Oral history interview with Eugene M. Waddle

Collection

Identifier: SR9252

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This oral history interview with Eugene M. Waddle was conducted by Curtis Johnson on November 21, 1980, at Waddle’s home in Portland, Oregon. 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, Waddle discusses his early life in the Los Angeles, California, area, including his early forays into running restaurants and his early careers in accounting, life insurance, and radio broadcasting. He then talks about relocating to Portland, Oregon, and describes running a coffee shop beginning in 1939. He discusses opening Waddle’s Restaurant in 1945, including the design of the building, hiring carhops, and the challenges of operating a drive-in. He discusses the future of the restaurant business; shares advice for succeeding in the business; and talks about other drive-in restaurant operators in Portland. He describes his clientele, the reasons why the popularity of drive-ins declined, and the menu at Waddle’s. He revisits the topic of opening Waddle’s Restaurant in 1945, particularly getting the building financed and constructed. He closes the interview by talking about the rewards of running a restaurant and about his marriage to Natha DeVon Jones.

Dates

1980 November 21

Creator

Waddle, Eugene M. (Eugene Marvin), 1907-1994 (Interviewee, 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

Eugene Marvin Waddle was born in Kansas in 1907, and grew up in the Los Angeles, California. He attended Pomona College in Claremont, California, for two years. In 1928, he and Natha DeVon Jones were married; they later had one child. The couple came to Portland, Oregon, in 1937. He bought a coffee shop in 1939. During World War II, he worked in the shipyards. In 1945, he opened Waddle's Restaurant on Hayden Island, and later opened the Original Taco House in Southeast Portland. He died in 1994.

Extent

.1 Cubic Feet (1 audiocassette (59 min., 20 sec.))

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Oral history interview with Eugene M. Waddle conducted by Curtis Johnson on November 21, 1980, as part of the Drive-in Restaurants of Portland Oral History Project. Waddle founded Waddle's Restaurant on Hayden Island and the Original Taco House in Southeast Portland, Oregon.