‘I practically grew up in the William Allen White home.’

Loverne Morris doesn’t really know the meaning of the word retirement. In 1967, when she came to San Diego and officially retired from a newspaper career that spanned three decades, she turned to writing books and free-lancing for such publications as Ms. Magazine, True West, and Highlights for Children. Now, at age 91, Morris awaits publication of a children’s story she wrote about her life as an 8-year-old growing up in Kansas. At the outset of World War I, she worked for a railroad company and was given a round-trip rail ticket to anywhere on the Santa Fe line. Landing in Southern California, Morris worked as a schoolteacher, and met and married her husband before starting her reporting career in 1941 for a succession of small-town newspapers. She was interviewed at her Redwood Terrace apartment in Escondido by Times staff writer Caroline Lemke. David McNew photographed her.

In 1928, I had written some children’s stories. I found I could sell my bedtime stories that I’d told my children to the California Cultivator. I’d get the magnificent amount of $5 a story. I sold bedtime stories to the Cultivator and other farm magazines like Agriculture, Old West, and Frontier Times.

William Allen White was the most famous man in Kansas when I was growing up. He was a journalist who was a friend of presidents and kings, and he was the friend of Theodore Roosevelt. Mr. White lived right across the street while I was a poor child being raised by my auntie. So the Whites kind of took me under their wing.

My auntie had a little stroke when I was 9 years old, so Mr. White said that I was to come over to his home after school because it wasn’t good for a child not to have playmates, and it wasn’t good for a lady who had a stroke to have too much commotion. So, I practically grew up in the White home. He was the editor of the Emporia Gazette and a novelist, and he was a friend of H. G. Wells. So I thought I’d like to be a reporter.

I talked to Mr. White about being a reporter, and he said to bring my high school notes in and give them to Laura French, the city editor. I was such a simpleton, I didn’t sign them. I just put them on her desk, and I didn’t put my name on them so of course I didn’t get any credit for that.

Then in 1941, I did some volunteer work for the La Habra Star. I asked if I could interview women on their political views. Then I took my signed columns to the El Monte Independent and got hired for a regular job. After I worked there a year, the Temple City Times editor called me up and offered me a job. I worked there for four years, then The Whittier Daily News editor called me up and offered me a job. I was there until August of ’62.

The first thing I learned when I went into the newspaper business was that, unless it was a signed column, I had no business to get my own views into the news. Back then, news was straight reporting. What happened, when, and where. And now, I think there is a lot of editorializing in the news. It’s unfortunate. It should be labeled for what it is.

I’ve interviewed more than 300 people. When I was working for the Whittier Daily News, I went in as women’s editor, and then the boss decided I was better as a feature writer. I interviewed a lot of old-timers. The idea was that I should interview pioneers, pioneer families that came to Whittier before 1900.

I didn’t start newspaper work until my children were in their teens, and when I first talked about it to my husband he was dismayed. He said, “Don’t you think I can support you?” I said of course I thought he could support me, but I was not domestic. The neighbor women could run rings around me, entertaining or baking fancy cakes. I thought I’d like to do something I might do well. And he could understand that point of view, so he was persuaded.

I regret one thing. I let the career make me neglect my husband. I should have had more time for him, and, if I had it to do over again, I would certainly save more time for him. I was vain. I was getting awards. I was chosen as “Woman of the Year” in Whittier, and the honors that came my way kind of turned my head so I was not devoting as much time to my husband as I should have. I should have kept all my weekends and evenings for him.