Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2013/Spring/William Oscar Toriann

This page is connected with English 105 at University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill - Federal Writers' Project - Life Histories

Overview

William Oscar Torian (aka Joe Florian) was a Black man from North Carolina who grew up on a farm with his mother, father, brother, and four sisters in Person County, North Carolina during the late 1920s-1930s. He obtained many jobs throughout his lifetime and stands as an example for the black man struggling to hold jobs during the Great Depression. William Torian was interviewed for the Federal Writers’ Project on December 21, 1938 in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Biography

Early life

William Oscar Torian (aka Joe Florian) grew up on a farm with his family in Person County, NC. At age 21, he decided to go live on his own. He caught a train to “the city,” Greensboro. His first job was at a hotel doing housekeeping work. He quit to work outside for Mrs. Simmon’s. Here he met his best friend Sam and attended church with him. At Church, he meet his wife, Virginia.

Adulthood

After nine years, Torian and Virginia moved to Connecticut for work. William Torian first worked at a roller mill, and then worked as a janitor at Yale Lock Company. Here, Virginia had their first child, James. She was sick, and was referred by a doctor to return to NC. After her heart attack, the Torian’s moved back to North Carolina. Torian worked for Mr. Barker as a building contractor, but was hit by a car, which hurt his leg, and forced him to switch jobs. He worked as a bellhop at a hotel. The Torian’s second child, Betsy, was born. Virginia made Torian quit his hotel job, because he drank regularly there. He opened a small lunch counter that sold ready-made sandwiches and cold drinks to Negroes. Torian also had to work odd jobs to make a profit. Loss of income forced the Torian’s to live in the back of their lunch counter and rent out their house to tenants.

Later Years

A tornado hit North Carolina in 1935 that caused Virginia to die of a heart attack. William sent the kids to live with their aunt and turned to drinking. The following year, James returned to help his father with work and saved him from alcoholism. Torian got a job as a janitor again. Later Betsy came to visit, telling him she was quitting school to work. William discouraged Betsy, telling her that education was the key to a good job. He told her a story about an opportunity he had lost due to lack of education. William Torian had many jobs throughout his lifetime and struggled like most black men with poverty and keeping a steady job.

Social Issues

African American Education

Education in the United States during the Great Depression (1929-1939) struggled due to lack of money. However, North Carolina managed to keep open every school in the state. Free black men wanted education and “viewed [it] as a means of self-improvement.” Even with the want to learn and available public schools, segregation in schools hindered African American learning. Both, “treatment of students and teachers” and “buildings, supplies, and books” were unequal in Black schools, and less money was funded. School was harder for children who lived in rural areas and farmed, like William Torian. It was difficult to make it to school when one’s family needed everyone to work. William dropped out of school in order to work, making it harder for him to find a higher paying, more reliable job in the future.

Health in African Americans

Jim Crow laws in the South (1876 and 1965) caused African American health care to be inferior to white health care. Many white physicians would not take African American patients, leaving them in the care of black physicians, who were of low availability and often of low adequacy.This “greatly impaired black health.” Virginia was constantly struggling with her health. It was often hard for blacks to find a good doctor, or even a doctor at all. Perhaps the lack of Black health during this time period aided to Virginia’s early death.

Work during the Great Depression

During the Great Depression, employment was at an all time low. In 1933, fourteen million people were unemployed. Because of high competition for jobs, people without the experience and skills relating to a specific job found it very difficult to find work. Racism during this time made it much harder for African Americans. President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal enacted the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). This helped African American’s find work because the CCC ruled, “no discrimination shall be made on account of race.” However, this program only helped young unemployed people between the ages of 18-25, therefore, many African Americans (and Whites alike) struggled to find work later in life. All of William Torian’s life, Torian struggled to find and hold jobs. This is most likely due to his lack of education and his race. Plus, American’s lack of jobs during this time period.

Historical Production

The Federal Writers' Project (FWP) was a United States federal government project that was enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. It funded written work and supported writers during the Great Depression. The Federal Writers’ Project was criticized by readers for trying to please sponsors by dramatizing the histories, which lead away from factual information. The FWP often added “excitement and dimension” which caused quite the controversy, as readers wondered if the information in the life histories were even true. In William Torian’s life history, the story is often embellished by using phrases such as “sharp bite of winter,” “wind whipped,” and “roaring as of the passing of a freight train.” These phrases are used solely to dramatize the story. Although effects like these could make the works more entertaining, the Federal Writers’ Project soon abandoned this technique in order to produce histories with more factual information. Local dialect is also used throughout Torian’s life history to try and add realness (i.e. “It’s jes’ lik’ de storm I drempt ‘bout” captures the everyday vernacular of African Americans during this time period. The lack of “literary English” bothered some readers as it was seen as “crude” or “inexpert.” However, the use of dialect was sincere, and helped readers get a feel for Black culture during the Great Depression.