York David Garrett: Alpha, Omegas, org—that's how I was in college. And I took one year in college and then decided what I needed was pharmacy, so I didn't have to go back to college for pharmacy. You see what I mean? So I just switched, after finishing one year in college, went on to pharmaceutical school. And being in pharmaceutical school—I'd been in the pharmaceutical school one year and I was initiated into Chi Delta Mu medical fraternity. 

York David Garrett: See, they took medicine, dentistry and pharmacy, with a quota. There were 40 original members in the fraternity. 20 medics in med school at Howard, 15 dentists in med school at Howard, and five pharmacists. But they couldn't have been more than that because the quota was for 40 people in the fraternity. And the first time [indistinct 00:01:13] was eligible to be made, I was inducted into Chi Delta Mu fraternity and not Alpha because I wasn't in college. And not Omega because I wasn't in college. I was in med school—You understand what I mean? And so the fraternity that I joined was made in 1914 was Chi Delta Mu fraternity. 

York David Garrett: And at that time all the fraternity were closed. You couldn't be member but one. Being a member of Chi Delta Mu, I wasn't eligible for the Alpha or Omega or Phi Beta Sigma because each one was closed to itself. 

York David Garrett: But after eight or 10—it was two years, so many physicians and dentists in the medical presence came into contact with these strong Chi Delta Mu fraternity people they wanted to be a medical fraternity. So the three organizations came together and made a special pact that if you're a member of Chi Delta Mu, if you're a member of Alpha Phi Alpha, or if you're a member of Omega Psi Phi you could also be a member of one of the other groups. So I had access to be in the other three groups after the rule was changed. You understand what I'm saying? So when I came to Durham I was still Chi Delta Mu medical fraternity but they didn't have an active medical fraternity in Durham. You follow me? 

York David Garrett: But they had a strong Beta Phi chapter of Omega Psi Phi and I didn't know—one morning I woke up, I went out to my campus, "Last night you were voted to Omega Psi Phi Beta Phi chapter." In that time it wasn't well-known that you could be that and medical too. I hadn't found out about it. 

York David Garrett: I said, "No. I said, "How do they—You knew all the rule, but I'm a Chi Delta Mu?" He said, "We knew it." I said, "Well, you're sure?" He said, "Yeah." I said, "Well, I don't know, what do I—" 

York David Garrett: Because I had heard about the [indistinct 00:03:42], but I was busy running the drugstore. I had come to Durham then. I said, "Yeah. Well, I'll find out, so—" And he said, "Well, you'll embarass us." 

York David Garrett: At that time, the Beta Phi chapter of the Omega Psi Phi fraternity, the strongest chapter in the United States was the Beta Phi chapter here in Durham but it was a graduate chapter. 

York David Garrett: It was the strongest fraternity in the United States at that time and I had been voted into it and they said, "You're going to embarass a whole lot, if you tell you can't—really, voted on you and carried you in—" 

York David Garrett: So I accepted I was voted into Beta Phi, Omega Psi Phi but I continued to be and still am Chi Delta Mu because that was my original fraternity. Chi, that stands for Chirurgical, Medical and Dental. Chi Delta Mu. 

York David Garrett: But I didn't mean to get into that. That don't mean nothing. 

Kara Miles: So you said you were just voted in? 

York David Garrett: Yeah. See, when you were brought into a fraternity you don't know anything about it till it's done. 

York David Garrett: They wake you up say what they want. If they want you then they tell you, you have been accepted for so and so, and so and so, and so. So when I was accepted into Chi Delta Mu I didn't even know I was even being voted on, but they couldn't take but five pharmacists and they had three in at the time from a former class. 

York David Garrett: So there wasn't but two places available. And I got one of those the first time I —I didn't apply. They say, you don't apply they go over you in the school, pick out who they want. Then they notify you after you've already been elected. You understand what I mean? Yeah. 

York David Garrett: But that's all about that, but this other thing that you were asking about I guess I was telling you about—Oh, I'm going to tell you this again. 

York David Garrett: The man who came from Yale, and spent four years organizing and putting in good shape, the Princeville Graded School, and had it so it was one of the best Black graded schools in North Carolina when he got through putting all that time into it. 

York David Garrett: He came to Tarboro because he was Tarborian. [indistinct 00:05:58] father and sisters all still living. And then he came back, he did what he did for that and I felt so good about it that he told me—he kind of pitied me but I did my work with him. He was hoping that when the time would come that I would go to Yale. But my people weren't able to send them into Yale so I went to Howard. (laughs) See what I mean? 

York David Garrett: Then I didn't finish go through college because I found out didn't need to go through college to get to pharmacy and do the thing I that I could do the best. Didn't think about it anymore but I'd never forgotten all the things he told me about Yale and all that kind of. And when my last son was born and was a pretty smart boy I thought and everybody thought so too—when we move to Durham he was two years old. And he went through all the schools in Durham. I don't mean all the schools. I mean, [indistinct 00:07:21] Durham. 

York David Garrett: And when he got old enough and big enough he finished a year sooner than he should've in high school because he did some work in summer school [indistinct 00:07:31] his class was '49 and he finished in '48. But his classes [indistinct 00:07:38] in '49 at Hillside and he was valedictorian of his class he finished in with the year ahead of himself. (laughs) And I felt real good about it. You don't know him. You never met him? 

Kara Miles: What's his name? 

York David Garrett: Nathan Taylor Garrett. 

Kara Miles: Yes, I've talked to him. 

York David Garrett: Well, that's my baby son. So when he graduated from Hillside and was ready for college I was in better shape then than I had been before. He was my last child. 

York David Garrett: I'd come in and done pretty good, owned my own store and still own the store in Tarboro. I haven't sold that yet. See what I mean? And later on came and opened another store here. One time I had three drugstores running the same time. 

York David Garrett: But then I asked him, how would he feel about it. If he could be accepted at Yale would he go? He said, "I'd rather go to Central" You know what I mean. You saw the [indistinct 00:08:49]. I didn't ask him, did he want to go to Howard because the opinion had been built in me from that—the man that did so much for me years ago that I want to get some—not even a benefit. I wanted to get some connection. Reconnection with Yale. So I asked him that and he said, "Well—" "So you'll have to take the examination." They had a board examination for all the Ivy schools. See what I mean? For Yale, Harvard, Brown and Dartmouth. They had examinations down in Raleigh every year. And when you take that exam, mostly Whites take the exam, if you pass it, then you have eligible to go to either one of those schools, if any of them will take you, have enough room for you. 

York David Garrett: And he asked me—when my wife took him down to take his examination in Raleigh for the college they asked him, what school did he want. He told his preference, Yale, Harvard or Dartmouth. And when he graduated, passed it, they said, "Yes, you passed. You're going to be accepted and they have a spot for you in Yale." And that's just where I wanted him to go. So he went there and stayed, and when he was 19 years—no, when he was going to 20 he graduated from Yale and that was his mark. And he went—that was my answer. I couldn't go but he went for me. He pretty liked it too. I mean, Nathan. You said you met him? 

Kara Miles: Mm-hmm. 

York David Garrett: Well, my family's lucky too. He did lots of good things. He made up his mind on things he wanted to do, the things that I would've never done and didn't want to do, but he did it and he's doing them. Still he's teaching out of Central now. He and his wife finished law school in '86. Central. But for a long time before that he was in Detroit. He gave up medicine. I wanted him to take up medicine, but he didn't want it particularly and he gave it up and went into business administration from a school out in Detroit. Then he graduated, then he took the board in business administration and accounting, CFA board. And he passed it. At the time he passed that there were no Black CPs in North Carolina and couldn't be. It was all White organization, but they couldn't stop him from practicing in North Carolina because he had passed his national board. 

York David Garrett: So he stayed in Detroit and came here two, three years to do [indistinct 00:11:46], going back in Detroit because he was—not a [indistinct 00:11:53]. What do you call it? He was a member of the CPA board in the United States and he could do the work and he did. And now he's doing his thing because he [indistinct 00:12:07] last night and he's ready to quit. And I guess he is. I told him I don't blame him. I'd be ready to quit too if I'd done as much as he's done. 

Kara Miles: So when did you come to Durham? 

York David Garrett: '32. 

Kara Miles: And why? What brought you here? 

York David Garrett: '28 and '29, the Eastern part of North Carolina [indistinct 00:12:35] everything, not for Whites or Blacks, for everybody. And that was the time when you had the Bank Holiday and all that mess, and the whole country was down. And at that time, [indistinct 00:12:48] I'd been in business for seven or eight years there in Tarboro and did all right, I thought, but I wasn't doing any better. And then I had four children. I had made up my mind—I never had a scholarship [indistinct 00:13:05] school and never wanted one. Had made up my mind, I could send my children to school and [indistinct 00:13:10] scholarship. To hell with the scholarship. [indistinct 00:13:12] I could pay [indistinct 00:13:14]. And I did. [indistinct 00:13:17] I did, I was going to. And so when things got so bad I decided I better leave if I want to do what I want to do. I better leave down [indistinct 00:13:26] and come to [indistinct 00:13:29]. [indistinct 00:13:33] in North Carolina where they'd industries. And when the children got big enough I can send them to college like I hoped to do, they could go to school there. Charlotte, Winston-Salem, Greensboro, or Durham or Wilmington, all of that. 

York David Garrett: But none of those—I didn't [indistinct 00:13:58] particular about any of those [indistinct 00:14:00]. I didn't care which one I went to but I felt like what I'd [indistinct 00:14:06] if I was in a good town I'd make my living. And I was going to move my store from where it was to a good town and I knew [indistinct 00:14:17] I can do—if I was in a town where some business was I'd get my part of it. If the business was there, but down East it wasn't there then. Things [indistinct 00:14:28] before I lost everything I had. At that time my father was dead. He died '28 and [indistinct 00:14:42] but I could lose everything [indistinct 00:14:44] making enough to take care of yourself and your family. So I decided to go to come town in North Carolina that I could make it. And my wife and I made a trip, Wilmington, Charlotte, Winston-Salem. This [indistinct 00:15:04] I had some good friends there called [indistinct 00:15:06] four good stores. 

York David Garrett: And then [indistinct 00:15:10] Daniel who was the medical director of North Carolina [indistinct 00:15:14] and a member of the Alpha Phi fraternity and a graduate of Harvard Medical School, which is the best medical school in the United States. He was a Greensboro boy. He came back to Tarboro, North Carolina. And there the daughter of the founder of the [indistinct 00:15:38] this outstanding physician, medical director of the North Carolina [indistinct 00:15:48]. The biggest and strongest Black company in the United States. That's who he was. So he didn't stay Greensboro, he came to Durham and they made him medical director of the North Carolina [indistinct 00:16:01] live in the house that John [indistinct 00:16:04] built. His wife was John [indistinct 00:16:08] daughter. [indistinct 00:16:10] so when I got back [indistinct 00:16:15] and I decided I was going to [indistinct 00:16:18]. When I got to [indistinct 00:16:18] I ran into a young man that [indistinct 00:16:24]. There was packs of medicine [indistinct 00:16:25]. And we had lived in the same house [indistinct 00:16:29] but he was in med school and I was in pharmaceutical. So we knew each other but had lost [indistinct 00:16:36]. I stayed there in [indistinct 00:16:40]. 

York David Garrett: It just so happened in Howard Academy there was a young lady that I knew. It was a classmate of mine. Fine girl. They had got married. She was in Howard Academy [indistinct 00:16:56]. He was in med school. Later they had got married and I didn't even know it and they were living in Winston-Salem, [indistinct 00:17:04] I went out to find a place to move my store to. And according to them, [indistinct 00:17:08]. You don't see everybody everyday. You got to try to make a living. So I said, "Okay." And so I told them what I had and he said, "Yeah, y'all, you can come around." [indistinct 00:17:21] close and friendly. Said, "I got a building." "Yeah?" "That if you like it, I can develop it, turn it into a drugstore, and if you come here, move your store—" Said, "I have a store. Bought and paid for. One of the best Black—" I mean, it was built special, furnished and everything for the place where I was in Tarboro. My father paid $8,000 for the furniture the day I [indistinct 00:17:51]. And he paid for it, for me. I still had it. It was still in Tarboro. 

York David Garrett: And I was going to move that store somewhere. He said, "You can come on up here." I said, "[indistinct 00:18:03]. I got a nephew—No. I got an assistant, brother-in-law, that's a physician. He's [indistinct 00:18:11]. If you come here I can guarantee you he'd give you support. I'll give you mine. And you come and make it." [indistinct 00:18:18] doctors [indistinct 00:18:21]. And he talked to me. I said, "That's the best thing [indistinct 00:18:25]." His name was Quick. Dr. Quick. I said, "I'll take you up on that. Because I didn't expect you to do nothing for me. I got my [indistinct 00:18:34]. It's going to take my about six months to get it straightened out." Dr. Donnelley asked me, just [indistinct 00:18:40], he knew what I was planning to do because I wrote to him. He was secretary of the North Carolina [indistinct 00:18:45] Medical Society. Dr. Donnelley [indistinct 00:18:48]. And I wrote to him because he had a record of all the people in North Carolina, Blacks, dentists, pharmacy and [indistinct 00:18:56], and their addresses [indistinct 00:18:57] everything in a different town. 

York David Garrett: And I got a letter [indistinct 00:19:00] asked him how would they feel about me—He knew him. I'd been to school with them in Howard [indistinct 00:19:08]. "Will I [indistinct 00:19:09] if I move my store there?" Some said yes, some said no, some said, "I think so." [indistinct 00:19:16] stores in those towns already but some of them weren't doing as good as I was. They were doing better than I was doing because the towns were better but they didn't have equipment and everything, and doing what I could do because I had a better store than they did except one place that was here in Durham. And so when I got [indistinct 00:19:39] my wife and I, I told them I was going to Winston-Salem. And Dr. Donnelley said, "All right. Have you signed the papers for that?" I said, "I don't have to sign the papers. I own my store. [indistinct 00:19:48]." I said [indistinct 00:19:50], "I ran into this good friend of mine that I knew him for a long time. He went to Howard. His wife was a classmate of mine and we all are close." 

York David Garrett: See, he had met my wife and they were good [indistinct 00:19:58]. He said, "Well, I [indistinct 00:20:03] ask you to come by to see me before you went back to Tarboro. I own a drugstore here in [indistinct 00:20:12] Hotel. It's mine and it has done well. I would want to know, could I sell it to you?" I said, "Hell no. I ain't got no money to buy nothing new. I got a store." And I knew about the store. It was good. That was the only store in North Carolina was a better store than mine was in Tarboro because he bought the store and he had all that money he had [indistinct 00:20:46]. He spent $37,000 on that store [indistinct 00:20:49]. A drugstore, equipment and everything. And he didn't pay it off. And the reason he didn't pay it off was he didn't know, he should've known is, there's a lot of jealousy between all professions, and especially physicians. When he came here with his big job [indistinct 00:21:10] physician [indistinct 00:21:13] and opened this big store all the other physicians all decided they wouldn't support his store. There were four other stores at the time. [indistinct 00:21:25] they're going to make him bigger and they wouldn't give him any business for the store, not enough to [indistinct 00:21:41]. 

York David Garrett: And the store was losing money ever since he opened it up. So he wanted to unload it. But he wanted to unload the store and I said, "I ain't buying nothing." And after that I went on back home and a number of people came to see me from here, all over [indistinct 00:21:51] big people [indistinct 00:21:53] interested in getting me to come to Durham. And if I could work it out and could see if I could—not to sell my store. [indistinct 00:22:08] to move my store to come here. If we could work out a deal with them and could make it then we could guarantee that I'd get on all right. And if I couldn't make it [indistinct 00:22:21]. After three years if I don't like it I can [indistinct 00:22:26] come from. Then they put the [indistinct 00:22:31] I'd be foolish not to try. So I decided I would try it after I talked to my wife. She said, "I'd really rather come here than Winston-Salem." That's what my wife said. It is a personal reason but we won't go into that. 

York David Garrett: She knew these people [indistinct 00:22:53] she liked them but I'd had a peaceful life for 20-something years and I knew people all over the state because of my father and my brother. And there wasn't no family from [indistinct 00:23:13] that I can go and get in town and say, "Gary is in town. Tell him to come by the house. Come here. Stay with us. Blah, blah, blah." You know what I mean? That's something I had because of my father not because of me. Because [indistinct 00:23:33] anywhere in North Carolina. So I'd had no trouble socially. You understand what I'm trying to say? So that was easy. What had happened? I didn't get married when I first got out of school. I got out of school when 20 and I didn't marry till 21. I was in school in Howard seven years. In all that time I knew a whole lot of chicks. I mean, good people. [indistinct 00:24:12] Howard football team, [indistinct 00:24:15] all over the state. [indistinct 00:24:18]. I knew everybody. [indistinct 00:24:20] but I knew enough. And because of that fact anytime [indistinct 00:24:29] "Gary is in town? Tell him to come over here and stay with me." 

York David Garrett: [indistinct 00:24:35]. So I got to know young women, they were all decent people, all over the state, for four, five years before I got married. And I was a bachelor [indistinct 00:24:55]. So that was no problem to me but because of that we had a way that we say [indistinct 00:25:10], go to any town you want to, just take yourself. Don't take nobody with you because this thing that you're looking for it's already there. It'll be there when you get there. So every time you would [indistinct 00:25:27] the best women [indistinct 00:25:28]. You knew them all and they knew you. [indistinct 00:25:32]. So easy. So you got nothing to worry about. And I didn't know who I was going to marry. Didn't give a darn. I was going to get married when I got my feet on the ground good. And when I went back home and was an eligible bachelor, and all the schools back then had women teachers than they did men. And most of the women teachers were single. And most of the women teachers didn't mind having some man that could [indistinct 00:26:03] feel good about it. And of course that's the way it was. 

York David Garrett: So any town you went to you knew [indistinct 00:26:13]. So [indistinct 00:26:14] you didn't bring nobody with you. They were already here. You didn't even have to [indistinct 00:26:18], go in to [indistinct 00:26:22] they're there. You go down north, they're already there. [indistinct 00:26:29]. Don't misunderstand me. You're asking me some questions, I'm giving you some answers and [indistinct 00:26:39]. And that was because of my father name. [indistinct 00:26:43], because my brothers [indistinct 00:26:46]. And into some other things. And then because of the school that I picked. Howard was a fine school then and it ain't too bad now. I did really well in Howard. I did well enough in Howard, in my second year at Howard, I was always a [indistinct 00:27:11] student, all the time in school if I liked the subject. And the dean of the school of Howard Academy was a Black man. He was a fine man, [indistinct 00:27:30]. He had seen my mark in one subject [indistinct 00:27:34] and I'd passed everything except that one subject. And he didn't send for me. He sent for the instructor. Said, "Look here. [indistinct 00:27:50] As and Bs [indistinct 00:27:50] you gave him a 52." 

York David Garrett: He said, "That's what he made." [indistinct 00:27:56]. He said, "That's what he made." He said I can't get this. "It's going to mess up his book. [indistinct 00:28:07] and everything [indistinct 00:28:09]." He said, "Well, that's what he made." Then he sent for me. He said, "Can you explain to me why you got—" He was teaching math and all this kind of stuff, [indistinct 00:28:20], everything. I just didn't like that. He said, "Can you tell me why you got a mark like that?" I said, "If he said it's what I made, it's what I must have made because I just [indistinct 00:28:30] and didn't pay no mind to it." [indistinct 00:28:33]. The dean talking to the instructor said, "Well, see, can you give him another exam? Because I don't want to see his marks [indistinct 00:28:44] like this. I'm getting him to go higher and higher." [indistinct 00:28:46]. He said, "No. I'll tell you what I'll do. Bring him in here right now. Let me talk to him." Said, "Garrett, if you promise me—" He was [indistinct 00:29:02] teacher. "If you promise me you'll never [indistinct 00:29:05]." I said, "I don't like it, no, because that's not my field. I'm going to [indistinct 00:29:13]." 

York David Garrett: He said, "Well, all right then. I'm going to change my grade now from a 52 to 75." [indistinct 00:29:21] show me up [indistinct 00:29:26] teach you a damn thing. I said, "All right." So that's the only mark I ever had in Howard that I didn't pass, and I passed [indistinct 00:29:36], but that's part of my life. Have you ever heard of anything like that? When you're in school, it happens. [indistinct 00:29:52]. Okay. Well, I hope I told you something you like to hear. 

Kara Miles: Oh yeah. So you took the Biltmore? 

York David Garrett: Yeah, on condition, and that was in 1932, and this is 19—what? '93? I had it until they closed it up. 

Kara Miles: When was that? 

York David Garrett: Urban renewal. Tore everything down in Hayti. 

York David Garrett: It was still there in the hotel when they closed everything down, then I was old enough to go out, and then my wife was still living. She died at 70 years old. 

York David Garrett: And so my son, one of my chidlren, took pharmacy and he had been in California for 10 years. He came back here and he had his ups and down but he was just like he was. And he was my son, my first son, so he asked me to open up a store down here for him. And he would be willing, if I opened it up for him, which I could do and he couldn't. He ran into a bad way with the examining body of the North Carolina State Pharmaceutical Society. Somebody on the board didn't like him. And you had to have 75 to pass and he took the examination three times, and they give him 72 and 73 twice, so he couldn't get a North Carolina license. Because North Carolina was the only state we knew that had reciprocity with forty-eight states but for any state, anytime you took the North Carolina board and didn't pass you couldn't get reciprocity, which was illegal—not illegal but that's what the law was. 

York David Garrett: And so I had my license, had a nephew with his license, and this boy has a license in South Carolina and in Washington DC but he couldn't get one for North Carolina. He went out to California and LA and got a license out there but after he [indistinct 00:31:56]. So he decided to come back home. And he was here. 

York David Garrett: And that's when they tore down the stores down here. And so he asked me to move the stores, instead of getting rid of, taking the money, to move the store as it was down here where I am now, and let him run it. I mean, he would do the work and I would have the license (laughs). So I told him, "Okay." I didn't want to do it but I did. 

York David Garrett: But he had bad luck. Three years after he opened that store he died with cancer, and it left me out really bad. But then in the same year we opened the store my wife died. We'd been married 53 years and were very much dependent on each other. And this was our home here. And had all the children and everything. 

York David Garrett: So what we decided, when he died I sold a part of the store that I didn't want to somebody else and just kept the prescription department rather than just stay here all day long and do nothing, I'd go down there and be doing something, meet somebody or do something. And that's what I'm doing now. I ain't working now more two, three hours a day. End up making this than don't make any. But I'm better off doing that than being home. Now I'm doing fine today because I'm here talking to you, but if I wasn't with you taking, I wouldn't be doing anything here. (laughs) Do you understand what I mean? So I realize what's good for me, so I just take it from here. 

York David Garrett: And my son is lovely. I have a daughter, she's lovely. I had four children, three boys and one girl. My daughter, wanted to go to Howard because I went to Howard. I let her go to Howard and she never came back. She's still in Washington DC, working for Howard for several years in the public relations. [Indistinct 00:34:06], and after she did that— 

York David Garrett: She's the first woman I ever knew to come up with this women's lib stuff. They gave her a job at Howard and kept offering another job and raising numbers. She like what she's doing, she didn't care about advancing pay, so she didn't take it. So they finally told her one day, they said—Said, "Ms—" She was named Hayes then. 

York David Garrett: Said, "You get to the place, we keep offering you things, you don't take them, you're going to run out of places, and you're going to be left behind here." So she said, "Well, no, don't worry about me because I didn't know how long I wanted to stay at Howard anyhow. I went downtown about four or five months ago, and took examinations for the Department of Labor and passed it." And they told her they could put her to work right there but she—When they heard about it at Howard they said, "No, you're staying. We'll give you another job. Raise your salary." So she took it. 

York David Garrett: Then about a year after that the job that they had for the man that was going out and recruiting high school students all over the South was a man with a family. That time Howard was paying him $8,000 a year and asked him—he was moving up to something else and asked her would she like that job? And she says she wouldn't mind. It was $3,000 more than she was getting paid and so they said, "Well, you got it." 

York David Garrett: And so she took the job, she thought. And when they gave her the contract her contract said $6,000 a year. And she didn't remember getting that—she said, "Wait a minute. Wait a minute. Said the job was going to be—" Everybody know, you [indistinct 00:35:47], exactly what I mean. Said the boss said, "We didn't tell you were were going to be paying you $8,000. We was waiting then because he's a man with a family, children. He need that money. But we think you can do really well with $6,000 a year and we taking care of all these things for 'em." She said, "Well, I don't think that." She said, "Well—" 

York David Garrett: She went downtown to the Department of Labor and told them and said, "You still have a job open for me?" The man said, "Yeah, you can go to next week." She said, "I can't come next week. I've got to give in two weeks of notice. I'll be done in two weeks." So she left Howard University and went on to the Department of Labor and stayed with them for 25 years. 

York David Garrett: And she's lucky as she could be, and she's smart too. But she's lucky too. And 25 years, and by the time she got ready to be retired from them she worked on up in the Department of Labor that she had a job that no woman or man—Black woman had never had. 

York David Garrett: They sent her to a European Economic Conference in Geneva, Switzerland. And she represented the United States in Geneva, in Switzerland, in 1960 for three and a half years. No woman had ever had that job and no Black had ever had that job. She did so well with it that when she came back [indistinct 00:37:03] promoted her till she got as high as she could go in the Department of Labor. Not an elected job, not a political job [indistinct 00:37:10]. And when she had a chance to retire she had three or four years she could work, but she said she had top salary and she could get caught in the government. She said so she'd just rather take that—what do you call it? 

Kara Miles: Early retirement? 

York David Garrett: Huh? 

Kara Miles: Is it early retirement? 

York David Garrett: Yeah. Early retirement gets you your pension. 

Kara Miles: Pension. Mm-hmm. 

York David Garrett: Yeah. And so she took that instead and gave up the job. But in the meantime she had a young man that she'd known and had known each other for 25 years long. [indistinct 00:37:50] she'd been married twice and the second time she got married to some other guy that was secretary to the dean. They call it [indistinct 00:38:00] dean [indistinct 00:38:02] school. He was a fine guy, I thought. So when she married him his close friend was a man who had been married before and had children, and he lost his first wife, and he married again a very nice lady, but [indistinct 00:38:22]. He had two children by his first wife, this man. When [indistinct 00:38:31] came to me [indistinct 00:38:39] Columbia. His name was Pratt. 

Kara Miles: Pratt? 

York David Garrett: Pratt. And he [indistinct 00:38:49] in the meantime he took his children that were little children by his first wife who died, had been knowing my daughter all their life [indistinct 00:39:06]. There's three or four couples, all were really close together all the time. [indistinct 00:39:10]. You understand what I mean. And [indistinct 00:39:14] but Gloria had a way with children and children liked Gloria, and this man who had these two children, he and his wife separated and he [indistinct 00:39:31] California, but the children were [indistinct 00:39:33] but they had gotten used to Gloria. So Gloria was [indistinct 00:39:39]. She died before Gloria [indistinct 00:39:44]. She knew his second wife. And Gloria [indistinct 00:39:48]. He was the best man Gloria married the second time. This man was, that had these two children. 

York David Garrett: When his wife left him—[indistinct 00:40:03] left him. When they separated and he had nobody, Gloria and her second husband broke up. [indistinct 00:40:17] broke up when she was in Geneva, Switzerland. So when she came back from Geneva she had nobody. [indistinct 00:40:24] got together they got married. So 25 years after she married a second time, she married the best man of her second husband. So he was the best man [indistinct 00:40:36]. Here is his picture. This is my daughter and her mother. [indistinct 00:40:45]. That didn't have nothing to do with our conversation but it's some history [indistinct 00:40:56] letting you know about. So I haven't had a [indistinct 00:41:02] Columbia. So I don't feel bad about that. [indistinct 00:41:08]. Okay. 

Kara Miles: Is this the house you moved into when you came to Durham? 

York David Garrett: Yeah. [indistinct 00:41:19] lived in a hotel for a while till we bought this house. We bought this house in '34 and been here ever since. 

Kara Miles: Have you seen the community change since you came here? 

York David Garrett: Not down here. This was the part of—they tore down all the best part of Fayetteville Street down there but didn't tear down anything down here, urban renewal. All these houses were here when I came here and the houses were owned by the people who lived in them. People who built them and lived in them, they were living in these houses. We were lucky enough to get this house because the man who owned it had a grocery store, supermarket down Fayetteville Street. Down where everything's been torn down now. And the chain stores came in. Hurt him real bad, he was selling everybody on credit and all. He got the chain stores—he got in trouble and he decided he couldn't stand that pressure. But he got behind with his debts and some notes and things. I think [indistinct 00:42:32] insurance company had the first [indistinct 00:42:33] on this house. He was being all right until he got in trouble with— you know, that urban renewal stuff, You understand what I'm trying to say? 

York David Garrett: He needed to get out of the area and go out in the country and build him a house and a store and everything, then he would be ahead of the competition with A&P and so-and-so, and Winn-Dixie, and all that mess. So he wanted to sell the house and we—We had been here just a year, so we bought the house in the end. 

Kara Miles: And you'd been living in the hotel before that? 

York David Garrett: Just one year. We never moved our furniture from Tarboro because I wasn't sure I was going to be here. See, I was—the plan was, for so many years, if it work, okay. If it don't, I can tote everything back to them and then go get my store in Winston-Salem but never had to do it because I made it here. And the longer we stayed, the better things got and I never worried. Never had a worry in the world. 

Kara Miles: So did you sell the store in Tarboro? 

York David Garrett: No. What we finally did, had a sister, she wasn't a druggist but she was a manager. She was a very good—she knew everything about running a business. She was one of the family. She was older than I was. She had twins, she was a twin. 

York David Garrett: And she had been working for me in the store for several—was working with me in the store when I came here. See? Then when we decided not to sell this, move the store I left her in Tarboro to operate the store with a druggist, and I'd be back and forth. And then that continued that way until she got too old to operate the store regularly because she's older than I am. And when that happened, we—I think we were doing pretty good, we just closed the store. I'd built a building especially for the store and five apartments in Tarboro. And the building was still being owned. And four years ago, urban renewal in Tarboro did the same thing. Where the store was it was in a White neighborhood and they passed a law that as long as we had it and was operating it, we could continue doing, but when we stopped nobody else could come in with the store, they were going to take the store and tear it down and give me the money for it. You follow me? 

Kara Miles: Mm-hmm. 

York David Garrett: So and that happened about the same time— 

York David Garrett: No. I still had the furniture and everything down there that I bought when I first got out of school, so we took the furniture out of it—they tore the building down. We took the furniture out and brought it here and combined it with the furniture I had at Biltmore and moved down here where I am now. 

York David Garrett: But after my son died, that I opened the store for, I didn't need it so I sold most of the furniture to somebody else and just kept enough just to do what I was doing. 

York David Garrett: But my sister, she's dead now. She continued to operate the store as long as she felt like doing it. She didn't have no pressure on it particularly because if she made the money she did it, if she didn't do it, it didn't do anything different, because I was in good enough shape to take care of her. She never had any children either. 

York David Garrett: I had three sisters. One of them married and has three children. One is internal medicine in New York. The other one is medicine also, got his board, orthopedic surgeon, in New York. That's my sister's, oldest sister's boy. And she had three boys. The other boy is living in New York. He was principal of the Hempstead High School. He was into education, other two boys went into medicine. But they're still living and they have children. 

York David Garrett: And the oldest boy, that's an orthopedic surgeon living in New York, had a son that surely going to take medicine, because they had taken medicine, Howard [indistinct 00:47:09] and whatnot, he—