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Edited interview with Marguerite Insco (MI), granddaughter of Irenee Laprise. Conducted by Joe Manning (JM), on January 10, 2009. Transcribed by Hilary Buxton and edited by Manning.

JM: What was your reaction when you first saw the photograph?

MI: It was like, wow, this is so exciting. This is my grandfather.

JM: You immediately recognized him?

MI: I knew it was him immediately. But I had no idea that he had worked as a child.

JM: Had you ever seen a picture of your grandfather as a child?

MI: Yes. That's why I was able to recognize him right away.

JM: Did you know he had lived in Winchendon?

MI: Yes, I did know that.

JM: What year were you born?

MI: 1949.

JM: So you knew him until you were about 23.

MI: That's right.

JM: Did you know him well?

MI: We were very close.

JM: Did you live near each other?

MI: Yes, we lived in New Britain (Connecticut), and so did he. Then we moved to Kensington, which is close to New Britain. My parents would take us to visit him and my grandmother every weekend. When I was 12, we moved away. My dad had worked for a company in Connecticut, but then he got a job with the same company in Chicago. That's where I was living when my grandfather died.

JM: Did moving out there change your relationship with your grandfather?

MI: Sure, but I would talk to him whenever my parents called them. One time, my grandparents came out to watch us while my parents went on vacation.

JM: What are some of the things you miss most about him?

MI: He was fun to be with. He was jolly, and he was very loving. He was a neat guy, very talkative, always joking around. I remember that he was very active in the Knights of Columbus, and that he ran the bar there. At that time, he was probably retired. My grandparents were devout Catholics. They went to Mass daily. My dad was an altar boy, and I was raised Catholic.

JM: Do you think that your grandfather was smart and fairly well educated?

MI: Yes, I do. And I think that he and my grandmother had a good life. They lived in a nice apartment in New Britain, above some relatives. They never owned their own home.

JM: Did your father talk much about growing up in Maine, before his parents moved to Connecticut?

MI: No, but I remember that he used to go up to Maine quiet often for family get-togethers.

JM: So other family members were still up there.

MI: Yes, but on my grandmother's side mostly.

JM: What did your father do for a living?

MI: He was a mechanical designer for Continental Can. He was instrumental in designing the plastic milk bottle as we know it today. That was while he was working in Chicago.

JM: Where would he have learned that skill? Did he go to college?

MI: Yes, to the University of Montreal.

JM: When you were growing up, did your parents own their home?

MI: When I was seven, my dad purchased our first home in some sort of subdivision.

JM: Did your grandparents speak French?

MI: Yes, very fluently. They spoke it to each other, but not to my father.

JM: Did they eat traditional French food?

MI: Yes, and there were quite a few dishes that my mother would prepare that were on the French side.

JM: Did you grow up feeling very aware of your French-Canadian roots?

MI: Yes. My father spoke of it often. I think he was pretty proud of his ancestry.

JM: What was your father like?

MI: Very fun loving, just a great guy.

JM: And your mother?

MI: She was terrific, too. They loved each other a lot. I have good memories. When my mom passed away, he just spiraled downward. He wanted to move out to California, so he headed out there. Shortly thereafter, my husband and I decided we'd go out there, too. He settled in Burlingame, a little south of San Francisco, and we ended up in San Jose.

JM: Were you still out there when he passed away?

MI: No. We were living in New Jersey then.

JM: Did you go to college?

MI: No. I've been a secretary all of my life, a business administrative assistant.

JM: When you saw the photo of your grandfather, did it trigger a lot of memories?

MI: It brought back all kinds of memories, mostly of the family gatherings. I remember those a lot, because my mother had a lot of sisters.

JM: Lewis Hine was very famous for exposing child labor, and was instrumental in influencing the passing of child labor laws. Your grandfather was shown as an example of child labor. What do you think about that?

MI: I was surprised and stunned by it, but I think I was more excited to just see his picture and know that someone was researching him.

JM: When he grew up, he probably didn't remember that he was photographed in Winchendon. At the time, he might have simply regarded it as something the company was doing, and he may not have even seen a camera before. Do you ever remember him talking to you about his childhood?

MI: No. And I probably didn't ask. I wish I could tell you more about my grandfather. It makes me sad that I can't. But my grandmother, his wife, was around later to answer all our questions. She lived to be 101. Anytime anything came up, we'd ask her what was this like or that was like. Looking back at it now, every chance we get, we try to pass things down.