Oral History Program Edith Maw Interviewed by Richard Adams 06 May 1972 i Oral History Program Weber State University Stewart Library Ogden, Utah Edith Maw Interviewed by Richard Adams 06 May 1972 Copyright © 2014 by Weber State University, Stewart Library ii Mission Statement The Oral History Program of the Stewart Library was created to preserve the institutional history of Weber State University and the Davis, Ogden and Weber County communities. By conducting carefully researched, recorded, and transcribed interviews, the Oral History Program creates archival oral histories intended for the widest possible use. Interviews are conducted with the goal of eliciting from each participant a full and accurate account of events. The interviews are transcribed, edited for accuracy and clarity, and reviewed by the interviewees (as available), who are encouraged to augment or correct their spoken words. The reviewed and corrected transcripts are indexed, printed, and bound with photographs and illustrative materials as available. Archival copies are placed in University Archives. The Stewart Library also houses the original recording so researchers can gain a sense of the interviewee's voice and intonations. Project Description The Weber State College/University Student Projects have been created by students working with several different professors on the Weber State campus. The topics are varied and based on the student's interest or task for a specific assignment. These oral history assignments were created to help Weber State students learn the value and importance of recording public history and to benefit the expansion of the Weber State oral history collections. ____________________________________ Oral history is a method of collecting historical information through recorded interviews between a narrator with firsthand knowledge of historically significant events and a well-informed interviewer, with the goal of preserving substantive additions to the historical record. Because it is primary material, oral history is not intended to present the final, verified, or complete narrative of events. It is a spoken account. It reflects personal opinion offered by the interviewee in response to questioning, and as such it is partisan, deeply involved, and irreplaceable. ____________________________________ Rights Management All literary rights in the manuscript, including the right to publish, are reserved to the Stewart Library of Weber State University. No part of the manuscript may be published without the written permission of the University Librarian. Requests for permission to publish should be addressed to the Administration Office, Stewart Library, Weber State University, Ogden, Utah, 84408. The request should include identification of the specific item and identification of the user. It is recommended that this oral history be cited as follows: Maw, Edith, an oral history by Richard Adams, 06 May 1972, WSU Stewart Library Oral History Program, University Archives, Stewart Library, Weber State University, Ogden, UT. iii Abstract: I, Richard Adams, interviewed Miss Edith Maw of 337 32nd street on 6 May on the topic of inflation and rising prices within the state of Utah. She was very cooperative, but not as talkative as I would have liked. The interview lasted approximately 28 minutes as is as follows: RA: What was your date of birth Miss Maw? EM: August 14, 1900. RA: Where were you born? EM: Plain City, Utah. RA: And where did you go to school? EM: I moved to Ogden and went to Ogden High School and Smiths Business College. RA: And when did you start work? EM: I started work at Blackman and Griffith and Company. RA: And was that located here in Ogden? EM: Yes it was. RA: And from there where did you go? EM: I then went to the Ogden Paint, Oil and Glass Company, from there to the Boogie Moose on 24th and Kiesel, and from there to California for 13 months. I came home from California and worked at Sterling Furniture Company (now Madsens). RA: And now are you retired from any organization? 1 EM: I'm retired from the Government. RA: And how long did you work there? EM: For 20 years. RA: Could you give me some approximate hourly wages back then? EM: I started at 9 dollars a week. RA: Have you noticed a great raise in prices or inflation since then? EM: Oh, indeed I have. RA: How do you think prices compare now to the prices back then? EM: No comparison. RA: Could you give me some examples of rising prices. EM: Well, I compare prices now with when I was working for the Federal Government and there is just no comparison at all. RA: What one item would you say has risen most over the years? EM: Well meats I would say, but almost all commodities have risen. RA: What would be considered a good middle class income back in those days? EM: Well when I was working for Ogden Paint Oil and Glass my salary was 150.00 a month, and that was considered a good salary. RA: Did the Money seem to go pretty far? EM: Yes, it did pretty well. RA: Do you feel that the prices now a days have gone out of proportion? 2 EM: Yes, I do, for instance, you take one item that raises a penny, it doesn’t seem like much, but you figure the percentage and raises more than it did before the freeze. RA: How many Presidents have been in term that you remember? EM: Well, the first one I voted for was Wilson. RA: Out of all the Presidents you have seen in office, who would you say has given best support to stopping Inflation? EM: Well, I believe Roosevelt has done the most, he put the freeze on the banks and on food prices and really made them stick. RA: Do you feel that President Nixon is doing all he can to stop inflation? EM: Well I think he’s trying. RA: Do you feel that the money that you earn now a days goes as far as it did back then? EM: Well, being on retirement it doesn’t with the high cost of living. We make it and that about all, we don't have much left over for luxuries or to fix up the home or things we would like to do. RA: Do you feel that retirement should be higher then? EM: Well I believe that Social Security should be. RA: Could you give us your opinion on how you feel about rising prices. EM: Well I think they are out of reason and I think they could be stopped. RA: Do you have any suggestions you could give to stop inflation. EM: Well just bear down a little more and when they say something mean it. 3 RA: Like the rising cost of meats, do you feel that we should boycott them and not participate in buying then? EM: Well I don't believe that would do too much good, they say the prices are going down, but you pick up a small roast and it’s still 4 or 5 dollars. RA: About how cheap was meats back through the years? EM: Well I would say it was about half of what it is now. RA: Do you think that the quality of the meats have improved? EM: No not really. RA: Do you feel that better quality of goods have brought about higher prices? EM: Well, they're the same standard brands as we had back then, if anything some have dropped in quality. RA: What do you feel has brought about inflation? EM: Well I believe that rising wages and the war have a lot to do with it. RA: Would you give us an example of how much a movie would cost years ago. EM: Well right early days it would be about ten cents to get into a silent movie. And for a good movie it was right around 65 cents. RA: Would you give me a comparison of coins, would a nickel buy what a nickel would back then? EM: No, I don't think you could buy much of anything for a nickel now. RA: Would you say that prices have risen drastically over the last 20 years? 4 EM: I would say they are 3 or 4 times higher. RA: Do you think that the wages a person earns now would compensate for the rising prices? EM: Well I think that things have evened up pretty well. RA: How would you say Utility prices have risen? EM: Well they are still going up, I think they're too much. RA: About how much does it cost you to heat your home? EM: Well normally it’s about 18 dollars a month. RA: Did you use coal ever to heat your homes? EM: Yes, we used to use coal stoves. RA: Do you think that coal was cheaper than using gas? EM: Well when we first moved here, it cost 5.75 dollars for a ton of coal. And over ten years it had risen to 19.00 a ton. RA: Are you drawing Social Security now? EM: Yes, I have about the smallest amount you can get, I only worked on it for 6 years before I started for the Government. RA: Have you had any revises since you have been drawing it? EM: Yes I believe we have had two. RA: And you also draw Retirement from the Government? EM: Yes I do. 5 RA: Do you feel that the Government has a good retirement program? EM: Yes, I'm very happy with it, I'm glad I had the chance to work for the government. RA: Do you feel that people on retirement can live comfortably on what they earn? EM: No, not too comfortably, with the cost of prices now a days, they can live and that’s about it. RA: Do you get a raise in retirement every year? EM: No, only when the cost of living goes above a certain percentage. RA: Do you think there should be a raise in retirement? EM: No, I'm satisfied with my Retirement. RA: Have you noticed a raise in taxes over the years? EM: Yes, Practically every year they raise. RA: Do you feel they are using our tax money wisely? EM: Well I'd be afraid to say, I think they could cut down on a few of them. RA: Could you give me an example of your sales tax say 20 years ago. EM: Well they started with 2% when Governor Blood was in office for the benefit of the elderly people. But before we knew it, it went for something else, and now it's gradually increased over the years. RA: When would you say this sales tax was put into effect? EM: Well it must have been about 30 years ago. RA: Do you feel that the taxes you have paid have helped Ogden City? 6 EM: Yes I imagine it has. RA: About how big was Ogden City when you first moved here? EM: Well it seemed big to me, but after we got our Government Installations it has doubled in size I'm sure. Also the Railroads helped, they were about one of the best things we ever had, but now they have been cut down to practically nothing. RA: How about the labor situation, do you feel there are as many jobs open now as there was a few years ago? EM: No there aren't, they've taken away so much of our industries that it’s cut down on employment. RA: Do you think that the rising degree of unemployment has hurt the economy or raised our taxes or helped in raising inflation? EM: Oh indeed I do, I think it’s one of the major factors. RA: Do you feel that people on retirement who are having a rough time making ends meet should be able to draw food stamps? EM: Yes I do, that’s one of the main things I'd like to see changed. I think that every one after a certain age should be able too if there income allows it. RA: One main issue right now is the rising cost of medical, do you feel that these have risen over the years? EM: Yes I know they have. I was in the hospital for almost 3 weeks recently, and the bill was almost $3,500.00. RA: So do you feel that a person couldn't make it without a medical insurance of some kind? 7 EM: Yes, my insurance covered most of it. RA: Do you have any comments you would like to give at this time? EM: Well I would like them try to curb the rising prices. RA: Do you feel that President Nixon is doing all he can to stop inflation? EM: Well he said he was, he put the freeze on, but it doesn’t seem like they're going too far. RA: Do you feel that the President uses our tax money wisely? EM: Well I feel that he should help the people here at home first before spending it on the war or the moon or anything else. RA: Veil Miss Maw do you have anything you would like to add at this time? EM: No I think we have pretty well covered it. RA: Well it has been a pleasure interviewing you, and I and the Oral History Department for Weber College appreciate it thank you very much. END OP INTERVIEW. 8