Title

Gregg Anderson

Author

Julie M. Luker, Concordia University, St. PaulFollow

Files

Interviewee

Gregg Anderson

Interviewer

Alicia Joswiak

Transcriber

Charles Schultz

Generation

Baby Boom Generation (1946-1964)

Neighborhood

Merriam Park

Document Type

Oral History

Date of Interview

10-29-2021

Keywords

Merriam Park, Saint Paul, 1954

Disciplines

Oral History | Psychology

Abstract

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION: Gregg Anderson is a white male born on September 7, 1954. He is one of four children. His father was an accountant, and his mother was a homemaker. He grew up Catholic. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Anderson starts by describing his immediate and extended family, going into detail about his grandparents as well as his family's ethnic background, as well as telling a story on how his family got their first dog. He mentions how the household chores were mostly divided by gender, but everyone had the general task of cleaning up after themselves. He goes on to describe how his family's economic status influenced his family, as how there were not a lot of issues; going more into noticing how there was ethical segregation at the country club where Anderson worked at, and how there wasn't a lot of economic segregation with him and the community as he was growing up. He briefly discusses the neighborhood that he grew up in, noting how they were able to play sports, and how his neighborhood was slightly higher in economic status than the typical St. Paul neighborhood. Anderson talks about what the interior of his home looked like, and how his neighborhood was incredibly safe. He talks about how the best part of growing up in his neighborhood was that there were a lot of things to do. He mentions the value of Catholicism was prominent because St. Paul was a very Catholic town, which was reflected in how he grew up by his father teaching him to be an honest individual. Afterwards, he touches on the activities that were done for leisure time, mentioning how there was a lot of unstructured play, and how they would watch movies at the theatre a lot, as well as how going and sitting down at a restaurant was a rare occurrence. He continues by describing a vacation that his family once took, as well as the toys that they'd play with, such as fake guns, in order to play army. He mentions what schooling looked like for him, and how he had a really good education. He ends the interview by describing the local issues affecting the neighborhood, such as how some of the zip codes in the area got affected because of the Vietnam war, as well as how there was a little bit of segregation between the kids.

Copyright

All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced without the written permission of Concordia University Library or Julie Luker, Department of Psychology, Concordia University, St. Paul.

Recommended Citation

Luker, Julie M., "Gregg Anderson" (2021). Saint Paul and Surrounding Area. 4.
https://digitalcommons.csp.edu/tc-ohp_interviews_stp/4