Interview with Norman Yarborough, October 31, 1986
Project: Women and Collective Protest Oral History Project
Interview Summary
Yarborough reviews his career in the coal industry, including a few breaks and many roles including Eastover Mining president. He discuses his differences with his superiors in the coal industry. Yarborough discusses how Duke Power Company underestimated the importance of United Mine Workers of America in Harlan County. He also talks about the internal politics pushing the democratization of the UMWA at the time. He discusses the progression of the strike after UMWA moved its focus to Highsplint, Kentucky. He specifically talks about some of the litigation that went on between Eastover Mining Company and United Mine Workers of America. Yarborough talks about the union community's celebration after the strike and the animosity towards management. He also discusses his choices to stay in Harlan County and become involved in new ways with the community, especially the development of a newspaper and housing. He talks about his decision to retire when he learned that Eastover Mining Company would be closing. Yarborough discusses his views on the future of industries including coal and oil.Interview Accession
Interviewee Name
Interviewer Name
Interview Date
Interview Keyword
Eastover Mining Company Duke Power Company Families. Occupations. EntrepreneurshipInterview LC Subject
Coal mines and mining Coal. Oil & Energy Enterprises Collective labor agreements--Coal mining industry United Mine Workers of America Coal Miners' Strike, Harlan County, Ky., 1973. Appalachian Region--Social conditions United States--Trials, litigation, etc. Strikes and lockouts--Coal mining--KentuckyInterview 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.Restriction
Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.
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.
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Yarborough, Norman Interview by Sally Ward Maggard. 31 Oct. 1986. Lexington, KY: Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.
Yarborough, N. (1986, October 31). Interview by S. W. Maggard. Women and Collective Protest Oral History Project. Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries, Lexington.
Yarborough, Norman, interview by Sally Ward Maggard. October 31, 1986, Women and Collective Protest Oral History Project, Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.
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