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Samuel Proctor Oral History Program College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Program Director: Dr. Paul Ortiz Office Manager: Tamarra Jenkins 241 Pugh Hall Technology Coordinator: Deborah Hendrix PO Box 115215 Gainesville, FL 32611 352-392-7168 352-846-1983 Fax The Samuel Proctor Oral History Program (SPOHP) was founded by Dr. Samuel Proctor at the University of Florida in 1967. Its original projects were collections centered around Florida history with the purpose of preserving eyewitness accounts of economic, social, political, religious and intellectual life in Florida and the South. In the 50+ years since its inception, SPOHP has collected over 7,500 interviews in its archives. Transcribed interviews are available through SPOHP for use by research scholars, students, journalists, and other interested groups. Material is frequently used for theses, dissertations, articles, books, documentaries, museum displays, and a variety of other public uses. As standard oral history practice dictates, SPOHP recommends that researchers refer to both the transcript and audio of an interview when conducting their work. A selection of interviews are available online here through the UF Digital Collections and the UF Smathers Library system. Oral history interview transcripts available on the UF Digital Collections may be in draft or final format. SPOHP transcribers create interview transcripts by listening to the original oral history interview recording and typing a verbatim document of it. The transcript is written with careful attention to reflect original grammar and word choice of each interviewee; subjective or editorial changes are not made to their speech. The draft transcript can also later undergo a later final edit to ensure accuracy in spelling and format. Interviewees can also provide their own spelling corrections. SPOHP transcribers refer to the Merriam- Webster’s dictionary, Chicago Manual of Style, and program-specific transcribing style guide, accessible at SPOHP’s website. For more information about SPOHP, visit http://oral.history.ufl.edu or call the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program office at 352-392-7168. -February 2018 The Foundation for The Gator Nation An Equal Opportunity Institution TMP-141B Interviewee: Susan "Sudy" McKnight Interviewer: Lara Alqasem, Mackenzie Goode Date of Interview: October 23, 2017 A: So, hi, I'm Lara Alqasem with the Samuel Proctor Oral History Program. G: I'm Mackenzie Goode. A: And today is October 23, 2017. We are today interviewing Miss Susan McKnight, and she is going to talk to us about country stores and her life. So, to start off, could you tell us when and where you were born? M: Well, I was born in Pensacola. A: Oh, wow. [Laughter] M: My dad was navy and he was down there training. So, I was born in a navy hospital there in Pensacola. A: Oh, wow. How long did you live there? M: Not very long. We didn't live any place very long, two years at best. And so, that's why we always came back. This was our real home, as my brother said. Came back here summers and Christmases, any kind of holidays that we could. So, I had a sense of security and stability. That's what Mobjack represented to me. A: Were your parents both from that area or . ? M: No. What, Mobjack? A: Well, from the Mobjack area, yes. M: Oh, yeah. My mother was born and raised there. Of course, I have a picture of her house and her. But she grew up and that's . the store is what she would've remembered if she were here. She could describe a TMP-141B; McKnight; Page 2 whole lot more than I am. She was born and raised and graduated from high school here, and then went off to William and Mary and graduated from there. A: Wow, good for her. Could you say your parents' names and when they were born also, please? M: Yes. My mother's name was Sally Bet Walker Lawson, and she was born April 15, 1921. My dad's name was Dunbar Lawson, and he was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in October 10, 1920 . Let's see, he graduated from high school in New Jersey. His dad was DuPont, he was a chemist there. So, he graduated and then went to the naval academy. And that's how they met. Well, no, it's not. I'm gonna back up. That's not how they met. But she did go up there and visit him. A: At the naval academy? M: Yes. A: And what did she do? Did she have a career? M: Well, she graduated with two majors, which was history and English. But, because we moved around so much, her main career was home, kids, taking care of them. She did sub a little bit in schools. We lived out on the Aleutian Chain – I don't know if you know that area in Alaska – on an island called Adak, and they need a sub, permanent sub. And that's what she did, she subbed. She was the sweetest person. She took that money and she set it aside. And then, when we came back home, she bought her parents a heating system. TMP-141B; McKnight; Page 3 G: Oh, wow. M: She was a sweet daughter. It was really needed. They couldn't afford it. But she did that. G: Wow, that's amazing. M: An awesome person. A: Yeah. What were some of the places that you lived growing up? M: Well, we lived in all four corners of the United States, plus Alaska which, at that time, was not a state. It was a territory. But we lived in Maine and Florida, Texas, California, Washington State, Alaska, North Carolina . I think that's all – no, Rhode Island, lived there. A: Wow. Those are some great places. M: It really was. I loved it. I loved that. But I also loved coming home. A: Can you share some of the memories that you have coming home? M: Oh, my gosh. Well, my great-grandfather, who started the store, he became ill. So, we lived in Washington State. My mother knew that this was not a good illness and it was going to cause his death. So, we got on this puddle jumper of a plane and left Washington State and must have landed in every state until we got to Richmond. And I'm not a good flyer. I've never been a good flyer, I don't think. I always wanted to get out. Of course, you don’t get out of a plane when it's up. We did land in Richmond. We visited her grandfather, my great-grandfather. And I think I had interaction with him maybe once or twice, not much. But the interaction that I had, I must've been maybe three. He was sick in the TMP-141B; McKnight; Page 4 living room on the bed, and he pulled me aside his bed, and he said, "Do you see that picture up there on my mantle? Whenever I feel alone or sad, I look at that picture and it makes me glad. It makes me happy." What an impact that made. You know, I didn't know him. But after that, I loved him. Because he seemed to like me, and that was really important for a kid that's moving around. He didn't understand it, but I did. A: Could you tell us what the picture was on the mantle? M: Oh, I wish I had brought it. I've got it. It's of me, and it's a little picture – my mother took me to the photographer – and it's just a portrait. It's a five-by- seven. I didn't even think to do that because that's a treasure of a memory for me. It's really important for other people to know how you can make such an impact on a small life, on a small child. He made a huge impact on me. And it was only thirty minutes long. I was standing there for not very long at all. A: That's so beautiful. That's so sweet. G: I know, I'm getting teary-eyed. A: I know! Me, too. [Laughter] A: I was like, you can't cry. That's so sweet. M: Well, my advice is don’t ever pass up a kid. Don't ever. The opportunity. A: Well, now I'm all flustered. I had a set question right here. Could you tell us a little bit about – you were mentioning before we started the interview TMP-141B; McKnight; Page 5 – what you did for fun sometimes around the store in the Mobjack area with other kids? Could you talk a little bit about that? M: Oh, my. I have a wealth . A: Well, we want it. So, as much as you want to tell us. M: Well, I wrote out something for me to help me remember. But if I just walked into the store, the first thing that I remember – of course, they had a sidewalk, which was unusual. I mean, the sidewalk was as big as the store, and that was about it – the storefront. So, then, you walk through these doors, and these doors were screen doors. I don’t think they ever closed ‘em. But they were screen doors, and I suspect were given to the store by the bread company. So, then, as you're walking through you notice the windows, and they had huge windows that let the sun in. And my grandmother used to put plants along the front and plants inside, because there was a shelf.

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