History of John Smith Griffin
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Wartime Washington   1942-1943

Because of the housing shortage caused by the war I had no idea where I would put my family upon arrival in Washington. I wrote to my brother in Detroit and asked if they (the family) could stay with them until I could find a place in Washington. He was very kind to let them stay there. I will never forget the 20th day of October, 1942. I worked from 5 in the morning until 10 that night getting our things off and the house cleaned and everything packed in the car. We finally started east at 10 that night and I was dead tired. I remember it in particular because it was one of those fall days in Los Angeles when the temperature went to 92 degrees and with all I had to do to get away it seemed like it was 112 degrees. We stopped in Ogden briefly and then went on to Detroit where I left my family and took the train for Washington. I arrived on the morning of the 1st of November. It was one of those dismal, rainy cold days like only Washington can have and my spirits were not much brighter than the weather.

I went first over to the Board of Legal Examiners and took my oral test. I passed it OK and so reported for work. I was assigned a room with about four other attorneys in it. I spent most of the first few days reading the O.D.T. Act and it seemed to me that there was not too much to do. I began to wonder whether I had made the right move.

During all of my spare time I tried to find an apartment or some place in which to live. Before leaving California I had borrowed $500 from my big boss in San Francisco, Dick Eddy, so that I could make down payment on a house in case I couldn't find one (to rent). Dick Eddy was regional Director of the I.C.C. He was a bachelor and quite healthy. He did not have to work but did it to keep himself busy. He liked those who worked hard but gave those who didn't a very bad time. Some people liked him very much and others just couldn't stand him. He came to me before I left and offered me the $500 and told me that if I needed more to write him.

One Sunday I was invited out to Ruth and Jay Knudson's home for dinner. They were old friends of ours when we were in Washington before. About the first thing I did was to ask if they knew where I could find a house or apartment. They had just built a home and Ruth was calling her builder about some things that needed finishing. She decided that he might know of some place to rent and so asked him. He replied that he did not know of anything but that his little boy had just come in and said that their neighbors were going to move as the father had just had a fight with his wife and his wife had left him and gone to New York. He gave me their name and address. As soon as Ruth finished talking I called the fellow. When he answered I said "I understand that you might be moving and the house you are in will be for rent." He replied "that is probably true but how in the hell did you know about it?" I dodged telling him how and was told that a rental agent handled the renting of the house and that I would have to see him. The next morning at 8 am I was at the office of the rental agent. His office did not open until 8:30 and by that time three other men were there to see about renting the house.

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