So you’re gonna ask me questions?

Yes Ma’m

Oh (laughing) well I’ll try to answer to the best of my knowledge.

That’s fine do the best you can…um when the war, do you remember when the war started, like when they bombed pearl harbor and all that do you remember how you felt when you first heard what had happened?

No I can’t remember too much about it

Really, okay um what did you do during the war? Did you, you worked at the hood’s milk?

At Hood’s Ice Cream

Hood’s ice cream, okay

There’s a difference there’s a hood ice cream and a hood milk

Actually I buy hood milk at the grocery store

Do you? Course I had to buy, I did buy hood’s milk and all hood’s products

Ummm do you remember any ways your life changed during the war?

Oh yes did quite a bit

What all…?

We had the rations

Oh the rations.

Yes

Okay what products did they ration? Did they ration everything?

Butter, even ice cream.

Really, did that affect the plant at all? Did you guys make ice cream for soldiers

No the customers, the ah store managers had to cut down. Say they get one hundred gallons of ice cream a month. They get 
a third.

Oh wow there was that big a cut down.

Well yes, there was quite a cut. Didn’t last long but it did happen.

Um do you remember anything like, um there was a big mobilization back home. Lots of people went off to work in factories while the men went off to war they worked. Do you remember any of your friends having to go off to factories and work?

Well my brother worked in Norton.

Oh he did? Right in town.

And he didn’t have to go to war because there was a factory they were making products for the war.

Oh okay so instead of going to war he was able to work, work at home. Well that’s nice he got to stay at home.

Well cause he was married at the time.

Okay, um did you know any one who had to go off to war?

Well several friends. But no, not the second war. I did the first war but not the second.

Okay, um, lets see what else, um, there were a lot of, the USO functions…

Yes I did, I made mittens.

Oh you did? So you would knit them yourself?

Yes. It was for the red cross.

Okay, so those were brought to the troops?

Yes.

Oh that must have been nice knowing that you were giving something to them.

Mm.

Very cool, um lets see. I have a big long list of topics (laughing)

I know you have, that’s what I say. Are you recording me?

Yes ma’m.

Oh (laughing) and you retype every word that I’m saying to you now?

Yep I’m gonna type up the whole thing and you will be able to read it over, check it out. Um, what did you do for recreation 
during the war. Like what activities, social activities were going on in town?

Well I was in different clubs and organizations and such

What kind of clubs were you in?

Was in, the, Old Providence and umm our lady of the…oh 1940? Oh I was still working

Oh okay. So most of your time was spent working at the hood ice cream?

Yes. There was a lot there cause I had to leave early in the morning. Cause I didn’t have a car you had to take the bus at that time.

Okay. Where in town was the factory? IS it still, is the factory still around today.

No it was distributing.

Oh it was a distributing plant okay. And that warehouse…

It was on the southbridge street.

Um okay. Holy cross, where I go to school is right off southbridge street. So it’s probably near there. Holy cross is off of southbridge street.

Yeah southbridge street.

So you were right down near holy cross actually?

Right at the beginning of southbridge street, back of the post office there.

Okay.

That really beginning.

Now you worked there before the war.

Then we were, oh in 40? This is 40?

Umhm.

Oh we were in our own plant. No we were in our own plant on Deweet street.

Oh Okay.

We moved over to dewey street in 39.

Okay

So we, yeah dewey street.

Um you were working…

Which is still a distributing station, it was still distributing station.

Now you worked before the war, you got your job. You started working in 30…?

I started working for Hood’s in 1930.

Okay 1930, okay.

And I worked till 72.

Wow that’s very impressive. Um lets see…ahh franklin Roosevelt was the president during the whole, aaa the whole war. Um do you remember how, did everybody like Roosevelt, was he a popular president?

 Sure! He was very popular.

Very popular.

Mmm

Um did you look to him as kinda the leader and the man who was kinda like in charge durin the war.

I think so.

Okay we read, we were reading about how important he was to the war effort and you, you would agree that.

He was, he was, well he put in the social security

That’s right that’s a very good point. Um, how bout your family, did you have any siblings?

What?

Do you have any siblings? Borthers or sisters.

Well I’m not married, just a brother that’s all

Okay. He worked at Norton?

Norton.

Norton right. Now did he get that job before the war or during the war?

No he worked there before the war.

Before?

Yes. He was yes, he was working there before the war.

And they probably saw a lot more business when the war started huh?

Unhu.

Okay. Um lets see. Do you remmber ah being nervous that he would have ot go off to war? Or did you know pretty early that he wouldn’t have to go?

No I didn’t have to go. I didn’t really enlist. I didn’t offer to go, no. Cause it was just my mother and i.

Right.

So I had to support her. My brother was married

Mhm. Did aa, was it always something you thought about that the war was going on and that there were people there aor was it kinda just in the background of daily life?

No, people being killed and oh and I just thought that was terrible.

So it was always on your mind? That everything was going on.

Yes.

Okay, what was the news coverage like did you know what was going on?

Well yes by reading the paper.

Okay.

Yeah I kept up with things.

You did.

Yeah.

Do you remember being relieved er…how did you feel when the war ended? When it was all over.

It was great (laughing)

What was the celebration like around town?

I don’t really remember about the celebration cause of the fact when you’re working everyday, and that was in the 40’s, and 
I was still working.

Okay, so life just went on?

Yes.

Okay. Did you ah, belong to a church at the time of the war?

Did I what?

Belong to a church, did you go to a church?

(Nodding yes)

Which church did you go to?

Our lady of the rose. Or the…

Oh okay

Or, the catholic church, do want the catholic church?

Whichever one you went to.

Oh, our lady of the rosary church.

Lady of the Rosery. Um, was religion a nice, you know faith in God, wsa that  something thathelped get people through the 
war?

Yes, I think so.

So you would say that the church played an important social function.

During that time.

Mhm. Well that’s good…um was the war talked about in church or did they…

Ooooh I can’t remember that (laughing)

Well that’s fine.

I can’t remember (laughing) well I imagine it was, we prayed for the, for the dead. Yeah

Yeah.

You know where the our lady of the rosary church is?

I don’t remember, I know I’ve heard of it, I don’t remember exactly wher eit is though

Oh, it’s ahh you know where Norton company is?

Umhm.

It’s near Norton company.

Oh its right by there. Where did you live during the war?

At that time, near Norton.

Right near Norton?

Yep. Do you need the street?

Oh yeah sure.

Oh, Summerhill ave.

Summerhill ave, okay.

We lived there for 45 years, at summerhill.

Umhm.

And then I have to come here, which is quite a different story.

Yeah. All the way across town here. Ummm, what um did people think of the germans and Japanese when we were fighting them? Um like german people that were here, what did people think of them knowing that we were fighting the germans? I’m being confusing I’m sorry. Um, how were, how was the enemy viewed? I mean obviously we are fighting a war…

Well naturally it wasn’t viewed very plesently.

Right. I can imagine. I mean Hitler was doing terrible things, obviously.

Yes.

And everybody knew about this?

Knew about it? Yes.

So you did know, you were well informed. Umm, yes its hard for anyone my age who hasn’t lived through that kinda thing to know how. Like when you mentioned that it was always on your mind and you were always thinking about the war its hard to imagine always having something like that in the back of your head.

I wouldn’t want it again.

I can imagine I can imagine. Um

Would you want to go through it? (laughing)

No ma’m. Nooo ma’m. Not at all. Um, okay I think that covers a bunch, thank you very much.

Oh you’re welcome.

I’ve learned a lot talking to you about how it was

You’ve learned too much (laughing)

Well yeah certainly hearing about the rationing at the factory and how it affected production.

Oh it did, butter was rationed, even your stockings, nylon stockings at the time.

Really?

They were scarce.

So you just had to make do with what you had?

Yeah what you got, gasoline was rationed.

Okay umm so you really did notice a definite, a definite, you had to make sacrifices to help out with the war effort.

Yes you did. You didn’t get the food you wanted…

So that must have bene nice when the war was over

Well you had to cut down, be careful

Yeah umhm. Well that is something that helped win the war your efforts and everyone else’s efforts, so I thank you…umm and I think I’ll let you get back to your daily routine now.

Okay.

But thank you so much it was nice to meet you.