 2, 1980. Interview H-0107. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007).

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Oral History Interview with Eunice Austin, July 2, 1980. Interview H-0107. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007).

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Abstract

Eunice Austin describes a lifetime of laboring in Catawba County, North Carolina. Austin began her laboring life as a mill worker, like many young white southerners. In subsequent positions, she looped socks and made buttons, and after finding work in a furniture factory, inspected and assembled chairs. In this interview, Austin shares details from and reflects on her life, a happy one in her opinion. She offers a glimpse into life in the rural South in the twentieth century, details about manual labor in dominant southern industries like textiles and furniture-making, and the changing roles of women and African Americans.

Excerpts

Grandmother leaves her boy at home when she goes to work

A limited courtship

World War II brings change to the textiles industry

A pleasant social atmosphere at textile and furniture factories

Employers listen to complaints, then do nothing

Gender roles at a furniture factory

Race relations at a furniture factory

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Finding aid to the Southern Oral History Program Collection

Database of all Southern Oral History Program Collection interviews

Subjects

Women in the textile industry

Textile workers--Training of

Farm life--North Carolina--Bynum

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.

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