Interview with Dorothy Brooks Koopman
InterviewerInterviewed by
Sondra Astor Stave
Date2007 June 7
Mediumdigitized audio cassette tape
DimensionsDuration: 1 Hour, 12 Minutes, 32 Seconds
ClassificationsInformation Artifacts
Credit LineConnecticut Museum of Culture and History collection
Object number2009.85.24
DescriptionAudio cassette tape of an interview with Dorothy Brooks "Brooksie" Koopman. She was interviewed on June 7, 2007 by Sondra Astor Stave at the Connecticut Historical Society in Hartford, Connecticut.
Brooksie Koopman was born on May 30, 1950 at Hartford Hospital in Hartford, Connecticut. Her parents are Georgette Fox Auerbach and Richard Koopman. Georgette is one of Beatrice Fox Auerbach's daughters. She has five siblings. Brooksie's father worked in the shade tobacco business. She attended St. Joseph College for Women for preschool and kindergarten; the Lloyd H. Bugbee School in West Hartford for grades 1-6; and the Oxford School for grades 7-12. She attended Case Western Reserve University for her undergraduate degree and the University of Chicago for graduate school.
Brooksie describes how she remembers G. Fox & Co. as a child and being recognized as a member of Beatrice Fox Auerbach's family. She describes her memories of her grandmother and the Sunday lunches the grandchildren had at Beatrice's house. In the summers, the lunches were held at Auerfarm in Bloomfield, rather than at the 1040 Prospect Avenue house in Hartford.
Brooksie worked at G. Fox during the summers and at Christmas in the Costume Jewelry Department. She mentions the Pharmaceutical Department G. Fox had at Hartford Hospital and the agricultural branch that was unsuccessful. She discusses visits to New York City with her grandmother. She discusses Beatrice Fox Auerbach's relationship with Eleanor Roosevelt.
Brooksie discusses her experience being the only women at an engineering firm and how her grandmother influenced her. She ends the interview explaining how the G. Fox oral history project came about and the legacy of Beatrice Fox Auerbach.
Brooksie Koopman was born on May 30, 1950 at Hartford Hospital in Hartford, Connecticut. Her parents are Georgette Fox Auerbach and Richard Koopman. Georgette is one of Beatrice Fox Auerbach's daughters. She has five siblings. Brooksie's father worked in the shade tobacco business. She attended St. Joseph College for Women for preschool and kindergarten; the Lloyd H. Bugbee School in West Hartford for grades 1-6; and the Oxford School for grades 7-12. She attended Case Western Reserve University for her undergraduate degree and the University of Chicago for graduate school.
Brooksie describes how she remembers G. Fox & Co. as a child and being recognized as a member of Beatrice Fox Auerbach's family. She describes her memories of her grandmother and the Sunday lunches the grandchildren had at Beatrice's house. In the summers, the lunches were held at Auerfarm in Bloomfield, rather than at the 1040 Prospect Avenue house in Hartford.
Brooksie worked at G. Fox during the summers and at Christmas in the Costume Jewelry Department. She mentions the Pharmaceutical Department G. Fox had at Hartford Hospital and the agricultural branch that was unsuccessful. She discusses visits to New York City with her grandmother. She discusses Beatrice Fox Auerbach's relationship with Eleanor Roosevelt.
Brooksie discusses her experience being the only women at an engineering firm and how her grandmother influenced her. She ends the interview explaining how the G. Fox oral history project came about and the legacy of Beatrice Fox Auerbach.
Collections
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.
Status
Not on view