Archive Record
Images
Metadata
Title |
Oral History of Alan and Ruth Barnett |
Collection |
Oral History |
Scope & Content |
After meeting in New York City and marrying in 1955, Alan and Ruth Barnett took a long time to find the perfect place to live. Alan had grown up in Chicago and Ruth in Germany and Czechoslovakia. It was a job as secretary to Grace Morley, the first woman director of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, that brought Ruth to the Bay Area. Alan served in the National Guard and wound up working for the military in the public information sector. He would later take on teaching positions at San Francisco State University and San Jose State. The beauty of Mill Valley called to the Barnetts, and in 1963, with three children in tow, they became Mill Valley residents. In this oral history, the Barnetts discuss life during World War II and their experiences living in different countries based on took a long time to find the perfect place to live. Alan had grown up in Chicago and Ruth in Germany and Czechoslovakia. It was a job as secretary to Grace Morley, the first woman director of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, that brought Ruth to the Bay Area. Alan served in the National Guard and wound up working for the military in the public information sector. He would later take on teaching positions at San Francisco State University and San Jose State. The beauty of Mill Valley called to the Barnetts, and in 1963, with three children in tow, they became Mill Valley residents. Alan’s Army assignments. Ruth and Alan recount daily life in Mill Valley, school politics, local residents and businesses, celebrations, and disasters. Both Alan and Ruth became politically active, advocating for a number of causes, such as withdrawal from Vietnam, opposition of the Gulf War, raising environmental awareness, an end to local racism, and declaring Mill Valley a nuclear free zone. |
Audio and Transcript |
Click here to hear recording. Click here to read the transcript. |
Dates of Creation |
2008-01-29 |
Interviewee |
Barnett, Ruth and Alan |
Interviewer |
Devlin, Bill |
Extent and Medium |
Transcript: 44pp Recording: 02:08:30 |
Search Terms |
Allen, Sarah Andresen, Bob Bartlett, Jack Boxer, Barbara Brown's Hall Cascade Reservoir Decker, Eleanor Depot Ellsberg, Daniel Environmental protection Groves, Joyce Gulf War Hayakawa, S.I. Hughes, Dorothy Hunter, Don Lytton Square Marin Peace and Justice Coalition Martinez, David Military life Mill Valley City Council Mill Valley Community Center Morley, Grace MV history - Music and counterculture (1960s and 1970s) National guards & reserves Old Mill School Oral history - Visual, performing, literary arts Oral history - Volunteerism, activism Peace Politics & government Praszker, Flora Protests Racism Tamalpais High School Thomas, Gary Travel Vesey, Mary Vietnam War Woolsey, Lynn World War II |
Object ID |
2016.084.001 |
Object Name |
Recording |
Copyrights |
Transcript and recording copyright Mill Valley Public Library, 2008. Materials are made available for research purposes only; all rights are reserved to the Mill Valley Public Library. Requests for permission to quote for publication or for any other usage must be obtained from the Library. |