An Oral History Archive for the City of Santa Clara, California - Agnews Village Group/Walter Wade
Created Date
July 31st, 1974
Description
(SIDE 1) AGNEWS VILLAGE GROUP
DuBOIS, Alma M. 4326 Fillmore Street. Santa Clara.
Miss DuBois was a participant in the Agnews Village group interview (see Payton, Viola E., for catalog entry). A resident of the village since 1948, she only rarely spoke during the course of the interview on July 31, 1974.
PAYTON, Viola E. 4120 Bassett Avenue, Santa Clara. 296-1624.
Mrs. Payton moved to Agnews Village at age four, just before the Earthquake, and has lived there ever since. She and her daughter, Delilah Quieto, were the major participants in the Agnews Village group interview (July 31, 1974). The other participants were Alma Du Bois, Nora Wheatley and Nellie D. Witham.
July 31, 1974.
The Earthquake. Local schools: the roads to school, one-room schoolhouse (circa (1900), its curriculum, the teachers. Early impressions of Agnews: the boat-taxi in floods, the people and their jobs, the hose and early cars, blacksmith shop, local hotel. Shopping: in the big city (Santa Clara!) and in the Village itself. Division of town into “Agnews” and “Bethlehem”. Businesses: the teasle barn, its function, its employees, the cheese factory. Prohibition. The Depression. World War II. Changes at the hospital. Use of brick from old hospital (destroyed in Earthquake) to fill in town lowlands. Social life: social dependence on Santa Clara and San Jose, recreation. Local Catholic Church’s beginnings. Opening of local school. Santa Clara as a shopping center. Relationship between people in Santa Clara and in Agnews Village. Fire services in the Village. Origin of “village” title. Major changes since World War II. Local politics. The old train depot’s role in town life. Length—48 minutes.
QUIETO, Delilah. 1952 Beech Street Santa Clara, 296-3632.
Mrs. Quieto, the daughter of Viola Payton, participated with her mother and three others in the Agnews Village group interview (see PAYTON, Viola E., for catalog entry). Mrs. Quieto was, with her mother, on of the major participants.
WHEATLEY, Nora. 2059 Second Street, Santa Clara, 296-3607.
She moved to Agnews Village in 1947. She occasionally participated during the Agnews Village group interview (July 31, 1974. See PAYTON, Viola E., for the main catalog entry).
(SIDE 2) WADE, Walter. 1130 Jefferson Street, Santa Clara, 296-5305.
Mr. Wade, now retired, was a pharmacist in Santa Clara for several years, owning a store in the old district.
August 1, 1974.
Pharmacy (1921). The town (Twenties): business district, merchants referrals among competitors, pooling Sunday drug business, knowing all the customers, physical condition of the business district, variety of stores in district. Shopping for clothes outside of town. The Depression: WPA. The drugstore explosion on Franklin Street (1930). Recreation. Prohibition. The Greater Santa Clara club. The issue over street-paving. The industrial park. Politicking in old Santa Clara: citizen interest in City Council meetings. Urbanization. Continued occupation of the old town by longtime residents. Length—60 minutes.
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