Interview with Lucy Hall Patton, July 20, 1988

Interview Summary

Lucy Patton moved to Auxier in 1928 at age 22 after she had married. Her husband had been a miner, but he later worked as a clerk in the company store. Mrs. Patton recalls growing up on a farm near Auxier. She describes her mother's excellent sewing and knitting abilities, but her mother died at a young age after a miscarriage. Mrs. Patton helped to raise her youngest sister. Mrs. Patton describes her own knowledge about pregnancy before marriage. She discusses the birth of her first child and helping her sister deliver a child. She recalls the role of the town doctor in labor and delivery. Patton also shares her memories of Christmas as a child and as an adult. She explains that she and her husband bought a building from her grandfather and opened their own store.

Interview Keyword

Appalachian People Appalachian social issues Auxier, Kentucky Coal Mining communal values company store family farming Floyd County gender roles Jenny Wiley State Park Northeast Coal Company poverty Women Coal Miners

Interview LC Subject

Appalachian Region Patton, Lucy Hall Patton, Lucy Hall--Interviews

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Interview Usage

Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.