Born in 1916, Monette Hicks grew up in Eastpoint. In those days, boats didn't have motors, there weren't any bridges over the bay, and there were no houses on St. George Island. Seafood was all anyone knew. Monette's family worked the bay harvesting oysters. She quit school at the age of twelve, when she was big enough to shuck. Oystermen harvested their catch nearby on Cat Point and Porters Bar. Shuckers would work daylight to dark, without electricity. In 1933, at the age of sixteen, Monette married a shrimper, Louis Hullman Hicks. Louis sold his catch to Taranto's Seafood in Apalachicola. But together, the Hickses eventually owned and operated an oyster house of their own. There, Monette shucked until she was well into her seventies.

Scope and Content Note
During the interview conducted on December 8, 2005, with Monette Hicks and her granddaughter Terry Dean, they discuss their experiences in Eastpoint, Florida, particularly in the oyster industry. Monette Hicks talks about her family's involvement in oystering and shucking oysters. They mention the presence of Baltimore shuckers and the transportation of oysters to a large oyster house in Carrabelle. The interview also touches on the impact of a hurricane in 1929 and Monette Hicks's father's decision not to rebuild after their properties were destroyed. They discuss the challenges of shucking oysters, the absence of electricity, and the low prices they received for the oysters. Other topics include the introduction of outboard motors, the construction of bridges, and the impact of hurricanes on their oyster house.