Interview with Georgia Davis Powers, June 17, 1987

Interview Summary

Her paternal great, great grandfather was a Moroccan native brought to the United States by the Sisters of Nazareth. Raised in the Bardstown-Springfield area, Senator Powers recalls the destruction of the family home by a tornado in 1925 and moving to Louisville. She reminisces about her father, Ben Montgomery; his employment at the American Raid and Standard Sanitary Enameled Bathtub factory for 42 years; the mistaken assumption by co-workers that he was white and their reactions upon learning the truth; and his treatment by his employer. Senator Powers recalls family stories of slavery; being conned out of property; the Lancaster family; and the Muir family of Bardstown who raised her father.
She recalls the Great Depression; helping neighbors to survive; her relationships with her seven brothers; and family visits to her grandparents' farm. After graduation from a segregated high school in Louisville, she attended Louisville Municipal college for 2 years before relocating to Buffalo, New York.
Senator Powers recounts her World War II employment experiences at Curtis Wright Manufacturing and Wright Aeronautical in New Jersey; discusses her return to Louisville and obtaining her real estate license; talks about her career in real estate and the practices in which she engaged in order to survive. She talks about adopting her son and his history; moving to California with her military husband; the subsequent return to Louisville and her employment history. She remarks upon her time with the Wilson White senatorial campaign in 1962; Ed Breathitt's successful gubernatorial campaign in 1963; her involvement with the Democratic Party political campaigns; and her decision to run for office in 1966.
Involved with the "Allied Organizations for Civil Rights", Senator Powers recalls the March 5, 1964 civil rights march on Frankfort; the marches in Montgomery, Alabama and Dr. Martin Luther King. She talks about the night of Dr. King's assassination; the sanitation strikes in St. Petersburg, Florida; and meeting the late Vice President Hubert Humphrey at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. She comments upon her state government and senatorial career; campaign high jinks; introducing open housing legislation; and the advice and assistance received from state congressman Tom Garrett. Senator Powers remarks about the influence of money on politics and campaigns; the evolution of her constituency; her impressions of Jesse Jackson, Barbara Jordan, former governor Martha Lane Collins; the progress made by African Americans since her childhood.

Interview Keyword

African Americans African Americans in Lexington Lexington, Kentucky Race relations

Interview LC Subject

African American families African Americans--Civil rights--Kentucky African Americans--Education--Kentucky--Lexington African Americans--Kentucky--Lexington--Economic conditions African Americans--Race identity. African Americans--Religion African Americans. Powers, Georgia Davis, 1923- Powers, Georgia Davis, 1923- --Interviews

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