Delores Giles

Delores Giles was born in the Blue Heaven section of Brooklyn in 1946, and remained a resident of Brooklyn until the urban renewal programs of the 1960s razed the neighborhood. She attended Second Ward High School from 1958 to 1964 and although she remembers her time there fondly, she also discusses the limitations of involvement for female students, including the classes that she had to take and the lack of athletics for women. Ms. Giles’ family moved to Alexander Street before the urban renewal program took effect, and her house and Second Ward high school were the last structures in her area of Brooklyn to be razed. Ms. Giles also provides fascinating information about the funeral home business in Brooklyn, which acted in lieu of ambulatory services as well as a funeral home. Ms. Giles finishes her oral history by assessing the results of urban renewal and the legacy of the Brooklyn neighborhood.

Delores Giles participated in an interview with Dolores Giles. See: Dolores Giles & Mary Poe