MF 055 American Thread Company/ Russell Carey

Northeast Archives of Folklore and Oral History: MF 055 American Thread Company/ Russell Carey

Number of accessions: 14
Dates when interviews were conducted: 1992, 1993
Time period covered: 20th century
Principal interviewers: Russell Carey
Finding aides: transcript
Access restrictions: NA2339
Description: A collection of fourteen accessions deposited by University of Maine graduate student, Russell Carey between March, 1992 and November, 1993. The accessions feature videotaped interviews (some contain audio only) with workers at the American Thread Company’s wooden spool mill in Milo, Maine, and contributed to research for Carey’s Master’s thesis entitled 3,750,000,000 Perfect Wooden Spools (University of Maine, 1994) (See NA 2329). The collective oral history of the mill’s workers documents conditions, issues, history, occupational lore, and people’s feelings about the mill from the 1930s through the 1960s.

2282 Clyde Angove and Yvonne Angove, interviewed by Russell Carey for AY 425, fall 1992, Milo, Maine. 87 pp. Video: 2 interviews, 1 VHS tape with transcript. The Angoves of Milo, Maine talk about their experiences as employees of the American Thread Company in the early 1900s. Text: transcript. Recordings: V 0053 (VHS).

2329 By Russell Carey for AY 597, fall 1993, Milo, Maine. 301 pp. Thesis titled “3,750,000,000 Perfect Wooden Spools.” An oral history of the American Thread Company and its spool factory in Milo, Maine.

2330 By Russell Carey for AY 597, fall 1993, Milo, Maine. 12 pp. Paper describing Russell Carey’s methods for collecting and recording the materials used in his thesis on the history of the American Thread Company’s spool mill in Milo, Maine. Text: 12 pp. paper.

2331 Lawrence Bryer, interviewed by Russell Carey for AY 597, November 1993, LaGrange, Maine. 33 pp. Video: 1 w/ transcript. Bryer talks about his work as a sawyer for the American Thread Company in Milo, Maine during the 1950s. Text: 30 pp. transcript. Recordings: V 0062 (VHS).

2332 Alasco Carey, interviewed by Russell Carey for AY 597, April 1992, Milo, Maine. 37 pp. Video: 1 w/ transcript. Carey talks about his work for the American Thread Company in Milo, Maine from 1939 to the 1960s. Text: 34 pp. transcript. Recordings: V 0063 (VHS).

2333 Margaret Carey and Doris Decker, interviewed by Russell Carey for AY 597, October 1993, Milo, Maine. 50 pp. Video: 1 w/ transcript. Carey and Decker talks about working for the American Thread Company in Milo, Maine. No picture on the video/audio only. Text: 45 pp. transcript. Recordings: V 0064 (VHS).

2334 Ralph Carey and Mary Tyler, interviewed by Russell Carey for AY 597, April 1992, Milo, Maine. 34 pp. Video: 1 w/ transcript. First ten minutes of video is the end of an interview with Ralph Carey (see NA 2337, V 0070). The majority of the video is an interview with Tyler talking about her work as a secretary in the main office of the American Thread Company operations in Milo, Maine from the 1940s to the 1960s. Text: 31 pp. transcript. Recordings: V 0065 (VHS).

2335 Earl Rhoda, interviewed by Russell Carey for AY 597, October 1993, Milo, Maine. 38 pp. Video: 1 (1 hr) w/ transcript. Rhoda talks about his work in various positions in the sawmill, spool mill, and Head Mtn. for the American Thread Company and Spool Mill in Milo, Maine from 1948 through 1963. Text: 36 pp. transcript. Recordings: V 0066 (VHS) 60 minutes.

2336 Clyde Angove and Yvonne Angove, interviewed by Russell Carey for AY 597, March, October, and November, 1992, Milo, Maine. 116 pp. Video: 3 w/ transcript. The Angoves talk about their work for the American Thread Company and Spool Mill in Milo, Maine from the 1930s to 1976. Included also is home movie footage from 1976 about the production of spools at the company in Milo, Maine. Text: 111 transcript. Recordings: V 0067 – V 0069 (VHS).

2337 Ralph Carey, interviewed by Russell Carey for AY 597, April 1992, Milo, Maine. 55 pp. Video: 1 (2 hr) w/ transcript. Ralph Carey talks about his more than 20 years at the spool mill working as a master mechanist and other positions for the American Thread Company in Milo, Maine. Text: 52 pp. transcript. Recordings: V 0070 (VHS) 120 min.

2338 Woodrow Decker, interviewed by Russell Carey for AY 597, April and October, 1992, Bangor and Milo, Maine. 126 pp. Video: 2 w/ transcript. In two interviews, Decker talks about his work for the American Thread Company’s spool mill in Milo, Maine for over 30 years. Mr. Decker retired as manager of the mill. Also included is footage of Mr. Decker watching and commenting on 8 mm movie strip showing the mill’s operations. Text: 121 pp. transcript. Recordings: V 0071 and V 0074 (VHS).

2339 Roy Monroe, interviewed by Russell Carey for AY 597, March 1992, Milo, Maine. 45 pp. Video: 1 w/ transcript. Monroe, a local Milo historian, talks about the role of the American Thread Company and how its spool mill played in Milo’s history. RESTRICTED. Text: 42 pp. transcript. Recordings: V 0072 (VHS).

2340 Ken Nutter, interviewed by Russell Carey for AY 597, April 1992, Milo, Maine. 70 pp. Video: 1 w/ transcript. Nutter talks about his work as a master wooden spool maker at the American Thread Company’s spool mill in Milo, Maine from the 1920s to the 1960s. Text: 67 pp. transcript. Recordings: V 0073 (VHS).

2341 Gardiner Osgood, interviewed by Russell Carey for AY 597, March, May, and October, 1992, Milo, Maine. 124 pp. Video: 3 w/ transcript. In three interviews, Osgood talks about his work for the American Thread Company’s spool mill in Milo, Maine from the 1930s to 1970. Text: 117 pp. transcript. Recordings: V 0075 – V 0077 (VHS).