Steve Howe

Interview Date: 28 October 2021

Steve Howe was born 30 August 1947 to Lloyd (1907-1971) and Ida Pemble (1912-2000) Howe. Steve had 6 brothers and 1 sister: Betty, Everett, William, Donald, Melvin, and Gary. Steve was born with cerebral palsy and as a result is deaf. In this interview, he shares some of his life events including his education, some work history, and when the community built him a new house. In addition, the interview shares information about Steve’s grandfather Harlan Pemble who travelled with his Merry Go Round, worked for the Brimfield Telephone Company and was chief of the Brimfield Fire Department. 

2:03 Parents Lloyd and Ida Pemble Howe and family 
3:31 Maternal Grandparents Harlan and Clara Pemble, Merry Go Round 
4:58 Brimfield Telephone Company-Harlan Pemble6:28 Brimfield Fire Chief-Harlan Pemble 
8:50 Steve growing up, education 
11:50 Illinois School for the Deaf 
16:17 Post high school 
17:13 Working at Crockers 66 Service Station 
19:35 St. Paul’s Lutheran Church 
23:33 Brimfield High School basketball 50/50 drawing 
24:59 Community builds Steve a new house 
30:04 Sign language on porch railing 
30:51 Bicycle as transportation 
35:13 Video Phone with Interpreter 
40:08 Closing. “Brimfield is my hometown.”

ASL: American Sign Language 
Caterpillar 
Grandparents: Harlan and Clara Pemble, Brimfield residents 
Pemble Merry-Go-Round 
Brimfield Telephone Company 
Brimfield Fire Department 
Illinois School for the Deaf (ISD), Jacksonville, IL 
Vocational Training School in St. Louis, MO 
St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, Brimfield, IL and Pastor Michael Liese 
Crockers Phillips 66 Station, Brimfield, IL 
Roger Kepple, Brimfield Insurance 
Larry Heinz 
Ed DeVries 
Sherman’s Pharmacy, Brimfield, IL 
Video Phone (with Interpreter)

Interviewed by : Kim Claybaugh Hanks

Interview Format : Zoom Video with Slideshow Presentation

Total Time : 41:32

The interview is archived at the Brimfield Public Library District in Brimfield, Illinois.

The Brimfield Oral History Project is a long-term effort to record the stories of Brimfield’s past in the voices of those who remember and make these original sources available for generations to come. This collaboration is a partnership between the Brimfield Public Library District, the Brimfield Historical Society, and the Peoria County Genealogical Society.

Readers of interview transcripts, if available, should bear in mind that this is a transcript of the spoken word and that the interviewer, interviewee, and editors sought to preserve the interview as recorded. Brimfield Public Library District and project volunteers are not responsible for the factual accuracy of this interview, nor for the opinions expressed within.

© Brimfield Public Library District 2023

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