Robert Wright, interviewed by Edward D. "Sandy" Ives
Scope and Contents
This collection consists of twenty interviews totaling approximately thirty-two hours conducted by Edward D. “Sandy” Ives in 1986 with men who worked in the woods and on the river-drives along the Machias River.
Dates
- Majority of material found within 1986
Creator
- From the Collection: Ives, Edward D. (Interviewer, Person)
Conditions Governing Access
For digitized items free from access restrictions, we are working to upload this material (pdfs, mp3s, jpgs) for public access, but it is an ongoing project. If you don’t find what you are looking for here, contact Special Collections (um.library.spc@maine.edu).
Extent
From the Collection: 20 items
Language of Materials
From the Collection: English
Abstract
1911 Robert Wright, interviewed by Edward D. “Sandy” Ives, March 12 and October 6, 1986, Machias, Maine. Wright talks about his experiences driving and supervising the final years of Machias River drives; quantities of logs; dates for river drives; job positions in a woods camp; location of dams; the ‘Driving Rock’ in the Machias River; names of river branches; splash dams on small streams; tradition of eating four meals daily; reasons for the end of river driving; scows; the fun of riding down falls; blousing boots to keep feet dry; modernization of river driving by the 1950s; board feet acquired in the final years; spotting roads; his perspective on clear-cutting; length of drives and size of crews; other jobs held by river drivers, usually also for the lumber company; not cutting lumber wood prior to September; red rot; using splash boards to control water flow; tasks of the feeder; size of woods camps; division of labor in a two-man team; introduction of chain saws; and the need to log in different places. Plus Wright’s 5 pp. commentary, “Water Use on the Machias River during 1968.” Text: 80 pp. transcript, plus 5 pp. commentary. Recording: 2 hours C 0237 – C 0238, C 0432.
- Chain saws Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Log driving -- Maine -- Machias River Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Lumbering -- Equipment and supplies Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Lumbermen -- Maine -- Food habits Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
- Lumbermen -- Maine -- Social life and customs Subject Source: Library of Congress Subject Headings
Repository Details
Part of the Northeast Archives of Folklore and Oral History Repository
5729 Raymond H. Fogler Library
University of Maine
Orono ME 04469-5729 United States
207.581.1686
