Bio
Willie "Coon" White, Jr. was born on March 21, 1948 in Hoboken, Georgia. White first entered the woods as a turpentine hand when still just a boy. His father taught him how to chip his first box, and before long, he was a member of what his first boss man (Frank Dukes) called the "Little Boys' Squad." The group consisted of seven or eight boys supervised by a woodsrider who drove the boys around on a tractor while the youngsters dipped gum.
When White was 16 years old, he graduated out of the "Little Boys' Squad," quit school, and began working turpentine fulltime. He remained in the woods for several years before getting hired by George Varn to work at the Varn Turpentine Still in Hoboken. After several years of work at the still, turpentine began to dry up as an industry in the United States. The pines, however, remained as much a part of the occupational framework as ever, and Willie White fell into his current job in the sawmill at Varn Wood Products, also in Hoboken.
Today, White continues to live with his wife in Hoboken, where he is a preacher at a local Holiness church and a talented gospel singer and guitarist.
Found in 6 Collections and/or Records:
File — Box 1: Series Series 1, Folder: 16
Collection number: Folder 16
Scope and Contents
Group or Organization Name:County of Residence:BrantleyOccupation:Sawmill WorkerNotes:Location of interview: Solid Rock Holiness Church, just 100 or so yards behind Mr. White's home in Hoboken, GA.Very little noise outside whatsoever. An absolutely beautiful DAT recording of Mr. White playing his guitar and singing spirituals and gospeKeywords:gospel, spirituals, bluesGenres (Controlled Vocabulary):Turpentine, personal experience...
Dates:
2003-07-06
File — Box 1: Series Series 1, Folder: 28
Collection number: Folder 28
Scope and Contents
Equipment Used: Timothy C. PrizerInformant Name: Timothy C. PrizerFieldworker: Front yard of informant's home at 110 Franklin St. in Hoboken, GeorgiaEngineer: Original fieldworker number 03.2Location: Original fieldworker number 03.2Content Summary: This is an excellent recording both in sound and content. The sounds of passing cars, playing children, and barking dogs are fairly constant, but these do not intrude significantly...
Dates:
July 6, 2003
File — Box 1: Series Series 1, Folder: 29
Collection number: Folder 29
Scope and Contents
Equipment Used:Timothy C. PrizerInformant Name:Timothy C. PrizerFieldworker:Solid Rock Holiness Church in Hoboken, GeorgiaEngineer:Original tape number 03.5. SGFP collection CAS 1002.06 is the same as DAT 1002.08.Location:Original tape number 03.5. SGFP collection CAS 1002.06 is the same as DAT 1002.08.Content Summary:As with most Digital Audio Tape recordings, this one is of splendid sound quality. Far superior to regular...
Dates:
July 15, 2003
File — Box 1: Series Series 1, Folder: 27
Collection number: Folder 27
Scope and Contents
Equipment Used:Timothy C. PrizerInformant Name:Timothy C. PrizerFieldworker:Front yard of informant's home at 110 Franklin St. in Hoboken, GeorgiaEngineer:Tape Number: 03.1 (Fieldworker's designations)Location:Tape Number: 03.1 (Fieldworker's designations)Content Summary:SUMMARY DESCRIPTION OF TAPE QUALITY (background noise, etc.)
This is an excellent recording both in sound and content. The sounds of passing cars,...
Dates:
July 6, 2003
File — Box 2: Series Series 1, Folder: 6
Collection number: Folder 6
Scope and Contents
Name of person(s) interviewed: Willie White, Jr.Fieldworker: Timothy C. PrizerDate of interview: 15 July 2003Location of interview: Solid Rock Holiness Church in Hoboken, GeorgiaOther people present: For a short time, a woman and her son and daughter (all members of the congregation) joined White and the fieldworker in the otherwise vacant sanctuary. The young boy is in his early teens, and he plays keyboards and drums during Sunday services....
Dates:
July 15, 2003
File — Bag \folklife\prj1014\: Series PRJ1014, Folder: 070_white-willie
Collection number: PRJ1014-070
Scope and Contents
Oral history interview with Willie White, Jr., July 6, 2003 and July 15, 2003. Hoboken (Ga.). Fieldworker: Timothy C. Prizer. Audio file digitized from 3 cassette tapes. Part of the South Georgia Folklife Project at Valdosta State University Archives and Special Collections. Topics include gospel music, blues (music), and turpentining. The July 15, 2003 audio file includes song performances by Willie White Jr., accompanied by guitar.Willie White talks at length about his life...
Dates:
July 6, 2003 ; July 15, 2003
