Dubois County: The Interwar Years 1994-1995

A Guide to the Collection of Oral History Interviews at Indiana University Bloomington

Finding aid prepared by the staff of the Center for the Study of History and Memory with a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities Division of Preservation and Access, 2000-2002

Creator: Indiana University Center for the Study of History and Memory
Title: Dubois County: The Interwar Years
Collection No.: ohrc039
Dates: 1994-1995
Quantity:

Quantity: 9 Interviews

(Audio files, transcripts, and collateral materials )
Abstract: This collection of interviews delves into several areas of Dubois County history between the two world wars. The most spoken of topics are religion, church events, and the use of German in various locales within the community. Also discussed are Prohibition and the notoriety of the county's moonshine industry, the Great Depression, and education in one-room schoolhouses.
Location: Interviews are housed in Franklin Hall, Room 0030A. Contact ohrc@indiana.edu for more information. Copies of interview transcripts are also held by the IU Libraries University Archives. For other locations housing the interviews from this project, please contact the Center for Documentary Research and Practice office.
Language: Materials are in English
Repository: Center for Documentary Research and Practice
Franklin Hall 0030B
601 E. Kirkwood Avenue
Bloomington, Indiana 47405
Business Number: 812-855-2856
ohrc@indiana.edu
URL: https://cdrp.mediaschool.indiana.edu/

Scope and Content Note

This collection contains nine interviews over the course of one year. Interviews range from 47 to 199 minutes. All interviews consist of audio tapes and some have typed transcripts.

Restrictions

Usage Restrictions:

The archive of the Center for Documentary Research and Practice at Indiana University is open to the use of researchers. Copies of transcript pages are available only when such copies are permitted by the deed of gift. Scholars must honor any restrictions the interviewee placed on the use of the interview. Since some of our earlier (pre-computer) transcripts do not exist in final form, any editing marks in a transcript (deletions, additions, corrections) are to be quoted as marked. Audio files may not be copied for patrons unless the deed of gift permits it, and a transcript is unavailable for that interview. The same rules of use that apply to a transcript apply to the audio interview. Interviews may not be reproduced in full for any public use, but excerpted quotes may be used as long as researchers fully cite the data in their research, including accession number, interview date, interviewee's and interviewer's name, and page(s).

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

[interviewee first name last name] interview, by [interviewer first name last name], [interview date(s)], [call number], [project name], Center for Documentary Research and Practice, Indiana University, Bloomington, [page number(s) or tape number and side if no transcript; if digital audio and no transcript, cite time when quote occurs].

Acquisition Information

Oral history interviews conducted by the Indiana University Center for the Study of History and Memory from 1968 to the present, with particular focus on the history of twentieth-century America and the Midwest.

Collection Inventory

Doane, Lillian , March 15, 1995

No(s): 94-032

Physical Description: Not transcribed, 1 tape, 1 7/8 ips, 47 minutes; pamphlet about St. Joseph Church

Scope and Content Note: Lillian Doane gives a guided tour of the St. Joseph Catholic Church in Jasper, Indiana. She also speaks about local history, religious art and symbolism, and the architecture of the church.

Indexed Terms:

  • Places:
    • Jasper, Indiana
    • Pfaffenweiler, Germany
  • Subjects:
    • Church Architecture
    • local history
    • religious art
  • Corporate Bodies:
    • St. Joseph Catholic Church
  • People:
    • Kundek, Joseph

Access Status: Open

Eckert, Claude A. , July 20, 1994

No(s): 94-026

Physical Description: Not transcribed, 2 tapes, 1 7/8 ips, 69 minutes

Scope and Content Note: Claude Eckert speaks about visiting sister city Pfaffenweiler, Germany and his involvement with the local German club. He discusses life in the small German-American community of Jasper, Indiana. He speaks of the area's German descent and the aspects of that culture which still linger including the language, and some traditions. He discusses the effects both World Wars had on the perceptions people had on German pride. Eckert also discusses the importance of religion and the place it holds in German heritage.

Indexed Terms:

  • Places:
    • Jasper, Indiana
    • Haysville, Indiana
    • Pfaffenweiler, Germany
  • Occupations:
    • mail carrier
  • Subjects:
    • farming
    • genealogy
    • German-American traditions
    • German language
    • Great Depression
    • Religion
    • World War I
    • World War II

Access Status: Open

Eckert, Martina; Eckert, Claude , July 20, 1994

No(s): 94-027

Physical Description: Not transcribed, 1 tape, 1 7/8 ips, 58 minutes

Scope and Content Note: Martina and Claude Eckert speak about their early life growing up during the Great Depression, farming, and using German at home. They also speak about the effects of Vatican II on their church, and the relationship between Jasper and its sister city, Pfaffenweiler, Germany.

Indexed Terms:

  • Places:
    • Jasper, Indiana
    • Ireland, Indiana
    • Pfaffenweiler, Germany
    • St. Meinrad, Indiana
  • Subjects:
    • farming
    • German language
    • Great Depression
    • sister city
    • Vatican II
    • World War II
  • Corporate Bodies:
    • Adams School

Access Status: Open

Haake, Oscar , January 13, 1995

No(s): 94-028

Physical Description: Not transcribed, 3 tapes, 1 7/8 ips, 138 minutes; obituary clipping about Oscar Haake

Scope and Content Note: Oscar Haake, born 1916, grew up in Ferdinand where his father owned and operated the Ferdinand News . He recalls speaking German as a boy, riding the "Ferdy" Flyer to high school, and the hard times of the Great Depression. Prior to World War II, he had received some instruction on operating printing presses. He, along with his brother, bought the paper from his mother after his military service in 1945. Though his previous printing experience was a positive, he still describes being unprepared to take on other newspaper operating duties. Oscar describes getting funding and learning the intricate nuances of the business over the next forty-five years until the paper was sold in 1990. He ends the interview discussing some of his wartime experiences stationed on a small island in the northern Pacific Ocean for over ten months and being listed as missing in action.

Indexed Terms:

  • Places:
    • Ferdinand, Indiana
    • Huntingburg, Indiana
    • Jasper, Indiana
    • Tell City, Indiana
  • Subjects:
    • Catholicism
    • Ferdinand Flyer
    • German language
    • Great Depression
    • Kitten Engine
    • linotype presses
    • local politics
    • New Deal
    • newspaper business
    • offset printing
    • turtle soup
    • World War II experiences
  • Corporate Bodies:
    • American Legion
    • Dale News
    • Ferdinand News
    • Ku Klux Klan (1915- )

Access Status: Open

Jordan, Sabine , April 25, 1995

No(s): 94-035

Physical Description: Not transcribed, 3 tapes, 1 7/8 ips, 121 minutes

Scope and Content Note: Sabine Jordan was born in Germany and immigrated with her parents to America where she earned a Ph.D. in eighteenth century German literature. She speaks briefly about her early life in Germany, and her academic career before she was hired as humanist in residence by Dubois County. Her job in Dubois County was to create a plan and awareness for preserving German heritage in the County. She describes some of the programs she initiated, specifically her talks, and the various aspects of German heritage.

Indexed Terms:

  • Occupations:
    • humanist in residence
  • Places:
    • Birdseye, Indiana
    • East Germany
    • Huntingburg, Indaina
    • Jasper, Indiana
    • Vienna Austria
  • Subjects:
    • academic career
    • Anglo American communities
    • German-American folk beliefs
    • German club
    • German heritage
    • German language
    • German literature
    • German politics
    • German work ethic
    • preservation
    • religious divisions
    • turnip kraut
    • Vatican II
    • World War II
  • Corporate Bodies:
    • Columbia University
    • Indiana University. Folklore Institute
    • New School for Social Research
  • People:
    • Kundek, Joseph

Access Status: Open

Meyer, Roy , March 23, 1995

No(s): 94-033

Physical Description: 45 pages; 2 tapes, 1 7/8 ips, 97 minutes; index

Scope and Content Note: Roy Meyer, born 1905, was an undertaker and talks about going to school in a one-room schoolhouse, speaking German at home, and going to German school in the winter. He also discusses the split over language in St. Paul's Lutheran Church that led to the establishment of the Christ Lutheran Church. Meyer also talks about Prohibition, moonshine in the county, and coon hunting during the Great Depression.

Indexed Terms:

  • Occupations:
    • funeral director
  • Places:
    • Haysville, Indiana
    • Martin County, Indiana
  • Subjects:
    • church
    • German-American traditions
    • German language
    • Great Depression
    • hunting
    • Moonshine
    • one-room schoolhouses
    • Prohibition
    • Religion
    • recreational activities
    • trapping
    • winemaking
  • Corporate Bodies:
    • Baseline School
    • Christ Lutheran Church
    • Ku Klux Klan (1915- )
    • St. Paul Lutheran Church
    • Tivoli Community Center

Access Status: Open

Schaber, Eileen Z. , March 14, 1995

No(s): 94-031

Physical Description: 60 pages; 5 tapes, 1 7/8 ips, 199 minutes; recipe for turnip kraut; index

Scope and Content Note: Eileen Schaber, born 1924, speaks about her life in Dubois County, Indiana. She describes her early life, focusing on farming, German language church, and her education, a one-room schoolhouse and high school in Indianapolis, Indiana. Later she speaks about married life, religion, and her involvement in the local craft shows making turnip kraut.

Indexed Terms:

  • Places:
    • Haysville, Indiana
    • Indianapolis, Indiana
  • Subjects:
    • Christmas
    • church events
    • craft shows
    • farming
    • gardening
    • German language
    • Great Depression
    • high school
    • local business decline
    • local history
    • Moonshine
    • one-room schoolhouses
    • Prohibition
    • school activities
    • turnip kraut
  • Corporate Bodies:
    • Baseline School
    • Jasper Herald
    • Ruritan Club
    • St. Paul Lutheran Church
  • People:
    • Kennedy, John Fitzgerald

Access Status: Open

Seitz, Ralph J. , March 23, 1995

No(s): 94-034

Physical Description: 62 pages; 3 tapes, 1 7/ 8 ips, 131 minutes; index

Scope and Content Note: Ralph J. Reitz, born in 1917, discusses his early life and education, growing up on a farm in Haysville, Indiana. He recalls the great amount of work that that went into farming, the widespread use of German language and traditions, and one room schools. He recalls life during the Great Depression and Prohibition and the prevalence of moonshine and winemaking. Seitz discusses his family, the importance of religion in his life, and his hobby of fishing. He discusses how farming and economics have changed over time, and how Haysville has changed but remained isolated.

Indexed Terms:

  • Occupations:
    • factory worker
    • farmer
  • Places:
    • Daviess County, Indiana
    • Haysville, Indiana
    • Martin County, Indiana
  • Subjects:
    • butchering
    • family
    • farming
    • German-American traditions
    • German language
    • Great Depression
    • Moonshine
    • one-room schoolhouses
    • Prohibition
    • Religion
    • sausage making
    • wheat threshing
  • Corporate Bodies:
    • St. Paul Lutheran Church

Access Status: Open

Songer, Hugo , January 14, 1995

No(s): 94-029

Physical Description: 39 pages; 3 tape, 1 7/8 ips, 133 minutes; index

Scope and Content Note: Hugo Songer grew up in Dubois County, Indiana and attended the Indiana University School of Law after his military service during the Korean War. He speaks about his family history, childhood, and experiences in attending one-room schoolhouses. He also discusses the history of the county in terms of the various German communities and their differences (primarily religious) and other characteristics associated with the German residents, such as farming, religion and moonshining.

Indexed Terms:

  • Places:
    • Bretzville, Indiana
    • Duff, Indiana
    • Ferdinand, Indiana
    • Huntingburg, Indiana
    • Jasper, Indiana
  • Subjects:
    • community rivalry
    • Dubois dew
    • ethnic discrimination
    • farming
    • German-American communities
    • German language
    • German work ethic
    • Korean War
    • local business decline
    • Moonshine
    • one-room schoolhouses
    • Prohibition
    • Religion
    • World War I
  • Corporate Bodies:
    • Duff Primitive Baptist Church
    • Indiana University. School of Law
    • Ku Klux Klan (1915- )
  • People:
    • Kundek, Joseph
    • Lincoln, Thomas

Access Status: Open

Tredway, Gilbert R. , January 14, 1995

No(s): 94-030

Physical Description: Not transcribed, 2 tapes, 1 7/8 ips, 90 minutes

Scope and Content Note: Gilbert Tredway, born 1922, grew up in Cuzco, Indiana, and speaks about local history, community rivalry, and his schooling. He also speaks briefly about his experiences as an aircraft gunner on a B-17 during World War II, where he was wounded. His wounds and partial disability entitled him to federal funding (similar to the GI Bill) to continue his education, eventually earning a Ph.D. in history. He taught High School, and later, at Campbellsville University. His scholarly and teaching interests changes from European military history to American history, specifically the United States Civil War and Reconstruction. He discusses his research for his dissertation, which he eventually published as Democratic Opposition to the Lincoln Administration in Indiana , and discusses how he got interested in writing a fictional book about the Civil War in Dubois County.

Indexed Terms:

  • Occupations:
    • aircraft gunner
    • professor
  • Places:
    • Campbellsville, Kentucky
    • Cuzco, Indiana
    • Jasper, Indiana
    • Mitchell, Indiana
    • Panama Canal
    • Pueblo, Colorado
  • Subjects:
    • B-17 airplanes
    • community rivalry
    • German-American stereotypes
    • Indiana politics
    • local history
    • personal education
    • scholarly research
    • teaching
    • Temperance Movement
    • United States Civil War
    • The Way it Was: A Novel of the Civil War
    • World War II experiences
  • Corporate Bodies:
    • Campbellsville University
    • Indiana University

Access Status: Open