Interviewees: Richard Magill and Eleanor Price
Date of birth/age at interview: Dick Magill—June 25, 1917/90, Eleanor Price—May 7, 1918/89
Interviewer: Gary Granzow
Interview date: Dec. 11, 2007
Interview location: Carversville Christian Church
Interview length: 46 minutes
Time span discussed: 1930s through 2007
Summary: Dick Magill tells about his life and his post-retirement time with Eleanor Price. At the end there is a short section interviewing Eleanor about her life in Carversville. (Part of this interview dealing with Dick’s service in World War II was removed and is available under Richard Magill.)
[youtube]
Time markers:
00:00 – introduction, born on Aquetong Road, growing up on Paxton Road farm in classic stone house
02:25 – typical Sunday dinner
03:05 – no water or electricity, well with no pump
03:38 – attending Solebury’s one-room stone schoolhouse for grades 1 to 4, taught by one teacher, coal stove
04:45 – survived depression by living off farm, Doylestown for shopping
05:20 – schools including Carversville, friends from school, orphans from Hillside
06:30 – Christian Orphanage children’s lives and friendships; friends from area
08:05 – walked two miles to Solebury schoolhouse across fields, drove to Doylestown High School in family car
09:45 – using the well to keep food cool in the summer
10:40 – high school classes; learned woodworking,
13:35 – some inventions including hinged flagpole and driveway bell
15:45 – Carversville’s quiet village center, gap pump, car repair, inn once a bar owned by Kling family; blacksmith shop across the creek
19:10 – 105 students in high school class; driving through the snow in a Model A Ford
21:55 – skunk hunting for $2:00 – $3:00 a hide; catching an opossum
23:40 – first job driving truck for Livezey at the feed mill
25:40 – 1940 worked in car shop for railroad in Trenton for more money
26:40 – drafted October 1941 (At this point the tape was edited. The World War II portion is a separate video.)
27:10 – marriage to Ruth Price, early life in army at Ft. Knox, two daughters, returned to Trenton railroad job
29:25 – foreman of car inspectors for 28 years
30:00 – 1980 retired, moved back to Carversville; Ruth died 1957, children 5 and 10 at time
31:16 – Eleanor Price’s husband died 1980, lived alone in Carversville, gradually moved in
32:20 – briefly repaired lawnmowers in Carversville
33:05 – most residents strangers when he returned; many changes, shops all different
34:19 – Dick Magill interview concludes
34:20 – Eleanor Price (Dick’s companion, sister-in-law of his wife Ruth) interview introduction; born in Montgomery County, life on a dairy farm in Bluebell, education in one-room schoolhouse
37:09 – moved to 60-acre Sawmill Road dairy farm; family worked on farm, grew own food
39:11 – current home on part of this property
39:51 – father died, mother kept farming; Dick helped on farm
40:24 – rode to Doylestown High School with Dick
41:16 – met husband at Carversville Church, center young people’s social life; three children grew up on the same farm
43:09 – father died 1938, husband in 1980; growing closer to Dick, sharing their home and families
