Oral Histories

"If people from the Jackson Center ever had a question or even other neighbors would text me with questions, I was always really glad to help." - Dr. Whitney Robinson Rivers Dr. Whitney Robinson Rivers speaks about her experiences living in Northside, primarily relating to the topics of healthcare…

In this interview, Collene Rogers begins by explaining the importance of working together as a community, standing up for oneself, and always working to improve one's own life. She then tells her experiences working for New York City banks, in which every branch had its own environment and diverse…

“At his (Walter Riggsbee) funeral, Reverend Manley said, “How many people had to call him at 1 o’clock in the morning, 2 o’clock in the morning, and he came?” I think every hand in the church went up.” - Collene Rigsbee This interview is part of the Marian Cheek Jackson Center’s Builders Series.…

Collene Rogers: Well, I never considered, I always considered my father to be a plumber, you know? That was his passion. But he did build all three of the houses that he owned, he built, and the building. And for, he worked with other builders, Mr. Charles Brooks and Tate, and he would do the…

Collene Rogers: Well, the only thing he did, I think the books he got, was like twelve of them. He was still working, and he was still going out and working during the day. And after dinner at night is when he would go out in his car and read the books. And so, he did that I guess, for about a, had…

Collene Riggsbee Rogers: It was his passion. He did everything. He was a licensed electrician and he was a carpenter. Upstairs in the building is where he had his workshop where he made his cabinets and stuff. And I guess he did whatever needed to be done because he was actually doing all of the…

Kathryn Wall: Your said plumbing was his passion. Do you know why he liked that better than the other….? Collene Riggsbee Rogers: I really don’t. I don’t. Because I didn’t. I don’t. I don’t know. I guess maybe it was just something that he knew that people needed more and that’s what he focused on…

Collene Riggsbee Rogers: Well, you know, it’s our house that’s on Merrit Mill Road that we had also and the building, my grandfather, his father, is the one that gave him the building but it was like, you know old times they had wooden buildings and stuff, I guess it was starting to deteriorate he…

Collene Riggsbee Rogers: My brother did the brick work and my cousin. I guess they all started that in high school. The football players had to work in construction in the summer because they didn’t have exercise equipment, so they felt that they were building up their muscles and stuff doing that.…

Collene Riggsbee Rogers: But nobody wanted to work with Daddy because Daddy did plumbing. [Laughter] But it was so funny because Bobby’s friends were always at our house. If Bobby was working and wasn’t there they always stopped by because they always liked sitting down and talking to Mama. So if…

Collene Riggsbee Rogers: If they didn’t go then it was me, you know, and I just didn't want to do it so I said let me find me something to do, I have to get into some stuff. I got into 4-H, I got into Girl Scouts, I got into everything that was going to take me away. And at school, I got into the…

Collene Riggsbee Rogers: If they called him and they needed it, he’d go. At his funeral, Reverend Manley said, “How many people had to call him at one o’clock in the morning--two o’clock in the morning--and he came?” And I think every hand in the church went up. And see we lived that way, and I…

Collene Riggsbee Rogers: Yes, I have to handle a whole lot. I’m out there by myself. I have to handle a whole lot, you know. I fix plumbing leaks for the toilet. I have a whole house filter so I change that. And I paint. I do all of that stuff. But I did it when I was in New York. I did it in my…

Collene Riggsbee Rogers: Yeah, he lost his sight. I think after he hit the judge, he was driving down Franklin Street and I guess the light changed and he moved and he didn’t see the judge, and he hit the judge. After that, they didn’t renew his license, I don’t think, because he had glaucoma. But…

Collene Riggsbee Rogers: That they were dependable. That when you call them, they did show up. And they learned, but they learned from others you know and that’s the only thing that I didn’t understand when I did move back. Music was something that we always did. We were always competing, all of it,…