Interview with William Fields, November 11, 1984

Interview Summary

William E. Fields (b. 1889) the son of a farmer in Denton County, Texas, left home at the age of 17. He soon married, started a family, and moved to Dallas, Texas. Though he had a good job, Fields in 1917 hopped a train for Philadelphia. Though he traveled up on the free transportation the Pennsylvania Railroad offered to those willing to work on the railroad, Fields never did a day?s work for them. Instead, he worked a number of other jobs including Baldwin Locomotive Works and Hog Island Shipyard. He spent the next seven decades living in Philadelphia and during that time, the City of Brotherly Love became his home.

Interview Keyword

Baldwin Locomotive Cooks Free transportation Hog Island Shipyard Texas African Americans--Societies, etc. African Americans--Politics and government. World War, 1914-1918 Philadelphia (Pa.)--Politics and government. African American families African Americans--Marriage.

Interview LC Subject

African American churches Migration, Internal African Americans--Economic conditions Philadelphia (Pa.)--Social conditions African Americans--Southern States African Americans--Employment African Americans--Segregation African Americans--Social conditions Integration

Interview Rights

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Interview Usage

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