Oral history interview with Tony Salcido.

Oral history interview with Torrance Parker. 

On October 28, 1989, Tucker Crawford was interviewed for The Hudson River Maritime Museum’s Hudson River Commercial Fishermen’s Oral History Collection. The interview focuses on Crawford's experiences as a fisherman on the Hudson River, particularly his work with sturgeon, shad, and bass. Crawford details the techniques and challenges of sturgeon fishing, including net sizes, the processing of caviar, and the impact of fishing regulations. He discusses the evolution of the fishing industry, environmental factors affecting fish populations, and changes in community dynamics over time.

Vernon Hall was born in San Pedro in 1936. He grew up in San Pedro, attended UCLA to study engineering, and then came back to San Pedro, where he lives today. His grandfather is Swedish, lived in Minnesota until they moved to San Pedro in 1905.  His grandfather and father were machinists who worked on ships in the harbor. 

Oral history interview with Violet Parkhurst. 

Virginia Brownell was born in 1922 in Larimore, North Dakota. During her early years, she worked at the telephone office in Huron, South Dakota. Her journey to San Pedro, California, began when her future husband, who worked in the telephone company, decided to relocate to California before the outbreak of World War II. He initially worked in Ventura before securing a position in the San Pedro office. Virginia transferred to the San Pedro telephone office around the same time, coinciding with the events of Pearl Harbor.

Vito Giacalone was interviewed for the Port of Los Angeles Centennial Oral History Project. Vito Giacalone was born in 1922 in San Diego, California, into a family deeply involved in the fishing industry. His father, originally from Palermo, Sicily, was a pioneer in the tuna fishing industry in the United States. The interview begins with Giacalone recounting his father's journey from Sicily to San Diego in 1914 and his subsequent career as a fisherman. Giacalone shares memories of his childhood, including a vivid story from when he was seven years old and first visited San Pedro.

Interview with fisherman W.G. Pool of Gloucester, MA by members of the U.S. Fish Commission. Interview contains descriptions of the mackerel fishery.

In this interview Walter Orr Roberts discusses the war time (World War II) and working in isolation at the observatory in the mining community of Climax, Colorado. He talks about observing the Sun’s corona, using the chronograph and doing special cosmic ray work with gold. The observatory was eventually incorporated jointly with the University of Colorado. Roberts wanted to get the Climax Company’s permission to name the observatory the Climax Solar Observatory, but timing was not on his side. Jack Evans and Roberts decided on a different name, the High Altitude Observatory (HAO).

William Gravett was interviewed for the Port of Los Angeles Centennial Oral History Project. William Gravett, born on December 23, 1937, in Little Rock, Arkansas, moved to San Pedro, California, in 1942 with his family. His father worked at Todd Shipyard as a pipe fitter and at Regan Forge & Engineering Company as a foreman. The interview begins with Gravett recounting his early memories of moving to San Pedro during World War II. He describes the vibrant community of Channel Heights, a multiracial neighborhood where he spent his childhood.