William Charles Jennings Jr. (b. 9/14/1928 – d. xx-xx- xxxx) was born in Hayden, Arizona on September 14, 1928 to William Charles Jennings Sr. and Jesus Maria Corona. His grandfather, Albert Jackson Jennings, was born in 1867 in Chihuahua, Mexico and married to Petra Cuen. They had five children and immigrated from Mexico to the Port of Los Angeles in 1915. Albert was machinist for the railroad, but lost an eye in an accident and switched his profession to photography, owning his own studio in Prescott. The family lived at 138 S. Marina Street. William’s father, William Charles Jennings Sr, was born at Piedras Verdes, Alamoso Sonora, Mexico, He was a skilled machinist and worked for mines in Clarkdale, Jerome, Hayden and Dewey. He married Jesus Maria Corona in 1927 in Hayden and William Jr. and his sister Mary Lou were born there. In the early ‘30s the family moved to Prescott and lived with the grandparents on S. Marina St.

William Jr. was an entrepreneur from an early age, with a paper route at 7.  He sold newspapers around the Courthouse and set pins at the bowling alley on Whiskey Row. He started school in Prescott, moved to Clarkdale for 3^rd grade, then back to Prescott for 4^th- 8^th grade. After the death of his mother in 1941, the family moved to Long Beach, California. His father remarried and moved to Los Angeles, so William and his sisters lived on their own and he supported them by cleaning airplanes at the Burbank Airport at 15. After Korean War service, he worked for many years at Allstate and retired in 1956. He is widowed with three adult children.

Oral History
Interviewee:  William Charles Jennings Jr.   (b. 9/14/1928 – d. xx-xx-xxxx)
Interviewer:  Susan Cypert         
Audio Number:  1636   
Duration:   00:57:19
Date:  May 10, 2023
Acquisition Number:  ACC#  2023.030
Topics Discussed:  Hayden, Arizona; Albert Jackson Jennings; Chihuahua, Mexico; Petra Cuen; Mexico; Port of Los Angeles; Mary Scobel, William Charles Jennings, Sr.; Piedras Verdes, Alamosa Sonora, Mexico; Clarkdale, Jerome, Hayden, Dewey; Blount-Scott; Casa Grande, Florence; Terminal Island, San Pedro, California; Charlotte McKay; Granite Dells Swimming Hole; The Courier; Studio Theater; Smoki Dances; Mexican Dance Group; Whiskey Row; 4^th of July Parade; Community Sings; Clarkdale; Washington School; Southern Pacific Railroad; Korean War; Allstate Insurance Company.

Time          Topic /Subject Discussed
00:00:49    William Charles Jennings Jr. 
00:01:02    Born at Hayden, Arizona
00:01:12    09/14/1928
00:01:24    Grandfather Albert Jackson Jennings
00:01:36    Family in Mexico
00:01:38    Born in 1867, Chihuahua Mexico
00:01:49    Married to Petra Cuen
00:01:52    5 children
00:01:55    Jennings children: Margarita (from previous marriage) Mary, William Charles, Helen, Eugenia (Jean)
00:02:59    Immigrated from Mexico to Port of Los Angeles
00:3:13    Arrived 10/01/1915
00:03:57    Albert worked as a machinist for the railroad
00:04:20    Lost eye due to chip flipping in the eye
00:04:30    Changed profession to photography in Prescott
00:5:12    Whole family moved to Prescott
00:05:27    Great grandfather was in the mining business
00:06:12    Great grandfather had a contract in Mexico in mining business
00:06:23    Great grandparents Mary Scobel  and William Charles Jennings Sr.
00:06:48    Grandfather’s background in photography
00:07:02    Did almost anything
00:07:52    AJ (Albert Jackson) died in Prescott in 1936
00:08:11    Petra died in Prescott in 1949
00:08:15    Lived at 138 South Marina Street
00:08:33    No idea what happened to photography collection
00:09:14    William Charles Jennings Sr. born 12/15/1900
00:09:19    Born at Piedras Verdes, Alamosa Sonara, Mexico
00:09:26    Immigrated with rest of family to Los Angeles, California
00:09:55    Married Nina Ola Evans 02/24/1924
00:10:19    Marriage lasted a year or 2
00:10:46    Married Jesus Maria Corona 1927 at Hayden, Arizona. Both were 27 years old
00:11:37    Maria was a telephone operator
00:11:47    William was a machinist
00:11:57    Worked in Clarkdale, Jerome, Hayden, Dewey
00:12:43    Machinist makes parks for machinery
00:13:08    Very skilled
00:13:17    Worked for Blount-Scott in Prescott
00:13:30    Training on the railroad
00:13:39    Apprentice
00:13:53    Married 10/20/1927 in Hayden, Arizona
00:14:16    Lived in Casa Grande, Arizona
00:14:40    Worked in Prescott
00:14:48    Moved wherever the jobs were
00:15:50    Jobs didn’t last long
00:15:16    Great grandfather was metallurgist for the mines
00:15:34    Set up things in Florence
00:15:52    Processing and discovery of different ores and how to mine them
00:16:21    Maria and William moved to Prescott
00:16:43    William Jr. and sister were both born in Hayden, Arizona
00:16:52    Lived in Hayden 4 years
00:17:02    Hayden and Jerome and back to Hayden
00:17:45    Worked for railroad in Prescott
00:17:56    Apprenticeship for railroad before William Jr. was born
00:18:53    Sister Mary Lou born in 1933 at Hayden
00:19:16    Sister Alberta born in 1937 at Prescott
00:19:50    Brother Albert born in 1930 at Hayden but died of pneumonia 
00:20:44    Sister Mary (Jennings) Smith died in 2022
00:21:15    1941, Mom Maria passed away
00:21:21    Family moved to California
00:21:28    War started, dad went to work in the shipyards
00:21:31    Terminal Island, San Pedro, California
00:21:52    Aunt Jean remained in Prescott with daughter Margaret
00:22:19    1941 – William was 12 years old
00:23:09    Albert too young for World War I and too old for World War II
00:24:09    Jean and Margaret and Petra stayed in Prescott
00:24:30    Still lived on Marina Street
00:24:48    Charlotte McKay grand-niece of Albert
00:25:53    Family moved back to Prescott
00:26:50    World War II changed everything
00:26:22    Lived with grandparents on Marina Street
00:26:49    House was split, 3 families lived there 
00:26:59    Families lived on each side with grandparents in the middle
00:27:42    Close with grandfather
00:27:56    Glass eye scared him
00:28:40    Petra understood English
00:29:00    Grandparents spoke Spanish and English
00:29:15    Dad was bilingual also 
00:29:51    Great grandfather was in the United States in 1875 and 1882
00:30:22    Mother only a homemaker in Prescott
00:30:36    Worked as a telephone operator in Hayden
00:31:11    Read to Mom all the time
00:31:29    Bedridden with breast cancer
00:31:51    Mom went for radiation treatments in Phoenix
00:32:21    Traveled by train
00:32:41    Stayed with cousins in Phoenix
00:33:00    Treatments went on for 1 year
00:33:18    Lot worse, cancer spread to her brain
00:35:26    Lived in Clarkdale 1 year
00:35:40    Granite Dells Swimming Hole
00:36:00    Prescott was a lot smaller then
00:36:11    Had bicycle
00:36:20    Sold newspapers around the courthouse
00:36:39    Kept money for himself
00: 36:51    Newspapers cost 5 cents
00:37:04    The Courier
00:37:24    Courier offices were across from the Post Office (Goodwin Street)
00:37:31    Had newspaper route from 7 to 9 years old
00:37:45    Studio Theater
00:38:41    July – Carnival set up around courthouse
00:38:47    July 4th parade
00:38:59    Smoki dances at the fairgrounds
00:39:57    William was in Mexican Dance Group
00:39:41    Performed at the ball park
00:39:42    Community Sings
00:39:45    Mexican Hat Dance
00:40:13    Danced for a couple of years
00:40:30    Never went to rodeo
00:40:50    Smoki tribe were businessmen
00:41:41    Lived in Clarkdale for 1 year (3rd grade)
00:42:03    Started school in Prescott
00:42:07    Washington School (now PUSD administrative offices)
00:42:25    1st and 2nd grade – Prescott
00:42:28    3rd grade – Clarkdale
00:42:29    4th – 8th grade – Prescott
00:42:42    Old Junior High and High School building on Gurley and Marina
00:43:35    Dad worked at Blount-Scott
00:43:51    Just down from the railroad station
00:44:18    Population was less than 18,000
00:45:10    Grocery store
00:45:21    Drug store
00:45:39    William set pins at the bowling alley on Whiskey Row as a kid 
00:46:06    “Anything for a buck”
00:46:23    Grandma fell and broke her hip
00:47:17    12 years old when they left Prescott
00:47:29    Moved to California
00:47:41    Dad and William lived in Long Beach, California
00:47:45    Sisters lives with aunt near Riverside, California
00:47:52    Had 2 newspaper routes in the morning
00:48:00    Finished the 9th grade
00:48:09    Dad remarried and moved to Los Angeles
00:48:27    Dad worked for Standard Welding (machinist)
00:48:27    Had 4 more children
00:48:57    William lived with sisters, separately from Dad
00:49:22    William paid rent in high school
00:49:40    Cleaned airplanes at the airport
00:50:06    Burbank, Airport
00:50:52    Graduated high school
00:50:56    Started working for railroad
00:51:02    Mail Clerk at railroad claims office
00:51:06    Southern Pacific Railroad
00:51:14    Korean War
00:51:16    Drafted – 18 months
00:51:28    Came back to old job
00:51:33    Promoted to investigator
00:51:38    Claims adjustor for railroad
00:51:56    Went to work for Allstate -  Insurance Adjustor
00:52:06    Insurance Examiner
00:52:07    Claim manager of office
00:52:13    Claim Staff Director
00:52:17    Opened commercial business in company
00:52:34    Retired 1956
00:52:40    26 years
00:53:02    Married
00:53:11    Wife from Arkansas
00:53:22    Pacific Electric Building in Los Angeles
00:53:41    Wife worked for Dun and Bradstreet
00:54:01    3 Kids
00:54:07    David, Steven and Linda
00:54:57    On his own at 15
00:55:14    No stability
00:55:27    Sisters finished high school and married
00: 55:58    William now 94 1/2
00:56:41    Interesting life