Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2020/Fall/105/Section 061/James Caston

Overview
James Caston was a white farmer who would go on to open his own merchant store. He was interviewed by Mary Hicks and Edwin Massengill for the Federal Writers Project in 1939.

Early Life
Caston was raised on a farm and from a young age wanted to follow his father into this profession. Due to this reason and the fact that he was in love with Martha, a girl on an adjoining plot of land, he remained on the farm for his early life. Caston would walk Martha to and from church on Sundays and would take her to all the dances and the school events. One day he proposed to her and she agreed as long as both of their parents were okay with it. Their parents made them wait one year because they thought they were too young, so when Caston was 20 and Martha was 17 they eloped.

Adult Life and Work
After marrying, the newlyweds would move into their new house and they received a deed for 35 acres of land. Their family would continue to grow as Martha would eventually give birth to five kids making Caston a father to four girls and one boy. Over the years, Caston would have trouble with infidelity and as he describes it, “I’m afraid that I neglected Martha after the first few years .” The Caston family would stay on the farm for 18 years until Caston and his brother joined together to run a transfer business and the family would move to the city.

Caston’s world would be turned upside down with the death of Martha. She died due to pneumonia and would be buried back on the farm. James would then struggle with drinking for a good while until he met Gladys, a seventh-grade teacher who at the time despised Caston because she thought he was a drunk. He continued to grow on her until they decided to marry two years after Martha’s death. Caston’s kids now grown up opposed the marriage and this created a bit of a rift in the family.

Caston’s business ventures changed as he left his brother’s business and started his own merchant shop. It would become relatively successful and within a month his shop would supply goods to 20 families, a true example of the American Dream. The shop would use credit which was a popular economic feature of the time that would become important and a key factor during the Great Depression with one article writing “unfortunately, potential domestic investors suffered as the real cost of credit rose ." From this point on, a few things remained constant throughout the rest of his adult life, he would continue to have flings with other woman, drinking was an issue including a trip to rehab, he was a life-long Democrat believing there should be less governmental control, and lastly, him and Gladys remained well off spending the rest of their days in a large nicely furnished house.

The Great Depression
The Great Depression was the world’s worst economic disaster occurring through the 1930’s affecting many different facets of life. It didn’t matter how well off you were economically, “even upper-class professionals, such as doctors and lawyers, saw their incomes drop by as much as 40 percent. Families who had previously enjoyed economic security suddenly faced financial instability or, in some cases, ruin ." Families faced other challenges due to the depression that weren’t just related to unemployment and money. The stress of the time caused issues and rifts within families and marriages one article stating “the downturn rippled through all aspects of society, including the institution of marriage: marriage rates fell by 20 percent from 1929 to 1933 ." A reason why this trend is seen could be that unemployed men and women sat at home where they inevitably irritated and argued with each other. Another negative social effect due to the terrible times is that fathers grew distant from their families and “some unemployed men took up drinking ."

The American Dream
The American Dream, the idea that people can come from humble beginnings or nothing at all and can achieve wealth and prosperity is an idea prevalent in America. One scholarly article writes “There is widespread agreement, irrespective of income, that “most people can succeed if they are willing to work hard” (Pew Research Center 2012a). " There are several examples and ways that the American Dream can be lived out ranging from immigrant families moving to the country and starting new all the way to poor farmers that grow to become successful businessmen.