Name/Title
Oral History of Janet Lewis WintersEntry/Object ID
2002.032.001TScope and Content
Janet Winters, born in Chicago and University of Chicago alumnus, and her husband Yvor came to Los Altos in 1934 after Ivor accepted a job teaching at Stanford University. In 1941 she completed her book The Wife of Martin Guerre, the first of many poems, operas, and other works of fiction that she would write in her Los Altos home. Her experience living in Los Altos heavily inspired her writing. Outside of writing, she was also commissioner of the Los Altos Girl Scouts during World War II and occasionally taught at Stanford University.
Janet and Ivor decided to settle in Los Altos due to its proximity to Stanford University and its rural community, which allowed them to purchase their own home and continue raising their animals. Janet describes the small agricultural town of Los Altos, highlighting the orchards that dominated the community and the different families living there. She details a wide array of the changes Los Altos faced in the mid-twentieth century, mentioning the now-defunct “Toonerville Trolley”, the expansion of the Los Altos School District, and the impact of Japanese internment on the community. Her connections to local writers, such as Japanese American poet Bunichi Kagawa and children’s book author Howard Pease, provides insight into the Los Altos writing scene.
Throughout the interview Janet connects her life with her published work, particularly in her collection of short stories titled Good-bye, Son and Other Stories. For example, her story “Apricot Harvest” was based on her time spent cutting apricots in the Draper orchard while “People Don’t Want Us” was written about a young Japanese American woman she had lived near prior to World War II. Through her work, Janet Winters immortalizes the small, rural community that had endeared her in to staying permanently and the people and stories that may have otherwise been forgotten.Collection
Oral History CollectionOral History Details
Interviewee
Janet Lewis WintersInterviewer
Los Altos Historical CommissionInterview Date
Nov 20, 1990