Interview with Delores Vinegar-Oderinde, March 19, 1987

Partial Transcript: Give me your name please.

Segment Synopsis: Delores Vinegar-Oderinde is introduced. She talks about where her parents and grandparents were born. She discusses her ancestors who were slaves, and talks about the family that owned them. She says the White family attempted to free their slaves before the Emancipation Proclamation. She talks about the island her family lived on and its possible connection to the Underground Railroad.

Keywords: Ancestors; Buying slaves; Court; Emancipation; Fathers; Freedom; Grandparents; Herndon family; Islands; Lexington (Ky.); Mormons; Mothers; Owen County (Ky.); Owenton (Ky.); Property owners; Slave owners; Underground Railroad; Wife

Subjects: African American families; African Americans--Genealogy.; African Americans--Legal status, laws, etc.; African Americans--Social conditions.; Slavery--United States.; United States--Race relations.

Partial Transcript: Tell me what you know or what you were able to find out about the Mormon, uh, interaction with your family.

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde talks about her family's possible ancestral connections to Mormons, Native Americans, and their former slave owners. She talks about family names, how her family members got their freedom, and the property her family owned.

Keywords: Ancestors; Churches; Corinth (Ky.); Descriptions; Ethnicity; Family names; Freedom; Herndon family; Islands; Landowners; Levi Marks; Mormons; Morris Marks; Native Americans; Owenton (Ky.); Slave owners; Slaves; Supreme Court; Treatment; White ancestors

Subjects: African American families; African Americans--Genealogy.; African Americans--Legal status, laws, etc.; African Americans--Religion.; African Americans--Social conditions.; Slavery--United States.; United States--Race relations.

Partial Transcript: What was the literacy like in your great-grandfather, grandfather, father, mother. Tell me about the literacy there.

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde talks about her family's formal and informal education and which of her family members were able to read and write.

Keywords: Distance; Fathers; Grandfathers; Grandmothers; Literacy; Military service; Mothers; Newspapers; Owenton (Ky.); Segregated schools; Women

Subjects: African American families; African Americans--Conduct of life.; African Americans--Education.; African Americans--Segregation; African Americans--Social conditions.

Partial Transcript: Now see her sister--she has a sister that's still living.

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde talks more about her family's experiences as slaves. She tells a story she heard about a woman who beat her slaves and was later tormented by what she believed were the ghosts of her slaves' children. She tells a story about a blacksmith who designed his shoes backwards in order to escape to freedom.

Keywords: Aunts; Beating; Blacksmiths; Businesses; Children; Cousins; Farmers; Fathers; Freedom; Names; Quilting; Relatives; Sewing; Shirley Jenkins; Shoes; Slave owners; Slaves; Stories; Traditions; Treatment

Subjects: African American families; African Americans--Crimes against.; African Americans--Genealogy.; African Americans--Legal status, laws, etc.; African Americans--Social conditions.; Racism; Slavery--United States.; United States--Race relations.

Partial Transcript: When I asked you, "What did your family do?" I mean as free people.

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde talks about the community that she grew up in, which she says was a mixed community. She talks about how the neighbors would help one another in times of need. She talks about meeting a man as a child who was treated as a White man although she was told his grandmother was Black.

Keywords: Appearance; Bartering; Brothers; Childbirth; Complexion; Ethnicity; Farming; Fires; Grandfathers; Helping; Landowners; Midwives; Prejudice; Racially mixed; White neighbors

Subjects: African American families; African Americans--Conduct of life.; African Americans--Genealogy.; African Americans--Social conditions.; Integration; Neighborhoods.; Neighborliness; Neighbors; United States--Race relations.

Partial Transcript: But like segregation ended when I was in third grade in Georgetown.

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde talks about fights in school due to children using racial slurs. She describes her experience with school integration, which she says was made easier because she had a good teacher. She talks about how her experience differed from some of her peers.

Keywords: Fights; Garth; Georgetown (Ky.); Ms. Lunsford; Prejudice; Racial slurs; Role models; Segregated schools; Teachers; Treatment

Subjects: African Americans--Education.; African Americans--Segregation; African Americans--Social conditions.; Childhood; Discrimination in education.; Race discrimination.; Racism; School integration--Kentucky; Segregation in education.; United States--Race relations.

Partial Transcript: Okay but tell me a little bit more about the community that your father lived in.

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde talks about the community her father grew up in and how it has changed over the years. She talks about his relationships with the local White families.

Keywords: Fathers; Fayette County (Ky.); Harrison County (Ky.); Horses; Mixing; Owen County (Ky.); Relationships; Scott County (Ky.); Trouble; Visiting; Woodford County (Ky.)

Subjects: African Americans--Conduct of life.; African Americans--Social conditions.; Integration; Neighborhoods.; Neighbors; United States--Race relations.

Partial Transcript: Now describe to me--you got in a little while ago and I'd like to hear more about that, the difference in that school you went to up until third grade.

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde discusses whether segregated or integrated schools provided a better learning environment for the average Black student. She talks about the relationship between teachers and parents, and says that she would be disciplined by both parties if she did something wrong. She talks about why many students drop out of school.

Keywords: All-Black schools; Better off; Corporal punishment; Discipline; Dropping out; Ed Davis School; Georgetown (Ky.); Interest; Inventors; Learning environment; Learning problems; Paddling; Schools

Subjects: African American families; African American leadership; African Americans--Conduct of life.; African Americans--Education.; African Americans--Segregation; African Americans--Social conditions.; Childhood; Discrimination in education.; Race discrimination.; School integration--Kentucky; Segregation in education.; United States--Race relations.

Partial Transcript: Now... the parents, did they see the children being demoralized?

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde talks about the community she grew up in, and says that everyone looked out for one another and disciplined each other's children. She talks about getting in trouble as a child and being whipped or scolded by family members.

Keywords: Cousins; Discipline; Fear; Guns; Integrated schools; Interest; Parents; Punishment; Relatives; Respect; Schools; Scolding; Whipping

Subjects: African American families; African Americans--Conduct of life.; African Americans--Social conditions.; Neighborhoods.; Neighborliness; Neighbors; School integration--Kentucky; United States--Race relations.

Partial Transcript: There's nobody there to give them the same discipline that I got, even though--

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde talks about how communities have stopped working together to look out for the children and to help one another in times of need. She describes two neighborhoods in Georgetown, Kentucky. She tells a story to demonstrate how children learn to be prejudiced against other races.

Keywords: "Boston" neighborhood; "The Bottom" neighborhood; Changes; Children; Concern; Demographics; Denver (Colo.); Discipline; Fear; Georgetown (Ky.); Helping; Housing projects; Integrated neighborhoods; Levi Marks; Military; Omaha (Neb.); Poor; Prejudice; The South; Threats

Subjects: African American families; African Americans--Conduct of life.; African Americans--Segregation; African Americans--Social conditions.; Georgetown (Ky.); Integration; Neighborhoods.; Neighborliness; Neighbors; Racism; United States--Race relations.

Partial Transcript: The churches now and then--the--I'm from a--it doesn't make any difference the denomination.

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde describes the role of churches during her childhood and talks about how this has changed over the years. She says that churches and church members are too focused on denominations and self gain. She talks about the role of the minister in the community.

Keywords: "Basket meetings"; Black community; Changes; Childhood; Community needs; Denominations; Faiths; Giving; Helping; Ministers; Part of community; Purpose; Recognition; Role of minister; Secular; Self gain; Tithing; Visiting

Subjects: African American churches--Kentucky; African American leadership; African Americans--Conduct of life.; African Americans--Religion.; African Americans--Social conditions.; Racism

Partial Transcript: So this is what you meant--cause we never really got into it cause I asked you, when you said the Mormons wanted to get the slaves...

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde talks more about the Mormons who she says possibly helped her ancestors escape slavery. She talks more about her family's connection to the Herndon family, and her Mormon friends.

Keywords: Community; Connections; Freedom; Herndon family; Integrated; Islands; Lexington (Ky.); Mormon church; Mormons; Owenton (Ky.); Slaves

Subjects: African American families; African Americans--Religion.; African Americans--Social conditions.; Slavery--United States.; United States--Race relations.

Partial Transcript: Tell me about your involvement in the revolution.

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde talks about how changing her hairstyle led to increased harassment and people believing she was a member of groups like the Black Panthers.

Keywords: Afro; Attention; Black Panthers; California; Georgetown (Ky.); Hairstyles; Harassment; Involvement; Opposition; Paducah (Ky.); Revolution; Stores; Walking

Subjects: African Americans--Conduct of life.; African Americans--Social conditions.; African Americans--Societies, etc.; Civil rights movements--United States; Clothing and dress.; Fashion.; United States--Race relations.

Partial Transcript: Did you participate in any of the marches?

Segment Synopsis: Vinegar-Oderinde talks about her participation in the civil rights movement. She talks about how tokenism and sharing knowledge can be used to help others succeed. She talks about the treatment of Blacks in the military. She talks about the importance of perseverance and working together with all types of people to make progress for the Black community.

Keywords: Advancement; Appearance; Changes; Community; Complacent; Cosmetics; Education; Efforts; Freedom; Giving up; Helping; History; Learning; Liberation; Marches; NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People); Paducah (Ky.); Participation; Persevering; Prejudice; Quitting; Readings; Tokenism

Subjects: African American leadership; African Americans--Conduct of life.; African Americans--Employment.; African Americans--Military service; African Americans--Social conditions.; Civil rights movements--United States; Race discrimination.; Racism; United States--Race relations.