Dayton Speaks
Between 1994 and 1996 the Dayton Stories Project recorded over 230 oral histories from over 1000 participants in an effort to gather the stories of people who lived in the Miami Valley. The project was used to create a play called "And That's My Story" which was performed during Dayton's bicentennial celebration in 1996. Local partners in the project included CityFolk, the Human Race Theatre Company, Our Common Heritage, Kente Theatre Company, Dayton Cultural Arts Program and the Montgomery County Historical Society. Out-of-town participants included Roadside Theater, an Appalachian troupe based in Whitesburg, KY; and Junebug Productions, an African-American company from New Orleans.
Part of the goal was to have Montgomery County Historical Society eventually make these oral histories available to the public. The tapes, transcripts and other material of the Dayton Stories Project are now owned by Dayton History, the city's local historical society. With their permission, Dayton History Books Online has begun placing these oral histories here on our site, in both audio and readable form. While DHBO will place the histories online individually as they are processed, it is estimated that it will take 3 to 5 years before the project will be completed.
The oral histories provide unique insights concerning the cultural and social heritage of the Gem City in the words of those who helped shape it. Stories to be discovered will include people who knew Paul Laurence Dunbar, the Hungarian, Polish and Appalachian communities, and various religions, including group discussions that took place at Zion Baptist Church, the Greek Church and the Dayton Jewish Center. We will visit Evangeline Lindsey, Josephine Schwartz, Iula Carter, Friendship Village and the Japanese-American Citizens League. Anything and everything will be discussed and sometimes debated. The audio portions of the interviews will be placed online first, with transcriptions added later as time allows. Transcriptions may be edited, not for content, but to make for smoother reading, leaving out pauses, interruptions, etc. Also, at the beginning of many of the tapes, a discussion was had on how to conduct a story circle and introductions were made. These have for the most part been deleted from the audio portion, with names of the participants and where the interview was held being placed at the top of the page of each story. As this is something that is repeated for every session, it was deemed to not be important enough for everyone to want to listen to each time for the first fifteen minutes before getting to the main focus of the stories. Rest assure, however, that the interviews in their entirety are being well preserved by Dayton History in their archives. We here at DHBO want to take this opportunity to publicly thank Dayton History for allowing us to present these invaluable interviews to the public.
___________________________________________________
Susie Reaster Interview, October 22, 1994
Ms. Reaster tells of how her parents lost everything in the 1913 flood and how her uncle lived in the Kossuth Colony in North Dayton. She also speaks of Checkslovakians in Dayton and some of their foods and customs.
Memories of Dayton, March 4, 1995
Participants remember a variety of events, including Charles F. Kettering's wake at the Engineers Club, the first talking pictures at the Classic Theater, and watching a Ku Klux Klan parade.
Memories, May 5, 1995
These short interviews, recorded at the African Festival, are a mix of memories which include Patterson Co-op, brushing up against actor John Amos, Joint Vocational School, and a religious experience.
Evangeline Lindsley, May 23, 1995
Miss Lindsley speaks mostly of her 46 years as a teacher and counselor at Roosevelt High School from 1923 until she retired in 1969. She lived to be 105 years old.
Dayton Experiences, June 17, 1995
These very short interviews, which took place during Family Unity Day at Island Park, deal with Roosevelt and Dunbar schools, the riots of 1967 and coming back to Dayton from Vietnam.
Georgia Wortham, June 27, 1995
Ms. Wortham, who was chairwoman of the Southwest Priority at the time of the interview, speaks of the various programs to help those in need and to create pride in the Westwood neighborhood.
First Jobs, July 27, 1995
The group discusses a wide range of jobs, including working at the library,stock boy at the local grocery, Rike's department store, the Home Store, and much more - many of them starting around the World War II era. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
World War II, August 11, 1995
A wonderful collection of stories during World War II, including food stamps, gas rationing, service stars in the windows, riding on the trains, and soldiers who died. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
Mary Henderson, August 24, 1995
Ms. Henderson talks about how nice it was living in DeSoto Bass during the Depression, starting the Stork's Nest for mothers who weren't married, and teaching for 30 years. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
Lloyd Lewis, Sr., August 30, 1995
Mr. Lewis speaks of life on the West side of Dayton from 1928 to 1980, including the days when West Fifth Street was "alive with people". He owned a business that sold appliances and offered automobile services.
Memories of Dayton, August 30, 1995
Stories include one participant seeing President Roosevelt in a parade as a child and President Truman as an adult. Others talk about West Dayton, East Dayton, the old stockyards and playing marbles.
How They Came to Dayton & Memories of the City, September 6, 1995
The participants tell of coming to Dayton from a wide variety of places, also memories of WWII, making clothing and other items from flour sacks, and the man who controlled all the speakeasies in the city during Prohibition. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
Tell Us a Story, September 12, 1995
Highlights from this session include going to Miami Jacobs in 1945, smoking cornsilk and shopping downtown. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
Appalachian Group, September 19, 1995
Most of the memories here have to do with the Appalacia area. Religion is heavily discussed, also moonshine stills in the mountains and politicians who paid for your vote.
Old Dayton Buildings and Businesses, October 4, 1995
Memories of downtown Dayton when it was really hopping, including the old Home Store, Elder-Beermans, Rike's, Gallaher's drug store, and the Metropolitan. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
Lena Canty, October 9, 1995
Ms. Canty's family came to Dayton in 1928 and she tries to remember all of the businesses up and down both sides of West Third Street from the 1930s and 1940s era.
Coming Out to Friends and Family, October 11, 1995
Participants at the Dayton Lesbian and Gay Center talk of how they came out to their loved ones.
James H. McGee, October 19, 1995
Mr. McGee talks about his life, including being a member of the NAACP, working as a lawyer in several civil rights cases in the 1960s, and serving as mayor of Dayton from 1970 to 1981. He was the first African-American mayor of Dayton and its longest-tenured mayor to date. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
Going to School, October 20, 1995
Most of the talk is about going to school and the teachers they met, as well as desegregation in Dayton. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
Holiday Celebrations, November 14, 1995
Most of the stories focus on how special Christmas was as they grew up and how important family ties are. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
Memories of Dayton, November 15, 1995
A wide variety of topics that include growing up in the East end of Dayton, working at Wright Patterson as an aircraft mechanic after WWII, taking the bus to downtown Dayton and the streetcar to Lakeside Park.
Entertainment: How We Spent Our Time, December 6, 1995
The kids of yesterday held back boredom by playing Red Rover and Steal the Bacon, watching "Perils of Pauline" at the neighborhood theater, and playing basketball on the upper level of the old Wayne Avenue Market House. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
Our Appalachian Background, February 27, 1996
Particpants remember the smell of coal dust, and the smell of outhouses, family reunions, and beans and cornbread. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
Rike's Employees, March 15, 1996
Many of the participants had worked for Rike's as early as the 1930s. Stories include how Fred Rike remembered everyone's name and, of course, the animated Christmas windows. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
The Greek Community, March 18, 1996
Participants talk about the Greek community and how their families originally came from Greece to the United States. Includes transcription of highlights from the session.
Louise Oliver Interview, May 15, 1996
Catching crayfish from the old canal, sleeping on the porch during summers, trolley's going up and down Springfield Street where she lived as a child.
Josephine Schwarz Interview, May 17, 1996
Josephine Lindeman Schwarz and her sister, Hermene, founded a school of dance in 1927 that evolved into the Dayton Ballet , the nation's second oldest regional ballet company. Miss Schwarz talks about her life growing up in Dayton, being friends with Jane Reece and starting the Dayton Ballet.
Memories, July 2, 1996
Residents of Friendship Village speak of how they came to Dayton, memories of their childhood, their parents and a variety of other stories.
|
|
|
