<Begin Segment 14>

RP: I was gonna ask you, was there a community amongst DWP employees, like socializing together or...

PF: Well, company picnics and that sort of thing. But not too much. Otherwise, not like hobknobbing with the boss or anything like that. No, I don't remember that. But I went to school with their children and it was all, it was a very nice community. Just, I loved growing up there. I really loved Bishop. And John did, too. (...) But it's changed a lot. Those little stores like Jack Black's that was on the corner of Main and across on the other corner was the Inyo-Mono Bank. And post office was right behind the bank, and I even remember the box number. The... let's see, 573 was the box number and the combination was B-L. (...) Dad says, "Remember, bright light." [Laughs] So anyway, all those, they're all gone and it's so changed now. Schats is gone, way down on the other end of town and big, big business. And all those other fast food places that we never heard of a thing like that, you know, when I was growing up. If you didn't get it at home you didn't get it. Or, in a restaurant, they had restaurants but... oh, and the diner. The diner, it was between the shoe store and what was the name of that diner?

RP: Was it the Golden State Diner?

PF: No, no, (Marie's Diner). The Golden State was on the corner. I think that was later. (...) There was a big open space after they moved the diner out. And it was a real diner, like a diner car. That was fun. Oh, I loved to go in there. Greasy spoon. [Laughs]

RP: Was that the best meal in town?

PF: Well, for kids it was. Yeah, we liked that. And, and Jack's, Jack's Waffle Shop. That was a good place to go. We'd go there after a date and that's been there for as long as I can remember. And...

RP: Do you recall any large-scale community social activities?

PF: Yeah, picnics out at the park, Pulpit Park. And I don't remember what the picnic was for, just community picnic I guess. I don't even remember what we had to eat. I just remember the park and we played games, like ball, baseball and... (...) Dad was a Mason and Mom was an Eastern Star, and went to their functions. They had dances and initiation, Eastern Star initiation. And then they would have a dance and a dinner, and, or a buffet. And, oh, and Christmas tree lot, I mean, Christmas tree with Santa Claus (...) on the corner of Line Street and Main. It's an empty lot now. And they had a big Christmas tree there and Santa Claus and I got my first little set of dishes, doll dishes there. And I remember seeing Santa Claus. I just knew he was real, Santa Claus. He had the blue eyes and the white hair and the white beard and the rosy cheeks. He was the Santa Claus. And I only remember that one year. (...) And they were blue willow dishes. (...) And, and then they moved the Christmas tree to where it is now at the park, what was that park now? Bishop Park. (...) That information building wasn't there then. And, we used to wade in Bishop Creek as it came across under the, under the highway, there under the bridge. And it was, oh, not too deep. We'd go there during lunchtime and wade in the water. Cool our feet off in the summertime. [Laughs]

RP: Got lots of great memories.

PF: Yeah.

<End Segment 14> - Copyright © 2009 Manzanar National Historic Site and Densho. All Rights Reserved.