Oral History Interviews

The following are excerpts of three oral history interviews from the UW-La Crosse Oral History Collection. Each excerpt is about two minutes long.

If the sound files below do not automatically play on your computer, you can download free players for Real Audio or QuickTime (these links open a new window).

Dr. Emerson G. Wulling, was recently retired from the University of Wisconsin –La Crosse when he was interviewed by Howard Fredricks in 1973. Dr. Wulling was an English professor for thirty-five years at La Crosse, from 1938 until 1973. He also operated his own private printing press, the Sumac Press. In his audio excerpt, Dr. Wulling recalls how he began his printing career as a boy in St. Paul.  Listen: Real Audio | QuickTime

June Kjome, a native of Iowa, worked from 1945-1965 as a midwife in a mission hospital in Zululand, South Africa before coming to work as a pediatrics nurse at Gundersen Lutheran Hospital in La Crosse. While working on her book, For the Common Good: A History of Women’s Roles in La Crosse, County, 1920-1980, Margaret Larson interviewed June Kjome in 1994. The audio excerpt recounts how, during her years in Africa, some people erroneously assumed June Kjome was of African descent because of her last name. The excerpt also relates some of her encounters with traditional medical practices in Africa.  Listen: Real Audio | QuickTime

Thai Vue is a native of Laos, a veteran of the secret war in Laos during the Vietnam war era, and a leader of the Hmong community in La Crosse. He is Associate Executive Director of the Hmong Mutual Assistance Association. Vue was elected to the School District of La Crosse Board of Education. Charles Lee interviewed him in 1994. Thai Vue’s excerpt includes his thoughts on how life in the United States was affecting the traditional Hmong family support system. Listen: Real Audio | QuickTime