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Q: 1 suppose you went up by train. up and hack A: Oh yes. Q: IVhat did J-ou do, go over to Altrjn Q: . . . to catch the A: . . . to catch the train Q: Was the train running from (;r:rfton to Alton at that time? A: Yes Q. So that you really wrnt to Grafton and got on . . . A: To Grafton to catch the train and go to Altc~n and all transfer Q: Could you describe a train trip to Springfield? A: Oh, naturally we didn't travel trains verb- much. A lot of people lived here for life and never got on a train. It was something. It was kind of an experience for us doxvn hrre. You know. I always recall ahout that train trip, this train from here to Grafton \ve had, but I don't know what the name of it \\-as. [It xvas] a spur off of one uf the lines anti it was locally controlled pretty well by some influential peopl~ around here hrcause ihry could call up and if they \\-anted to wait an hour, hold it up fnr an hour thcl.~,. tl~c! could call up and hold the train up Q: Yes, you mentionrd that. (chuckles) Non that ran from Graf~i~n on il
Anii the Eagles anif the Elks, I had a lot of friends in Alton and I joinrtl over at Alton. Alton was quite active at thc time. .And a lot of influential people belonged to thc Eagles - nr not the Eagles, the Elks. Anit I kind of iranted to helong to it too. I always rememher one fcllouv I-ho I kinti of ailmired. Rut ht, h;qli~tme(t to he in the liquor husiness and thry blackballed him, tvouldn't lrl him in. I roul,l never stand Lhat Rut I joinrd over at Alton because I had some relatives li\.eil in Alton. And .Allon was close to us. \Ye went to Alton a lot. Q: 110% oftrn would you attend the n~ectings over thrrr? (Jncr '1 rnonth, or A: Oh, sre, I trucked in St. Louis. I'd go to St. 1,ouis and I could just make it all at onr time. I'd probably stop by every time 1 went to St. I,ouis, I'd stop in u11 thcrc. It was a convenience for me. And met a lot of prople in these organiz;ttions. thr Eagles especially. And the Elks and I joinrd the Moose later on over here at Pittsfield hrcause I owned land up there and evenings. I didn't have no place to go and I'd go out. Q: When did you procure your I:ln,l :lround Pittsfirld? A: Pittsfield, in 1910 1 guess it was or . . . either in 1945 to the 1!150's, in that arra, in that time. Q: Now you say you joinrd the Knights of Colu~nhus up thrrr. At that time was it? A: No I joined the Knights of Colunibus a long time heforr that. That !\-as the only place they had an organization in this area was Pittsfield. It srcmed likr they took in this area. Q Did ~ o go u to meetings up thrre verb often? A: Not tuo often no. They'd ha1.e their monthly, or sometimes, affair, you'd attend that but nothing regular. See, Pittsfield was so darrlned far aw:q frorn hrrr, that took a 111ng ti~nr. I nrver went to Pittsfield until I got in politics. Even then 1 always belonged to the Knights of (:i~luml)us. But as far as Fittsfield, it was a foreign country to us when I first ucnt to Pittsfield. Q. 1Iow did you rome to go to Pittsfirltl? A: Well I had to go there on nrrount of - when I was in politics Q: Oh I see. A: Or you - you rrlean why I helonged Q: Initially kou said hack in the early 1940's here A: WeII, for your Knights of Columbus, this was part or thrir area for thr Knights of Coiumhus. Q: So your interest A: I)o\+n in Calhoun County. Q: Your int~,~.est there reall? started with the Knights of Columbus. A: Well no, not particular. It's the only placc I hail to join (.he Knights. If I was going 1.0 join, that was it. That's right hrfore I ever had any interest in l'ittsfield and so I didn't even know anyhody there at all. Carl Wittmond Memoir -- Archives/Special Collections, University of Illinois at Springfield
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University of Illinois at Springfie
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CARL WIITMOND ILLINOIS HOUSE OF REP
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orrrniilnity in central Illinois. A
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Carl Wittmond SESSION I, TAPE 1, SI
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A: Yes. Q: Okay. And then your fath
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County that had a spur on this side
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A: It's peculiar how you always rem
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Q: I see. (chuckles) A: Out of the
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A: . . . and he took care of you. A
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A: Oh yes. You'd have a showboat he
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A: Yes it really happened. This thi
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my motber had to scrape around here
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that's how narrow people are you kn
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you know. It wasn't too prosperous.
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A: Well, I guess it was. I guess 1
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to stay all night to go to a show a
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A: I guess that just becamea a knac
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Carl Wittmond Memoir -- Archives/Sp
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Page 43 and 44: Carl Wittmond Memoir -- Archives/Sp
Page 83 and 84: Q. (chuckles) We11 this kind of gav
Page 85 and 86: Q: You sa) you were going to school
Page 87 and 88: A: Sunir. yes, oh yes. I've got sev
Page 89 and 90: Q: LVell hou did he po about gettin
Page 91 and 92: A: Oh yes sure, they used to dl, a
Page 93: ha\.? to come hc,ll:r to t'3t or so
Page 97 and 98: half of the peul,lr never elen knrw
Page 99 and 100: A: Well, in the first place, they'd
Page 101 and 102: Monday morning from Brussels. And m
Page 103 and 104: an argunirnt Iatrr UII a1111 the12
Page 105 and 106: Q: I I a n e llad you known Paul Po
Page 107 and 108: .4: Yes, somehody got hurt and Q: .
Page 109 and 110: him. Down there - see. Blackie uras
Page 111 and 112: Nuniber two, the secretary of state
Page 113 and 114: kind of a mystery place anyway, no
Page 115 and 116: anything you'd want if you'd want i
Page 117 and 118: Q: Kind of cleaned it up then. A: B
Page 119 and 120: Q: Yes that \+-as later A: I can't
Page 121 and 122: A: Probably was I think, yes. I did
Page 123 and 124: Maybe a lot of them was in. Like Bi
Page 125 and 126: other people would go see until the
Page 127 and 128: - "Oh." he said, "he makes eighty f
Page 129 and 130: .A: Oh, in his ofice, many a time.
Page 131 and 132: district. Powell said, "YIIu'~ h~tt
Page 133 and 134: .A: Oh atlout - yes, hr shall have
Page 135 and 136: thrsrr. ant1 Iru) them. And I don't
Page 137 and 138: ;mil the key Dcrnocrats. the) xverc
Page 139 and 140: you ran't beat." I said, "Some day
Page 141 and 142: :I: Yes I ren~ernher that. :I: I pr
Page 143 and 144: .A: Yes. they was \.otiny and vice
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Q: What was your position on that?
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Q Did she usually do it at your des
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a lot of the cunstituents don't un~
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A: Yes I remember him Q: \Ye11 let'
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11: 011 I never did get excited ove
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'1: Oh 1 probahl) thought there wer
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to hlock it if he wanted to. So man
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it would he alright or whatever the
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Q: Yes. A somrthing. fle might have
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Q: Well let's see, he lived in Edwa
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Q: Oh, I see. A: Ht. thought that 1
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in the Granite City area - he was t
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:I: Oh yes, oh yes Q: What other ro
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So I put the bill in anyway to get
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A: . . . get credit for it, see, if
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A: I ctin't rrcall anymore \\.hat i
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A: hutuhahn, over in . . . Q: Germa
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Q: Well. Do you recall any particul
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I'd voted for the bill. That would
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Q: Let's see, the Zion [Illinois Be
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:\: Ile nrust not have run ;my more
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A: Wide open sparrs, that's right.
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Q: I'd like to ask first today abwt
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.A: Yes 1 can rt,call something of
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Q: Oh. He wanted the department you
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kno~r-. (;- I could have got on but
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who knrn. sonrething ahuut agrirult
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.A: \Vr ~ntrrtainzd several - one t
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town. And a lot of people was compl
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:I: Oh, n-c went a few other places
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.A: Not at that timc but they promo
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some of then1 - hut their unions ar
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sonielhing happened. I think I had
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Index .Ahl.nhani Lincoln Hl~tcal. 1
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Hinan, Martin, 79 IIitler, Adolph,
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