Interview with Betty J. Ward, November 19, 1988

Interview Summary

This is a second interview with Mrs. Betty J. Ward, who was born in 1925 in Columbus, Ohio. She recalls her childhood in Van Lear, Kentucky where her family moved when she was a one-year-old. Ward states that her mother was hot-tempered and would go to the company office and complain when someone else received some extra paint or wallpaper. Ward also talks about class distinctions in the community; for example, she states that only some of the houses in the camp had painted porches. In fact, the miners' houses did not have painted porches. She describes the disorderly atmosphere that she grew up in which included beer parties. She talks about the high housekeeping standards of her grandmother, and her grandmother putting strips of bacon in the sides of the jars as she canned so that when she opened the green beans in the winter they would already be seasoned. Mrs. Ward remembers the role of the church in the community and being "saved." She discusses African Americans, who lived in Van Lear.

Interview Keyword

Appalachian people Appalachian social issues Christian life Coal mining Consolidated Coal Company Drinking Gender roles Johnson County (Ky.) Van Lear (Ky.) Women's role in coal camps Class distinctions Social classes Social conditions Racism Women's work Education Worker's strikes Christianity

Interview LC Subject

Appalachian Region Ward, Betty J., 1925- Ward, Betty J., 1925- --Interviews Traditional farming--Kentucky Coal mines and mining--Kentucky Consolidated Coal Company African Americans--Appalachian Region

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.