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SAMUEL PROCTOR ORAL HISTORY PROGRAM at
the University of Florida
Interviewer: Emily Ring
Interviewee: Martha Tison Boring
Date: April 30, 1982
Address: 106 SW 32nd Street
Gainesville, Florida
R: Martha will you tell me when your parents were born and where they were born?
B: My father was Gordon Belldon Tiscon, he was born December 31, 1875, died
October 27, 1966.
R: Where was he born?
B: He was born in, wait just a minute now, he was a second generation Floridian,
born in Providence, Bradford County, December 31, 1875.
R: Bradford County, Florida?
B: Bradford County, /# ,Ho_
B: Bradford County, 2 r, he's the son of William Orson and Martha Jane( Tison.
His father was born in Newlynnville too, it was then the county seat of Alachua
County and his mother is a Hamilton County, Georgia resident.
R: Does that make him kin to the Alachua County_ ?
B: Ah, no, yes, yes, yes, my grandmother Martha Jane and Dr. +he4d ns were first cousins.
R: I see.
B: There are no-Haodgcns in Gainesville that I know of now that we are related to.
R: fTTerr in Levy County?
B: No, I don't think so, um, her people are out of Georgia and Hamilton County and
County Georgia.
R: Now what was your mother's name before she married?
B: My mother's name was Cora +fIelH-Y-B- she was born January 13, 1879, died June
I rrevn( 0
30, 1977. She was born in Feemera, Indiana. She often laughed and said "under the
Af cur< Gaeu^Qier
shadow of ----darme --, ah, ah
R:
B: or '', perhaps I should say.
R: Now how are the Hydes related to the Pounds? The-Hydes-weFe-Ret-the-Pelat4eRs-ef
the-PeuRdss-4t-was-the-T4seRs.
B: The Hydes were not the relations of the Pounds, it was the Tisons.
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R: It was the Tisons?
B: My father Gordon and Lee Poundk, Mrs F. L. Pounds were sister and brother.
R: That would have been....
B: My....that...she was my father's oldest sister.
R: In other words C. Adison Pound$ was her nephew?
B: Was his nephew.
R: His nephew.
B: ah, yes
R: Well I knew that when you use to live near me you spoke of Miss Annie
Pound as your Aunt.
's
B: Well yes, she/a little older than I am and I ... in that time we were taught to
so
be very respectful of our even a few years elders, /they taught me to say Aunt Annie.
R: Yes,
B: But of course now many years have gone by and we are just Annie and Martha.
R: I see.
B: and good friends.
R: Well I recently did a very good Oral History of her,
's
B: Oh I bet, she/got a beautiful history, she's a beautiful person.
R: Now tell me about when you were born.
B: I was born in New York City.
R: Why?
B: Well, my father went to school at Baltimore Dental College, a graduate, and way
back in the 1800's there almost had to be a vacancy for new dentist and a dentist
died in New York City and his wife wanted to keep his office open and contacted
Baltimore Dental College for a senior, for a graduate, and they sent my father
and then he came back to Gainesville and picked up my mother, married, they were
and
married in 1898 and moved to New York /lived there about,.he was there about five
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years and then came back to Gainesville because of very poor health but he lived
to be 94.6(lvMcr
R: Yes he did, right. Lets go back to your mother's family the Hydes. Were they
Alachua County ...
B: No, no, no, they were Indiana.
R: That's right, Indiana.
B: Yes,
R: How did he happen to meet a Indiana girl?
B: Well S.i. oved to Florida because of my grandmother and he and Mr. E.J.Bared came,
a old time resident,4 came to Floridatogether and started a saw mill in High
Springs, well in Fairbanks first and then in High Springs and then they moved
to Gainesville, I don't remember exactly when a couple years later and E.J. Bared
.;went into Bared Hardware and my grandfather went into Hyde General Merchandising.
R: Was this store on the square?
B: 1' 'on the square on the corner, where Wilsons was for awhile.
t^--
R: Now where was the Hyde home?
B: a= rectly behind the store. Directly behind the store, whdrethe Episcopal Church
is now.
R: Oh, really.
B: Well it was in well that l4ttle-side street was not there, that little side street
wasn't there and it was where, behind the store, ah, across the street from the
temi-lFen Law Offices and right behind the Hyde store, I guess about 300 feet.:
now
R: Well/was the Episcopal Church not yet built?
B: Well it wasn't there no. I don't know whether there was one in Gainesville or
not but it was not built there yet.
R: Well there was a little one...
B: Yes, there was a smaller church but I'm not...
R: St. Augustine Mission, yes,
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B: Well I'n not to sure about that.
R: West, west of that area.
B: Well this is where, this is where the home was and where my mother was married.
R: Do you remember when the Hyde home was t-orned-down or the church was built?
B: No, no I have no idea,
R: No you would have been...
B: I was here but I don't remember years and I remember it being done of course but
years I don't know.
R: I see. Now your folks were all Presbyterian.
B: Yes my mother's people were Presbyterian, my father was a Baptist.
R: I see. Well did they compromise and go to one church at ...
and
B: Well they sort of switched aroundAmy mother was very lenient about going with him
because it seems harder for him to go with her, so she did frequently and I can:
remember many, many times that they would go to my mother's church in the morning
and my father's church at night.
R: Well,
B: And I for years went to the Baptist Sunday School in the morning and the
Presbyterian Sunday School in the afternoon.
R: Well you got, you got a heavy dose of
B: Yes heavy dose.
R: Well, now was the big Baptist Church built_ ?
B: No, no the Baptist Church was down on University Avenue way down I believe right,
I don't know how to tel You where it was, it was on the corner, caddy corner
across from the end of BadM Hardware.
R: I see.
B: It was the old church with the tower and the tower stood for many years after the
church was torn down.
R: Oh, yes yes I remember when it was torn down.
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B: Now Addison did that, Adison asked feo them to leave the tower just because it
meant so much to the older people in Gainesville.
R: Your speaking of Adison Town.
B: _
R: I just found out recently that his first name was/
B: / right, but he preferred C.A.
R. Now after they tore down that Baptist Church and left the tower, I believe it was
a restaurant for a while.
B: Yes, a Mrs. ran this. A lovely little spot.
enjoy having
R: Yes, a use to / haxe lunch there.
B: Yes s
R: Now going back to your birth which occurred in New York City.
B: Yes, June 18, 1899.
R: Well good for you.
B: I'm going to live into three centuries.
R: Of course you are.
B: I started in 18, I'm going thee 19, I'm going to make 20. ( w '"er-
R: I bet you are Martha because you have so much energy and you come from a long /j
B: Yes, yes come from a good family.
R: Your mother lived to what age?
Aine4/ -ci Q! c .
B: 98 and six months. -H' months she would have been 100 years old.
R: and-o ur father lived to what age?
B: '94t". ]/i up
R: Well you've got to make it to the next century, I'm sure, -VC> Well, I think
part of longevity is the enjoyment of life and you've always had such a gift
for this.
B: Oh, well I love people.
R: Yes.
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B: 'J I love places and I love things.
R: Right,
I
B:/ Particularly love animals.
R: Yes I know, I know and you 'iaie-your great grandchildren to
B: Oh, yes.R:Well, we're going to get to them little bit later. Lets see now Dr. Tison
Q\ /ATs,
and Mrs:. Tison, your parents, lived in a lovely framed house downtown 1-s9-r-aid--
Is it still standing.
B: No, no it was torn down, it was torn down.
R: What was the address?
B:
R. What street was it on?
B: It was on, of my goodness, one, two, three, four, I guess it's fourth or fifth.
It's fourth.
R: Fourth Street?
B: Yes,
R: Yes, well theresanothert 6 ,, rHeee ; xi~',
B: Well, t 1-s see it would be Fourth Avenuele Fourth Street, that's right.
R: Well, there is a old frame house'still existing on Fourth Street tut I was
confused, I was...
B: No, next, we were in from a corner. The corner home was Mrs. Robert-
R: Yes.
B: Ad then we came along on,"A Street, that was the name of my street.
Aradona Street, instead of Fourth, it is now F urth but it was than &AadAna and
next to me was Mrs. and next to them'/as a little path and then John
Chestnut, and then Mrs.,_ v B, i,/i ,-
Chestnut, and then Mrs., I believe it M.B but then I'm not that
sure either about that, she has been gone many, many, many years.
Well
R: /how these homes would have been...
B: Now the .__:r,_ home is still standing. The Chestnut home was just torn down
so they could put this highrise in that section.
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R: For senior citizens?
B: For senior citizens.
R: Right.
B: But Mrs., place is still there. Faith is the granddaughter in-law
and owns the place and has kept it -plaee beautifully.
R: I see.
B: With all of the old furnishings.
R: Well it should be on the tour of historical...
B: Well, you just, 6Cikwould love to do it I'm sure, I'm sure she would.
R: In other words T the, we do have tours of the historic homes over in
but the homes in your family's area would be even older.
B: Well so many of them are down for business, you see we are close into the old
square and that was the old business district of Gainesville and most of them
are gone from there.
R: Now this is just west of the Florida Atlantic Bank isn't it. "Te 7 iO \'? ,
B: Well,no, it's um, my place was just west of the old
R: I see.
B: and behind what is now, was Firestone, I think it's closed now.
R: Is_ still in operation?
B: Yes, but in another location. ',
R: I see.
B: That was a Ford people, was a Ford people.
the
R: Now were your parents sort of on the edge offown at that time or was the town
had gone out.
B: Well, the old T&JRailroad about entered Gainesville when we first came, when
we first moved from New York, I was four years old. Well, I don't think quite
but near four years old.
R: Well did the T&J run on tracks that are presently going through Gainesville.
B: There's the old 9tpet I think is still there, but of course, that wasn't, it
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use to be, well, lett see the-d~ d Atlanta Coastline use to go right through
Gainesville, through the center of itand then this was the old T & J track,
Tampa-Jacksonville, I believe, and ae of it has been in use for a long, long
time.
R: I see. Well, so how long did you stay in New York after you were born?
B: About three, three and a half years.
R: Of course you don't remember that time.
B: No, I remember. I was born right where Grand Central Station is now, it was in
an apartment house.
R. ^trne,/i, +Aa 1
B: There was an apartment house and his office, my father's office, was down stairs
and we lived on, I don't know what floor.
R: Now you were an only child?
B: Yeah.
R: How did your mother feel about living in New York City.
B: Well I think she enjoyed it except that of course a child in those days was taken
carePI think mainly by the parents and of course I cut her down on a lot of things
I expect
/she would have like to have done....
R: Yes.
B: gut she loved New York. She did not ever like city life but she loved the
and
advantages of New York. The wonderful galleriesAmusicals and nice things.
R: Where has your mother gone to school?
B: She, well, they, she was brought to GainesvilleI don't know what year but let
me see, she was nine years old I think when they moved from Indiana to, well,
to High Springs firsthand then on here. She went to school down at the Margaret
7e k--- School.
R: Right, that's where Miss Annie Pound went.
B: Yeah and that's where I went all my life. I learned my ABCs there and graduated
there.
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R: Did you really Martha?
B: Yes,
R: Well give us little, a few memories of what Miss Tebeau 's school was like.
B: Well, when I first, as I remember my early school days they were, there wasn't
to many, all girls in the school at that time and our classes would be like
ten and we gotlindividual attention with that. Lessons periods were 45 minutes
or a hour, as what it demanded. It was very flexible. We had lunch time, we
only had 45 minutes for our noon lunch. We were there for roll call at 8:00
in the morning and we left at 3:30 in the afternoon. So...
R: There were two teachers?
B: At that time there were two but before I finished there were three.
R: I see. Now can you give us their names?
B: I'Y I think so. Margaret Tebeau and that's T-E-B-E-A-U....
R: Right,
B: of course, and Miss Alice Thomas. Who by the way was, was related to Mrs. Saunders.
,was
Her brother married/Mrs. Saunders' second husband.
R: I see.
B: ao um, so that's a little connection there and then Dorothy Smith, who is
^ '" Smithwho is still living here in Gainesville, sister was the of-
a teacher at that time and followed by her was Mary Cannon, who is Annie Pound's
sister.
R: Well now did these teachers take special subjects? Each one have...
B: Oh, yes, Oh yes i-_ Oh yes.
R: What were the subjects taught?
Oh
B: /Well we got a very broad education in reading, writing and arithmetic.
R: Yes,
B: We, science was dealt with because to have a education of any kind you had to
have it but we did not have a laboratory, laboratory. We did not have that and
what we learned was out of a book, not from practice...
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R: I see,
B: in science.
R: Right.
B: But, of course, we got a lot of arithmetic, Miss Alice taught that. Miss Maggie
taught language. We had, well everyone had to have Latin as a foundation and
I hated rn with a vengeance and then I had three years of French and that was
Miss Maggie's all the reading, writing, spelling.
R: Yes.
B: All, was all under Miss Maggie and other teachers had the extra subjects as they
came in,Geography, and the, what ever science was taught.
R: I see. Well, now you went there until you were what age?
B: I was almost 19, I would, I believe it was the next day I would have been 19.
R: I didn't realized that they went that far.
B: Oh yes, she went into college courses but she was not recognized, I don't know
if she was recognized or not but it was not, her curriculum went from 1 through
12 but when they investigated for me for college, they found that her courses
went through and were accredited through 2 years of college.
R: So it would, so you went through what would be equivalent to junior college
today?
B: Yes.
I see.
R: /Well were you interested in any particular subject more than...
B: No not especially. I really have always liked arithmetic. I've always liked the
challenge of something like that.
R: Right.
B: I've enjoyed it and now I do love science, now but I had a very poor foundation
for science.
before
R: Yes, many of us do, we went to school fa girls were taught much science. Now...
L; s-fen
B: 44sten before I finished there were boys in the school.
R: Oh were there really.
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4U b quite
B: C ". There were boys in the school. Ah, not a great many but quite/a few.
R: I never realized that.
B: Yes,
R: How did they feel about going to school, well it had been a girl's school...
B: Yes, it had been a girl's school and, well they they they were boys that
I think the parents felt would like to have them have a private education in
some way.
R: I guess the public schools were not very good in those days?
B: Well, I think they were alright, yes I think they were good. I think they were
very good. I think our public schools are marvelous.
R: You do?
B: Yes I do.
B: I think if a child gets what offered to them in public school then they're fairly
well educated.
R: Yes. Well I'm sure we're better off than many parts of the country.
B: Oh I think so to, I think so to.
now
R: WelJ in the meantime while your going to the Tebeau School, your father was
practicing Beifisry..
B: Here,
R: A-t what location?
B: He had his first office here, was upstairs over what was then Miller's Drug Store and
since then it has been all kinds of people, I don't know but Dr._ had an
office in that building.
R: Was that, was that building
B:
R: Florida ?
B: No. Well he was there later but his first office was upstairs over the City Drug.
Do you, khov tl
$does that mean anything to you.
R: Yes,
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B: In the block right opposite the square, what use to be the square.
R: The north side of the square.
B: Yes.
R: Right.
B: And upstairs there Layton, a lawyer, was in an office there and there was a,
oh dear, there was a real estate or a surveyor, it was a surveyor that was in
an office up there, I don't remember and then my father's office and then Dr. Boring
moved into a medical office there, a doctor's office there and...
R: Was he your father-in-law?
B: Yes, and then he died and thke Dr. ; took his office.
R: Right. Well now eventually you married Richard Boring,the son of this Dr. Boring...
B: Yes.
R: andid they lived in Gainesville a long time.
B: No, they hadn't lived here. I had known 64 Richard's sister and I had visited
back and forth for years when I was a little girl and she was a little girl and
I knew...
R: Where did they live?
B: They lived in Waldo, he was a country doctor.
R: Oh, I see.
B: One of the kind that if he had a very sick patient he just took off his coat
and spent the night there, so he...
R: Wonderful.
B: Yes it is wonderful.
R: You had gone to Waldo to visit.
B: Oh many times and (W6- had been with me many times, and we grew L..
R: Well how much older$" ?Y_____
B: Then, then...
R: Were you about the same age?
Richard was going on two years older than I am.
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R: I see.
B: About a year and a half.
R: And what is the date of your marriage to Richard Boring?
B: November 17, 1921.
R: pTvct4-o v
B: Ie. V-h-
Show
R: Well you should have seen the Fashion/at the Thomas Center the other day, the
1920's fashions.
B: Yes.
R: They had quite a collection.
B: Yeah.
R: Well tell me did you have a long courtship and engagement?
B: Well no, Richard and I just xwexhadxxxx
R: You had known him since ____--, ,;o h/ i-SC
A^ Ftrromw 0 hl-nm
B: We had known,yeah, we know rhimn since he was a Hittle buy (le b ,
R: Oh
B: I was a little girl but we 44d- never go together until maybe six months
before we were married.
R: Where did he go to school?
B: He went to school, of course, in Waldo, as they lived there. Then University
of Florida, then he was in the service and in the Navy and when he came back
we went together, started going together and we were married in November, 21.
R: And when was your first daughter born, Betty.
B: -227 TIOeC'y'A -
R: Betty was born in .2-" ;/-,,0 ,
B: -Yes. She/lsix years older than Jane and then.
R: Would have been born in 28..
B: Lets see, Jane was born in 29. No she was born in 29.
R: I see.
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B: The last of-2- and the middle of-29-
Now
R:/Tell us who Betty married.
B: Betty married Mitchell George Emanuel and she has two children...
R: Yes,
B: George Mitchell Emanuel.
R: How old -
B: He is, um, wait a minute let me see I have to look that up, 4 was born in 1944,
September 8, 1944.
R: -yes./A ti
B: -awdthen Martha Alexandria, her daughter, Emanuel, was born November 24, 1946.
R: And they all live down ...
B: In Tampa.
R: In Tampa.
B: They are Tampa.
R: Well now were the Emanuels a greek family?
B: Yes.
R: Yes
di {chell-5
B: From Tarpon Springs. : mother and father lived in Tarpon Springs on Grand Ave.
R: Now then who did Jane marry?:
ne e- ~arr- c
B:-- toward Landdoff Corrull C-0-R-R-U-L-L, and they were divorced, I don't remember
what year, it's in the 20's back from now. She has two daughters, let me give you
that, that's Josie Elizabeth was born in 1951, July 4th, firecracker, and Diana
Gordon, who was named for my father that Gordon part, was born December 14, 1952,
44e~ was born in August 12, 1957.
R: Now how many of your grandchildren are married?
B: Well all but Martha and we call her Pie because when she was first, the minute
she was born her daddy wanted to see her, Dr. Thomas, our beloved Dr. Thomas,
Brought her out of the delivery room and handed her to Mitch and he said "you'll
have to call her sweety pie."
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R: Ahh. Yes.
B: So she has been Pie all these years and she is the only one who is not married.
R: I See.
She's a Delta Airline attendant/and has been for eleven years. Before that she
worked in a bank, and in a travel agencyand I don't knowand decided She would
take to the air.
R: Well now is she the eldest girl.
R: No.
B: No, she is,/Mike is the oldest one.
R: Mike is the oldest. Yes.
B: Yes Mike is the oldest one. Mike is interesting enough, is now in/is managing
Cam y mn
in Little one of the resort hotels down there. It's a itisxxa tiny
iste a _ __ an
thereAa Grand Clayn/ and than ____ and than Little^ y and he's the
last one. The little strip, it is only I think about 5 or 6 miles wide and is,
I have not been, but the pictures I seen are just precious, they're j+4A beautiful.
R: Is that off the shore?
B: It's down below Cuba, way on down below Cuba.
R: Oh, below Cuba.
B: Yes., It's in that little string.
R: that's a interesting...
B: It is interesting...!
R: fave you been down?
B: And he loves it. No I haven't been and he is married to Donna Williams and
he has one son.
R: Your great grandson?
B: My great grandson, my oldest great grandson.
R: How many great grands to you have?
B: Lets see. I have who is Mike's son, then Diana had twin boys and she
lost one at just a year old but is a big fine boy, the one that/st left and
then Beth has a boy and a girl, Jacob and Amy Jane, just three weeks old, will
be three weeks old Monday.
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R: I see.
B: /nd He+en is married, at two Jane's youngest and she has no children.
R: I see.
B: She is in the Library at the University.
R: Oh, how nice to have her close.
B: Yes, great.
R: Well your very rich in grandchildren,great grandchildren.
B: Oh I am, yes.
R: Well Martha when did you lose your husband?
B: Ah, New Years Day, what year, he's been gone, he's been, 38.
R: 1938?
B: 1938. I always have to etuoty back.
R: He was in the Navy?
B: Yes,but of course, after that service period he was back in Gainesville and in the
lumber business with Bob Hamilton. Maybe you might remember him, and then they
sold and each one went their own way and he had the General Electric agency here
for three counties but he died at 39 years old.
R: Of a heart attack?
B: He had, yes, coronary.
R: My goodness. Well probably in these days he could have been saved...
B: Could have been saved, I feel sure, I feel sure.
R: Right. Had he any warning of it.
B: He knew that he had slightly high blood pressure but outside of that he was keeping
up with it, I mean we were very conscious that we must be careful, things must be
right but it wasn't that high at all, it was totally...
R: In what location, what house were you living at that time.
in Arcto;c(.
B: We were living at/the A'e4tefa Street house.
R: And your father and Mother
B: Yes.
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R: 4nd you continued to live with your father and mother after he died and the
two girls.
B: Yes.
R: And then you all moved acrossAstreet from me.
B: Yes, right, that's right.
R:
B: On, what was it, north 19th.
R: 19th and 7th Avenue.
B: That's right.
R: But in those days they were called different names.
B: Oh I know they were,
R: Was 7th Avenue called ?
B: What-o-Geor
R: Yes, because your father owned all that property.
B: Yes, he brought that from Dr L- 4
R: /And on the tax records it called Westside Place.
B: That's right.
R: And he built the big brickhbuse on the corner
at what year, 1940 or 39?
B: I think it was 39.
R: It was the same year we built our house.
B: That was 39 wasn't it.
R: No we built in the summer of 1940.
B: 1940.
R: Didn't we build the same summer or you built a little earlier.
B: I think we were there.
R: Yes.
B: I think it was 39, I believe it was 39, yes, I think it was.
R: Yes, but I know....
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B: And we moved into it in cold weather, so it must have been 39.
R: Right. Well, we started in the summer 1940 and moved in the following springs
srnTd who was your contractor?
B: Hartman.
R: Hartman. Yes.
B: Old time folks, and I still use young Mr. Hartman, he is the nicest person
to me, I don't care what's wrong in this little shack, he comes and fixes it for
me.
R: Well good. Well Mr. was our contractor, he's the one who built the
Community Center downtown.
B: Yes,
R: He was a good contractor.
B: Oh yes.
R: I don't remember who built the school. The school was built in 38 or 39.
B: The school was....
R: The Finnley School?
B: Yes. I don't remember who built that either. Oh I think I do,,I think it was
Winston, Winston and he had a partner, I don't...
R: But the school had just opened?
B: Yes, oh yes.
R: Well now, was that one reason that your father built that so the girls could
go to school.
B: No, no, no, we didn't have, no the girls were over that age.
R: They were older?
B: They were over that age. Yes.
R: -ad they were to GSH '?
B: +&eft to GSH and both to-USFand Betty finished there but Jane finished here at the
University of Florida.
R: I see. What did she major in Education?
1'
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B: Yes,
R: And she has always been a teacher.
B: Yes,
R: Right. Has Betty had a job or does she just ...
B: No, Betty is at home.
R: I see.
B: But right now she is chairman of the Volunteers for Redcross I
tell you, for Hillsborough County, and I tell you it really takes the time.
(Telephone rings)
Excuse me just a minute. The university was not co-ed when Betty was in college.
R: So you couldn't send your daughters to the university.
B: Well Jane came back to the University of Florida.
R: She did.
B: Yes and graduated from the University of Florida.
R: I see. I remember the university wasmade co-educational after the aqd World War.
B: Yes. This is trueA
R: Right. Well what did Betty major in?
B: She, just 0- B.A.
MfIvnyw
R: I see. So she has always been a emom and a housewife and a volunteer community
worker.
B: Yes,
R: And she has charge of the Redcross Volunteers.
B: For that county. For Hillsborough.
R: For Hillsborough County, well that's a big job.
It's a -4je -er'C4- jc b.
B: 4@P44e/
R: Yes indeed, yes indeed.
B: bt it's volunteer.
R: Right.
B: She volunteers to, she isn't, there no money connected to it, one way or another.
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R: Now you have always been very active in Garden Club work.
B: Well I've loved itI'm not that active I just sit around and tell other people
what to do.
R: Do you still ?
B: No, no.
R: I remember you taught me how to ...
B: Well, yes.
R: And you have the most beautiful garden when you lived across the street from me.
B: Well, well, I was younger than.
R: Yes
B: I could spend more hours than it was out hurting.
right,
R: Yes, thathldo you have some arthritis?
B: No, no I don't have a sAa~.le thing in the world that I know of that's wrong with me.
R: How lucky.
B: Isn't it wonderful.
R: Yes, right. You never have to go to doctors.
B: No I'm not going into that because I'm not a good doctor.
R: Your not a good patient?
B: No, I just don't go,
R: You don't go to doctors at all Martha?
B: Oh, I just think we better leave that off.
R: Alright, OK. Your not a Christian Scientist?
B: No, no, no, no, if I hurt, if I hurt I would be the first one there.
R: Well you just, you just want to
B: I just, no, I just feel like as long as I'm as strong and well as I am and can do
the things that I can do, I don't want to complicate it by getting someone else's
viewpoint.
R: Well Medicare doesn't waste any money on you, do they?
B: Not a penny. Never have had one penny that I was, I go back when they put Medicare,
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long before that.
now
R: Yes indeed. Well/how old are you now?
B: 82 be 83.
R: You have a good voice, it's coming over well. (tape fades at different places)
B: I don't know.
R: What?
B: ..... earlier shouldn't_
R: You should get some kind of prize.
B: Something. I
R: Because it sure ee'tj.he Federal Government o-w"hatevee-a lot of money now.
it's
B: Oh, /awful.
R: Yes, just awful.
B: Frightful, frightful.
R: Well, I so much enjoyed being a neighbor of you folks when you lived across, in
big, beautiful brickhouse.
B: Oh, that's nice.
R: n the big, beautiful brickhouse.
B: Well, we loved you and Bruce was our morning ceal-tfTg. He would come in and Pop would
be eating his breakfast and Pop would say "Sit down Bruce and have some breakfast
with me," and Bruce would sit down and have some breakfast.
R: Oh, how nice.
B:'.Bet you didn't even know it.
R: No I didn't know that.
B: Well that's alright, we've always got a little boy somewhere in the neighbor, since
we've moved out here there is a little boy next door to me that I said I was on
his gumdrop route. He would come to me and say, "I need a gumdrop,"...
R: Yes.
B: $nd he would go over to Norma Campbell and say "I need gumdrop," so we laughed,
aide 'd'we- e, here comes somebody in."
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R: Well your house across the street was a fascinating place because your Dad had that
big cage full of quails.
(break in tape)
B: Quails, yes, he loved raising his quails./ He found out, are you on,, e found out,
he found out that he could by looking way all through the ~eesntr-iTde he would
find maybe a tiny, little hen because theyxY-efarr-nt-. would be~ismaller and
lighter and he would set his quail eggs under the., hen...
R: I remember. ,
B: And the hen, of course, not knowing any,.that there was any problem in the
world would teach the babies to be very, very, very gentle. The little chicks
never knew to be wild because they had this very tamed mother and she would
bring them up as a little group to eat and she kept, stayed with them and she
if,
was a little bit bigger/and stronger, if a cat or something would attack one of
the babies, you see, she was a)ittle bit better able to defend her family.
R: Right.
in
B: So he loved doing this and I can remembey very dry weather, dry weather is hard
for any kind of bird egg because the shell is so thin and they dry out easily,
the inside dries out and a ot of the little chicks donit hatch, so I can remember
every evening,late in the evening bringing in little clutch of eggs and running,
just rolling them gently in a little saucer of warm water and putting them back
in the nest and the little hen hop back on the nest. So we felt like we didn't lose
very many of our little bird children.
R: Right and then you had a parrot in your household.
B: Oh, yeah, Polly was a member of the household.
R: Tell us about Polly.
B: Polly came to us through a member of the family that was losing eyesight and felt
that could not take care of a pet anymore and my mother was a gentle kind of easy
person, that will (wait a minute it's going to get louder because they're coming
down this way break in tape)
R: Now we were talking about Polly.
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B: Yes, Polly, well Polly had quite a place in our home. She stayed most of the time
her m
ina cage because we could not my mother, she hated me, my mother could not
let her out because she would go around and notched all the rugs or anything she
could put a big hole through...
R: Right.
B: 6nd furniture. We still have furniture that Polly decorated for us. FJT or l6
R: and every once in a while she would get out....
B: She would get out.
R: And she would go to the top of our tallest pine tree...
B: That's right.
R: Ad sit there very stubbornly and you would have to get the firetruck to come...
B: Get her down.
R: Vith the ladder to get her down.
B: Scare her down, then...
But
R:~Athe children in the neighbor loved that, it was great excitement for them.
B: Oh, yes, of course it was/and she talked afittle bit, I think if we'd or anyone
who cared, had had her in her very early days when she was just a young girl, why,
I believe that she could have been taught 4lot of things.
R: Yes.
B: She sang a couple of songsethey were mainly Negro Spiritual. One was "It Ain't
Going Rain No More", and the other one was "Jesus Loves Me"...
R: She did?
B: And she sang them to the tune.
R: Yes, I remember that.
B: She sang them to the tune.
R: Yes.
B: And the minute the first drop of rain fell she would start on "It Ain't Going Rain
No More". She then as my mother grew less able to take care of her and we couldn't
give Polly privileges, it was not fair to her, so we began to look around
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and a cousin of mine, a niece oforome, Martha Dell, who was Uncle Mason's youngest
child wanted her, she lives down Western Way, down at, out of Ft. Lauderdale and
she took Polly. She has two boys and she took Polly down there and gave her the
run of a very big place. She has a nursery and,of course, she has allot of water
going all the time and things. Polly loves her bath, she gets out and takes her
bath.
R: You mean Polly is still living?
B: Polly is still living.
R: How old would she be? No-body knows?
B: Well when she went to Dell we figured that she was about 66 or 67 years old then.
Now there little time from the time she was hatched until this other person
got her that we don't know the length of time in there but we figure this as best
we could, so, by now sheSa good 75 years old. She rides the handle bars of a little
motorcycle, a little motorped or whatever you call that thing, she rides on the
handle bars.
R: We'lshe's living a good life.
B: Oh, yeah.
R: Well Martha I'm amazed that you lived in this home by yourself and you don't, you've
never been robbed.
B: Yes I was robbed, a year ago last February but I was lucky,like I always am.
R: Well, you did have security locks didn't you?
B: Yes.
R: How did they get in?
B: They cut the chain on one door and reached and undid that. This happened to be a
S l_____ door however.
R: Yes.
B: Which mae not the safest in the world.
R: There're not very secure.
B: No, I know and, but anyhow they, they came around on the otherside and undid that
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one and then they came in out of the church. It was Sunday morning...
R: Yes.
B: And so when I came home I went back into my bedroom to go off something that I
did not want to cook in and so when I took my little neckchain off that, it
was all over my dresser, just dumped.
R: Did they take valuables?
B: Yes. Well they took some of my grandmother's things that were very hard for me
to get because they were my mctIer's mother things...
R: Ah, to bad.
B: And some very, a few really beautiful pieces of antique jewelry that broke my
heart.
R: Yes.
B: But my silver was put away in a I thought a very safe place which had proved to
OnyhoI,-
be, so the next day I took it to the bank, but/what's the use of having it if itj?
in the bank.
R: Well that's the :way we feel.
B: I know it.
R: Knowbody is able to use it anymore.
B: That's right.
R: It's all hiden away or in the bank.
then
E: That's right, that's exactly it. So,well anyhow and/they took a few, a few pieces
of more modern that were really I guess in dollar value more valuable but not,
but I hated to lose the old pieces.
R: Yes, right. Well, I keep mine hiden away but they'll probably find it some day,
I mean,
S/I mean my old jewelry.
B: Well, yes, please do. I live alone, I don't believe that just somebody in the
house would be satisfactory and I feel like that I'm selfish now at 82, I like
to do what I want to do.
R: Set in your ways, right.
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B: Yes.
R: Now Jane lives quite close,
B: Jane lives one house, just one house between us, and she!right on call anytime
after she gets home from teaching school.
R: Right and your close to your neighbors.
B: Oh yes. I'm very fond of all of them, they're so good to me.
R: This subdivision is called I"- a-ckaeee"l isn't it?
B: This is ,'$ckcrsee'". ''alc CUCr-S.
R: Right.
B: /nd we are a Crime Watch subdivision...
R: Yes.
B: In here which really (end of tape)
R: ....(beginning of tape) Church which wasclose to town on West University...
B: Oh yes.
R: and the window was saved and somebody used that window. What was her name?
fn a ph c-
B: I think part of it went to the/ Presbyterian Church. Now the big
I have
Rose window,if that's what you're talking about, I have/asked many questions about
it and have gotten very few satisfactory answers. I do not know where that big
gorgeous Rose window is.
R: Well, well I remember, I do think I know now. The lady who was very blonde, plump,
and pretty and was a wonderful singer, took that church down to a little to a...
B: Are you talking about Mable Gardener?
R: Yes. Didn't she take that window down there and put it...
B: I don't know.
R: Yes, she did and she put it in a little church down there near the lake.
B: Well.
R: Lake Santa Fe?
B: I don't know. She lived in Hawthorne.
R: Yes that's right. She took it down there near Hawthorne and gave it to a little
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church down there and it's still there I think if you'd like to see it.
B: Well, I didn't know that.
R: Yes. I'm, I'm going to check up on that because I've visited a...
B: Well, it was a tremendous...
R: I visited her once because her daughter is a close friend of my daughter.
B: Oh yes,
R: is a close friend of ...
B: Um.
R: /dnd we visited her in her home down there near Hawthorne and she told us about that
window..
B: Oh well I did not know this. Mable is now living in New York City,
and she has done some television commericals.
R: Has she really?
B: Yes, recently, I mean ...
R: Charming person.
B: precious, wonderful, person,
was
R: Yes. Well I must tell anyway she/going to live in a retirement home near
because....
B: Yes, she did, she did for awhile and then moved, that's see now, in her
young days was Jeanie up atWhite Springs.
R: Jeanie of the...
B: Jeanie of the light brown hair.
Suiunenee
R: of the light brown hair. She was, she was the Swainnee River Queen wasn't she.
B: Yes.
R: Yes, of High Springs, and then she married a young minister...
B: Yes.
R: ,nd went to live in Kentucky and had a big church there and so Mable was going to
be nearer and live in a retirement home.
B: Yes.
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R: Well I wonder how she happened to go to New York instead.
B: Well I don't know unless...
R: Maybe shesin a retirement home up there, maybe he went to New York, that was it
the son-in-law, the preacher.
B: Probably.
R: Probably got a church in New York City.
really
B: I/don't know.
R: I think that was it.
B: But I don't know but I know that she had this chance and was going to do the vocal
part for I believe, a short series of commericals.
R: Well now, Mable Gardener was in the choir at the church wasn't she?
B: Yes, she and(I sang next to each other for 50 years now.
R: You were in the choir to?
B: Yes.
R: Well, how long were you in the choir?
B: 50 years.
R: So it hasn't been very long, are you still in it?
B: No, no, no, no. I sang in the choir when I was 15 because the church was so small,
they had so few people that were willing to give choir practice in the time
and devote that little time to the choir, so I went in as a very young person and
stayed until I was 65.
R: Well now did you sing alto or soprano?
B: Soprano. Mable and I sang next to each other all those years.
R: Well, so you were very close to Preacher Gardener?
B: Oh, we all loved Preacher Gardener, he very,,and you know that they are having
a memorial service for him this coming Saturdy night and Dr. Perry Foot and
Dr. Lester Hail have written a book calling it "The Mischievous Saint" which
I think is perfect.
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R: Yes.
B: And this book will also be on, I think it's off of the press and I don't know
when they will sell it but it's some thing that I have to add to my shelf.
R: Oh yes, well I'll have to get a copy.
B: Right.
R: So that's going to be this coming Sunday night.
B: Yes at the Presbyterian Church.
R: I must be there.
B: 7:30.
R: Yes. Well I'll have to usher at Holy Trinity. Once a year they let ladies usher...
B: How nice.
R: at !the United
B: Oh yes. Well, well that's nice.
R: So we do have women priestsin our church, and now the Presbyterian Church also
has women members...
B: Oh yes, yes.
R: I think....
B: We have one in our church right now, Boyd. We have three wonderful people
that fill our P0p' .l
R: Tell us who they are.
B: Rick D is our Assistant Pastor, Dr. Ross McKenzie is our Preacher and
Pastor and he is delightful, from Scotland, has a --t~iia of a accent that keeps you
on your toes, you want to hear what's next...
R: Yes,
B: And the very dedicated young women, Boyd.
R: Is she in charge of the educational ?
B: Yes.
R: Yes.
B: We feel that the church just really going to do things because of these three people.
They're fine, very fine.
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R: Right.
he had
B: We lost Dr. Gordon, of course. Well we lost him first to his age before/he was
forced to retire, before he was ill and we had Lesley Tucker, who was just as
nearly
dear to so many, many people most patient and sympathetic person I haxe/ever
-et in my life, and he took a church that would, he had very poor health and
went into a church up, right out of Richmond/that was a much smaller church
with ia congregation of about 400 or 500...
R: I see. +Aen ,3h
B: Because of his health and a&twhen the church called Dr. McKenzie...
R: I see.
B: And Peg Buckly and I planted the grounds on the church.
R: Yes.
B: We were the Grounds Committee for years and years and we feel very proud of it.
It's a, we think, I think, a beautiful church.
R: It is a beautiful church and so many people have enjoyed their little chapel
there.
B: Oh yes.
R: Chapel.
Oh yes. 's
B: The /That was preacher/little heaven was when he could get back
into and our original church furniture that is gorgeous is in the
chapel, and the big church went with heavier, bigger pieces.
R: And of course you are very, very fortunate in having Mr. Willis ...
B: Oh yes, he's Music Director.
R: Music Director because he's very special.
B: Well we have four little choirs. Well the Senior Choir and,I don't know the names
of the three smaller. ones a high school group, one's a elementary group, and one
is a children's little choir, little chorus- and we just love those. We right now
Wetre charmed every time -eer, Richard Jackson, sings for us.which is frequent
and his voice is beautiful.
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R: And he teaches at the university.
B: He teaches at the university and he has one of the smaller choir-. I think/the
high school group, I'm not real sure.
R: I see.
B: I think it's the high school group.
R: Well I enjoyed the recital recently given in your church by the Coventry Choir
of...
B: Oh yes.
R: Coventry Cathedral, England and the boys singing there with the men.
B: That's right, that's right.
R: That was lovely, very lovely. Well, do you put on dramatic productions in your
church like we do at Holy Trinity.
B: Well, I think they try to have a Christmas pageant but not, not to many, not
to many or to often. We have a great deal of music in our-heuse...
R: Yes you do.
B: I mean outside choirs come, by invitation, come in and than our choir and our
Christmas and Easter and the high days and holiday music is lovely because it's
got that perfect direction.
R: Well I think what keeps you going,Martha, is that you are so interested in your
Church, and in your garden and in your children, grandchildren and great grand-
children and you are living so near some of them.
just like
B: Well, it's a wonderful, I really and truely have/been like everybody. There have
been a\lot of bad days and there have been tears but when I look at my over all
life it has been tremendously guided and I just am happy with it. I feel like
if I dropped out of the picture that I could not have a single complaint bat to
Saint Peter.
R: Well and when I think that you were the one who nursed your father and mother
right through their very old years and ...
B: Oh yes.
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R: ou kept your mother in this house, in this very house, until she was 98...
B: And him too.
R: And your father too. Well, that was a real labor of love.and,
B: But that, that, well it was because I did enjoy them. I enjoy doing for them.
R: Well wouldn't you think that most older people before they die have to, not
most of them but some of them,have to go to nursing homes.
B: Oh yes.
R: because I understand from the sociological
statistics, that most older people do not die in nursing homes or in the hospital.
They do die at home.
the
B: At home. I think, I think that more and more, I don't know whether/nursing homes
rp r ,. ihI'I, w
have gotten SOr<4bc; with their tremendous expense or I like to think that
people want their folks as long as they can have them.
R: Why of course they do.
B: /Ad I think that is true.
v.r e- of
R: But +he-r not all that fortunate. Well/the nursing homesit seems to us, who made
a survey recently in the six counties around Gainesville, the retired teachers
made a study of the nursing homes and convalescent homes and we found very few
really +oC
that anybodylwould/want to go into, so it, it's really +e bad that Gainesville
does not have a really good nursing home. Now I understand that Alachua Hospital
is planning one.
B: I understood that too. I just heard that
R: /nd hopes it going to be a good one, right.
B: Well I do to.
R: Martha I want to thank you so much for giving us this time...
B: Oh my goodness.
R: 4nd I hope that you great grandchildren will enjoy having this
later on.
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B: Oh yes, I know they will, I just know they will. This is not for record I just
4- h ere 's
thought that maybe you/your owrself. Now this, this is a year ago but ee-is
my little family. You don't have to keep that on, on your...
R: Oh, well I just want to say that this is a picture of Martha's family that is
and
just charming, /it was taken out here in the yard?
B: No, this was taken down in Leesburg at Diana's home. This girl right here, this
is Diana, this is Pie, this is Mitch, this is Betty, Mitch and Pie. That, that's
a little unit right there. Mike is not here. This is Diana and her son, she
has another son now but, and her son and her husband John. Of course here I am
in the middle, you know I claim the whole thing. If it wasn't for me they wouldn't
be there.
R: That's right.
B: This is Jane, my second daughter.
R: That's a darling picture of Jane.
B: Isn't that sweet and her, this is Beth and now this is her baby a year ago, now
she has another baby now and this is her husband, Bill Freedman. This is H een
and her husband, John
R: Well that's a marvelous, marvelous looking family.
B: Aren't they sweet.
R: It's so good of you Martha and of Betty and Jane.
B: Yes, Betty and Jane.
R: You'll have those pretty smiles on your face. so nice to see
this. Thank you.
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