Behind the Apron Project: Mary Washington Interview,1997, Part 1

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Shelia Montague Parker: What is your full name?
Mary Washington : Mary Elizabeth Washington.
Shelia Montague Parker: What's your birth date?
Mary Washington : Fourth month, fifth-- Fourth month, in the 15th day of '33.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. And your present address?
Mary Washington : Lloyd Bowen Road, St. Leonard, Maryland.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay, um, how many members was in your family? Your mother, your sisters and brothers, and your father.
Mary Washington : Oh, on that side?
Shelia Montague Parker: On your side. Your sisters and brothers.
Mary Washington : Oh. Um -- 12.
Shelia Montague Parker: Twelve. Okay. Any of them still living?
Mary Washington : All but two.
Shelia Montague Parker: And is your mother and father still living?
Mary Washington : No.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. Uh, are you married?
Mary Washington : Mm-hmm.
Shelia Montague Parker: And do you have children?
Mary Washington : Yeah.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. How many children do you have?
Mary Washington : Three.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. And their names?
Mary Washington : Marva, Christine and Brendan.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. And your husband's name?
Mary Washington : David.
Shelia Montague Parker: Uh. Okay. Describe the home in which you grew up in. [[pause]] What was it like?
Mary Washington : Well, it was a nice house, and uh, two bedroom, yeah. Well, all the children slept in one room. And when they come up, grew up a little big, it was the attic. She put them back in the attic, the boys back in the attic.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay, okay. Do your children live nearby?
Mary Washington : Yeah, on Lloyd Bowen.
Shelia Montague Parker: Did you farm -- uh, excuse me, did your family do any farming?
Mary Washington : Yeah.
Shelia Montague Parker: Did they own their own farm?
Mary Washington : No.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. They farmed for someone else?
Mary Washington : Uh-huh.
Shelia Montague Parker: What type of work did they do?
Mary Washington : Well, uh, cutting tobacco and corn.
Shelia Montague Parker: Did you also farm?
Mary Washington : Huh?
Shelia Montague Parker: Did you also farm?
Mary Washington : Me?
Shelia Montague Parker: Yes.
Mary Washington : Uh - well, what you mean?
Shelia Montague Parker: Did you farm as a child?
Mary Washington : Oh, yeah. I had to help them.
Shelia Montague Parker: Help your parents.
Mary Washington : Uh-huh.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. What was the first job you had?
Mary Washington : What was the first job?
Shelia Montague Parker: Yeah.
Mary Washington : House clean.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay, whoa!
Mary Washington : Oh, my goodness! [[mumbling]][[crosstalk]]
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay, with your first job, did your first job, did you take a first job to supplement the family income or just to make extra money for yourself?
Mary Washington : To make money for myself. [[laughter]]
Shelia Montague Parker: What other jobs have you had besides housekeeping or house cleaning?
Mary Washington : Uh -- I had no other jobs, and I went to the clam house.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. Uh, how did-- Who taught you how to shuck clams?
Mary Washington : Norman.
Shelia Montague Parker: Norman Durrell?
Mary Washington : Mm-hmm.
Shelia Montague Parker: How long did it take you to get the hang of it?
Mary Washington : Uh -- maybe for the day, you know, and then went off from there.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. When you first started shucking oysters -- I mean, I'm sorry, clams -- uh, before you first started, who-- What was some of the things that you had heard about shucking clams or oysters? What would people tell you about, uh, shucking clams?
Mary Washington : What they'd tell me about them?
Shelia Montague Parker: Mm-hmm. That it was hard work, or what what would they--
Mary Washington : No, they didn't say it was all work. They say you'd make good money [[chuckles]] doing the time. Anything about work.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. And you're still shucking clams today?
Mary Washington : Uh-hmm.
Shelia Montague Parker: So, for how long have you been shucking clams?
Mary Washington : No one thing, I gotta think about it.
Shelia Montague Parker: How old were you?
Mary Washington : I was 53 then.
Shelia Montague Parker: 53?
Mary Washington : 53.
Shelia Montague Parker: Wow.
Mary Washington : Because I had somebody give me number 53, and I said, "53 for 53!"
Shelia Montague Parker: Uh-huh.
Mary Washington : I was 53, and they gave me number 53!
Shelia Montague Parker: Oh, okay. You've been shucking that long, yeah?
Mary Washington : Yeah. And now I'm 64.
Shelia Montague Parker: So for 11 years.
Mary Washington : Mm-hmm.
Shelia Montague Parker: Wow. Okay. Have you ever taken the children to work with you?
Mary Washington : No.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. What do you usually tell them about your job?
Mary Washington : About my job?
Shelia Montague Parker: About shucking clams, yes.
Mary Washington : Well, I told them it was nice, and -- but it was hard [[laughs]].
Shelia Montague Parker: I believe that. [[laughter]]
Shelia Montague Parker: Are there a lot of young people at the clam house?
Mary Washington : No, not un--. No 18.
Shelia Montague Parker: None under 18?
Mary Washington : Mm-mm. Not under 18.
Shelia Montague Parker: Why do you think there's so few young people that are shucking clams?
Mary Washington : Why?
Shelia Montague Parker: Mm-hmm.
Mary Washington : I guess because, see, they don't have no insurance on them. And uh, anything that would happen, you know, you're not responsible for them.
Shelia Montague Parker: So if you guys get hurt, there's no type of insurance?
Mary Washington : Yeah, we don't get them. Mm-hmm.
Shelia Montague Parker: Yeah. Why is it that you would have insurance, but they wouldn't?
Mary Washington : I'm not 18.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay, yeah.
Mary Washington : Oh, I don't know. I don't know.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. So, uh, how many men and how many women is it at the clam house?
Mary Washington : Oh, my. Probably--
Shelia Montague Parker: Is it an equal amount, or is it more women than men?
Mary Washington : It's more women than men.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. Who's the fastest, the women or the men?
Mary Washington : In shucking clams?
Shelia Montague Parker: Mm-hmm. Clams or oysters.
Mary Washington : Well, hmm. I don't know about that one. Yeah, I got my back turned to that! [[laughs]] The clams, those, um, hmm, those, what you call them, they are really fast. The Mexicans, they are really fast.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. The Mexicans are faster than the black shuckers?
Mary Washington : Mm-hmm.
Shelia Montague Parker: [[Chuckles]]Okay. Uh, is it the same pay for men and women?
Mary Washington : Huh?
Shelia Montague Parker: Do you get the same pay for men and women?
Mary Washington : Yeah, uh, in clams? Uh-huh.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. What do you think makes shucking clams appealing to you?

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Shelia Montague Parker: What do you like about shucking clams?

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Shelia Montague Parker: Why'd you decide to do the work?
Mary Washington : Well, because, I said, you know, doing this makes extra money.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Mm-hmm. Is this a full time job for you?

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Mary Washington : No, it's a part time.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay, what other jobs do you do?

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Mary Washington : Um,houseclean.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay, here in the area?

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Mary Washington : Well, yeah, it's in Maryland, yeah.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. Um, do you have any other family members that shuck clams or oysters?
Mary Washington : No,mm-mmm.

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Shelia Montague Parker: No, okay. Have you always shucked at Denton's?
Mary Washington : Yeah.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. Okay, what do you usually pay for your oyster knife, your glove, your apron?
Shelia Montague Parker: What do I pay for them?
Mary Washington : Yeah, and do you usually get them there at the oyster house?
Mary Washington : Get them at the oyster house.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Mm-hmm. What's the usual price for those items?
Mary Washington : Let me see, it's been so long. It's three dollars for the apron, how much for the knife? Been a long time since I bought a knife. I believe two dollar for the knife, I think.
Shelia Montague Parker: Mmm-hmm.
Mary Washington : I'm not sure, cause been a long time since I bought one.

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Shelia Montague Parker: How long does a knife and apron last you?
Mary Washington : Oh, it lasts forever, I mean, not the apron, but the knife will last forever if you take care of it.
Shelia Montague Parker: Uh-huh.
Mary Washington : But the apron, you know, it weighs a, cause it gets hard as, you know, spots,you know.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay, do you have to do any type of adjustment to your knife or anything, to, in order to use it? Some people have to adjust their knives or redo their gloves or aprons or something?

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Mary Washington : Nuh-uh.
Shelia Montague Parker: You don't have to do any adjustment?
Mary Washington : Nuh-uh.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay, um, who's the best shucker at the oyster house? Do you know?
Mary Washington : She's, it awful hard to say, I don't know who [[laughter]].
Shelia Montague Parker: They're all fast, huh?
Mary Washington : Yeah. [[laughter]]

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Shelia Montague Parker: What are some of the other jobs there besides shucking oysters and clams?
Mary Washington : Other jobs?
Shelia Montague Parker: Mm-hmm. Day hands or, you know.
Mary Washington : No other job I know.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. Have you ever been in any competitions? Oyster shucking competitions?
Mary Washington : Have I ever been to one?
Shelia Montague Parker: Been in any?
Mary Washington : Oh, no, no, no, no, nuh-uh. [[laughter]]

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Shelia Montague Parker: But you have been to one?
Mary Washington : I have been to one, mm-hmm.
Shelia Montague Parker: Tell me about the competition.

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Mary Washington : Well, I wasn't that close to it, I tell you the truth. I saw, it really, I can't say too much about it cause I wasn't that close to them.
Shelia Montague Parker: Were anybody you know in the competition?

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Mary Washington : Conroy.
Shelia Montague Parker: Conroy.
Mary Washington : Mm-hmm, that was a long time ago, hon. [[laughter]]
Shelia Montague Parker: Yeah, if it was Conroy.
Mary Washington : Yes.

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Shelia Montague Parker: How has oyster shucking changed over the years, over time? What do you see that has been done to make shucking clams a little easier than when you first started? Or is there anything different about?
Mary Washington : About?
Shelia Montague Parker: Shucking clams?
Mary Washington : In the same business?

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Shelia Montague Parker: Yes.
Mary Washington : Nuh-uh.
Shelia Montague Parker: Any adjustments that the oyster house make getting your clams easier or anything? Or nothing has changed?
Mary Washington : No, nothing had changed.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay, what about the management procedures? I mean, how is your relationship with the boss? Is he a easy person to get along with or?
Mary Washington : Well, I don't have no problem with him.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay.
Mary Washington : I don't know about the rest of them I know. [[laughter]]

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Shelia Montague Parker: I can't imagine you have a problem having [[laughter]] Oh gosh.

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Shelia Montague Parker: What do you think is unique about shucking oysters?
Mary Washington : What is it?
Shelia Montague Parker: What do you think is unique about shucking clams?

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Mary Washington: Unique.
Shelia Montague Parker: Yeah.
Mary Washington: Hmm.

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Shelia Montague Parker: What's different, what's the difference in shucking clams and the other jobs you've had?

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Shelia Montague Parker: How has it differed? The management style, or, are you more independent when you shuck clams, or—?

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Mary Washington: Hm— Well, independence, I guess.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay! [[both laugh]]

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Shelia Montague Parker: How has, uh, working at the clam house benefit you and your family?

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Mary Washington: How is it—?
Shelia Montague Parker: How has it benefit you and your family?
Mary Washington: Oh, it benefit me! [[laughter]]

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Shelia Montague Parker: In what ways?
Mary Washington: In my bills! [[laughter]] In my bills.
Shelia Montague Parker: In your bills? Okay.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Uh, when people ask you what do you do for a living, what do you tell them? How do you describe your job?

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Mary Washington: I just tell them, I just shuck clams and then, uh, and do house work.
Shelia Montague Parker: House work.
Mary Washington: House cleaning, yeah.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. Are you proud of your job?
Mary Washington: Yes, I is, but sometime it's— I get tired.
Shelia Montague Parker: Get tired.
Mary Washington: But I, I like it.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. Can you, I mean, you say you're tired. When you, can you sit, stand, or what, while you're shucking clams?
Mary Washington: Oh, I sit.
Shelia Montague Parker: Sit.

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Shelia Montague Parker: What's your hours?

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Mary Washington: Um, from the time I get down there till about quarter to 9. Say around about -- oh, we work, start at 7 o'clock, we're in there—
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay.
Mary Washington: —until a quarter 9, so I ain't got no time down in there.

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Shelia Montague Parker: So you just shuck for two hours?
Mary Washington: Uh-huh.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Has that--Why has your hours changed?

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Mary Washington: Because, uh, during the wintertime, it was too cold for the girls, and he said he gon' change, you know, starts at 7.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay.
Mary Washington: After it get hot, warm, and then he goin' [[ ? ]], you know, start back at 5.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. Is there a difference in the oysters now than when you first started?
Mary Washington: Don't you mean the clams?

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Shelia Montague Parker: Clams, I'm sorry, yes. [[cross talk]] The sizes, th—
Mary Washington: Oh, yes! Oh, yes! It's different! [[laughter]]

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Shelia Montague Parker: How is it, how is it different?

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Mary Washington: Small! They're small.
Shelia Montague Parker: They're small?
Mary Washington: Mm-hmm.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Who are some of the other people that's at the, uh, clam house besides yourself?

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Mary Washington: Oh, what? Other people?
Shelia Montague Parker: Who are some of the other people, yeah.
Mary Washington: Who is some of the other people?
Shelia Montague Parker: Uh-huh.

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Mary Washington: Besides myself?
Shelia Montague Parker: Yeah.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Who are some that you usually talk to?
Mary Washington: Uh, Mabel, and James, and—

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Shelia Montague Parker: Mabel?
Mary Washington: Cluck.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay.
Mary Washington: James Cluck. [[ ? ]] [[ ? ]] What the hell, whatever. [[laughs]]

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. That's [[Biloxi ?]] ones, right?
Mary Washington: Uh—
Shelia Montague Parker: No.
Mary Washington: Uhhh. Nope.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Oh, Okay — Uhhh, Okay.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Is there any more oyster house, or clam house in the area besides Denton?
Mary Washington: I don't know!

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Mary Washington: I don't think there's nothin' 'round here. Uh-uh, not 'round here.
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay.

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Shelia Montague Parker: And how'd you first hear about Dick Clam House? Who told you about it?

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Mary Washington: Ohh, who told me 'bout this?

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Mary Washington: I think Maynie told me about this.
Shelia Montague Parker: Maynie?
Mary Washington: Uh-huh. I think she the one told me.

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Shelia Montague Parker: What's her last name?
Mary Washington: Oh, that's Conroy daughter.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Oh, does she shuck clams?
Mary Washington: She used to.
Shelia Montague Parker: Really?
Mary Washington: Uh-huh.
Shelia Montague Parker: Does she still do?
Mary Washington: Uh-uh.
Shelia Montague Parker: Oh, Okay.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Was she there for a long time?
Mary Washington: She was there for quite a while.
Shelia Montague Parker: Oh, Okay. I didn't know that. Gosh.

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Shelia Montague Parker: When you were growin' up, what were some of the chores you had as a child?

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Mary Washington: Ohhhh. Bringin' in wood. [[laughs]] Goin' down to woods, gettin' the wood 'n' gettin' stuff for kindle, kindle wood -- pickin' up chips.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Gosh.
Mary Washington: Oh, Lord have mercy.

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Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. Where are your children today? Where do they live?
Mary Washington: One in um, two in [[?]] and the other one up in [[ Sumner ? ]]
Shelia Montague Parker: Okay. Okay.