Interview with Fanny Raptopoulos
IntervieweeInterview with
Fanny Raptopoulos
American, 1919 - 2013
InterviewerInterviewed by
Bruce M. Stave
American, 1937 - 2017
InterviewerInterviewed by
Sondra Astor Stave
Date2008 April 10
Mediumdigitized audio cassette tape
DimensionsDuration: 1 Hour, 33 Minutes, 27 Seconds
ClassificationsInformation Artifacts
Credit LineConnecticut Museum of Culture and History collection
DescriptionAudio cassette tape of an interview with Fanny Raptopoulos. She was interviewed on April 10, 2008 by Bruce M. Stave and Sondra Astor Stave at her home in Wethersfield, Connecticut.
Fanny was born on November 21, 1919 in Chicopee, Massachusetts. Her parents were born in Smyrna, Turkey. The family first moved to Springfield, Massachusetts, then moved to Hartford, Connecticut. Fanny graduated from Bulkeley High School in 1938. In 1939, she applied for a job at G. Fox & Co. during the Christmas season, but was not hired. She applied again the next year and was hired as a cashier. She then moved into a position in the Tube Room. She describes how the pneumatic tube sales system worked. She was a member of the Moses Fox Club, having worked at G. Fox for 40 years. She worked in the Tube Room for about 25 years before being promoted to the Manager of the Cashier's Office. She discusses the changes that occurred at the store after it was purchased by the May Company. She describes Centinel Hill Hall and the events held there. She describes her interactions with Beatrice Fox Auerbach and the dress code. The Seventh Floor Tube Room was closed on July 20, 1970, and Fanny reads a notice about its closure. She shares her memories of Hartford. She discusses labor unions, some of the Black employees she remembers, and the women employees. After retiring from G. Fox, Fanny worked part-time at Sage, Allen & Co. for nine years. She compares working for the two stores. She talks about thefts at G. Fox. She reads the "Ten Commandments of Human Relations" issued by G. Fox. She ends the interview discussing the Moses Fox Club and photos and memorabilia she has in a scrapbook.
Fanny was born on November 21, 1919 in Chicopee, Massachusetts. Her parents were born in Smyrna, Turkey. The family first moved to Springfield, Massachusetts, then moved to Hartford, Connecticut. Fanny graduated from Bulkeley High School in 1938. In 1939, she applied for a job at G. Fox & Co. during the Christmas season, but was not hired. She applied again the next year and was hired as a cashier. She then moved into a position in the Tube Room. She describes how the pneumatic tube sales system worked. She was a member of the Moses Fox Club, having worked at G. Fox for 40 years. She worked in the Tube Room for about 25 years before being promoted to the Manager of the Cashier's Office. She discusses the changes that occurred at the store after it was purchased by the May Company. She describes Centinel Hill Hall and the events held there. She describes her interactions with Beatrice Fox Auerbach and the dress code. The Seventh Floor Tube Room was closed on July 20, 1970, and Fanny reads a notice about its closure. She shares her memories of Hartford. She discusses labor unions, some of the Black employees she remembers, and the women employees. After retiring from G. Fox, Fanny worked part-time at Sage, Allen & Co. for nine years. She compares working for the two stores. She talks about thefts at G. Fox. She reads the "Ten Commandments of Human Relations" issued by G. Fox. She ends the interview discussing the Moses Fox Club and photos and memorabilia she has in a scrapbook.
Object number2009.85.29
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.
Subject Terms
- Wethersfield
- Hartford (Conn.)
- Department stores
- Employees
- G. Fox & Co.
- Oral history
- Interview transcripts
- Interviews
- Oral narratives
- Retail trade
- Christmas
- Cashiers
- Moses Fox Club
- Fox, Beatrice, 1887-1968
- Banks and banking
- Money
- Sage, Allen & Co.
- Labor unions
- Theft
- African Americans
- Black people
- People of color
- Women
- Retirement
- Human resources and training
- Interviews and Oral Histories
- G. Fox & Co. Collection
- Remembering G. Fox & Co.
Collections
- G. Fox & Co.
On View
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