In this first of two interviews, Mecklenburg County natives Janet Gamble and Delores Crowder discuss their private family lives, the Derita neighborhood in Charlotte, and their elementary school experiences attending the all-black Rockwell Rosenwald School during the 1940s-1950s. Ms. Gamble and Ms. Crowder reflect on the teacher' classroom responsibilities and their typical school schedules. According to the women, one of the central responsibilities of the teacher was student discipline, which often included corporal punishment. They also describe favorite recess or play activities, including softball and jump rope. Ms. Crowder and Ms. Gamble then discuss their school's lack of educational and material resources. Both women remember the prevalent use of hand-me-down books and secondhand classroom desks, and an absence of contemporary amenities. The women recall their school' use of stoves for heat and lack of running water for the buildings. According to the interviewees, sinks and running water were added later when a local church offered financial support.