Interview with Geneva Steele, March 19, 1994

Partial Transcript: Um, March the 19th, 1994. We're in Caretta, West Virginia, uh, interviewing Geneva Steele.

Segment Synopsis: The interviewer gives the time, date and location of the interview and introduces Geneva Steele. Personal contact information has been muted in this version.

Keywords: Caretta(W.Va.); Kentucky Historical Society

Partial Transcript: If you would just give us, go ahead and tell us who your grandparents were and when they moved into the region...

Segment Synopsis: Geneva Steele discusses her grandparents and her family history.

Keywords: Dawsons; Rockridge (W.Va.); Roes; family; farmers; parents; siblings; timber

Subjects: Family history; Grandparents

Partial Transcript: You grew up in uh, uh, during or right at the end of World War II. What was your, I guess what community did you grow up in?

Segment Synopsis: Steele shares which community she considers herself a part of and discusses the education she received. She describes what it was like to grow up in the holler.

Keywords: Beartown (W.Va.); Mt. Ousley (??); Rockridge (W.Va.); Roosevelt school; childhood experiences; coal camp kids; coal camps; entertainment; siblings

Subjects: Communities

Partial Transcript: Well, I went up there about... uh seven or eight months and worked... uh, after I got out of school.

Segment Synopsis: Geneva Steele discusses her moving to Ohio to work after school.

Keywords: Columbus (Ohio); Eastern Star Home; Mt. Vernon (Ohio)

Subjects: Occupations.

Partial Transcript: When did you uh, uh, when'd you get married?

Segment Synopsis: Geneva Steele discusses her marriage to Harold Steele and her daughter Vicky.

Keywords: Harold Steele; Vicky Virginia Hagerman

Subjects: Children; Marriage

Partial Transcript: Uh, it says here on your, uh, on this piece... something about the coal miner statue?

Segment Synopsis: Steele discusses her role in building a coal miner statue in Bradshaw, which was funded by the Sandy River District Action Corporation.

Keywords: McDowell County (W.Va.); SRDAC; Sandy River District Action Corporation; coal miner statue

Subjects: Coal miners.

Partial Transcript: Working together on this project, did you, did you feel like... um, did you move on to anything else after that?

Segment Synopsis: Steele discusses future projects for the Sandy River District Action Corporation.

Keywords: SRDAC; Sandy River District Action Corporation

Subjects: Community leadership

Partial Transcript: One of the things that I've not heard people talking about much... have there not been a lot of mining accidents...

Segment Synopsis: Steele briefly discusses accidents related to coal mining.

Keywords: coal miner deaths; coal miners; mine accidents; miners

Subjects: Coal mines and mining.

Partial Transcript: Uh... ok, let's end this one on... if you had one... thing you wanted to talk or quote about the statue or about...

Segment Synopsis: Steele shares why she is optimistic about the future.

Keywords: community aspirations; future generations; role of women; women leaders

Subjects: Future, The.

Partial Transcript: Last... last big quote then, about, uh... what do you want to say then about ...

Segment Synopsis: Steele gives her thoughts on the future, summing up the interview.

Keywords: future generations; progress

Subjects: Future, The.

Partial Transcript: I didn't know how, so I started collecting all this information... and now that's what I'm working on.

Segment Synopsis: Steele shares how she has done oral history interviews with the coal miners mentioned on the coal mining statue. This is for a book that the historical society is putting together. The interview is concluded.

Keywords: coal miner statue; coal miners; historical society; oral history

Subjects: Historic preservation; fund raising; oral history