Interview: The Effects of WW2 on Civilians (EXTRA CREDIT)

This is an interview I did over Skype with my great uncle, Robert Mottley, who was born in January, 1940 and grew up during World War 2. He recounts his memories of how the war affected his community as well as shares personal story of a relative who was involved in the war.

(Audio Only)

I concluded from this interview that the war did not only affect those actively serving, but also the lives of every day civilians.

My Life as a White Woman

This shall be interesting....

My name is Martha Anne. I am 32 years old and live in Virginia. My husband James recently lost his job at the automotive shop. We are not poor, but we are barely passing as middle class.

The New Deal affected me in many ways. Up until the Depression, I had stayed at home and cared for my children while my husband worked. But after the economy started decreasing and especially when James lost his job, I began looking for work. I had heard about the "New Deal" but didn't care much for politics. But after talking to my friend Sally, who had got a job as a telephone oporator, I began to learn more and more about this Deal. I found out that it alone did not do much for women like myself and mostly provided work for men. Through the Civilian Conservation Corps, my husband began work on the Blue Ridge Parkway in 1936. I talked with local officials and eventually found myself working in a textile factory. The pay wasn't much, but I am thankful for the WPA for helping me find a job to better suppoer my family.

I personally wish that this "New Deal" would deal more with women, but I guess society is still sexist. Hopefully in a few decades women will be able to have equal job opportunities as men. But I am very supportive of the New Deal.

Yours truly,

Martha Anne Winscott