Middleton, Raleigh 1998-07-10

Raleigh Middleton talks about his time at Texas Tech University both as a student and as an employee (1925-1943), the changes in the campus, and the changes in Lubbock, Texas from 1925 to the present.

General Interview Information

Interviewee Name: Raleigh Middleton

Additional Parties Recorded: None

Date: July 10, 1998

Location: Lubbock, Texas

Interviewer: David Marshall

Length: 1 hour 43 minutes

Abstract

Tape 1: Middleton, Raleigh, b. 1906, Bell County, Texas, Moved to Fisher County, Texas in 1910, Moved to Dickens County, Texas in 1916, Moved to Lubbock, Texas in 1925, Parents, Father: First he farmed, then he wrote life insurance for United Fidelity, Bought a section of the Spur Ranch in 1916 in Dickens County, Texas with his Brother in law, Middleton, Raleigh (again), Started college at Texas Tech in 1925, the first year Texas Tech opened, Graduated in 1929, Sister, Started college at Texas Tech in 1925, Home Economics Major - Graduated in 1929, Dickens High School – unaffiliated school, Dickens, Texas, Family farm near Dickens, Texas, Crops, Small scale ranching, Middleton, Raleigh (again), Majored in Agriculture at Texas Tech, Work at the dairy while in school, Work at the dairy after graduation, Farm superintendent at Texas Tech from 1935 – 1943, Dairy Barn, Variety of livestock for class work, Plowing with horses, Texas Tech University cultivation acreage, Horses, Number of horses, Breeds, Uses for horses, First tractors, Fordson (?) tractor with steel wheels, John Deer, 4 rubber wheels, 1935, Ford donated the first tractor, Texas Tech University Sheep & Hog Farm, Tree lined lane, Texas Tech University Orchard, Nursery for trees and grass, Horse Barn, Old location, Middleton, Raleigh (again), Length of time at Texas Tech, Texas Tech University campus 1925, Open space, Buildings, Location of schools, School of Agriculture, Location of buildings, "Mule Barn", Number of buildings on campus, Class room locations, Administration building, Library location, Location of buildings (again), Description of first library, Miss Elizabeth West, first Librarian, Texas Tech University campus 1925 (again), Administration building (again), Open country (again), Early football games, No stadium, First games were played at the fairgrounds, First stadium, Early football games (again), Games played on campus beginning in 1926, Attendance, Hurly(?)Carpenter – first captain, Middleton, Raleigh – His professors, Dean Lawdery(?), W.L. Steinal(?), Ray Malory, Mr. Mahoney, Number of students per class, Agricultural projects, Students providing own livestock, College student dairy, Dr. Flowers sold and/or donated some livestock for college dairy, Cattle breeds used, Experiment project, Breeding herds, Cattle kept on campus, College cows and student’s cows kept together, Texas Tech University sold milk from milk herd, Milk route in City of Lubbock, Delivered by horse drawn wagons, No law regarding pasteurized milk, Students worked for $.25 per hour at TTU dairy and farm, Middleton, Raleigh (again), Family home location, Boarders, House still standing at 16th & Ave. Y, Father (again), Built the house at 16th & Ave. Y, In real estate and insurance, Middleton, Raleigh (again), Work and school schedule, Lubbock, Texas, Few cars, Streets not paved, Overton Addition, South of 19th – open country, From 34th Street south, farms and dairies, Dairies, 3 within ¼ mile around 34th Street & University, Names of the dairies, Sizes of the dairies, Borden’s Dairy, Bell Dairy, Sister (again), Loweda (?), Taught home economics after graduating from Texas Tech, Married and quit teaching, Work at the Dairy Barn at Texas Tech University, Duties, Description of shed and lots, Cattle breeds, Job position, Student employees, Farm hands, Lack of Employee benefits, Farm house, First tractor (again), 40 acres per day, Plowing with horses (again), 8 acres per day, Beef cattle, Class work, practice judging, Selling to market, Slaughtering class meat went to the dorms.

Tape 2: Beef cattle (again), Records kept on cattle for class work, Dairy Barn (again), Silo, Grain used, How the loft in the barn was used, Livestock pen location, Silo location, One story attached building (Difficult to hear, moved away from the tape recorder), Track with rollers between barn and silo, Movement of grain from the silo to the barn, Filling the silo with grain, Work at the Dairy Barn at Texas Tech University (again), Dairy cattle herdsman, 1929-1935, Farm Superintendent, 1935-1943, Effects of the Depression on the Dairy Barn operations, Dry year of 1934, Shipped in hay from Arizona, No irrigation around Lubbock, Texas, Only 8-10 inches of rain that year, Source of water on Tech campus, Water piped in from Muleshoe, Texas, Lubbock, Texas (again), Individual citizens had their own windmills, Individual wells, Electric water pumps replacement of windmills, City water system, Source of water on Tech campus (again), Texas Tech used both city water and piped in water, Weather, 1934 sand storm, Grasshopper infestation, Weather (again), Hail storms, Tornado – 1970, Effects of World War II on Texas Tech University, High school boys replacing drafted employees, Harvesting alfalfa hay, Lubbock, Texas (again), Entertainment in the mid to late 1920’s.

Range Dates: 1906-1998

Bulk Dates: 1925-1943

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