Between the mid 1970s and mid 1980s, Pauline Pearson led an initiative to collect oral histories

about John Steinbeck. Approximately 130 individuals were interviewed, resulting in over 350

hours of audio interviews. Subjects vary widely, but typically focus on John Steinbeck or the life

and conditions in Salinas and the Central Coast from the 1900s to the 1960s, especially the

1930s and 40s. Interviews are available as CDs for listening and transcripts available for

selected interviews.