Interview with Bob Miller, July 30, 2001

Interview Summary

Bob Miller talks about his early life as the youngest of ten children in the family of a carpenter who lived in Campbellsville, Kentucky in the 1920s and 1930s. He gives a brief overview of his education and his military service in the Navy during World War II. He talks briefly about his work on improving the water supply in his capacity as mayor of Campbellsville, Kentucky.

He talks about his childhood in Campbellsville, living near the edge of town and playing and hunting with his siblings in nearby Turner's Woods. He talks about playing games with marbles and visiting the theater on Saturday afternoons to watch matinee serials and cartoons. Miller describes the layout of Campbellsville, Kentucky during the 1930s and the location of his house on Lebanon Road. . He talks about butchering livestock and preserving meat and garden produce. Miller talks about timbering in the old growth forest nearby and his father's use of a local lumber company for his carpentry work. He recalls how the chestnuts were sometimes of poor quality because of the blight affecting the trees.

Interview Keyword

Appalachian development Appalachian Region Trees Forests Woods Chestnut blight Logging Carpentry Water resources development Education--Kentucky World War, 1939-1945--Veterans. Depressions--1929 Family histories. Genealogy

Interview LC Subject

Appalachian Region Appalachian Region--Social life and customs Miller, Bob Miller, Bob--Interviews Campbellsville (Ky.) Trees--Diseases and pests. Country life Family farms. Farm life. Land use, Rural. Rural conditions Childhood Rural children Food--Preservation Subsistence farming Traditional farming Canning and preserving Recreation Families

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.