Mattie Reynolds Oral History Interview (2 of 3)

In this, the second of three interviews, Mattie Reynolds describes how she and her family first moved to Oregon as well as the careers that were available to Black Oregonians at the time. She explains that she and her family first moved to Oregon because her husband got a job with an Oregon-based railroad company that paid better wages than were available in the South. She explains that while segregation was not legal doctrine in Oregon, it remained socially enforced. Mrs. Reynolds concludes by describing how the Civil Rights movement impacted Eugene.

Mattie Reynolds (1918-2010) was born in Bossier Parish, Louisiana and moved to Eugene, Oregon from Shreveport, Louisiana so that her husband could pursue work with the railroad. The mother of twelve children, Reynolds was a founding member of St. Mark Christian Methodist Episcopal Church and was also the first African American to seek elective office in Eugene, running for a seat on the City Council in 1966. During the 1960s she participated in sit-ins and other protests to advance the cause of civil rights in Eugene.