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Interview with Paul J. Mullen
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Interview transcript

Interview with Paul J. Mullen

Interviewee (American, born 1944)
Interviewer (American, 1937 - 2017)
Date2006 October 6
Mediumdigitized audio cassette tape
DimensionsDuration: 46 Minutes, 16 Seconds
ClassificationsInformation Artifacts
Credit LineConnecticut Museum of Culture and History collection
DescriptionAudio cassette tape of an interview with Paul J. Mullen. He was interviewed on October 6, 2006 by Bruce M. Stave and Sondra Astor Stave at his house in West Hartford, Connecticut.

Paul Mullen grew up in Hartford, Connecticut. He lived in the North End until he was in the third grade, then his family moved to the South End of Hartford. He graduated from Bulkeley High School in 1962, then attended Providence College.

Before her marriage, Mullen's mother worked at G. Fox & Company in Payroll. His grandfather, Charles Grandfield, was head of the Packing Department. Mullen got a part-time job at G. Fox when he was 16 years old as a stock boy in the Children's Department. His mother worked with Bill Luettgen, who may have helped Mullen get an interview at G. Fox.

Mullen discusses the monthly lunches Beatrice Fox Auerbach held with employees. About ten or twelve employees from across the store were invited to lunch once a month with BFA. He discusses how BFA was always walking around the store observing and interacting with staff and customers. He discusses the staff design competitions and parade that took place during the anniversary sale before the store opened to the public.

Mullen discusses Hartford during the 1960s, specifically the area around Main Street.
Object number2009.85.6
NotesSubject Note: From 2006 to 2008, the Connecticut Historical Society carried out an oral history project to collect first-hand impressions of G. Fox & Co. and its long-time president, Beatrice Fox Auerbach. Over thirty former employees, as well as two of Mrs. Auerbach's grandchildren, Dorothy Brooks Koopman and Rena Koopman, contributed their memories in interviews conducted by the Stave Group, Oral History Consultants. Funding Note: In 2006, the Connecticut Historical Society received a grant from the Beatrice Fox Auerbach Foundation Fund at the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving to support the collection of oral histories, the cataloging of G. Fox & Co. materials and Fox and Auerbach family materials, and the creation of web pages. Additional funding for the oral histories was provided by The Prospect Fund, The Brookside Fund, and The Maple Tree Fund. The Connecticut Historical Society gratefully acknowledges these generous supporters. Without such generosity, this project would not have been possible.
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