| Summary: | In this interview, C. S. Johnson discusses his work history during the Depression as well as his experience trying to register to vote in the 1950s. Johnson explains that his family came from the country and had been in the business of sharecropping. He recalls living through the Depression and how difficult it could be to get a job with the WPA and especially the NYA (National Youth Administration, part of the WPA). Johnson recounts his various jobs: selling popsicles, delivering for a bakery, working in a packing company, delivering for a drug store, and working for L&N Railroad. He wife got him the railroad job because she worked in the house of one of the bosses, as a maid and cook. In addition, she went to beauty school and became a beautician. Johnson discusses how hard it was to receive a job promotion as a black man, although he eventually succeeded. He also describes the difficulty of registering to vote. He recalls making the attempt dozens of times, only to be asked questions designed to prohibit him from voting. He was asked to recite the U.S. Constitution and the names of Alabama and U.S. senators. He even remembers being asked how many gallons of water were in the Alabama River. When his foreman heard that he hadn't been registered yet, he was finally able to do so ostensibly because of his connection to the foreman. Johnson conjectures that because the man at the registration office knew the foreman, he didn't want to appear to be racist.The digitization of this collection was funded by a gift from EBSCO Industries.
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