Interviewer
Gladys Peterson
Files
Description
William “Bill” Hunter discusses his life in the Stevensville area from the early 1900s to the 1980s. He describes how his family moved to Bannack, Montana, during the gold rush and settled there. He recalls his childhood interactions with his family and starting to work outside the home at the age of 15. He talks extensively about the various jobs he had, including working in a laundry and then as a mechanic, before opening a pool hall business. Hunter describes the business and its popularity during the Great Depression, even though he didn’t serve alcohol during Prohibition. He talks about selling the business after one year and getting a job as Margaret Daly’s chauffeur, then buying the business back after a year. Hunter recalls owning the pool hall and a restaurant simultaneously for almost 20 years before owning a theater in Stevensville with his sister and brother-in-law. He discusses retiring at the age of 62, and talks about how much he enjoyed the different careers he had.
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Document Type
Oral History
Subjects
Stevensville, Montana; Movie theaters; Great Depression, 1929-1939; Prohibition, 1920-1933; World War, 1914-1918; Prospectors; Gold rush, Montana; Bannack, Montana; Retallack, Charles; Clark, W.A.; Daly, Marcus; Daly, Marcus; Pool halls; Montana towns, growth
Original Date
8-3-1988
Time Period
Twentieth century
Geographic Coverage
Montana
Language
eng
Original Collection
Stevensville Oral History Project, OH 207, Archives and Special Collections, Mansfield Library, University of Montana-Missoula
Digital Publisher
University of Montana--Missoula. Mansfield Library
Rights
Copyright to this collection is held by the interview participants and by the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Library, University of Montana-Missoula. Permission may be required for use. For further information please contact Archives and Special Collections: (406) 243-2053 / library.archives@umontana.edu
Oral History Number
OH 207-002
Media Type
Sound; Text
Original Format
1 sound cassette (01:00:00 min.) analog + 1 transcript (27 p.: 28 cm.)
Digital Format
audio/mp3; application/pdf
Run Time
00:51:00 minutes
Local Filename
OH_207_002.mp3; OH_207_002.pdf
Citation
Hunter, William, "William Hunter Interview, August 3, 1988" (1988). Stevensville Oral History Project. 2.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/stevensville_oralhistory/2