Q: What is your name?

A: Mae Mulhern.

Q: When were you born?

A: April 23 1941.

Q: What did your parents do for a living?

A: My mom was a housewife and my dad did guy things.

Q: How many brothers and sisters do you have?

A: I have 5 brothers and no sisters.

Q: What are their names?

A: Bill ,  Aaron,  Art, Tom, and Charles.

Q: Where did you live as a child?

A: I’ve always lived out here in Prattsville.

Q: Did WW I, WW II , the Korean War or the Vietnam War effect your life?

A: Yes my younger brother Charles was in the Korean conflict.

Q: Do you remember any natural disasters in Vinton County?

A: Austin Powder blowing up several times. I don’t know if you would call that a natural disaster or not, but it did shake the house.

Q: Is there any thing you want to tell us that we didn’t mention?

A: Not that I know of.

Q: What were your parents' names?

A: My parents names were Clyde and Mabel West. My father is deceased and my mother is 89 years old.

Q: Have you always lived in this house?

A: I’ve lived here for 40 years.

Q: Where else have you lived?

A: I use to live down here on County Road 7. They built a highway 41 years ago and went through here and we built  this new home here. We will be living here for 40 years in May because I graduated in 1959, at McArthur high school.

Q: Is your dad still alive?

A: No he passed away 21 years ago.

Q: How old would that make you?

A:  I’m 57 now. I would have been 36. I have 4 kids, 2 boys, 2 girls, 2 grandsons.

Q: What were their names?

A: Debbie, Lisa, Herold, and Scott. I’m Bethany’s guardian angel.

Q: How big was your school?

A: We had 8 grades. Some would have 4 or 5 kids in it and some would have 10 or 12 in it. We had to go outside to use the restroom.

Q: How big were the classrooms?

A: Like I said , 4 to 10 kids in a class.

Q: Is the building you went to school in, still up?

A: Yes it is.

Q: Do you remember your first T.V or radio?

A:  I remember my first radio but I don’t know what year I got it. We got our first T.V in the 50’s but I don’t know the exact year.

Q: Has the model changed any from today?

A: Oh yes, they were black and white and very little.

Q: How did the prices and wages compare for when you were born?

A: They were cheap and the wages were low.

Q: What kind of shoes did you wear?

A: You wore what ever kind of shoes you got. Yyou didn’t have tennis shoes back then. You wore penny loafers, oxfords, and just plain black and white shoes.

Q: What kind of T.Vs did you have back then?

A: Bob Hope and the news.

Q: Was the Price Is Right show on back then?

A: I don’t think so.

Q: What did you do for entertainment?

A: After school you came home and did chores.

Q: Did you like life then or now?

A:  Life is easier to live now.

Q: How did you get to town?

A: My dad had a car.

Q: Was the roads paved?

A: Yes they were.  Just two-way roads.  My mother walked to school.

Q: How was Christmas for you?

A: It was good, but we didn’t get a lot of gifts. We were lucky to get one toy or an orange , a bag of candy. You appreciated what you got.