| Transcription of Oral History |
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| Tape 1 - Richard Bell - 1988 |
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| Narrator: Rose Anna Bell (Talking about Richard Bell) |
| Interviewer: Mildred Pratt |
| Date: July 27, 1988 |
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| Side A |
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| MP |
Today is July 27, 1988. And I'm talking to Mrs. Rose Anna Bell about her husband, Mr. Richard Bell, and his various businesses. Could you begin by telling me his age roughly, or when he was born if you don't mind.
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| RB |
He was born in 1910, April 5. |
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| MP |
Was he born in Bloomington? |
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| RB |
No. He was not born in Bloomington. He was born in Louisiana, Missouri. As far as I know-in Missouri. |
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| MP |
When did he come to Bloomington? |
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| RB |
He was brought here when he was a young man, a little person, because his mother died.
His mother died when he was young. And he had lived in Missouri. He had two brothers,
a sister that died when she was young. But he was not raised with his brothers.
He was brought to Illinois by Mrs. Molly Green-Miss Molly Price.
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| MP |
Would you say he was about nine or ten when he came? |
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| RB |
Yeah. He must have been. Oh, how would I say this now? She was married to-her name was Molly Thomas. Her name was Molly Thomas. He lived with her. She and Mr. Thomas raised him to a certain extent, you know.
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| MP |
Did he graduate from high school? |
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| RB |
No. (answers softly) |
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| MP |
What would you say-he attended high school? |
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| RB |
No, he attended grade school 'cause we were all in the same grade. |
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| MP |
He attended grade school? |
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| RB |
in Irving School. |
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| MP |
That's where you met him, in grade school? |
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| RB |
Oh yeah. No, he lived right in back of me over on Oakland Avenue. He lived on Mill Street, and I lived on Oakland Avenue.
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| MP |
Oh, yes. |
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| RB |
I can't think of the girl's name. She lives over there next door to the house. You know where Carl Samuels lives?
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| MP |
Yes. |
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| RB |
Well, there's a big house right next to it. That's where my husband lived. That's where my husband lived.
And you see next door there the people's name was Rowlette, Mr. and Mrs. [Robert] Rowlette and Mr. and Mrs. Smith.
Right through that over on Oakland Avenue was the Gaines family, and that's where I was born. The Gaines family had seven children.
Four girls and three boys. We all went to school together. Of course, there was no buses then. We walked to Irving School.
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| MP |
So when you were a child you knew him? |
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| RB |
so we knew each other when we were children. |
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| MP |
So when did you get-did he begin businesses before you were married, or afterwards? |
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| RB |
After. |
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| MP |
After you were married? |
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| RB |
After we were married. |
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| MP |
So when were you married then? |
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| RB |
We were married September 26. Wait a minute. Wait a minute. No, I always. |
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| MP |
That's all right. Don't.. |
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| RB |
August 9, 1926. |
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| MP |
Was he working then when you got married? |
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| RB |
Yes, but he wasn't doing anything like-he didn't have a business or anything like that. |
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| MP |
What kind of work was he doing? |
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| RB |
Oh, he shined shoes. Just like the regular odd jobs that the boys did around here. |
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| MP |
It was [19]29 when you got married you said? |
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| RB |
It was 1926. |
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| MP |
[19]26. All right. All right. So the economy wasn't the best then. |
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| RB |
Oh, no. It wasn't, and things were rather rough. |
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| MP |
So he was doing odd jobs, and were you working? |
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| RB |
I was working in private families, different families. |
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