Other
Lowe, Eva (audio interview #1 of 3)
INTERVIEW DESCRIPTION - This is the first of three interviews conducted with Eva Lowe in her home in San Gabriel. She was extremely nervous and uncomfortable and kept asking the tape recorder to be turned off. Because of this, the interviewer also had problems, working hard to maintain the continuity of her own thoughts. 9/24/1980
- Date
- 2021-04-23
- Resource Type
- Creator
- Campus
- Keywords
- Handle
- Language
- Notes
- SUBJECT BIO - Eva Lowe was working as a waitress before she went to work at Douglas in 1942. Born in Indiana, the second of two children, Lowe came to Los Angeles with her family when she was five. She married when she was seventeen and was a full-time homemaker, taking care of her two children, until her divorce in 1939. She then began to work as a waitress. After she was laid off in1945, Lowe first returned to food service work for five years and then became an LVN (Licensed Vocational Nurse). She worked as an LVN until her retirement in 1973. Three interviews where conducted with Lowe at her compact, one bedroom home in the Los Angeles suburb of San Gabriel. Her bleached blonde hair, pulled back into a pony tail, made her appear much younger than her years. Despite Lowe's casualness and the rapport that she developed with the interviewer, she remained a reluctant participant throughout. Nervous and uncomfortable, Lowe's answers tended to be very brief. She repeatedly asked that the tape recorder be turned off to ask the interviewer a question, collect her thoughts, or simply relax. TOPICS - family background; parents; family life; move to California; living arrangements; housing; religious activities; household chores; gender roles; gender expectations; discipline; play activities; and menstruation;mother's attitudes towards sex; birth control; family life; childhood activities; schooling; dating; social life and social activities; future expectations; husband; marital relationship; domesticity, pregnancy, anchildren; divorce; marital relationship; living arrangements; attitudes towards her divorce; waitressing; and experiences working at the Alhambra Sanitarium;
- *** File: rrrelowe1.mp3 Audio Segments and Topics: (0:00-3:11)... Lowe's parents were born and raised on farms in Indiana. Her maternal grandmother died before Lowe was born and her father's parents died when she was a small girl. She did not know her mother's father very well. She knew very little about her parent's experiences growing up on a farm. When her father was a young man, he moved to Indianapolis and got a job operating a street car. Her parents were from large families and had several brothers and sisters. (3:11-7:07)... Her parents met at a square dance in Marion County, Indiana. At that time, her father had returned from Indianapolis and was working on the family farm; her mother was working as a live-in housekeeper and nanny. Her mother decided to give up dancing "now that she had her man." Lowe's father enjoyed dancing and was disappointed at her mother's decision to abandon one of his favorite activities. They married in the early 1900s. (7:07-8:25)... Lowe was born in her parent's home and weighed twelve pounds. Her mother was in labor for quite awhile before delivering her. Lowe's aunt was by her mother's side throughout labor and delivery, although she believes that a doctor delivered her. (8:25-12:03)... Lowe lived on a few different farms in Indiana when she was a small child. When she was five years old, her parents decided to move to California, following her mother's twin sister who had gone to California to recover from tuberculosis. The family moved to Yorba Linda where her uncle owned a ranch, but Lowe's father did not like it there so they decided to move to La Habra. When she was seven years old, they moved back to Indiana, but returned to California one year later and settled in Montebello. Her father went to work for an oil company making cabinets. Lowe spent adolescent years in Montebello, moving to San Gabriel when she married, where she lived ever since. (12:03-16:35)... Lowe's mother did not work outside the home because it those days it was unthinkable for a married woman to work outside the home. Her mother was a devoted Quaker and active in the Women's Missionary Society in Montebello. Lowe was expected to attend church every Sunday with her family. Her father was not a religious person, but "went along with it." (Lowe digresses regarding her parents growing up in Indiana near the Milhous and Nixon families.) When she was sixteen, Lowe joined the Women's Missionary Society and the Christian Endeavor, a youth organization. Her parents did not discuss politics in the home nor were they avid readers. (16:35-19:15)... Other than cleaning her room, Lowe did not have very many household responsibilities. Lowe explained that her mother did everything around the house, because "men didn't help their wives in those days." Her father's main responsibility was maintaining the exterior of their home. She digresses regarding her appetite for reading when she was a young woman. (19:15-21:41)... Lowe describes how she was disciplined when she misbehaved. Even though her father left it up to her mother to be the disciplinarian, Lowe and her brother were more sensitive to their father's orders and/or reprimands. Lowe also was disciplined by her brother when she was sassy, which really "burned me up." (21:41-23:52)... When she was twelve years old, her father built a three-bedroom home on Spruce Street near downtown Montebello. Their home was located about a mile from the Montebello Hills and this was her playground for many years. She lived in this home until she married. Her father lived there until his death in 1968, at which time her family sold the property to Bank of America and a parking lot was constructed in its place. (23:52-26:12)... She talks about the activities she enjoyed when she was a child. Whenever possible, she rode her brother's bicycle. She did not have her own bicycle because "it wasn't a girl's toy." She was restricted from certain activities because she was a girl and was not allowed to do all the things that her brother could. Her mother taught her how to sew, knit, crochet, and embroider when she was a young girl. (26:12-29:12)... Lowe broke her hymen when she ran into a telephone pole while riding a bicycle. When she showed her the blood on her bloomers, her mother merely told her that she would be getting "sick", like a cousin, "one of these days," Lowe did not discover that she broke her hymen until after she married. She did not actually begin menstruating until she was thirteen or fourteen years old. Her cousin told her what was happening to her body. Lowe used unbleached muslin rags when she had her period. She was told not to take baths or exercise. End of tape. *** File: rrrelowe2.mp3 (0:00-4:20)... Lowe was unhappy that she received no information from her mother about menstruation and sex, and was determined to educate her own daughter about these issues. Like many people in those days, Lowe's mother believed that sex was sinful and dirty. Lowe's father told her that her mother refused to have sex with him for over thirty years. When she got older, she moved into her own bedroom and locked the door at night so that he would not come into her room. Lowe's aunt, on the other hand, enjoyed sex and provided Lowe with fish skin condoms when she got married. Lowe does not know what form of birth control her mother used. She only got pregnant three times during her marriage, one of which ended in an ectopic pregnancy. (4:20-5:45)... Lowe was very close with her relatives who lived in California. They spent every Sunday together at each other's homes. Her aunt owned an orange and lemon ranch and the children enjoyed running around in the groves and playing games. (5:45-9:42)... She enjoyed school and was involved in sports, such as basketball. Her parents were uneducated and they did not push Lowe in her studies. Her school in Montebello was located less than a mile from her home. She walked to school with children in the neighborhood. While in school, she was teased because she was overweight and wore glasses. She disliked being heavy, but the concept of dieting was not around when she was growing up. Even though she thought she was ugly and people teased her, she never had any problems getting a boyfriend. (9:42-10:40)... While in grammar school, Lowe and her classmates frequently attended affairs hosted by their teachers or went to parties at each other's homes. During the summers, they went grunion hunting at the beach. (10:40-13:03)... She began dating when she was fifteen years old. The first time she went out with a boy, she lied to her parents and told them she was going out with her girlfriend. When they found out, they decided to let her date. She started dancing when she was a freshman in high school and during lunch breaks and free periods, kids would meet in the gym to dance. She also enjoyed roller skating. Lowe never socialized with kids her age. Her girlfriends were always older than her and she liked to date older boys because they "had more money and cars." (13:03-15:35)... When Lowe was in high school, her future expectations included marriage and children. She met her husband at a dance hall in Montebello when she was sixteen years old. He was thirty-two and working as a car salesman when they met. She left high school in her senior year and married when she was seventeen. Her parents were not pleased that she wanted to get married at such a young age and to an older man; however, "I was pretty reckless and they thought that he would take care of me." During their courtship, he took her dancing and to auto races at the beach and plays at Los Angeles theaters. (15:35-18:43)... Lowe discusses her social life before she married and the types of activities she enjoyed with her girlfriends. She dated several men and was even engaged once before she married her husband. Lowe was somewhat of a daredevil. She describes her adventures riding roller coasters and motorboat racing. Her parents hoped that she would calm down after she married and she did. (18:43-21:16)... Lowe and her husband were married by a Justice of the Peace. Her parents were aware that she was going to marry and although they weren't eager for her to marry so young, they thought it would slow her down. About six months after they married, Lowe and her husband moved to San Gabriel. She was very homesick and would go home and stay with her parents for about a week at a time even after she had her first child. (21:16-22:34)... After she married, Lowe spent most of her time at home reading, sewing or gardening. She had a car and could go places if she liked. After her children were born, she joined bridge clubs and socialized with friends who also were young mothers. (22:34-26:32)... She gave birth to a daughter approximately sixteen months after she married. Her son was born three years later. She did not use any birth control during the first few years of her marriage because she wanted to have children. She talks about how her life changed after she had children and her feelings about being a mother. Her husband did not help her with childcare or housework. This did not bother her because she enjoyed doing things around the house. (26:32-27:08)... Lowe thought it was useless to think about getting a job after she married, noting that her husband was old-fashioned and didn't believe in married women working outside the home. Her life revolved around her family and she did not have time to work. (27:08-28:42)... When she and her husband moved to San Gabriel, they rented a one-bedroom home. They moved again when their daughter was born and then purchased a two-bedroom, Spanish style home in San Gabriel after their son was born. (28:42-29:42)... Decisions in her household were made by her husband and he treated her like one his children rather than his wife, explaining that their marriage was not a partnership. She accepted her status in the relationship because she was consumed with her children and believed that marriages were supposed to last forever. (29:42-30:38)... Her husband was not involved in any social activities or clubs outside their marriage because he was too busy with his career. Lowe took her children to Sunday school every week, but she did not attend church on a regular basis. She went to church services with her mother on Easter and Mother's Day. After her daughter was born, Lowe went home and stayed with her family whenever she felt homesick. End of tape. *** File: rrrelowe3.mp3 (0:00-0:38)... Lowe continues to discuss visiting her parents after she got married. Her children were close with their grandparents and they spent a lot of time together. (0:38-1:39)... Although she had friends she socialized with and in whom she could confide, there were few occasions when she got upset about anything. Whenever her children got sick, she went to her mother for help. (1:39-3:19)... Asked if her children were restricted from certain activities because of their gender, Lowe notes that her children helped her with everything. She always talked and played with her children. She describes the Halloween festivities that took place when her children were small. (3:19-7:50)... Note: the tape is turned off as Lowe starts to discuss her work history. Lowe and her husband divorced after seven years of marriage. She continued to live with him for the sake of her children and their relationship improved. She lived with him until he remarried several years after they divorced. Prior to divorcing her husband, she went to work at a restaurant. In 1942, she was hired at Douglas and worked there for the duration of the war as a riveter. (7:50-11:28)... Even though her parents and relatives did not support her decision to divorce, she could not stand being married to her husband any longer. Obtaining a divorce through the court system was a difficult experience for her. After the divorce, Lowe slept in her daughter's bedroom and her son slept in his father's bedroom. She worked at a restaurant during the day while her children were in school. She and her ex-husband alternated the nights they went out so that one of them was always home with the children. The division of household responsibilities remained the same after they divorced. Her husband paid their living expenses, but Lowe did not give him any of her earnings. (11:28-14:30)... Note: the tape is turned off just as Lowe begins to discuss what happened when her husband remarried. When her husband remarried, Lowe moved out and purchased a home about two miles away from her husband. Her children remained with their father and were taken care of by their stepmother. Lowe started dating after the divorce and was not upset when her husband remarried. Although she occasionally thought about remarrying, she did not want to hurt her mother who held strict Quaker ideals about divorce. In addition, Lowe did not want her children to have a stepfather. She elaborated: "once burned, you know, you tend to shy away from it [marriage]. I liked being my own boss." (14:30-16:06)... She enjoyed working. The only other work experience she had was baby sitting, which the only job her parents would allow. By the time Lowe started working in the restaurant, she was no longer active in bridge clubs or other social activities because her children required more of her time. (16:06-19:13)... Note: although the interview ends at 19:13, but tape continues without sound for another three minutes. Lowe quit waitressing because the pay was bad and there was too much idle time in between customers. She then went to work in the dining room at Alhambra Sanitarium, a mental hospital. In addition to completing her dining room responsibilities, Lowe was occasionally called in to help restrain patients who had undergone shock therapy. She worked at the sanitarium for about a year before she was hired at Douglas. End of tape.
- Rights Note
- This repository item may be used for classroom presentations, unpublished papers, and other educational, research, or scholarly use. Other uses, especially publication in any form, such as in dissertations, theses, articles, or web pages are not permitted without the express written permission of the individual collection's copyright holder(s). Please contact the CSULB Library Administration should you require permission to publish or distribute any content from this collection or if you need additional information or assistance in using these materials: https://www.csulb.edu/university-library/form/questionssuggestions-the-digital-repository-group
Items
| Thumbnail | File information | Actions |
|---|---|---|
|
5811926962457853-rrrelowe1.mp3 Public
|
Download |
|
|
6153356078613390-rrrelowe2.mp3 Public
|
Download |
|
|
2090447020181940-rrrelowe3.mp3 Public
|
Download |
|
|
3632193955155651-rrrelowe1.jpg Public
|
Download |