Oral history interview with Bill J. Jwayad

Collection

Identifier: SR9245

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This oral history interview with Bill J. Jwayad was conducted by Curtis Johnson on November 8, 1980, at Jwayad’s home in Vancouver, Washington. The interview was conducted as part of the Drive-in Restaurants of Portland Oral History Project, a series of interviews that Johnson conducted about the history of Portland drive-ins, with a particular emphasis on Tik-Tok and Yaw's Top Notch.

In this interview, Jwayad discusses going to drive-in restaurants while in high school in Portland, Oregon in the 1950s, and his involvement in street racing. He talks about car clubs in North Portland, places where street races were held, and racial conflicts amongst racers. He describes the various drive-ins that he frequented; talks about his involvement with the Hot Rod Club; and discusses run-ins with law enforcement. He closes the interview by talking about why he enjoyed cruising and street racing, why he stopped participating, and his career as a mechanic.

Dates

Creation: 1980 November 8

Creator

Jwayad, Bill J. (William Joseph), 1939-2014 (Interviewee, Person)
Johnson, Curtis (Interviewer, Person)

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Copyright for this interview is held by the Oregon Historical Society. Use is allowed according to the following statement: Creative Commons - BY-NC-SA, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/.

Biographical note

William Joseph Jwayad was born in Portland, Oregon, in 1939. In 1964, he and Gail Marie Lofgren were married; they later had two children and divorced in 1978. He was the owner and manager of Dabney Wheel Alignment in Vancouver, Washington. He died in 2014.

Extent

.1 Cubic Feet (1 audiocassette (45 min., 36 sec.))

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Oral history interview with Bill J. Jwayad conducted by Curtis Johnson on November 8, 1980, as part of the Drive-in Restaurants of Portland Oral History Project. Jwayad was a frequent patron of drive-in restaurants in Portland, Oregon, during the 1950s.