Hamilton Stockton and Carolyn O'Neil

00:00 Want me to start?

00:06 My name is Hamilton Stockton Junior.

00:15 90 years old.

00:19 Today's date is Tuesday, November 23rd, 2021.

00:27 I'm talking to you from Atlanta Georgia. And the name of my interview partner is Carolyn O'Neil A Friend.

00:37 And I am Carolyn O'Neil, and I am 66 years old. It is Tuesday, November 23rd, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. And I am with Hamilton Stockton Junior and a friend of his and can't wait for our conversation. So you said you were a little tense and anybody would be in this situation delighted to be with storycorps, but maybe you would enjoy a perfect Rob Roy. What is in a perfect Rob Roy just to kick off our conversation and it is really a scotch Martini years old. I know that you still enjoy them with love.

01:36 Dinners with friends before we go back in time, talk about being 90 and how important it is to you to socialize just as you have done throughout your life in Atlanta.

01:51 My Prelude to that question, is that my mother used to take me to her Sunday school class and the theme of that class was others? And as a consequence, I grew up from age like for 2:20 being aware that although a lot more important than I am. So big social is an essential part of my well-being and the regardless of age does just the very thing to be able to have a new friend and to enjoy their presents and what have you?

02:37 Well, I can tell you just a being the I witness to your life over the past year or more. You have a lot of friends. You walk into the club, you walk into a restaurant and everybody know you said they're so and so and they go there to Hamilton. How did you acquire? So many friends in life? Will everything I have done, it is in the public eye and as a consequence, when I was in high school, I taught dancing. And I saw happen to know all the beautiful girls in Buckhead. And so, I've always been my personality is such that I wish I could dimick lie, and eligible to play football, but I was a talented athlete. And in order to compensate, I made friends with football play.

03:37 I also enjoyed their presents and enjoy the gaming and back. Enjoy, most every game, but it was, it was my effort to compensate for my own academic shortcomings.

03:58 I made up for that in success in life, when I walk into a restaurant is that I don't know, everybody and more importantly that everybody doesn't know me.

04:12 Will you chose a profession and we'll just jump right into the middle of your life? Before we go back to Childhood. You chose a profession where you had to say? Hello. Tell us about what happened when you open it. It's the night. I graduated from high school.

04:39 I picked a fight with what I didn't know, then was a policeman. And a friend of mine had come down Peachtree, Road at Lindbergh, Drive at a wreck. Cuz it, we will waiting. We were just watching what was going on while they were clearing up, the wreck and pulled over because he only had one light and when he pulled over a gentleman, jumped out of the car dressed plainclothes, ran over grabbed him by the belt and pulled him out of the car and Superman here decided that it was something I was to prevent so I start across the street.

05:22 They let him go for the violation of his who happened to be the son of the mayor and had been the mayor of the city of Italy and put me in jail for drunk and disorderly on the public highway. So I ran into him.

05:45 Almost a year later.

05:49 And I drug store in Buckhead, call, Hitchcock and summons. And I said, Henry Huynh the world. Are you doing? He said? Well, I graduated high school at night and I went to Georgia Tech. I took one course and I started my own business. So what courses you take it. Charge it. They said I took a course in foundations how to build a foundation and I started remodeling homes. I said Henry.

06:21 When did you decide to do that? He said, I decided when I was 10 years old. I was going to build houses.

06:30 Also, that is beautiful. I went home that night, got all the piece of paper, draw a line, down the middle of it things, I would not do and things I would do. And when I wound up, I like people. I love am creative and in my own way, I love to draw and paint and what have you and Mickey Mouse with stuff. It's visual, but the most wall of people when you get through with that, then you say, what would you do? If I came down to two conclusions? I need to go in the retail business or personal insurance.

07:09 I know, I'll shout out on my career to find out what I could know about those two items and

07:19 I asked Old Henry, Henry. Have you been in business since we all need? Somebody took the one course and then September, graduate and assembled my business in January, and I only met how much business have you done? He said, I did $250,000.

07:39 I said to myself who's Henry is not real smart. Hand-blown. You're not as smart as Henry, but if I could make up my mind, what do you want to do and do it intelligently you my wind up making $250,000 in a year and sale, so

08:01 I thought about that.

08:04 Store working part-time and various jobs and what have you and became fairly? Well, basically trained in the retail where that one was a mecca for good stores in at the time that I graduated from high school Federal.

08:28 Carolyn go to stores in Atlanta and Spencers limited was here, John Gerald was here. The Buckhead Men's Shop, which is where I grew up in Buckhead was very, very popular at the time. Then I went to work for Parks Chambers across the street from Parks Chambers was George mused. That was his horses to pantsuit operation will build with your so National brand and we will just chock-full of a good honest, straightforward retailers, and I enjoy that my basic training and

09:12 Retail came from my father's job, which was

09:18 Alyssa said 19 3738. He was a traveling salesman what George W Helm snuff company has a consequence. I have been in every store in Georgia at a Crossroads. And on the eastern coast of Alabama and everybody I met when I was about nineteen years old, I go back to next year then find out. It's a gentleman that I had met last year was now either the mayor of the city, but he was always involved with his community. And so you meet a guy who is a retailer. He is only representing about one-sixth of what do you use and

10:09 He enjoyed knowing everybody in this community. So how was inspired by the that? I wouldn't take any one person if you did not work. He had no. No, you, he didn't have any useful. If you were working and you did your job. Well, he loves you and admired, you and praise you. For whatever the work was, whether you with a pressure in the dry cleaner for the guy that put gas in your car. And if you did a good job, he would comment on it on it. And I learned a lot in that regard. We made a lot of stops in a lot of places in a lot of people in the course of a day, be worn out from just talkin. That's how I got involved with my career.

11:08 You told me very, very good friend in high school, who was over there. What's a venn person of the Life Insurance Company of Georgia and my my friend's father?

11:34 Had all of his clothes TaylorMade. And so in the one, I graduated from high school, 1948.

11:44 He had given my friend Walker Sullivan, all of his clothes over the past four years and Sullivan could get them on Monday. And no matter what the man size was my Wednesday. He could wear them and shows his butt came to possess. Mahoney Manor, esport coach with Bella's pockets and elbow patches, and Bosh Wing backs at Sea Island Cotton shirts in English tab collars. And whatever his name was I can tell you in a minute is initials were

12:27 Or else in my initials were a chest. I had all the monogram shirts and I told him I'm a grandma just made a mistake and it's not a problem. It'll be okay. So I had all these nice shirts, all these nice coats and what have you?

12:48 Your learn after you have all those nice things that there's more to life than a pair of jeans and a pair of broken skis, and they will get you places that are Jean and a Bluegrass Broadband, wouldn't even allow you to another and you also get some respect from those around you. But because of adequacy is my wife is produced is not what I pursue. I pursue extravagance. Will you open a Stockton in 1963, correct? And you must have had a vision for what you wanted it to be and represent you talked about the other successful retailers. Did you have to be different? Did you have a lot of work for the phone store? That was riches? Riches was a department store.

13:48 All the practice, the Golden Rule. And they didn't talk about it. They practice the sucker and it was just a great experience to be a part of richest. Then when I went to University of Georgia. I had decided I was going to be a retailer and I went to the business school and they didn't even offer or anyting retail. Was the second largest employer in the state of Georgia and they didn't even order offer a career in anything having to do with retail. So I asked him if they had anybody there to help me get prepared to open my own store off of Fortune enough to get the funds to do so and they introduced me to the nicest Jewish guy you ever saw one in, I sat down and designed a program for me to take from I want, is a sophomore. So I only had two.

14:48 4 years of school and he did a marvelous job of preparing me. I could read a spreadsheet understood of markup and markdown. I had a command of the English language that he said was necessary in order to carry on a conversation and more and bone is your write a letter that was understandable and it demanded response. So all of that went into my prep, from the University of Georgia and I had gotten a job because someone that Rich has had called and asked, is anybody over there? Should retail.

15:28 Dino, should we have just the guy? So, I became riches advisor to the store for men when I was at the University of Georgia and they had campus Representatives at Georgia Emory.

15:45 Georgia Tech. I don't recall up where else but those guys became my friend and that is just great to have friends at University of Georgia, but it's very important to have a friend at amrein at Georgia Tech and I enjoyed that experience with their preparation. My great dad at Rich's. I used to hitchhike from school, and Athens to Atlanta, every Friday afternoon after class, and I would get stranded in various places most often in Stone Mountain. And I had a girlfriend that I would ask her to come get me in when I worked on Saturday on Friday night and Saturday morning of my birthday. I didn't realize it was my birthday, but I show up.

16:45 Go to work. I know gentleman meets me and said now walk to your duty station with you. I said, oh my goodness and blowing. What if you don't you go get fired Joshua. I would love to walk with you. What is your name is? Name is Bob fidler. So, mr. Fiddler and I were walking along and I said are you walking me to you to my duty station?

17:15 How do you say it's your birthday? But you know, it is my birthday. I want to know what you think we could do to make this a bubble store.

17:31 That is a compliment. I made that took to a guy 18, 19 years old and they were getting ready to build. So I gave him my wonderful opinion about what was going on and Fiddler and I used to go over and sit at Five Points. I need lunch tomorrow in Sandwich, you take her own sandwich and go and sit and my job with him was to pick out A well-dressed man. Tell him what elements he had on that made him well drilled and what I could do to improve his appearance and then I would be through and he take off, I need give me until I learned that even though we will against a world, we had a different perspective about what we were seeing and who we were seeing and why we were seeing and what you do with that when I'm number one, you're not just sitting there like

18:31 Glue pot. You got to be your agile in your mental Xterra did come up with something intelligent and he became one of my great friends and followed me in my own career diligently, and I've lost him in the love, to talk to him again, but Harry, you store.

18:58 Pastor Rich came in to speak to us and he said that I want to tell you gentlemen as it's the men. He said if you want to buy a bed, I want you to shop at the richest. And if you'd like to buy a nice book, I want you shopping. If you want a date. I want you to shop at Davidson's.

19:19 I don't want you messing around with any girls that work here.

19:26 That's a great piece of information. Are you going to run a store in the broad? Broke up? My child for a mess with his present wife as a result.

19:38 Who sings the elements of surprised at our existing in a daily routine. If you want to, you can learn from him and he'll priceless priceless. So all that is in prep for

19:56 But in the meantime, I'm living in Buckhead. Buckhead is a gift. It is a gift because there's only one school. Rich-poor didn't model. You want to that one school. I'm a product of public education. And I knew I do, we didn't have any black, folks. It went to school with us at North Fulton. I've always had a black friend, always, and my mother said, those people don't have any money, they are not educated to do anyting. My job is to make enough money for them to have a job, and they were always had a domestic servant in the house and my mother would hire people that way that's Ledic. So when all the chores were done, we play baseball or football and have it. And that's all. I had a black girlfriend, all of my life in.

20:56 Great time to be.

21:00 Nobody had anything, but we had everything. And now we've got everything. We don't have any time of my life.

21:15 A teaching dancing. Told me the social graces. My mother made me be involved with everything everything. She was a snob hairdresser by that. She do, you didn't come to her, she came to you, so you could call and say, may I need to have a Marcel. I didn't even know what a Marcella was and I would love for you to do it for Thursday. Do you have any time? So she packed my sorry self in the car if it was summer and on that played tennis with every show for any selfies. She would take care of the kid. I be all on the tennis score with the chauffeur.

21:59 She used to take me to various places when she would have a job. Give me a dollar and say, go hit golf balls until I come back that would do. That was a really nice driving range over on Collier Road. White, will a hospital is soon.

22:21 She had several clients in that neighborhood. And so I spent a lot of time at that driving range and one day I'll get back in the car. And she said, do you know who that gentleman is over there? And also do man, I have no idea. She said that's Bobby Jones, He says you have a marvelous golf swing. So I've been found out who Bobby Jones was, and was impressed with. Mr. Jones would think I have a good golf swing. I was 9.

22:55 Wow, has been a major portion of my interest. Most of my life is result. And when I married, the girl, who grew up next door to Bobby Jones, I realized that wasn't any more Bobby Jones and flying to the Moon. It was my mother trying to inspire me to believe that I had a good golf swing. You mothers are really something that mine was most unusual. All my friends and be playing football on Saturday morning, somewhere me. I'm in the art school threads.

23:41 Social retail golf great Fashions. Either by the way, golfing you need some men's fashions to be a good golfer to write 1/8 as well. I mean to be well-dressed and they're that good clothes will get you in a door. You couldn't get in to save your neck. Then I got the really good people who are guilty. They bring them in to me and say, Hammy's, going to court and then I'll dress him so that they would never ever think he do. What he's accused of I got so good at it. I Quit. No, I'm not going to do it. They go in on a little something. I knew the guy who is guilty.

24:40 I dressed him up. You'd think he was the most and other since sold. So I had good experiences preparing. You to look like you were somebody. So they Stockton open in 1963 and you were in Lenox when I left to go in the military.

25:07 I left to go in the military on military, leave form riches that meant that I was guaranteed a job when I returned and I only duty station was at Otis Air Force Base in the middle of Cape Cod. So I lived in New England for a year and my mother became ill in the war was over there. I asked for a compassionate transfer and spent my last year, the military Dobbins Air Force Base. So while I was in New England, I visited every store and everybody that I could that were convenient to me and a lot of time in Boston and observing the students player that died. So young Town, it was it was it was really just what, but it was the senator of what was then?

26:06 What was known as ivy league dressing and that became a very important concept for me that I had, that was a store here in Atlanta. I love to my aunt's name is Hal Spencer and Spencer. Spencer, my parents and Miss Spencer were good friends. And when I came back from the military, I went to see Miss Spencer and tried to get a job with him, and he wouldn't hire me. And I went to the John Gerald. I'll never forget my visit with mr. Jarrell. I went in SMS Gerald, get out of the service. I would love to have a job. Is it? Come on upstairs and talk to me so I can go up and he said, see that suit laying in the chair and I said, you should throw it on the floor and I pick it up, but it's not an Oxford suit. That's a no XXL for a walk. He said, you are far more important than that suit. Throw it on.

27:06 On the floor, like I said.

27:09 I didn't lesson if that isn't a lesson. I had a jammed in the at that moment.

27:17 How important people are me and had no concept of none.

27:24 We had more respect for this damn suit that I did for myself. That's a great lesson, great lesson.

27:32 Solar nail Parks Chambers said, much the same as I'd like to do have a job. Can you talk to me said, come on in the office? So I told him that I have an idea that would make his store good or better. He said, we'll tell me about it out loud. What I had learned about what I thought was proper address and what the elements were in from Bob fidler, why they come together and what you going to do to improve it. Everything can be improved. Every life is a process. It is not a static condition.

28:14 So he said, I'ma give you a job. You got a job starting whenever you want to come to work.

28:21 For $50 a week into percent of what you sell till I get back from my honeymoon.

28:28 What's your question? What is your question? My question is how long you going to be gone?

28:38 A month, I get a good job. I got spend two years with an Cox and if you don't think that she doesn't have a clue who she was. I mean not a clue.

29:03 She would go to New York. And she's say, all right, we're going to go shop for art. I said the same as I'd love to do it, but I'm working. I'll take care of that. I'll see you at now. Can we go look for? I'm looking at 1295 art. She's looking at $12,200.

29:22 Learned a lot about what it meant to have a cream cheese and Olive date. Sandwich to go, but he will look at ball. Well, I never knew that. That's why Anne Cox Chambers. So she was with Parks Chambers. I, I don't know why I never made that connection with all the parts. They wound up having vacations. I start out in Michigan and I was responsible for the store. I had no Authority, but all the responsibility and when they go on vacation that we used to go for a month and then it went for three months and then I could hardly, I got to speak to him for an hour on Thursdays from 3:30, March 13th. At 3:30 to 4 every Thursday and my wife was mentally ill, and we were spending more money than when I had taken and I need to hang up.

30:24 My wife is mentally ill and the financial drain was three times my income. I got audited four times in those for years because I spent it twice. Man, I couldn't get much to Seamus to buy health insurance. So I had no health insurance. I was paying out of my income, which was a little better then than to $50 a week into percent of what I could sell. But it would have been too far to go to the hospital was $10,000, not 10, but she might go three times in a year.

31:11 Try this out. I had to get a job.

31:14 That this particular date because I was so frustrated about my wife's illness and my inability to control my whole life. I became a religious fanatic and I would get up every morning at 5 have 1 hour of absolute quiet. Then I would go and spend another hour and

31:37 Prayer and trying to find out. How do you escape this Devastation? This overwhelming me. And that's where I decide. I got told. No, I got a hold my own store.

31:53 And so I came home.

31:56 I called this place and said I see that you have a store vacancy. Is it available? And they said

32:07 This available because it is, we are a union.

32:13 Operation. And

32:16 You can't.

32:19 Build in here and the guy we have been building his non-union. So we had to cancel his lease.

32:28 So it was an available and he said, yeah, my soul. I'll take it. I called my wooden my wife at the point, but I said, don't you have a local is involved in labor, in New York? And she said, yeah, and I said do you mind if I call Uncle Al? And she said, no gave me the telephone number to call local, LOL. So I'm ham Stockton. My friend referred to her. I said to call you that I have a label problem in Atlanta.

33:04 And he said to tell me about it. I did. He said, duh.

33:09 Give me three days to call me back. I'll call back. He said, don't worry about it. I've taken care of it. So I got me a non labor person built in store.

33:24 Didn't have.

33:25 I didn't have any idea. I had to lease.

33:29 So I'll walk over to my house by friend. I've learned to be my account for life because you need to go to, and also do, I don't try to open my own store with you be my account, but he said, yeah, and I said I'd like to

33:52 Get a good lawyer and he said, I'll tell you good name and he was a fight at all to Joy at Emory when I was a Fidel to Georgia. So I would see still here and I walked in and said, it's still I like to to get a lawyer. He said, I'll be your lawyer. And I said thank you. I didn't want that afternoon over to see my friend.

34:20 John Blackmore Ellis, was it sunny.

34:24 Alma open my store and I have needs, I have tried to understand what it takes and he said, how much money do you need to do? Y'all need whatever it was more money and I have a thought I've ever need, but it was, he said, okay, you can only have 20 units. So we'll to give you 20 end of the execs. Number dollars. You can only approach. 20 people 21st people we have to go sign up with it. Whatever it is CeCe.

35:00 So anyhow.

35:03 I'll take that pizza information.

35:08 So they always tell me how you do this. He said I'd get a list to make 20 people and that you want to contact that, you like to be in business with it, a compatible with, you might have some concept of bringing you some other people to be because they are. If you make money they'll make money.

35:32 This is how much money do you have?

35:35 Hotel. I've got $395, Sunny. He said that won't buy half of H Stockton. I'm on loan you the money to buy half of it under one condition.

35:48 So like how long you going to be gone? What is that condition Tarzan? He said you would do it for someone else.

35:59 The truth in your sister's, got the money.

36:03 Well, hey, I am I have to tell you that this is a continuing Saga and you had requested to do in mole mole. So we have brought up to a point where will close for today. We have a few more minutes, but I just wanted to say chapter two will move in to the H Stockton years where there are. So much to tell, including listen to this folks. How ham helped Ralph Lauren make his name in Atlanta, Georgia visiting him, when he was a little-known designer up in New York City. You've changed a lot of people's lives in in rapping today. I have a very important question and then I know you want to do more of these when someone came into the shop.

36:57 Customer service. Did that also mean telling somebody? No, that's not for you.

37:06 Did you have to tell people? That's not your color? That's not your friend. You had to tell him know sometimes when they wanted something no matter what the subject is.

37:22 And if you can make somebody understand that certain colors look on them, better than all the colors do and you not only improve my looks, you're educating them in. That is a beneficial thing for life. If done properly and doesn't devastated and

37:43 I used to interview every every employee everything point. My criteria for employment was what I like to have lunch with this person everyday of my life. Well, if the guy was entertaining and he would not be entertaining, just to me the entertaining, the most anybody, and if I could teach him what he could do to make you, somebody better dressed and he could entertain them.

38:13 It would get, it would get good and it did. And the most important thing I would tell anybody. If you don't care, don't come back for another interview. If you care for her, whatever you're about to do, come back, but if you don't care, don't bother me, and I will never fight for you, but I will set up rules that will fire you yourself. And if you can't stand that, don't come back either. But most of all, all overlooked a lot of crap. If you care enough to always had good employees, good good better than average. And I, he did one thing. They carry the package to the car so that you didn't have a man. That was always that extra mile that was made riches, great, and I wanted to learn from that.

39:10 And so, you know, just in closing today, you said you wanted your employees to come back. And we know your customers came back over and over and we will come back for Hamilton Stockton Junior, the H Stockton years in the next interview. So thank you so much. Mr. Stockton. This is been fantastic.

39:34 I'm exhausted and I've loved every minute of it now on the Cross Creek.