DUNHAM: Today I am with Maria Chidester on December 29, 2011, at her lovely home
in Whittier, California. And this is interview Tape 1 for the Rosie the Riveter Oral History Project. Thank you so much for participating. I'm really looking forward to talking to you this afternoon. We usually start at the beginning; so could you tell me your full name and your date of birth?CHIDESTER: Maria Carmen Chidester. And I was born on April 24.
DUNHAM: 1924?
CHIDESTER: Yeah, 1924.
DUNHAM: April 24th, 1924. And where were you born?
CHIDESTER: Laredo, Texas
DUNHAM: Can you tell me a little about your family background?
CHIDESTER: My family was from, and we were all were raised in, Laredo, Texas.
Their last name was Salinas. They were very popular there at one time, and that's where I was raised. I went to all the schools there, in high school. Then one day I was walking down the street, uptown Laredo, and I saw this sign that said they were hiring people to work at the base at Corpus Christi, Texas. So I walked in and signed my name. I told my sister about it; so she went there and signed her name. Then we were called, and we were sent down to Corpus Christi, Texas.It was way out on a big building where they train everybody to go and work in
the base. So we were there for like three months being trained. And then they sent us down--we got the job at the base, Corpus Christi Texas.DUNHAM: Well I want to talk a lot more about the training and everything in the
beginning of your job. But can we talk a little more about your childhood first? I'm curious about your parents. To begin with, your mother and father and what their lives were like, their background. Did they grow up in Laredo, too?CHIDESTER: My mother was from Laredo. She was born and raised there. My father
was not from there. He was from Mexico. He came down to Laredo, met my mother there, and so they got married. There was seven of us, and we went to school there.DUNHAM: Where did you fall in the seven children? Were you the oldest, youngest,
in the middle?CHIDESTER: I'm the oldest. Then my sister Laura is next to me. After then after
her was Beatrice my sister, another sister. Then it was my brother Jesse. Then after Jesse was my brother Leo. And then Nelda, my youngest sister.DUNHAM: So what was life like growing up? You were growing up during the
Depression and the Dust Bowl. How was that?CHIDESTER: My father was a meat cutter. So we always had meat at home. We were
raised there, and we had a lot of fun. We went to school there clear down to high school.DUNHAM: What was school like?
CHIDESTER: Martin High School. That's where I went. It was nice. But when I
heard about the war on my last year, I quit school to go and work for the base.DUNHAM: Do you remember when you first heard about the attack on Pearl Harbor?
CHIDESTER: It was in 1941. That's when I first--
DUNHAM: December 7.
CHIDESTER: Yeah, December 7.
DUNHAM: Do you remember where you were? Were you at school?
CHIDESTER: I was in school, in high school. But then when I went to town and saw
the signs, I decided to--DUNHAM: What did the signs say? Do you remember?
CHIDESTER: The signs said: "We are hiring for people to work at the naval area
station in Corpus Christi, Texas. We will train you."DUNHAM: Did it specifically advertise for women, or did it just say "Hiring"?
CHIDESTER: No, it just said that. It didn't say, "No men." So I signed up. Then
they called me within a week. They called me, and I went to Corpus Christi because my dad was there already.DUNHAM: Were you nervous at all?
CHIDESTER: No, I wasn't. I was very excited because I thought it was something
different, you know. So we were trained there. Then after we got trained they hired us right there at the base.DUNHAM: So the training was a three-month process. What was the training like?
Was it men and women? Were there people coming?CHIDESTER: No, I didn't see any men. It was all women.
DUNHAM: Oh, it was all women.
CHIDESTER: Yeah, that were going to go work at the base.
DUNHAM: And how far is Laredo from Corpus Christi?
CHIDESTER: Hundred and fifty miles.
DUNHAM: Had you been there before this time, when you went for the training?
CHIDESTER: You mean in Corpus?
DUNHAM: Yeah.
CHIDESTER: Yes, because my dad was working there.
DUNHAM: How long had he been working there?
CHIDESTER: He had been working there just a few years. We all moved from Laredo;
we moved down to Corpus, because I was going there to work in the base, my mother decided to move over there.DUNHAM: Now backing up again, growing up as the oldest of seven, did you have to
help out a lot with raising or taking care of your siblings?CHIDESTER: We helped quite a bit but not to say--you know, just normal.
DUNHAM: Because your mom was able to. She did the most.
CHIDESTER: Yeah.
DUNHAM: When you were doing the training were you all training for the same job?
Same role?CHIDESTER: They trained us to go work there, but they didn't tell us a special
place, you know.DUNHAM: So what are all the things that you learned? Because you said three
months of training, right?CHIDESTER: Yeah.
DUNHAM: So what type of training?
CHIDESTER: Well, the training that we had was, you know, the wings of the
planes. Well, you know how they have rivets on them? Well, usually the ones that were damaged, they showed us how to take all the rivets out of the wings of the planes. And then we passed it on to the next guy, and if there was any the damage on the metal, then he would take care of it. If there was no damage, then he'd pass it to the next guy, and the next guy put all new rivets on it. And that was our job.Now, the last year that I worked there, they pulled us out from there and gave
us a job in the office. And then of course the war was over, and we all went home.DUNHAM: Was learning this work hard?
CHIDESTER: No.
DUNHAM: It was pretty straightforward, and you took to it naturally?
CHIDESTER: Yeah. We enjoyed doing it, you know.
DUNHAM: So they had opened this huge naval air station in Corpus Christi earlier
in '41. It ultimately had, I believe, over ninety-seven giant warehouses and--it was this massive place. Were people coming from other parts of the country? Was there a lot of migration?CHIDESTER: I think there was, but we didn't get a chance to talk to them or be
with them because we were so busy working.DUNHAM: Did you meet any people?
CHIDESTER: Oh, yeah. There was a lot of people I met there.
DUNHAM: Were they mostly from local? From nearby?
CHIDESTER: Yeah, they were right from Corpus, but apparently they came from
little towns, you know, and came to Corpus to work in the base.DUNHAM: So where did you live? Was it hard to find housing at all?
CHIDESTER: We lived in Corpus Christi.
DUNHAM: Mhmm. What kind of place?
CHIDESTER: It was a house. We rented a house while I was working at the base.
Because my parents felt like they would like to go back to Laredo, so we just rented a place there.DUNHAM: Okay. So and your father was working at the base also? Or he was working
as a meat --CHIDESTER: No, he was working at a meat market.
DUNHAM: Okay.
CHIDESTER: He was a meat cutter.
DUNHAM: How did Corpus Christi compare with Laredo?
CHIDESTER: Well I liked Corpus Christi better than I liked Laredo.
DUNHAM: How come?
CHIDESTER: Well there was a lot of -- You know it was very exciting at the time
with the war, you know. A lot of people, everywhere you went out to eat, there was full of people. You went over to the -- to the different places you know and carnivals and whatever - it was really nice. A lot of people.DUNHAM: What kind of carnivals?
CHIDESTER: They had a carnival where all the sailors went there and people went
and enjoyed themselves. So it was really nice.DUNHAM: Yeah, I think in your bio you wrote about -- was it Watermelon Parties
at the beach? Is that -- what was that?CHIDESTER: Yeah we had Watermelon Parties at the beach. That was really nice.
We'd bring the watermelons and then the sailors would meet us there. Then we'd slice the watermelon, enjoy it. We had a really good time.DUNHAM: What was kind of the dating scene like then? With the sailors and
workers and--CHIDESTER: Well where I worked, like I work here [points somewhere] and right
over here in the back of me were the sailors working and the same thing we were doing. So that's where my husband was and that's where I met him. There's this picture right there.DUNHAM: Oh, okay. We'd take a picture of that before we go, for sure. [Narrator
chuckles] So how did you guys meet? How did your relationship start?CHIDESTER: Well, he asked me for the first date and we went out. But I had to
always wait until he had the days off, you know certain days off, certain weekends off. When he had the weekend off, we always went out and enjoyed ourselves.DUNHAM: What did you guys do for fun?
CHIDESTER: Well we went to the carnival and we went over to the movies. We went
walking around a lot of places down in Corpus Christi, by the water that is really, really nice. And so we used to walk by there, sit down and watch the boats going by.DUNHAM: That sounds nice. What was going to the movies like during those years?
CHIDESTER: You know, [laughs] it's... kind of hard to remember. But just --
there were regular movies.DUNHAM: Did they have the cartoons, the newsreels?
CHIDESTER: They had their newsreel, the cartoons, and then something esle they
had. And then came in the movie.DUNHAM: Did they ever have live music as well before or after the movies?
CHIDESTER: No, I didn't see a -- I didn't hear a --
DUNHAM: So were the newsreel -- was that like one of you main sources for
information about the war or from the radio or the newspapers?CHIDESTER: Well you had the radio, you had the newspaper, and people talking
about what's going on.DUNHAM: I think I read in your bio, you also maybe corresponded with some
soldiers or people who served. Is that from high school or--no?CHIDESTER: Yes, I know. When I came back, when I got out of Corpus Christi, we
went back to Laredo. When I was in Laredo, I worked for the Hamilton Hotel. And Hamilton Hotel, you would meet a lot of people and there was a general that was in Japan -- they got him in Japan in jail there. He was there for quite a few years and he came back and he stayed at the Hamilton hotel. I got to meet him and shook hands with him. I thought to me, it was very important to see a general shaking hands with me.DUNHAM: Wow, that's very nice.
CHIDESTER: His name was General [Jonathan] Wainwright.
DUNHAM: Oh, General Wainwright. Okay.
Well--umm, I wanna know a little bit more about your job and kind of the space.
We haven't interviewed folks about the naval air station in Corpus Christi. Can you describe -- I mean it's a huge area, right?CHIDESTER: Yeah, it was a huge area.
DUNHAM: So how did you get to and from where you li--from your house, where you lived.
CHIDESTER: Well, at first we used to take the bus and the bus will take us down
to the naval station. Then later on, we got one guy that worked there that told us he could give us a ride; Pick us up in the morning, take us to the base, and then bring us home. We pay him; And both my sister and I he had another two guys in the car.DUNHAM: Do you know how many miles you lived from the base?
CHIDESTER: No. I really don't because the base was so far away.
DUNHAM: It was far. So about how long did it take to get there?
CHIDESTER: Gee, by bus it took about a good half hour.
DUNHAM: And by car, a little bit shorter?
CHIDESTER: Well, it's shorter. Yeah. But we took the bus and then later on we
went by car because this guy gave us a ride.DUNHAM: Can you describe the space you worked in and the overall of the base?
Was it--it was very large, yes?CHIDESTER: Yes it was. And we had two bosses that were very nice with us. They
kept an eye on us all the time.DUNHAM: Two bosses?
CHIDESTER: Yeah.
DUNHAM: Okay.
CHIDESTER: We just kept ourselves really busy.
DUNHAM: So--were there multiple shifts? Were there a day, swing, and graveyard?
CHIDESTER: We were the day shift.
DUNHAM: Were there other shifts, do you know?
CHIDESTER: You know what, I don't know.
DUNHAM: Oh okay. That's okay.
CHIDESTER: Because we just worked one shift and we didn't think there was
another shift.DUNHAM: So can you describe a typical day for me, what it would be like on the job.
CHIDESTER: Well, we'd get up--my sister and I would get up in the morning and
then this guy will come over and pick us up. Take us on to the base and drop us there. And then we went inside the base where we worked. It was very interesting but it was really big. You have to--you can get lost.DUNHAM: Yeah. Now, it became during the war the largest training facility for
pilots. Did you have access to any of that or see--CHIDESTER: Well, I'll tell you one thing--President Bush's father, he was there
being trained for being a pilot. So I got to meet him there.DUNHAM: Oh, right! Oh the first George Bush. He was one of the youngest pilots
there, I read.CHIDESTER: So we got to meet him there.
DUNHAM: Oh, you did? Okay.
CHIDESTER: Yeah. We thought he was really great.
DUNHAM: Little did you know he would become the president. Hmm and you also--did
you also meet another president of the time? President Roosevelt? He came and visited in the '43, right?CHIDESTER: Oh, yeah. No, President Roosevelt came in the base, came through the
base and he was in a car that had no top, you know. Was just like a convertible.DUNHAM: Right.
CHIDESTER: They say, "Well, President Roosevelt is gonna be here." And I thought
to myself, "Oh I would want to see."So I was working and I saw the car coming over with him and his group. So I left
there and watched him right there by the edge, and he saw me, and he threw me a kiss.DUNHAM: [laughs] Wow!
CHIDESTER: I thought that was very exciting.
DUNHAM: Yeah! It was very exciting. Do you know why he was there?
CHIDESTER: He--I guess they came over to check and see about the base, you know,
to {seek out a warning?} or whatever--DUNHAM: True, true. Well you worked there all the way from shortly after the
start of the war till almost the end?CHIDESTER: I started at 1941. And by the end of 1944, that's when they told us
that they don't need us anymore because the war was over.DUNHAM: Okay.
CHIDESTER: Actually it was 1945 when the war was over, wasn't it? '44?
DUNHAM: Yeah, '45.
CHIDESTER: '45. So we worked there in 1944 and almost at the beginning of 1945.
And then they told us that the war was over, so we had to quit.DUNHAM: So how did you feel then?
CHIDESTER: Well, we kind of feel bad about it because we're so used to working
there. You know, so--DUNHAM: What kind of--oh sorry, go ahead--money did you make? Do you remember
your salary?CHIDESTER: I don't remember the salary but I know it was good money. They paid
us pretty well.DUNHAM: So what happened then--
CHIDESTER: And then when I got out of there, I just went over and got all my
bonus, you know. And we decided to go back to Laredo.DUNHAM: The whole family?
CHIDESTER: I wanted to stay there, but my sister did not want to. She wanted to
go back to Laredo, so we just followed her.DUNHAM: Now, why did you wanna stay and she wanted to go?
CHIDESTER: Cause after Corpus Christi was a lot to see and do and in Laredo
there was very little to do. There's nothing, it's a dead town.DUNHAM: Was your--at this point, your boyfriend, your husband-to-be, was also in
Corpus Christi at that time--had you met?CHIDESTER: He was in Corpus Christi and then they sent him down to Hawaii, and I
never saw him. Then from Hawaii, they sent him overseas. When he was overseas, his fourth year was the end of a, you know, because he signed up for four years. So he came back to Los Angeles, to his parents' house. Then one day, he wrote me a letter and he wanted to know if I was still single. So I wrote him back and I say, "Yes, I'm still single." So he came over to visit me and he gave me the engagement ring. Came back over here and then he came back and we got married.DUNHAM: How nice. So that was after the war the war had ended.
Do you remember where you were when you heard about the V.E. Day, V.J. Day, end
of the war?CHIDESTER: I think I was at home. When we heard about it, it was exciting
because it was on the paper, newspaper, the radio, all over the place.DUNHAM: Can you tell me what you remember about recycling or rationing? Or--
CHIDESTER: Recycling in Corpus Christi, they had big boxes! Mostly on the towns,
you know, and you recycle like--your whole {scene?}. They got this kind of a, you go throw him in there and we recycle different things, you know, so. It was, you know, you had to, because they needed it.DUNHAM: Yeah. And what about rationing? Were there certain things that were
harder to get?CHIDESTER: Oh yes. As far as food was concern, you could only have so many
pounds of sugar, so many pounds of this, and so many pounds of that, you know. So you were short. And especially being seven of us, seven kids, you know. So what my sister and I did in the weekends when we were off, on a Friday we take the bus to Laredo. Then we go to Laredo and visit over there, my aunt, and then we cross the border. Then we go buy all kinds of things in there because it was really cheap, it was two big bags. And then we bring them over to my mother and she was very happy because we had that extra stuff.DUNHAM: Okay. And so that was pretty easy to do? Just to go across the border,
to Mexico and get certain things?CHIDESTER: Yeah. It was really nice then.
DUNHAM: What about fashion during the war in kind of work clothes? How did
that--what did you wear to work?CHIDESTER: Right there in that picture. You see the badge shroud over here?
DUNHAM: Yeah I see a badge. So that was your outfit that you wore to work.
And--what did you wear outside of work? I've read that sometimes people were wearing their work clothes sometimes. Or more as--'cause it was a big transition for women to wear anything but skirts and dresses, right.CHIDESTER: Yeah. At that time, you know, you wore dresses a lot. It's not like
now. So, we wore dresses.DUNHAM: Did people--did you see some women wearing pants at all around town?
Outside of work?CHIDESTER: Yeah. You see some of them but not that many of them. Most of them
wore dresses. At that time dresses were "it," you know.DUNHAM: What about the--what was the ethnic makeup of the workers like? Or
Corpus Christi as a whole? Was it very diverse?CHIDESTER: What do you mean?
DUNHAM: Well in terms of races, ethnic background.
CHIDESTER: Oh, there was different kind of races. And then you had a lot of
cadets there that were from other countries that had signed up to, to [narrator trails off]DUNHAM: Oh yeah. Do you know, like, which countries?
CHIDESTER: Yeah, so I met quite a few of them there. They were very nice.
DUNHAM: From where else? From which other places were they from?
CHIDESTER: From different places. Argentina. Different places, you know. I guess
signed up because there was a war, they could learn a lot, you know.DUNHAM: Now did you grow up speaking Spanish as well as English?
CHIDESTER: We spoke both languages, yeah.
DUNHAM: Both your mother and father?
CHIDESTER: Yeah.
DUNHAM: What was your mother's background of--where was her family from?
CHIDESTER: From Laredo, Texas.
DUNHAM: Okay. And originally before, were they from--?
CHIDESTER: Right there.
DUNHAM: Okay, okay. Going back as many generations?
CHIDESTER: Yeah.
DUNHAM: When the family moved back to Laredo, did you visit Corpus Christi
anymore after that or you kinda were pretty far?CHIDESTER: No, I didn't visit Corpus Christi at all.
DUNHAM: What other things changed? How did the war affect the rest of your
family? I know you moved -- all seven of you and your mother and father had moved to Corpus Christi. What were your younger siblings doing? They were in school or ?CHIDESTER: They were all in school--going to school. Only my sister and I were
the ones that were working, because they were much younger, you know.DUNHAM: Okay. Did--
CHIDESTER: And then my father had--worked for a market and then my two brothers
went there and helped him out.DUNHAM: Now, did that have any advantages as far as the shortages and rationing,
your father working at the market.CHIDESTER: Well, if, you know, there were things they moved or sell, then we got
those. And so that was a great help.DUNHAM: What kinds of things weren't popular?
CHIDESTER: Meat. It could be meat or chicken or beef. Whatever.
DUNHAM: Those things--because people didn't have enough rationing coupons for
them? Because they would have been popular but it might have just been that they didn't.CHIDESTER: Well, if you had a big family. The coupons were not enough--seems
like it wasn't enough, you know.DUNHAM: Yeah, yeah. Did you ever hear of people--of like trading? You know, the
coupons or that kind of thing or any other ways around?CHIDESTER: No. But you know my brother still has those coupons. When I went to
visit him he showed them to me. [laughs]DUNHAM: Yeah, we have some people who have kept them. Yeah, where does your
brother live?CHIDESTER: My brother lives in Albuquerque. Albuquerque, New Mexico.
DUNHAM: Uh-huh. Uh-huh. What was--what kind of planes were you working on? You
were repairing wings of planes, right?CHIDESTER: Yeah. The SNJ. They were the wings, you know. Everytime a plane fell
or something happened, you know. They usually bring the wings for us to fix them. If not, we got new wings to be working on, so they can put it on the new planes.DUNHAM: And was it a mix of women and men working in your department?
CHIDESTER: Yes.
DUNHAM: Okay. And was that ever--sometimes we've heard, especially in the war
like you worked on, when women first started, you know, somewhat new to be doing this type of work that some of the men gave the women kind of a hard time and/or that there was sometimes, you know, there's some hanky panky or you know, they didn't call it harassment at the time but maybe harassment.CHIDESTER: Yeah, but you know we never had that. It was very peaceful. We were
nice, you know.DUNHAM: Good. Good.
CHIDESTER: We were lucky that way.
DUNHAM: Yeah I think so.
CHIDESTER: Because a lot of times you can have a lot of things like that happen.
DUNHAM: Did you do other dating, you know before your husband and all?
CHIDESTER: Yes. I went out with, like I said, with cadets. We've had a real good
time. We went to the movies. We went out to eat. We went to the carnival and know, they were very nice time.DUNHAM: What types of places were there to go out to eat?
CHIDESTER: Different restaurants. Yeah. Uptown Corpus.
DUNHAM: Were there different types of food than you would have in Laredo?
CHIDESTER: No, they're almost about the same.
DUNHAM: Okay. Okay.
CHIDESTER: Yeah. Maybe a couple of things were different. But other than that it
was alright.DUNHAM: Did the make-up, you know, of your--the crew and sort of the workforce
in terms of women and men, did it change at all during the course of the war? Did more women come in?CHIDESTER: You mean during the war?
DUNHAM: During the war. Yeah. 'Cause you started pretty early, right? Right
after the war started, so--CHIDESTER: I started 1941.
DUNHAM: Yeah, so I was wondering if it changed much during the course of the war.
CHIDESTER: Well, you just seen new faces. New people coming into work, you know.
DUNHAM: But it wasn't like an increasing number of women as war went on?
CHIDESTER: Well you know at that time women didn't work as much. But when that
war started, then you saw a lot of women going over there to work.DUNHAM: And how did you feel as a woman doing this work? I mean did you see much
of, you know, like the Rosie the Riveter symbols and that kind of thing?CHIDESTER: There was a lot of Rosie the Riveters there. We felt very comfortable
and we loved to work there.DUNHAM: Was there a strong sense of patriotism?
CHIDESTER: Yes there was. But other than that, you know, everything was fine.
DUNHAM: And it was also good money?
CHIDESTER: Yes. But I can't remember how much money.
DUNHAM: That's okay. We know it was a good opportunity and it's going well.
Well other things that you would like to share about your experience--well, I
wanna go back to after, you know and your jobs, when the jobs went away. Did they close your entire department?CHIDESTER: Yes. They closed all the departments and let everybody go. So, you
know, we just had to go and find another job.DUNHAM: Was it all at--was it sudden or did you get some notice?
CHIDESTER: No, there was a notice that we're only gonna work to a certain day,
you know, and that was the end of that.DUNHAM: Since you were interested in staying in Corpus Christi--I know your
family moved back; but did you look around for other jobs or opportunities at all to see what might be there?CHIDESTER: No, I did not look around at all. Because we just went down to Laredo
and then when we got down to Laredo that's when I applied to work at the Hamilton Hotel.DUNHAM: So tell me about that. How did you find--what was that like?
CHIDESTER: The Hamilton Hotel? It was very nice. We had a lot of people coming
in; a lot of people from other countries because that was a border town and you cross the border to going to Mexico. So a lot of people from California came there. I enjoyed very much working there. It was really nice.DUNHAM: Did you have family on your father's side still in Mexico that you
visited at all?CHIDESTER: Yeah, we had an aunt that lived there in another town past Laredo. We
went to visit her and my grandmother there. Of course later on, they died, so--DUNHAM: Did you ever hear about the Port Chicago Disaster of 1944 out here up in
Northern California was a Navy ammunition's loading dock where there was a big explosion? Did you hear about that?CHIDESTER: No.
DUNHAM: Okay. That's also now a national park. There's a memorial there where
over three hundred soldiers were killed loading. So if you visit again, you might want to see about visiting there What other things might you like to share about your experiences during the war? Things that stand out?CHIDESTER: Well to me, of course you know I was young. That's a lot of
difference when you're young. I enjoyed everything! I liked working at the base very much. We met a lot of people at the base -- people that were high up, and you know, like the father of the president. And so, it was very interesting to see these people.To me, it was great to see President Roosevelt. I was very excited. I got to see
him in right in person! And then he threw a kiss at me. So that was really nice.DUNHAM: That was quite an honor, yes. That was the president of the time and he
was the one who authorized the funding of the whole--yeah--the huge enterprise there of the Naval Air Station in Corpus Christi and several other sites too. Did you ever go to any of the other sites around Texas that were part of that whole enterprise or you were just there in Corpus Christi?CHIDESTER: No, we stayed in Corpus Christi. We went from Corpus to Laredo.
DUNHAM: Did you know--did you ever meet any of--I think there was some training
of the WASP pilots, the female pilots during the war. Did you ever hear about them?CHIDESTER: We heard about them. I think they came by plane all the way to
Corpus, one time, when I was there, but I didn't get to see them.DUNHAM: Oh okay. Bud you did--were aware of them. What did you think of that at
that time?CHIDESTER: I think it was wonderful.
DUNHAM: Did you ever encounter any negativity about women doing traditionally
male work? You know, or wearing the pants or anything?CHIDESTER: No, I really didn't.
DUNHAM: A woman yesterday told me about when she was wearing her work outfit
like on the bus or the subway. She was going from New York to New Jersey so on the subway sometimes people would be pretty rude to her and her sister. She's like you she was commuting with her sister to work. Were you wearing your work outfit on the bus when you were taking the bus for a time?CHIDESTER: Yes. We saw some rude people on the bus. I mean women. They were not
working at the base but they would get in the bus, you know, going some place and they were kind of rude.DUNHAM: Yeah, they would.
CHIDESTER: But you have to be very careful because they might stir a fight or
something. So you just kept quiet about it.DUNHAM: Like she mocked your outfits essentially.
CHIDESTER: They kind of laugh about you, you know, because you were wearing a
uniform. But you can't say very much because you can't get into a fight or something like that and it's not worth it.DUNHAM: Yeah. Did you--were there many fights with all these people coming together?
CHIDESTER: No. I saw two women fighting outside the bus but the bus picked us up
and we left. And when they stayed they were fighting?DUNHAM: What about at the--you know, with the carnivals and things, were there
{clubs?}? Sometimes--CHIDESTER: No, they were really nice. The carnivals were very nice and we had a
lot of fun with the carnivals.DUNHAM: What about at work? What types of injuries occurred?
CHIDESTER: You know I didn't had no injuries. I was very happy. I was very
lucky. Neither did my sister.DUNHAM: Did you hear about--you guys were lucky though, did you hear about some
other people who did get hurt?CHIDESTER: No I heard one young guy that worked there, he got a hammer and tried
to hit somebody with the hammer and then they fired him. Right then and there.DUNHAM: Wow.
CHIDESTER: And that's the only one I heard.
DUNHAM: Did you know what lead to that fight?
CHIDESTER: No. That's the only one I heard, but they got rid of him. They got
rid of the young--it was a young kid!DUNHAM: Well a lot of you were pretty young.
You were 17 or 18 when you started?
CHIDESTER: 18.
DUNHAM: 18. Just turned 18? Yeah? Okay.
Do you know if they had health care facilities there at the base?
CHIDESTER: You know we never even looked at it or asked about it because we were
so busy working.DUNHAM: Okay. Did you go to the doctor at all during the war or the {part
privately know?}? What about growing up?CHIDESTER: No. I was really healthy. [chuckles] So I was lucky I guess.
DUNHAM: I guess so.
Well, I guess when you look back on you know--reflecting on the war and just
kind of how it fits into the story of your life, is there anything else you'd like to share with us today?CHIDESTER: For example?
DUNHAM: Well just how you feel. What's your perspective on your service during
this time? You know, working on the planes, you know, helping repair planes for the war.CHIDESTER: Well I felt very happy about it and I felt like I was giving some of
myself to help out during the war and that made me feel very happy. Knowing that there was a war and that we were helping.DUNHAM: I was just remembering too about when your sister wanted to go back
especially to Laredo and you wanted to stay. Did she enjoy the work or enjoy Corpus Christi?CHIDESTER: Yeah she enjoyed the work but she wanted to go back to my hometown Laredo.
DUNHAM: Do you know why she wanted to go back?
CHIDESTER: I don't know. Probably she liked that so well.
DUNHAM: She just was more comfortable there.
So after you were working at the hotel, then you were there until your husband
wrote or your eventual husband wrote you and he came and visited you. Is that right? What happened from there? Did you--you guys got engaged.CHIDESTER: Yes. He gave me the ring and he came back here to California. In
February, he came back to Laredo and we got married. We got married in the church, Catholic Church.DUNHAM: Well that's another point. Did you grow up with religion?
CHIDESTER: Yes. It was Catholic.
DUNHAM: You went to Catholic Church all growing up in both Laredo and--
CHIDESTER: I went to school for a while at catholic school and then I went back
to a public school.DUNHAM: How did the catholic school compare with the public school?
CHIDESTER: They were more strict. They take more time to teach you because they
don't have it on many kids, they only have a certain amount of kids, you know. But I didn't care for it myself. I would rather go to the public school, but my mother wanted me to go to the catholic school. So we did. My sister and I went to catholic school for a while.DUNHAM: So why did you leave the catholic school?
CHIDESTER: I just didn't care for it anymore and I told my mother I wanted to go
to public school. So we went down to public school and we stayed there.DUNHAM: You and your sister both left?
CHIDESTER: Yeah.
DUNHAM: Okay. What were the differences? Just the strictness? Or was it about
also the other students and kids?CHIDESTER: Well, you know, there were nuns that were teaching you and they were
very strict. So I just didn't care for it.DUNHAM: Were they abusive?
CHIDESTER: No, they were not abusive but they were pretty strict. Everything had
to be their way, you know. If you didn't do it, then they'd take you and put you in a room and you have to sit there for about an hour or so, as punishment. So I didn't like it.DUNHAM: How old were you?
CHIDESTER: I was about--probably--I started--They didn't have a kindergarten
then, they had just a regular first grade. Yeah so, I must have been like about 12 or something like that. 12, 13.DUNHAM: Interesting. So after you got married--what year did you get married?
CHIDESTER: 1948.
DUNHAM: '48. Did you stay in Laredo?
CHIDESTER: No. We got married in Laredo and then we left there, and came down to
Los Angeles. My husband had an apartment all ready for me.DUNHAM: Oh okay. Was he from California?
CHIDESTER: No, he was from Washington State. But his father was, worked for
their G.I. something and he was transferred over here. So they got a home down in Los Angeles.DUNHAM: He used the G.I. Bill to get the home?
CHIDESTER: I don't know if he used the G.I. Bill.
DUNHAM: But he had been in the--was it Navy?
CHIDESTER: His father?
DUNHAM: Or oh, oh, the father. Oh okay, but your husband had been in the Navy.
CHIDESTER: Oh yeah. My husband was in the Navy.
DUNHAM: And he did his four years, so he probably was eligible for the G.I. Bill.
CHIDESTER: Yeah. That's how we got our first house.
DUNHAM: Oh okay, great.
CHIDESTER: Through the G.I. Bill.
DUNHAM: When did you get that? That was in LA?
CHIDESTER: No, here in Whittier.
DUNHAM: Oh, here in Whittier. Not this home, though.
CHIDESTER: No. the other home. 'Cause you know you could get two homes. So we
got that one and then we outgrew it, you know 'cause we had four children. So then we found this house and then we got this house through the G.I. Bill.DUNHAM: Oh wow. Terrific. So did you move to Whittier in '48?
CHIDESTER: Yeah.
DUNHAM: Okay. So you've been here quite a while.
CHIDESTER: Oh yeah. Quite a while.
DUNHAM: How has Whittier changed over the years? What was it like when you first
got here?CHIDESTER: Well when we first got here, it was--they had a lot of people that
lived in Whittier that were very discriminated, that were very discriminated. That dissolved.DUNHAM: Who are those people? I mean, what types of people.
CHIDESTER: Uptown Whittier. The people that live in Uptown Whittier.
DUNHAM: They were discriminating against other races?
CHIDESTER: Yeah.
DUNHAM: So whites discriminating against--?
CHIDESTER: But then--of course you know, they left. I don't know where they
moved or what happened. Everything changed.DUNHAM: What was the discrimination? Was there segregation?
CHIDESTER: If they had kids, you know. They didn't want their kids to play with
kids with other nationality. So it was kind of hard. But then, afterwards they disappeared. All of them. They must have moved somewhere else.DUNHAM: Have you ever experienced that kind of racism growing up?
CHIDESTER: No.
DUNHAM: No? Not in Texas.
So what was that like? I mean how did you--was this after you started having
your children that you encountered it or right away when you moved here?CHIDESTER: No we moved here in 1948. We moved in an apartment in Los Angeles for
a while, but my husband was working there. Then we found that house over here, on East Whittier.They were selling all those houses because all those people that came back from
the service were buying homes. You know, getting married and buying homes and that's what we did.DUNHAM: In what ways did you see and experience the discrimination? Did people
say things?CHIDESTER: Well I just--I really didn't see it any place else except
{inaudible?}, Uptown Whittier. You know, with those kids over there. They were kind of discriminating.DUNHAM: And eventually they all just moved out?
CHIDESTER: Yeah. And everything changed.
DUNHAM: Yeah. Yeah. So what is the racial mix of Whittier? What was it sort of
then as it changed and now?CHIDESTER: Well the mix is tremendous. Everybody wants to come over to
California. [laughs] Because of the weather, you can work like the gardeners, you know. They hav it nade here.DUNHAM: Yeah, this is December and it's 70 degrees! [laughs]
CHIDESTER: Yeah. But if you did go any place else. Like any other state, they
can't do what they do here. Here, they can work very easy. The weather is so nice.DUNHAM: So you raised four children here. So what was it like--how would you
compare Whittier and Southern California to Texas?CHIDESTER: Well there was a lot of comparison. In a way, I feel in a way, you
know, the way you raised your children here as the way your children over here, there's a lot of differences.DUNHAM: What kinds of differences?
CHIDESTER: Well because you know, in my family, my parents spoke Spanish only at
home. So that was kind of difficult for us. In a way you know, I felt like we should've spoke English all the time and not Spanish. But then as I grew up, I feel like I know two languages and it's better.DUNHAM: That's great. Yeah, that's great. So how did you raise your children?
Did you speak both languages then?CHIDESTER: No, I didn't because I didn't want them to have--I didn't want their
language to be cut, you know. I want their language to be really good English language, so I didn't teach them.DUNHAM: So do you regret--
CHIDESTER: Now, one of my grandsons knows -- can speak both Spanish and English.
DUNHAM: But none of your children are fluent in Spanish?
CHIDESTER: No.
DUNHAM: So do you regret that at all?
CHIDESTER: No, I don't. I feel like they could easily get a job with a good
language. Which, if the other way maybe they couldn't get one.DUNHAM: Was your husband fluent in Spanish?
CHIDESTER: No. he was English.
DUNHAM: And in your home you spoke primarily--
CHIDESTER: Straight English.
DUNHAM: But growing up with your parents, you spoke primarily Spanish in the
home and then English at school?CHIDESTER: Yeah.
DUNHAM: Did your parents speak English at all?
CHIDESTER: Yeah, my mother spoke English but my father didn't.
DUNHAM: Okay. Well, is there anything else you'd like to share with us today?
It's been very fascinating.CHIDESTER: Well, what's the subject?
DUNHAM: [laughs] Well, we've kind of moved beyond the war front years. But I was
just wondering if anything -- you know, we've bounced back and forth a little, but if there's anything else about the home front years {doesn't need to be?} in particular that we might not have covered. I know sometimes we think of things right after it too [chuckles], you know. But that you might want to mention, you know, for the Rosie the Riveter World War II home front project. Just anything else?CHIDESTER: Well, uhh--
DUNHAM: It's fine. It's very good. It's been a very good interview. Oh I guess,
I didn't ask you about this. We talked about it briefly on the phone, but you did, some time, during your time at the naval air station, you switched to office work. Is that right?CHIDESTER: Yeah.
DUNHAM: Can you tell me about that transition?
CHIDESTER: Well, the boss there asked me and asked my sister if we would like to
work in the office. That was almost at the end of--just about a year before they closed the base. So we worked in the office, doing all kinds of office work.DUNHAM: So was that an option and you wanted to do that? Or--How was that?
CHIDESTER: They asked us. So I thought to myself, "Well since I've been working
here with the planes, the wings," you know, "maybe it will be different to go into an office." So we went into the office to work and we did office work.DUNHAM: What kind of work? What kind of office work?
CHIDESTER: Filing and doing all kinds of errands around the base, you know, to
different departments.DUNHAM: What kind of--taking files to places. So did you meet more people that way?
CHIDESTER: Well, just the ordinary people.
DUNHAM: So did you like that work more or less than working on the planes?
CHIDESTER: You know, truthfully, I liked working with the wings. The office was
okay. The office was okay, but I really don't--I think it was just right.[phone interruption]
DUNHAM: Okay. So then, you did the office work up until the job ended. Now, had
they given you that job because they were already reducing the number of people working on the planes?CHIDESTER: No, the minute they said the war was over. That's it. They come over
and tell us they don't need us anymore.[phone interruption]
DUNHAM: I'm just trying to picture the whole of the base of Corpus Christi. When
you came into it -- I mean can you describe what it was like? Were there lots and lots of warehouses?CHIDESTER: Well when you're working, there was departments. There was this
department over here where you were working with a certain amount of, you know the wings, whatever you want to work. And they have civilians here, like we would have civilians working here and on the back of us they had sailors working, doing the same thing we were doing.DUNHAM: In the same building?
CHIDESTER: Same building.
DUNHAM: Oh okay. So it was group by role and you guys were doing the same kind
of work.CHIDESTER: Of course, you know, the bosses will come over and check on us.
DUNHAM: Did they have--did the bosses do evaluations, reviews or?
CHIDESTER: You know I don't remember that they did evaluations. They probably
did but it's been a long time.DUNHAM: Sure. Sure. Well, let me just take a minute to take a shot of a couple
of these photos. I took that one already. This picture is of you and your sister. Where were you on this picture? Do you know?CHIDESTER: On that photo we were on Corpus Christi.
DUNHAM: And remind me of your sister's s name.
CHIDESTER: Laura.
DUNHAM: Laura. And this is you in your work outfit with your badge.
And his name?
CHIDESTER: Thurman
DUNHAM: Very nice. Well thank you so much. It was such a pleasure.
[End of Interview]
