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 Mildred Council - On food, business, and Mama Dip's

Food is inextricably woven into Mildred Council’s life story. She grew up on a farm outside of Chapel Hill and cooked mostly out of necessity, and her main concerns were cost and practicality. She started learning from her father when she was nine years old, and as she grew up she held different…

 Willie Mae Patterson - On cooking and food

As a part of the Jackson Center’s food ways project, Willie Mae Patterson speaks to her experience with food and cooking. White Patterson grew up with a very small kitchen, her grandma taught her how to cook and always had lots of vegetables in her garden. Some of Patterson’s most popular dishes…

 Lillie Edwards and Juanita Washington - On food and cooking

Lillie recounts on her first experiences with cooking bread as a young girl. She was the designated cook of the family. She also talks about her mother’s cooking style since her mother does not use standard recipes to cook. Juanita speaks about Mama Dip (her aunt) being the head cook in her family.…

 Martrina Morrow - On food and food accessibility

This interview provides discussion of food, especially the process of getting food, and the amount of food you could buy. Furthermore, Morrow describes the change in money changes to affect how much food you can buy. She also demonstrates how money affects traditions. Her area had no farmers market…

 Joyce Long - On the connections between food, family, and memory

Having lived in New York City before moving to Chapel Hill, Joyce Long has seen firsthand the differences between Northern and Southern cooking. Her father owned a restaurant in Harlem, but she and her mother did most of the cooking in the home. Her mother taught her to be a creative cook, and…

 Roberto Gonzalez - On food, immigrating, and his relationships with Northside neighbors and the Chapel Hill Latino community

This interview is part of the Marian Cheek Jackson Center’s A Place at the Table Series. Roberto Gonzalez, a resident of the Northside neighborhood and tenant of St. Josephs CME church, immigrated from Mexico to Chapel Hill when he was about 26 years old. After arriving in 2007, he was introduced to…

 Donny "Hollywood" Riggsbee - On his childhood, food memories, and working at UNC

Donny Hollywood Riggsbee, a bachelor, gemini, grew up in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He remembers the last few decades in North Carolina, reflecting on the fond memories of his family and friends. He reflects on his time at UNC, working in housing and Lenoir dining hall. He shares his entertainment…

 Keith Edwards - On the importance of food

“Sundays were always a special day. That whole day was made into just like a holiday. - Keith Edwards This interview includes Keith Edwards’s viewpoint on the importance of food in the home and in the community.  She recalls specific recipes in the interview. Edwards was born and raised in Carrboro…

 Kathy Atwater - On food

Ms. Atwater gives an overview of food access in the community when she was growing up and how her family’s attitudes toward food have developed over the course of her life. Starting with a discussion of her mother’s kitchen and garden, she describes the role of food in her family and in the…

 Euzelle and R.D. Smith - On food and cooking

R.D. and Euzelle Smith have lived in Pottersfield in Chapel Hill since the 1940s. Both worked as educators in Chapel Hill for decades, and R.D. served as a member of the Town Council. They then became the namesakes for Smith Middle School when it was constructed. This interview was done as part of…

 Regina Merritt - On food bringing people together

In this oral history, Regina Merritt discusses what her life was like growing up on a farm. From the beginning of the interview, it is clear that her grandmother was the centerpiece of her family. She cooked for not only her own family members, but also for anyone in the community who needed food.…

 Robert Revels - On working in the food industry

This interview includes the interviewee’s background and his occupational history with food. He considers his first kitchen to be at the Carolina Inn in the 1940s and 1950s. His favorite dish to cook at the Carolina Inn was roast beef. Revels states that his favorite place to cook at was the Zoom…

 Willistine McClain - On her childhood, parents, food, and farming

Willistine McClain begins the interview by sharing her childhood background of living in Darlington, SC with 12 siblings. She also includes her battle with cancer and having to attend UNC Hospitals for treatment. Willistine describes her parents’ relationship; her father was in his 20s and her…

 Lavisha Williams - On food, cooking, and eating

Lavisha Williams grew up with her maternal grandparents as part of the household, and learned to cook watching them and her parents. Most of the foods and meals she grew up with had been passed down from her great-grandparents without cookbooks or precise recipes. Most of what she ate with her…

 Amanda Ashley - On food during her childhood and learning to cook

Amanda Ashley describes her experiences with food in her childhood as the interviewer introduces the Food Ministry. Amanda shares how her mother’s occupation as a nutrition teacher influenced her food intake. Food in her household was less processed. Amanda describes her learning experiences in…

 Gracie Webb - On her family, growing up in Northside, and changes in Northside

“On Sundays everybody would come after church and come there and eat, the pastors and all [of them]. We weren’t the wealthiest, but we were always full.” - Gracie Webb Throughout Gracie Webb’s life she has seemingly always been in the Northside and Cedar Groves area of Chapel Hill-Carrboro.…

 Shirley Davis - On her family history and the Civil Rights Movement

In this interview, Shirley Davis speaks about her family history. She grew up in Chapel Hill on Merritt Mill Road. Her father worked thirty years for the Sigma Chi Sorority and her mother worked for Milton Julian. Her grandmother worked at University laundry, and her grandfather worked with the Town…

 Edric Cotton - On civil rights and education

"Because we can change these things, and that’s why we were marching..." - Edric Cotton This interview is primarily concerned with political figures (Dr. MLK, Jr, Dr. Benjamin Mays, Muhammad Ali, Mahatma Gandhi, and George Washington Carver) and personal spheres of influence such as his mother,…

 David Caldwell, Jr. - On his career, community, and the Rogers-Eubanks neighborhood

"...and the thing about it was that you got to know there were very few activists that really knew what was going on with the enforcement and the same thing very few enforcers know what’s going on with the activists so it just made everyone—all of us more knowledgeable when people were talking we…

 Keith Edwards - On the future of Northside and the impact of the Jackson Center

"After a while the only Blacks you will see in this community will be those going to the churches but not living here." - Keith Edwards Keith Edwards discusses the impact the Jackson Center and student organizations on the Northside community as well as the challenges posed by ongoing gentrification…

 Russell Edwards - On Northside, the Civil Rights Movement, and desegregation

Russell Edwards grew up in Chapel Hill and has watched, as well as experienced, many situations that African-Americans dealt with both before, during, and after the Civil Rights Movement took place. He resides in one of the historic African American communities of Chapel Hill and shares his opinions…

 Mark Royster - On his family, community, and church

Rev. Mark Royster is the minister of Cedar Rock Missionary Baptist Church in New Hill, NC. He has spent decades working as a banker (VP of SunTrust), minister, school board member (leader of the Blue Ribbon Task Force), and community developer and activist in Orange County, and has strong ties to…

 Marquette Costen - On moving to North Carolina and what makes a good neighbor

This interview was done as part of the Facing Our Neighbors project. It begins with Costen discussing his respect for Southern women, noting that they can be stronger than men. Costen was originally from Washington, D.C. and moved to North Carolina with his grandmother. He notes the social…

 Russell Edwards - On his family, faith, health, and upbringing

Russell Edwards grew up in Chapel Hill and has watched, as well as experienced, many situations that African-Americans dealt with both before, during, and after the civil rights movement took place. He resides in one of the historic African American communities of Chapel Hill and shares his opinions…