See detailed index below.
NAME: José Mari Guerricabeitia
DATE OF INTERVIEW: 07/10/2002
LOCATION: BMCC, Boise, ID
INTERVIEWER: Daniel Chertudi
LANGUAGE: English
TAPE NO:
INDEXED BY: Daniel Chertudi
TAPE
MINUTE SUMMARY OF CONTENTS
Tape 1
Side 1
0-6:30 Joe’s father is Antonio Guerricabeitia, from Munitibar, who worked all his life as a farmer; he was an undertaker for a few years as well. Not very many people died in this small town of 700 people, so Antonio did it with a shovel. Once when his father was sick, Joe had to help his brother bury a body, and the pair had to scale the gate to get into the cemetery! Joe’s mother was Felipa Arriaga, from Bolivar (6 km away); the pair probably met on the road between the 2 houses. The couple was married in 1931, and both worked on the baserri. After their first child was born, Antonio—a very neutral man—had to fight on Franco’s side during the civil war for 6 years, and Felipa was often left alone with the chores. Joe recalls that his father often walked home from the base at night to see his sweetheart.
6:30-11:00 Since Joe’s baserri was right in town, it was not uncommon for soldiers to crash in the barn for a night, often surprising the kids who went to milk the cows in the morning. Since there wasn’t much to steal, this was rarely a problem! Between 1935 and 1941, Antonio’s army days, the Guerricabeitia family had 3 more kids, so he had to have come home regularly. Antonio never got wounded during the war. The baserri was small: a few cows, calves and chickens, a pig, hay, a vegetable garden. Joe’s mother sold the few eggs and calves the family didn’t need, giving them to the deliverymen who drove to the house.
11-19:00 Joe was born March 1, 1944. His siblings are: Pilar, Begoña, Jesusa, José Luis, Jesus, Vitoria, Rosario, Belen, José Antonio, Maria Isabel and Javier; Joe is the 5th child. His mother didn’t have to raise all these kids herself, since the older ones left home while their siblings were still young and an aunt helped care for them. There was a lot of work to be done around the baserri: planting turnips and sugar beets and feeding the cows. He began school at the age of 7 and went until he was 14. In between, he tried seminary, but the experience was not for him. Boys and girls were in different buildings, but all the grades were together. Joe recalls his younger teachers being sent to the Basque country from other parts of Spain, and they were often young. Kids were punished for speaking Euskera at school or in the streets, but it was still easier for them. He remembers a wooden “doughnut” that students passed around when they heard each other speaking Basque, and whoever had it at the end of the day had to bring money to the teacher. Joe recalls that his sisters were often asked to bring food to their teachers. Joe had the same teacher all through school.
19-29:00 Teachers were “bosses in the town”, and even though they only had language control over kids, parents were wary about them as well. Joe’s teacher was a bit of a lush, and sometimes came to class drunk or hung over. He once fell asleep in class, and since the kids weren’t learning anything, they rang the nearby church bell to make the man think it was very late. Joe went to seminary in Algorta for a year and a half, and describes the experience, which was quite interesting for a country boy. The priests were Basque, but asked the students to speak Spanish, since this was the career language at the time. Joe’s parents paid for seminary, but rich families paid extra to help poor boys attend. These priests recruited the extra boys from large families on walking tours through the villages—this was how Joe and three of his brothers went away for a little while. Jesus almost became a priest!
29-30:00 Between the ages of 14 and 16, Joe worked at home, but was soon recruited again to work construction in Markina, building roads and buildings.
Side 2
0-7:30 In 1963, Joe went to Bilbao for a year to work as a bartender for the Penalti Bar. Jesus Lorroño—the famous bicycle racer, was the owner. He lived right above the bar, and set his own work schedule, since he had to open and close the bar. Joe describes how he heard about this job: a neighbor was sick and was in the hospital in Bilbao, where he met Lorroño. The racer thought Spanish bartenders were too slick, and preferred the genuine affability of rural Basque kids, so when the neighbor made the introductions, Lorroño decided right away that Joe was right for the bar. Above Joe’s protestations, Lorroño convinced Joe’s sports fanatic father to let his son go, even during the busy farming season. His mother cried, but let Joe ride away in the shiny car. Later, it made Joe sick to know how much his parents were working, but everyone had decided that he had no future on the farm.
7:30-14:00 Joe’s brother José Luis was already in America by the time he decided he wanted to go, and the remaining children on the farm were too young to do hard work. Even though he was enjoying his life as a city boy, after 9 months, Joe knew that he wanted to leave the city, so when his brother offered to find him a job in the States, he accepted. At that time, most young men were trying to find jobs out of the country; Joe was lucky to get one with Bob Nailer of Highland Sheep Company. He recalls the ridiculous test he underwent at the embassy to determine his worth as a worker (the bureaucrats administering the test had no idea what the answers to the questions meant, but the real test was just a physical inspection to see if the candidate would be strong and reliable. Joe was lucky to pass, since he had pale skin and smooth hands from all the bartending; fortunately the interrogator was a regular customer at Penalti! Men were needed so badly, that Joe was in the US a month later.
14-19:30 Joe arrived in Idaho on November 20, 1964, via Bilbao, Madrid, New York and Chicago. Joe arrived with an older man who felt rather lost and spoke no Spanish (but who actually did own sheep). His mother’s cousin was supposed to pick Joe up at the airport, but he didn’t know how to use the phone until a friendly Spanish-speaking soldier helped him out. Joe gave the soldier his prized dollar bill, and spent the night at his cousin’s house. Many Basques had flown across the Atlantic with Joe, but they had gone to other places. When he made it to the mountains, Joe found out what he had really gotten into: isolation and vast open spaces. It was also snowing and very cold.
19:30-25:00 Joe spent a week at his cousins’ house, then went to join his brother with the sheep, near Emmett. A Basque foreman, who was renting an apartment from the cousins drove him there. Being out in the wilderness was hard, especially after he met a girl (an Odiaga) at Bogus Basin. One consolation was being his brother’s camp tender for the first year. Joe spent 3 years with the Highland Sheep Company, 1 of which was spent with another cousin, and one with a nice older man. It was a lonely life, then. Even though his initial contract was for 3 years, the rules changed, and Joe became a US resident after 5 years. He worked for Basil Aldecoa’s sheep outfit in Marsing for a year and a half (where he got the papers), then hauled hay for Joe Larrea for 9 months. At this point, Joe decided it was time for a change, and went back to the Basque country to visit his family in 1969.
25-30:00 Joe had some trouble when he went to Euskadi, as the secretary of the town followed him around trying to force him into the Spanish army (even though this wasn’t one of the man’s duties). Joe kept telling this man that he was staying in the Basque country to avoid conscription, then left suddenly, which angered the man. Back in Idaho, he received several letters from the army, but they couldn’t touch him. At the time Joe went back, the Basques were starting to open up against Franco, and when Joe went again in 1977, he noticed even more drastic changes. He knew he didn’t want to work with sheep and hay again, so after a few years with the Bilmore and Shelterex mobile home factories, he bought a boarding house. Rancher Joe Aldape was like a surrogate father to Joe and his brother, and though he didn’t want the young man to buy his boarding house alone, he eventually caved in and sold it.
Tape 2
Side 1
0-9:30 Later on, Joe would marry Aldape’s niece, but for the time being, he was anxious to prove he could run the boarding house on his own. Joe Aldape tried to get him to marry exchange student Amaia Mazagasti, but he didn’t want to get tied down just yet. As it turned out, Joe became quite successful at running the house, and he was soon acquiring other properties. He lists the chores he did to run them. There were 8 rooms in the rooming house, and Joe learned quickly how to be business savvy in the real estate market. Most of his boarders were not Basques, and all were men (since women didn’t want to share bathrooms). Joe still owns this house, which he bought with the money from the sheep camps! Joe’s future wife has the same interests, and together they own 100 units now.
9:30-15:00 Joe met his wife Mary Lou Murelaga while purchasing a condo on Warm Springs Avenue; she was a travel agent next door to the real estate office. Everybody approved of the match, and the couple was married at St. Mary’s Church in 1974. Mary Lou was born in Boise, and speaks a little Basque since her father is an immigrant and her mother was born in a sheep camp. The couple has 3 kids: Joe, Angela and Lisa. The family always spoke English at home, since the kids didn’t seem interested in speaking Basque, but all three danced with the Oinkaris. The family loves to go to picnics and dances together as well.
15-20:00 Joe’s involvement with the Idaho Basque community was been mostly limited to social events in and around town, and he is a member if the Basque Center and Basque Museum in Boise. To this day, most of his friends are Basques, even though they were born and raised in the US. He enjoys traveling and fishing, and going to picnics in towns like Elko, Gooding and Mountain Home. Mary Lou is even more involved in the Basque culture than her husband, especially with the Museum. Joe has kept in touch with his Euskadi family over the years, prompted by his mother’s frequent letters. He has also been back to see his birth country about 7 times
20-25:00 Joe discusses the Basque country after Franco’s death: the instability was very scary. He went again in 1982, and got to see a lot of the political activity even then. To this day, Joe is more comfortable in the Basque country than anyplace else. Joe became a US citizen in 1974, the same year he got married and Nixon got impeached (the citizenship test administrator was impressed that he knew Ford was the new president—a fact he had heard on the radio). Joseba Chertudi helped Joe prepare for the test.
25-27:00 Joe would not consider retiring in Euskadi—he has been here too long and enjoys the lifestyle—but he would like to visit many times in the future, since the region is highly addictive! His wife and kids love the Basque country as well. Joe identifies himself as a proud Basque, but easily feels American as well.
NAMES AND PLACES
NAMES:
Aldape, Joe: Joe’s friend
Aldecoa, Basil: owned Marsing sheep outfit
Arriaga, Felipa: Joe’s mother
Chertudi, Joseba: helped Joe study for citizenship test
Franco, Francisco: Spanish dictator
Guerricabeitia, Angela: Joe’s daughter
Guerricabeitia, Antonio: Joe’s father
Guerricabeitia, Begoña: Joe’s sister
Guerricabeitia, Belen: Joe’s sister
Guerricabeitia, Javier: Joe’s brother
Guerricabeitia, Jesus: Joe’s brother
Guerricabeitia, Jesusa: Joe’s sister
Guerricabeitia, Joe M.: Joe’s son
Guerricabeitia, José Antonio: Joe’s brother
Guerricabeitia, José Luis: Joe’s brother
Guerricabeitia, Lisa: Joe’s daughter
Guerricabeitia, Maria Isabel: Joe’s sister
Guerricabeitia, Mary Lou Murelaga: Joe’s wife
Guerricabeitia, Pilar: Joe’s sister
Guerricabeitia, Rosario: Joe’s sister
Guerricabeitia, Victoria: Joe’s sister
Larrea, Joe: Joe’s employer
Lorroño, Jesus: famous bicyclist and bar owner
Nailer, Bob: owned Highland Sheep Company
Odiaga, Miss: caught Joe’s eye
Oinkaris: Boise Basque dancers
PLACES:
Basque Center (Boise)
Basque Museum and Cultural Center (Boise)
Bilbao, Bizkaia
Bilmore: employed Joe
Bogus Basin Ski Resort (Idaho)
Boise, ID
Bolivar, Bizkaia
Chicago, IL
Elko, Nevada
Emmett, ID
Gooding, ID
Madrid, Spain
Markina, Bizkaia
Marsing, ID
Mountain Home, ID
Munitibar, Bizkaia
New York, NY
Penalti Bar (Bilbao)
Shelterex: employed Joe
St. Mary’s Church (Boise)
THEMES:
Citizenship
Conscription
Education
Identity
Immigration
Language
Picnics
Spanish Civil War