Vol. 3-Interview-Spire
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Mrs. Bella Spire DO NOT TYPE June 3, 8:30 – 9:30 pm
– Great for estimating population, location of (??) families living in “BACK STREET” (?)
Superstition: If you don’t wash all the (??) before going to bed at night, the devil will come and lick them off!
??? on itinerant merchants
(?) it?” – (??)
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[This is a typewritten form that is filled out by hand. Handwritten parts are in quotation marks here]
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
Bureau of Museums
P.O. Box 1026
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Date: “6/24/72”
Home Address: (Street) “House #137” (City, State) “Eckley, Penna.” (Zip Code): [left blank]
Home Phone: [left blank]
Occupation: “Housewife (widowed)”
Hobbies, Crafts or Other Skills: “None (watches T. V.)”
Business Address: (Street) [left blank] (City, State): [left blank] Zip Code: [left blank]
Business Phone: [left blank]
Previous Occupations: (years) “Housewife (had 8 children)”
Religion: “Roman Catholic”
Place of Birth: (town) [left blank] (State or Country) “Prussia”
Year of Birth: “1898” [In the left margin is written “131/132 1900 census”]
Other Places of Residence (years) “Moved to Eckley at age 6 months & has remained in Eckley ever since.”
Father’s Name: “Andrew Laganoski” Birthplace [left blank]
Father’s Occupation and Special Skills: “Miner (was killed in Eckley mine in a cave-in, 1917)”
Mother’s Maiden Name “Catherine Swankosky” Birthplace [left blank]
Mother’s Occupation and Special Skills: “Housewife–had 15 children–9 which lived”
“A. Bruno Laganoski’s sister…”
“B. Reuben Spire (husband), born in 1883, died in 1957, asst. foreman in the Eckley mines 1910-1938, he 1938-1948 died of miner’s asthma.” [In the left margin is written “88/89 1900 census”]
“C. Lived in ‘Backstreet’ house #19 then when she”
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got married she moved to her husbands home, house, #137 where she now still resides
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Bella Spire (6-25-72) House #137 I. “Main Street” was like a little city – this is where all the foreman & “big shots” lived (from the office down to Surgent’s house), & the other people didn’t go through that part of town or they got yelled at. This was like a private club. The girls were afraid to come through this part of town “We might get attacked.” The miner foremen & “big shots” moved out [??] around 1910 & the area of “Main Street” changed, the children weren’t afraid to through that [??od] of town…The children would go down to “love rock” & sing and “meet other children.” [on the right side of the text it says “Town Division”]
Contributions Message
Daryl Bojarcik, Camille Westmont, Melanie Akren-Dickson, Ann Kline and Elaine Kauffman