Catalog ID:
ORH-001-0023
Creator:
Cole, William (Jr.)
Archives Field 21:
AUDIO: Click to Play
Scope & Content:
Oral history interview with William Cole, Jr.
Cole discusses growing up in Bridgeport. His family first lived near Seaside Park on Myrtle Avenue and then in a neighborhood on Norman Street near City tennis courts. He attended Maplewood School, then parochial school, then Bassick High School. His first jobs were working at his father's garage/gas station and parking lot and delivery groceries.
He delayed college and worked at Casco then entered an apprentice program through the Bridgeport Brass Company. He was drafted into the Marines in the early 1950s and spent a year in Korea. He came back to the U.S. in November of 1953 and worked at Bullards until he entered college in the fall of 1954. He attended the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) where he took design courses and engineering courses at Brown University (1954-58). He worked at Sikorsky as a draftsman during the summers.
Following college, he was hired by North American Aviation in Los Angeles, California. He met and married his wife there. They moved back to Bridgeport in 1963. Cole eventually got a job at Remington Arms in the research department and stayed at Remington until 1986. Cole describes his first project there as an engineer and designer. He felt that Remington was a wonderful place to work with a family atmosphere. Cole discusses the machinery and technology he encountered at these various industries. He also discusses the finances of Remington Arms, the building of a plant in Lonoke, Arkansas, and the changes that took place over the decades.
Cole discusses growing up in Bridgeport. His family first lived near Seaside Park on Myrtle Avenue and then in a neighborhood on Norman Street near City tennis courts. He attended Maplewood School, then parochial school, then Bassick High School. His first jobs were working at his father's garage/gas station and parking lot and delivery groceries.
He delayed college and worked at Casco then entered an apprentice program through the Bridgeport Brass Company. He was drafted into the Marines in the early 1950s and spent a year in Korea. He came back to the U.S. in November of 1953 and worked at Bullards until he entered college in the fall of 1954. He attended the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) where he took design courses and engineering courses at Brown University (1954-58). He worked at Sikorsky as a draftsman during the summers.
Following college, he was hired by North American Aviation in Los Angeles, California. He met and married his wife there. They moved back to Bridgeport in 1963. Cole eventually got a job at Remington Arms in the research department and stayed at Remington until 1986. Cole describes his first project there as an engineer and designer. He felt that Remington was a wonderful place to work with a family atmosphere. Cole discusses the machinery and technology he encountered at these various industries. He also discusses the finances of Remington Arms, the building of a plant in Lonoke, Arkansas, and the changes that took place over the decades.
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