Interview with Paris Goble, July 19, 1988

Interview Summary

Paris Goble's family has a long history in Kentucky. He was born in 1901 and moved to Auxier when he was fifteen. He began working in the mines when he was sixteen as a motorman driving the rail cars through the mine. Goble also was employed as a mule driver, motor brakeman, and pumper. He describes the specific jobs and titles of miners and the mining methods of the hand loading era. He remembers the North East Coal Company as a good company. He discusses the physical surroundings of the camp including the company houses. Goble states that the ridges around Auxier were cleared and planted with corn, beans, and potatoes until the 1960s. He remembers that people also kept livestock on the hill. He mentions the company store where prices were high, so his family often went to Prestonsburg or Paintsville for major purchases. He recalls moonshiners in the 1920s.

Goble worked in a Newport News, Virginia shipyard for some time, and recalls his shock at the bad race relations in Virginia. Goble and his wife moved to Michigan after World War Two to work in an automobile manufacturing plant. When he was laid off in the early 1950s, he moved back to Auxier. He remembers that other people from Auxier moved to Michigan during this time. Goble is a natural musician and plays the cornet. He describes traveling to coal camps with a musical group.

Interview Keyword

Family farming Coal mines and mining Race relations

Interview LC Subject

Appalachian Region Goble, Paris, 1901- Goble, Paris, 1901- --Interviews

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Interview Usage

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