June Meyers 00:11
Okay, Flora (??) tell me a little bit about yourself.
Unidentified 00:13
I was born here in Whitley County, in 1927. I got married in 1943, had my first
child when I was seventeen, and I had most of my children at home. Only two was [were] born in the hospital. My mother was a midwife and delivered a lot of babies around in the community.June Meyers 00:46
How were you when you had your first child?
Unidentified 00:49
Seventeen.
June Meyers 00:51
How many kids do you have, did you already tell me that?
Unidentified 00:54
I had nine babies.
June Meyers 00:57
You had them all at home.
Unidentified 00:58
All but two.
June Meyers 01:00
You have them in a hospital.
Unidentified 01:01
I had them in a hospital.
June Meyers 01:04
What was a typical day like, could you describe a--just one day that you went through?
Unidentified 01:10
I can describe one night I went through.
June Meyers 01:13
All right.
Unidentified 01:14
The doctor came and gave me some capsules, and all night, I tossed and turned,
and the next morning, he came back, and my first child was born.June Meyers 01:23
You know what kind of capsules they were?
Unidentified 01:26
No, I don't.
June Meyers 01:26
[Were] Was, was you in labor? When the doctor--
Unidentified 01:29
In labor all night.
June Meyers 01:31
But when the doctor come, did the capsule start your labor? Or was [were] you
already in--.Unidentified 01:35
I was already and he just, I guess, more or less, tried to wait for it to be
born natural, and give me plenty of time.June Meyers 01:44
But that--
Unidentified 01:45
--That kindly killed the pain all night long.
June Meyers 01:47
Was that your first baby?
Unidentified 01:49
My first baby, yeah.
June Meyers 01:51
And that was in what, 1944?
Unidentified 01:54
'44.
June Meyers 01:55
What did you feed the baby?
Unidentified 01:58
The breast.
June Meyers 02:00
Oh, God. [laughter] We had our practical joke here. [laughter].
Unidentified 02:12
Breastfeeding made my--me very [tape cuts off].
June Meyers 02:22
How long did you breastfeed your babies?
Unidentified 02:26
Nine to twelve months.
June Meyers 02:28
How did you wean them?
Unidentified 02:31
Set me a cup of milk beside the bed every night and feed them during the day,
when I thought they was [were] wanting the breast.June Meyers 02:38
how did your breast dry up, did it just do it on its own, or did you have to put
something on it?Unidentified 02:44
Most of the time we'd use a breast pump. Every now and then, and then it'd dry
up on its own.June Meyers 02:51
What did you feed them, when you start feeding them solid foods, what did you
feed them?Unidentified 02:55
Mashed potatoes, gravy, and just soft foods.
June Meyers 03:00
How was [were] they when you started feeding them?
Unidentified 03:09
Six months, Angie started at six months--.
Unknown 03:12
Five, six.
Unidentified 03:13
Solid food. Did you wait that long?
Unknown 03:16
I have to say I did. Making my (??) gravy in.
Unidentified 03:22
Well, you know, when they'd be small little kids, people would let them taste
the gray and a little bit of soft stuff a lot.June Meyers 03:30
And did you all eat at the table together, all the kids, you and (??) and all
the kids?Unidentified 03:37
Yeah.
June Meyers 03:38
There were times that you didn't have enough food.
Unidentified 03:43
Not as (??) as it was.
June Meyers 03:45
Did you have garden, hand on garden. Did you can?
Unidentified 03:49
Yeah, all my life, I've gardened and canned.
June Meyers 03:53
What did you can?
Unidentified 03:55
Tomatoes, and berries--.
Unknown 03:59
--Green beans--. Everything that would be--.
Unidentified 04:03
Raised, we'd can.
June Meyers 04:06
Did your babies ever have any sicknesses? Any particular illnesses, whooping cough?
Unidentified 04:12
Well, one had to the whooping cough, I heard it pretty much, enough that I know
[knew] he had it. And only one's been in the hospital with asthma.June Meyers 04:25
What did you do for the whooping cough, any medicines or anything? Just--it got
over itself.Unidentified 04:36
Just got over itself.
June Meyers 04:38
Did you ever use any kind of home remedies when you was raising your kids.
Unknown 04:46
Mom said they had skunk oil, skunk powder or something that they used for croup.
Unidentified 04:52
Cold catchers (??)
Unknown 04:53
Cold catchers.
Unidentified 04:54
Yeah, we greased them in that, and we'd grease them with (??) oil.
Unknown 04:58
I remember taking what the Indians call (??). Now, what was that, liquor and
something put in it, what was that for. It was liquor and you put some kind of something in it.Unidentified 05:13
Liquor and something for croup.
Unknown 05:14
Is that what it was for, croup?
Unidentified 05:16
What it was--.
Unknown 05:17
The Indians drank it.
June Meyers 05:20
Did you have a doctor when the (??) kids was [were] little (??).
Unidentified 05:24
No, a--Dr. Brown. If he'd have a fever and a sore throat and I'd take them to
Dr. Brown.Unknown 05:34
(??) On examining table (??).
June Meyers 05:37
Did--you they have any colics [colic], diaper rash? [tape cuts off]
June Meyers 05:44
[End of interview]
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