McDowell Legacy Program: Interview with Robert Hawkins
Full Agenda: [none]
Hear Robert Hawkins talk about life in downtown Marion when he was growing up here. Robert recalls how Marion was crowded with shoppers on Saturday and how the farmers gathered in the back lot to trade livestock. Farmers also brought their horses and mules to town to go by the blacksmith shop. Robert went to Newport News to work in the shipyards when he was sixteen. Then, when he turned eighteen, Robert was drafted into the army. He served in the 6th division of the 63rd Infantry Regiment, and was sent to the Philippines and South Korea. After returing home, Robert worked for the Postal Service for 36 years, 20 of them as a city carrier in Marion.