Oral history interview with Arthur, 1980

Biographical Note

Arthur was born in Harlem on May 8th, 1914. A middle child with four siblings, Arthur's family was middle class until Great Depression of the 1930s. After graduating from high school, Arthur worked in grocery stores. As a teenage delivery boy he started smoking marijuana and was introduced to alcohol. By the age of twenty-one, Arthur began using heroin. In 1937, he was arrested for the first time for illegal possession. By 1945 Arthur's common-law wife passed away, and he began to struggle with suicidal ideations. In 1950, Arthur volunteered for the Navy, and traveled around the world. He continued his drug use on the ship and was discharged in 1951 due to a conviction in Germany. In the 1950s-1960s, Arthur sold drugs in New York City. In 1968, he began methadone treatment. Arthur was interviewed for the project that led to the book Addicts Who Survived. The name is likely a pseudonym for the project Arthur was interviewed for the project that led to the book Addicts Who Survived. The name is likely a pseudonym for the project

Scope and Contents

Arthur begins the interview by discussing his familial life and Harlem in the years through the Great Depression. He describes starting as young employee of supermarkets and eventually became a manager. He shares his introduction to drugs, bootlegging in Harlem, his initial use of heroin at the age of twenty-one, and his changes in drug use throughout his lifetime. During World War II, many drug users were not able to access heroin any longer, and Arthur recalls how people were withdrawing in the streets. Arthur describes his service in the U.S. Navy, including drug use on Navy ships, a stop in Indonesia, and his incarceration in Germany. Arthur shares the realities of balancing "honest" work, drug dealing, and drug use and how it impacted not only his life but the life of the people around him. He describes how one would obtain needles for injection, find quality heroin, and survive during times without access. Arthur reflects on dealing to jazz musicians and entertainers, dealing to sex workers, and how he would buy off the police during the 1950s-1960s. Arthur shares that at the time of this interview, he is retired, a passionate reader, and maintaining using methadone

Subjects

• Arthur--Interviews.
• Drug addicts--United States.
• Drug dealers--United States.
• Drug traffic--United States--History--20th century.
• Heroin abuse--United States--History--20th century.
• Interviews.
• Joseph, Herman, 1931- interviewer.
• Oral histories (literary works)
• Prostitution--United States--History--20th century.
• Soldiers--Drug use--United States.

Access Conditions

Copyright by David Courtwright