Interview with Gussie F. Johnston, October 24, 1988

Interview Summary

This is a second interview with Gussie Johnston who moved to McRoberts, Kentucky in 1923 when she was twelve years old. Her father was a fire boss in the mines and he supplemented his income by painting, wallpapering, and keeping a large garden and hogs. Mrs. Johnston describes the class structure of the camp, beginning with the superintendent, John F. Daniel, and going down through the hierarchy of the mine foremen, the maintenance superintendent, the managers of shops and stores, and the coal loaders. She reports that coal loaders were ranked by productivity, not by seniority. She remembers the lynching of a black man who allegedly killed the sheriff in the early 1920s. She also states that her mother belonged to the missionary society and that people would often come to her father for advice.

Interview Keyword

Appalachian people Appalachian social issues Black coal miners Coal mining Consolidated Coal Company Gender roles Immigrant coal miners Letcher County (Ky.) McRoberts (Ky.) Coal camps Women's roles in coal camps. Social classes Race relations--Kentucky

Interview LC Subject

Appalachian Region Johnston, Gussie F., 1911- Johnston, Gussie F., 1911- --Interviews

Interview Rights

All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.

Interview Usage

Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.