Oral history interview with Herman R. Teeple

Collection

Identifier: SR 11386

Staff Only

Oral history interview with Herman R. Teeple

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Scope and Contents

This oral history interview with Herman R. Teeple was conducted by Nellie M. Fox-Edwards at Teeple’s home in La Pine, Oregon, on March 15, 1992. Teeple’s wife, Betty L. Teeple, was also present and occasionally contributed to the interview.

Teeple opens the interview with a joke about blonde women. He discusses his involvement with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 48. He also talks about his parents’ involvement in labor unions. He discusses wages and benefits of union electricians, shares his reasons for working for a union, and talks about people he worked with. He speaks about the difference between his jobs as business representative for his local union and international representative for the IBEW. He also talks about his relationship with Neil Goldschmidt. He then discusses his retirement activities, and closes by sharing his thoughts on the labor movement at the time of the interview.

Dates

Creation: 1992 March 15

Creator

Teeple, Herman R. (Herman Roy), 1922-2004 (Interviewee, Person)
Fox-Edwards, Nellie M., 1923-2017 (Interviewer, Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Joint copyright for this interview is held by the Oregon Historical Society and the estate of Herman R. Teeple. Use is allowed according to the following statement: In Copyright – Non-Commercial Use Permitted, https://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-NC/1.0/

Biographical note

Herman Roy Teeple was born in Cluny, Alberta, Canada, in 1922. Less than a year later, his family moved to Portland, Oregon. In 1942, he began working as a journeyman wireman and became a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 48. In 1943, he and Betty Lucile Gill were married; they later had two children. In 1956, he became a business representative for the IBEW Local 48, and in 1963, he became business manager and financial secretary. In 1971, he was appointed IBEW International Representative, a position he held until his retirement in 1987. He died in 2004.

Sources: Vital records on Ancestry.com; Teeple’s obituary in the IBEW Journal, November 2004.

Extent

0.1 Cubic Feet (1 audiocassette (45 min., 2 sec.))

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Oral history interview with Herman R. Teeple conducted by Nellie M. Fox-Edwards on March 15, 1992. Teeple discusses his involvement with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 48 in Portland, Oregon.