Oral History with Rubin and Francis Smith

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Mississippi Digital Library Identification: mcd. oh. smith_ 354 Page 1 of 21
Interviewer: Ambrose Webster II
Interviewee: Rubin and Francis Smith
Date: June 19, 2001
AW: Rubin and Mrs. Frances.
FS: A. Smith.
AW: A. Smith of Cleveland, Mississippi. Um… the date is 6- 19- 2001. Mr. and Mrs. Smith uh…
if you will, tell us a little about where you were born raised and about your education. Just give
us a little background about yourself, if you will please.
FS: Well, I’m Frances and I was born in Merigold, Mississippi nineteen hundred and thirty. I
have A. A. Education in Child Development. My occupation was, I was a, Headstart school
teacher and later I was appointed as center administrator and I worked there for twenty- two
years. I retired in 1987, and I’ve been off ever since.
AW: Okay, okay
RS: My name is Rubin Smith. I got high as the ninth grade. I was a pastor I did that for 37 years.
And uh… ( not audible) I had to discontinue my work at that time.
AW: Okay.
RS: So I had a good life. I worked in ten to fifteen states ( not audible). I worked down in
Louisiana, Florida, West Virginia, Virginia those were different states I worked all my days in.
I’ve had a good life.
AW: Okay. Um… just ignore those recorders and just relax nothing major at all. Um… okay, tell
me a little bit about your parents and where they were raised, what you remember about them,
what their occupations were, things like that just.
RS: My father probably raised me and mother died when I was two years old, so I really don’t
hardly remember her dad. He married another lady named Annie Smith and she’s probably dead
and my sisters and my sister- in- law helped raise me.