My Nana’s interview project

My Nana’s interview project

By Nicholas

My Interviewee Is My Nana My Reason: She Has Great Family History!!

Has Lots of

AnswersDates Back 1750

Info History

Chose Nana

Hom

e Nana(real name: Doris Marceau) was born in Hamtramck, MI.

Our ancestors were from Germany, Ireland, and England.

She lived in Detroit and Warren, MI.

Nana’s first home was a government housing unit. It had only 2 bedrooms, 1 living room, a kitchen, and 1 bath—and five people lived there. When Nana moved to Warren, they lived in a 2 story, 3 bedroom house with a living room, dining room, kitchen, bath, and pantry.

She moved 3 times.

GHU(Government Housing Unit)

Family

There were 3 children in her family. Their names were Larry, David and Doris.

Her grandma and grandpa were the only relatives that lived nearby.

Her favorite relative was her Aunt Mary Rogers, though she was not nearby at all. (Aunt Mary lived in southern Illinois)

Our family immigrated sometime between 1850-1875.

Our relatives had large families.

Nana and her brothers

Growing Up Nana had many chores including dishes, cleaning,

cooking and laundry.

She moved away from home into her girlfriends apartment in 1966.

She had no spending money as a child.

Her family got along very well.

Her best friends were Sandy, Donna, Karen, Lily, Jennifer, Gwen and Charlene.

Our ancestors usually had to get eggs and feed the animals because they lived on farms.

Recreation/Entertainment

She liked to listen to the radio.

“Cruisin’ Down The River” was her favorite song.

Elvis Presley was her favorite singer.

She remembers getting her first TV. She was in the 4th /5th grade.

She watched Lassie, RinTinTin, Lone Ranger, Howdy Doody.

The Lone Ranger was her favorite TV show.A picture from

Nana’s TV

Entertainment

Nana played hopscotch, pickup sticks, marbles, tag, hand s, and Monopoly.

She played outside , in the attic, and the living room.

She played mostly with her friends; sometimes she went on a picnic

Our ancestors would have played Red Rover, Red Rover, stilts, jacks, and paper dolls

She had to share a bike with her brother

HomemadeWooden Scooter!

Food Nana says she ate whatever her mother gave her!

There are no ethnic foods she still eats (Unless you count Southern Fried Chicken as one).

She got food from the store or the delivery man.

The store was half a mile away.

The store was smaller, had fewer choices, and fewer items.

The food was much cheaper!

The meals were simple- mainly meat, potato, and a vegetable.

They hardly EVER went out!

She still has family recipes- from a couple of her aunts.

School The first school she went to was Pierce Elementary.

She walked to school – 3/4 of a mile each way--to school, home for lunch, back to school and back home at the end of the day.

There were no snow days.

There were about 35 students in each class.

The subjects she had were Math/Arithmetic, Reading, Writing, Science, Library and Gym.

Her favorite subject was (drumroll): Arithmetic (she’s a retired accountant).

Her class got along very well.

At first, the building had trailers next to a main building; later they added space on and there were no more trailers.

She ate soup and/or sandwich for lunch.

Her school was heated with coal furnaces/boilers.

Discipline was handled by staying after school, a swat on the butt and/or a talk to parents.

Her friends lived 3 to 15 miles away from her house.

Her ancestors’ school was a one-room school house; grades K-8.

Occupations Nana’s first job was as a secretary in a steel

warehouse.

She had the jobs of typing, answering phones, filing and bookkeeping.

Her initial salary was $1.25 per hour; by the time she left the company she was making $2.00 per hour.

Her ancestors had the following occupations: farmers, factory workers, dishwashers, coal miners, and maids.

Transportation When she was younger, cars were mostly 2 or 4

door sedans.

You had to order a heater and an audio/ radio system if you wanted it!

Most cars were painted black.

My great grandfather paid 5¢/ gallon and Nana paid 20¢/ gallon.

The price of a car back then was about $2,400, not including extras.

The other forms of transportation she used were buses or street cars.

Our ancestors used horse and buggy, walking, just horses or covered wagons to get around.

Miscellaneous

Nana remembers that my age (nine years old) was a really big year for her!

She moved into a house for the first time, she got her first TV and telephone, and she got her own bedroom (without her brothers!)

The stories shared were about how hard it was to live through the depression years and the importance of working together.

She most admired her dad– he had a great sense of humor.

Nana’s middle name is the same as her mom’s . This name has also been handed down to my mom and my sister.

Nana still has pieces of her grandma’s jewelry.

Nana met her husband at a dance.

Other Inform

ation Christmas was FAR DIFFERENT for Nana.

She received fewer presents.

She had turkey for dinner and no other relatives were there to celebrate because they lived in Illinois.

Nana remembers the day the John F. Kennedy was assassinated.

She was at trade school that day and she heard the news on the radio.

She was sad– when she was in the high school band she had played at a campaign event for Kennedy.

One really cool family fact that I never knew was that Nana’s great, great grandfather was born on a wagon train in West Nebraska.

PicturesRiding a horse as a little baby.

Nana playing with one of her brothers/friends. Government Housing in the background.

Pictures

Aunt Mary 1946

Uncle Larry playing with a toy farm 1952.

Riding the delivery

horse!1945

PicturesNana and her friend Sandy

Great Great Grandpa and Larry Together.

Great Great Grandpa Adam Harsy

July 7, 1944- Notice the well in the background !

Pictures

Great Great

Grandpa Harsy

Cistern at home of Great Grandma

Great Great Grandpa and Grandma McCuen Oct. 1945 Uncle

David, Aunt Sharon

THE END!