Kennedy, Joseph T 1974-09-25
Joseph T. Kennedy, Higginbotham employee for 55 years, recollects his association with the store in Dublin, Texas.
General Interview Information
Interviewee Name: Joseph T. Kennedy
Additional Parties Recorded: None
Date: September 25, 1974
Location: Dublin, Texas
Interviewer: Fred Carpenter
Length: 50 minutes
Abstract
Tape 1, Side 1: Recounts family and personal history,
Remembers being hired by Morris Reid, Higginbotham manager at Dublin, Texas,
Describes store (1914),
Talks of returning to Higginbotham’s in Comanche, Texas,
Replaced Fields Hickman as Dublin bookkeeper (1918),
Mentions Higginbotham family members,
R. W. Higginbotham moved to Dallas,
Formed Higginbotham-Bailey-Logan Wholesale Company,
Characterizes R. W. Higginbotham,
Describes T. J. Williams as a general manager,
Discusses Higginbothams’ houses,
Recalls Dublin’s rail transit system and appearance,
Describes Dublin during World War I,
Desdemona, Texas,
Oil boom and subsequent decline,
Mentions measures taken by Higginbotham during Depression,
Notes that Higginbotham bought H. A. Smith’s lumber yard in Dublin,
Mentions undertaker T. H. Harold,
Outlines management of the department store.
Tape 1, Side 2: Continues discussion of buying procedures,
Dates beginning of warehouse,
Names Higmont and Pearlstone Hardware Company,
Discusses population fluctuations and business,
Mentions Dublin competition,
Recalls automobiles and early Higginbotham Ford dealer,
Comments on peanuts replacing cotton as a cash crop,
Remembers Dublin’s social life,
Railroads discussed,
Names Everett E. Colburn as founder of the now-defunct rodeo.
Range Dates: 1910-1930s
Bulk Dates: 1914-1930
Access Information
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