SLAVE NARRATIVES A Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former Slaves TYPEWRITTEN RECORDS PREPARED BY THE FEDERAL WRITERS' PROJECT 1936-J 938 ASSEMBLED BY THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS PROJECT WORK PROJECTS ADMINISTRATION FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA SPONSORED BY THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS Illustrated ivith Photographs WASHINGTON 1941 VOLUME XVI TEXAS NARRATIVES PART 4 Prepared by the Federal Writers1 Project of the Works Progress Administration for the State of Texas INFORMANTS Sanco, Kazique Scales, Clarissa Scott, Hannah Sells, Abrara Selman, George Shepherd, Callie Simmons, Betty 3immons, George Simpson, Ben Smith, Giles Smith, Janes W. Smith, Jordon Smith, Millie Ann Smith, Susan Sneed, John Snyder, i-ariah Southwell, Patsy Spinks, Leithean Stewart, Guy Stone, William Stringfellow, Yach Strong, Bert Taylor, Emma Taylor, I.ollie Terriell, Jake Terrill, J. W. Thor::as, Allen Thomas, Bill and Ellen Thomas, Lucy Thomas, Fhilles Thomas. William I.:. Thompson, L'ary Thompson, Penny Todd, Albert Trimble, Aleck Tucker, Reeves 1 3 6 9 15 17 19 4 27 30 33 36 41 44 47 52 55 57 61 64 67 70 73 76 78 80 83 85 ^ 89 92 95 100 103 106 108 116 Turner, Lou 118 V Valker, Irella Battle Walton, John Walton, Sol Washington, Ella Washington, Rosa Washington, S&TI Jones Watkins, William 'Watson, Dianah "Watson, Srama West, James White, Adeline Wickliffe, Sylvester Sostan Wi 11iaus, Daphne Wiiliaias, Horatio tf. Willians, Lou Williams, Millie Williams, Rose "."/illiais, Steve Willians, V/ayman Williaras, Willie Wilson, Lulu 'Wilson, Wash Winn, '/fillis "Witt, Rube Woods, Ruben Woodson, Willis Wborlina, Jar.es G. 'Wright, Caroline Wroe, Sallie 155 160 164 166 170 174 179 182 187 190 195 201 208 211 214 216 219 223 Yarbrough, Fannie Young, Litt Young, Louis Young, Teshan 225 227 232 235 7?.7\ 122 125 128 131 134 138 141 144 147 150 153 ILLUSTRATIONS Facing page Mazique Sanco 1 Clarissa Scales 3 Abram Sells 9 George Selraan 15 Callie Shepherd 17 Betty Simmons 19 George Simmons 24 Giles Smith 30 James W. Smith 33 Jordon Smith 36 Uillie Ann Smith 41 John Sneed 47 Mariah Snyder 52 Leithean Spinks 57 William Stone 64 Yach Stringfellow 67 Bert Strong 70 Emma Taylor 73 Allen Thomas 83 Bill and Ellen Thomas 85 Lucy Thomas ' 89 Philles Thomas 92 William K. Thomas 95 Facing page Mary Thompson 100 Penny Thompson 103 Albert Todd 106 Reeves Tucker 116 Lou Turner 118 Sol Walton - 128 Rosa Washington 134 Sam Jones Washington 138 William Watkins 141 Emma Watson 147 James lest 150 Adeline 7/hite 153 Daphne 77illiams 160 Lou Williams . 166 Lou Williams' House Millie T/illiams 166 - 170 Steve Williams 179 Wayman Williams and Henry Freeraan 182 Willie Williams 187 Lulu Wilson 190 Wash Wilson 195 Willis Winn 201 Rube Witt 208 Ruben Woods 211 Willis Woodson 214 Facing page Sallie Wroe 223 Litt Young 227 Louis Young 232 Teshan Young 235 4:20:2(58 EX-SLAVE STGEIES (Texas) Paf?e One 9 UAZIQJJ3 SAKCO was horn a slave of Mrs. Louisa Green, in Columbia, South Carolina, on February 10, 1849. Shortly after Mazique was freed, he enlisted in the array and was sent with the Tenth Cavalry to San Angelo, then Port Concho, Texas. After Mazique left the army he became well-known as a chef, and worked for several large hotels. Mazique uses little dialect. When asked where Mazique is, his young wife says, "In his office," and upon inquiry as to the location of this office, she replies mirthfully, "On de river,,f for since he is t->o old to work, Mazique spends most of his time fishing. "My mistress owned a beautiful home and three hundred twenty acres of land in the edge of Qolurabia, in South Carolina, just back of the *tate house. Her name was Mrs. Louisa Green and she was a widow lady. That's where I was born, but when her nephew, Dr. Edward Flamming, married Miss Dean, I was given to him for a wedding present, and so was my mother and her other children. I was a very small boy then, and when I was ten Dr. Fleimning gave me to his crippled mother-in-law for a foot boy. when her husband was killed. could be had. She got crippled in a runaway accident, He had two fine horses, fiery and spirited as He called them Ash and Dash, and one day he and his wife were out driving and the horses ran the carriage into a big pine tree, and Mr. Deam was killed instantly, and Mrs. Dean cofuidn't ever help herself again. on her. I waited I had a good bed and food and was let to earn ten cent shin plasters. "When the war was over she called up her five families of slaves and told us we could go or stay. Some went and some stayed. I was always an ad- venturer, wanting to see and learn things, so I left and went back to my mother with Mrs. Flemming. -1- i Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two t 11 1 only stayed there a few months and hired out to Major Leggf and worked for him several years. I felt I wasn't learning enough, so I joined the United States Army and with a hundred and eighty-five boys ^went to St. Louis, Missouri. From there we were transferred with the Tenth Cavalry to Fort Concho. I helped haul the lumber fnom San Antonio zo finish the buildings at the fort. I was there five years. "After I went to work at private employiae t I did some carpenter workt but most of the houses were adobe or pecan pole buildings, so I got a job from Mr. Jimmy Keating as mechanic for awhile, and then drifted to Mexico. Odd jobs v?ere all I could get for awhile, so I landed in II Paso and got a job in a hotel "That was the start of my success, for I learned to be a skilled chef and superintended the kitchens in some of the largest hotels in Texas. as high as $90.00, in Houston. I made V$ last woik was done at the St. Angelus Hotel here in San Angelo and if you don't believe I!m a good cook, just look at my wife over there. Then I married her she was fourteen years old and weighed a hundred and fifteen pounds. Now it's been a long time since I could get her on the s^JU^ not since she passed the two hundred pound mark. **** 420256 r# 'X-SLAVB STORIES EX(Texas) f 'CLARISSA SCALES, 791 was born a slave of William Vaughan, on his plantation at Plum Creek, Texas. Clarissa maxried when she was fifteen. She owns a small farm near Austin, but lives with her son, Arthur, at 1812 Cedar Ave., Austin. "M amity's name was Mary Vaughan and she was brung what am over in Louisiana, by our master. from Baton Rouge, He went ?md located on Plum Creek, down in Hays County. "Mammy was a tall, heavy-set woman, more'n six foot tall. She was a maid-doctor after freedom. Dat mean she sussed women at childbirth. Sne allus told me de l^st thing she SPW when she left Baton Rouge was her mammy standin1 on a big, wood block to be sold for a slave. last tirae she ever saw her mammy. Dat de Mammy died 'bout fifty years ago. She was livin1 on a farm on Big Walnut Creek, in Trpvis County* Daddy done die a year tefo1 and she jes1 grieves herself to death. Daddy was shof funny lookin1, 'cause he wore long whiskers and what you calls a goatee. He was field worker on de Vaughn plantation. "Master Vaughan was good *>nd treated us all riglit. He was a great white man and didn't have no over seer. Missy's nsuarf was Margarett and she was good, too* M My job was tendin1 fires and herdin1 hawgs. I kep1 fire goin* when de washin1 be in1 done, fire, Dey had plenty wood, but used corn cobs for de Dere a big hill corn cobs near de wash kettle. In de evenin1 I had to bring in de hawgs, I had a li*l whoop I druv dem witfeua eight~plaited rawhide whoop on de long stick* ~1~ It a purty sight to see dem hawgs go under *> ENSLAVE STORIES Page Two fa (Texas) de slip-gap, what ?/as a rail took down from de bottom de fence, so de hawgs could run under. "Injuns used to pass our cabin in big bunches. One time dey give mammy some earrings, but when theyls through eat in1 they wants dem earrings back. Dat de way de Injuns done* After feedin1 dem, mammy allus say, !Be good and kind to everybody.' "One day Master Vaughsm come and say we's all free and could go and do what we wants. Daddy and manmy rents a place and I stays until Ifs fifteen, I wanted to be a teacher, but daddy kep1 me hoein1 cotton most de time. knowed. Dat*s all he He allus told me it was * nough larnin1 could I jes1 read and write* He never even had dat much* But he was de good farmer and good to me sn& mammy. H Dere was a school after freedom. Old lien Tilden was de teacher. One time a bunch of men dey calls de Klu ELux come in de room and say, fYou git out of here and git 'w^y from dem niggers. Don1 let us cotch you here when we comes back.* Old Man Tilden sho1 was scart, but he say, f You all come back tomorrow. * He finishes dat year and we never hears of him fgain. Dat a log schoolhouse on Williamson Creek, five mile south of Austin. H Dena cullud teacher named Eamlet Campbell come down from de north. He rents a room in a big house and makes a school. De trustees hires and pays him and us chillen didn't have to pqr. I got to go some, and I allus tells my granddaughter how Ifs head of de class when I does go. She am good in her studies, too* f, ?/hen I*s fifteen I marries Benjamin Calhoun Scales and he was a farmer. We had five chillen and three boys is livin1. One am a preacher and Arthur am a cement laborer and Chester works in a print in* shop. *2~ A Page Three Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Benjie dies on February 15thf dis year (1937). and de gov'ment gives iae $10.00 de month. I has de lifl farm of nineteen acres out near Oak Hill and Floydf de preacher, lives on dat. me. Dey done good, and better*n we could, deia days. I*s had de good life. folks does nowadays, I lives with Arthur All my boys is good to f cause we couldn't git much larnin1 But we *preciated our chance morefn de young Dey h#s so much dey donft hpve to try so hard. had what dey gotf we'd thunk we was done died and gone to Glory Land. be all right when deys growed. ****** If we'd Maybe dey'll 420267 EX-SLAVE STOBIES (Texas) Page One HANNAH SCOTI was "born in slavery, in Alabama, She does not know her age but says she was grown when her last masterf Bat Peterson, set her free, Hannah lives .with her grandson in a two-room house near the railroad tracks, in Houston, Texas. Unable to walk because of a paralytic stroke, Hannah asked her grandson to lift her from the bed to a chair, from which she told her story. M Son, move de chair a mite closer to de stove. 1 Dere, dat's better, Ain't nothin1 left of me but some cause de heat kind of soople me upt skin and bones, hohow. "Lemrae see now. County. I's born in Alabama and I think dey calls it Fayette Mama's name was Ardissa and she 'long to Marse Clark Iccles, but us chillen allus call him White Pa* Miss Hetty, his wife, we calls her White Ma. "I nevei^mowed my own pa, 'cause he 'long to 'nother man and was sold away 'fore I's old 'nough to know him. all dead ceptin1 me, Mama has five us chillen, but dey Dey didn't have no raarriage back den like now. Dey just puus black folks together in de sight of man and not in de sight of Gawd, and dey puts dem asunder, too, "Marse Eccles didn't have no big pines and only nine slaves. I guess he what you calls 'poor folks,1 but he mighty good to he black folks. I 'member when he sold us toJfotJfet#g ojat He and White Ma break down and cry when old Bat puts us in de wagon and takes us off to Arkansas* i:igaaa^^wk^to^ I heared Q Bx-slave Stories (T*xas) Page Two mama say something fbout White Pa sellin' us for debt and he gits a hunerd dollars for me* "Whoosh, it sho1 w*s a heap dif'ent from Alabama. niggers, Mafse Bat had I reckon he must of had a hiinerd of dem and two nigger drivers, Uncle Green and Uncle Jake, and a overseer. Marse Bat was mean, too, and work he slaves from daylight till nine o1clock at night. I carries water for de hpnds. I carries de bucket on my head and ffore long I ain*t got no more hair on my head dan you has on de palm of you hand* No, suM "When I gits bigger, de overseer puts me in de field with de rest. Marse Bat grow mostly cotton and it donrt make no dif'ence is you big or li'l, you better keep up or de drivers bum you up with de whip, sho1 *nough. Old Marse Bat never put a lick on me all de years I 'longs to him, but de drivers sho1 burnt me plenty times. Sometime I gits so tired come night, I draps right in de row and gone to sleep. Den de driver come flong and, wham, dey cuts you * cross de back with de whip and you vakes up when it lights on you, yes, suh! dat de quittin1 signal. *Bout nine o'clock dev hollers *cotton up! and We goes to de quarters and jes1 drsp on de bunk and go to sleep without nothin' to eat H 0n old Batfs place dat all us know, is work and more work, De onlies1 time we has of f am Sunday and den we has to wash and mend clothes* De first Sunday of de month a white preacher come, but all he say is fbedience to de white folks, and we hears ! nough of dat without him tellin1 us. "I fmember when White Pa come to try git mama and us chillen back. We been in Arkansas five, six year, and, whoosh, I sho1 wants to go back to my White ~3~ *y' Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Three Pa, "but old Bat wouldn't l*t us go. ^ He come to our quarters dat nigjht'and tell mama if she or us chillen try to run off he111 kill us. Dey sho1 watch us for awhile. "Sometimes one of de niggers runs off but he ain*t~gone long. gits hongry end comes "back. Den he gits a burnin' with de bullwhip. He Does he run fway again, Marse Bat say he got too mich rafebit in him and chains him up till he goes to Little Rock and sells hiffi* M I beared some white folks treat dey slaves good and give dem time off, "but Marse Bat don't. We has plenty to eat and clothes, but dat all* Dat de way it was till we's freed, only it wasnH in Arkansas. It was down to Richmond, here in Texas, *cause Marse Bat rents a farm at Bichmond. thunk if h* brung us to Texas he wouldn't have to set us free* fooled, 'cause a gov ment man come tell us we's free. He But he got We had de crop planted and old Bat say if we'll stay through pickin' he'll pay us. Mama and us stayed awhile. W I gits married legal with Richard Scott and we comes to Harrisburg and he gits a job on de section of de railroad. Irs lived here ever since. My husban' and me raises five chillen, but only de one gal am alive new. My grandson takes care of me. he be 107 years old. He tells me iffen my husband lived so long, I know he was older dan me, but not 'xactly how much. "Sometime I feel I*s been here too long, 'cause I's paralyzed and can't move round none. But maybe de Lawd ain't ready for me yet, and de Deboil won't have me* ******* 43013G JS3USLAVE STORIES (Texas) Page One ABRAM SELLS was born a slave on the Rimes Plantation, which was located about 18 miles southeast of Newton, Texas. He does not know his age, but roust b# well along in the 80*8, as his recollections of slavery days are keen. He lives at Jaiaestovm, Texas. if I ^as birthed on the Rimes Plantation, now called Earrisburg, My great -grand-daddy1 s name was Bowser Rimes and he was brung to Texas from Louisiana and die at 138 year old, buried on tne old Ben Powell place close to Jasper, He's My grand-daddy, thatfs John, he lives to be 103 ye^r old and he buried on the Eddy plantation at Jasper. My dr.ddy, Mose Rim*sf he die young at 86 and he buried in Jasper County, too. My mammy's nanae was Phoebe wd she was birthed a Rimes nigger end brung to Texas from back: in Louisiana, The yepr slaves was freed, I was inherit by a &an named Sells, what marry into the Rimes family and that's why ray name's Sells, 'cause it cfasmge 'long with the marriage. Us was jes1 ready to be ship back to Louisiana to the new riassa's plantation wh^n the *nd of the war break up the trip, lf You see, we all had purty good time on Mass a Rimes' s plantation. None of them car in1 ! bout being sot free. They has to work hard all time, but that don' meant so much, 'cause they have to work if fen they was on they own, too. The old folks was 'lowed Saturday evenin1 off or when they's sickf and us little ones8 us not do much but bring in tne wood and kindle the fires and tote water pnd he'p wash clothes and feed the little pigs and chickens# ~1- Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two . "Us chillen hang round close to the big house and us have a old man that, went round vrith us and lock after us, white chillen and "black chillenf and that old man was my great grand-daddy. Us sho* have to mind him, 'cause if fen we didn't, us sho' have "bad. luck. tne pocket fall of things to conjure with. out ?XL& over. He allus h^ve That rabbit foot, n* took it h* work thnt on you till you take the creeps and a;it shakin1 all Then there's a pocket full of fish scales and he kind of squeak and. rattle them in tne hand and right, then you vdsh you was dead and promise to do anything. Another thing he allus have in tne pocket was a li'l old dry-up turtle, jes' a mud turtle 'bout tne size of a mam's thumb, t :e whole thing jes* dry up and dead, ith that thing he say he could do raos1 anything, but he never use it iff en he ain't have to. A few times I seed him git all tangle up and boddered $nd he go off by hisself and sot down in a quiet place, take out this very turtle and put it in the palm of the hand and turn 5t round smd round and say some thin1 all the time. After while be git everything ontwisted snd he come back with a smile on he face and maybe whist 1 in' # "They fed *11 us nigger chillen in a big trough make out'n wood, maybe more a wood tray, dug out'n soft timber like magnoli^or cypress. They put it under a tree in the shade in summer time and give each chile a wood spoon, then mix all the food up in the trough and us goes to eat in', Mosf the food was potlicker, jes' common old potlicker; turnip green and tne juice, Irish 'taters and the juice, cabbages and peas and beans, jes1 anything what make potlicker. AH us git round like *o many li'l pigs and then us dish in with our wood spoon till it ell gone, -2~ 4( Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Three ** 11 fe has lots of meat at times. Old grand-daddy allus ketchim* rabbit in some kind of trap, mostly make outrn a holler log. f em round in the garden snd, sho1 kotch the rabbits. He sot And possums, us have a good possum dog, sometimes two or three, *>nd every night you heered them dogs barkin1 in the field down by the branch. Sho1 f &uf, they git possum treed and us go git him and parbile him and put him in the oven grid bake him pltrab tender. round him RXI& Then we stacks sweet Haters po1 the juice over the whol^ thing. Now, there is somethin1 good fnuf for a king, 11 There was lots of deer and turkey and squirrel in the wil1 wood and somebody out hunt inf nearly every day. Course Massa Rimefs folks couldn't eat up all this meat befo1 it spile end the niggers allus git i *reat big part of it. 'bout eat in1! Then we kilt lots of hawgs and then talk 0, them chitlin!sf sousemeat and the haslets, thats the liver and the lights all biled up together. Us li*l niggers fill up on sich as that and go to bed and mos* dream us is lifl pigs, t1 Us allus have plenty to eat but didnft pay much 'tention to clothes. Boys and gals all dress jes! alike, one long shirt or dress* They call it a shirt iff en a boy wear it and call it a dress iffen the g'^1 wear it. 4^ AX There wasn't no difference, somethin1 like duck and all white. f cause theyfs all made outfn That is, they's white when you fus1 put tnera on, but after you wears them a while they git kind of pig-cullud, kind of grey, but still tneyfs all the same color. Us all go barefoot in summer, li*l ones and big ones, but in winter us have homexaake shoes. tm&m Ex-slave Stories (Texas) ?&ge Four They tan the leather at home ?nd make the shoe at home, allus some old nigger that kin make shoe. of deerskin. They was more like raoc!sin, with l^ce made The soles was peg on with woorl. pegs outfn mgple and sharpen down with a shoe knife. "Us have hats make outfn pine straw, long leaf pine straw, tied together in li'l hunches and platted round and round till it make a kinder hpt. ways. That pine straw great stuff in them days and us use it in lots of Us kivered sweet f tat era with it to keep th*m from git freeze and hogs made beds outfn it and folks too. beds had jes1 one leg. Yes, sir, us slep* on it. The They bored two hole in the wall up in the corner and stuck two pole in them holes and lay plank on that like slats and pile lots of pine straw on that. Then they spread a horaemake blsnlcet or quilt on that ?n& sometime four or five lifl niggers slep1 in there to keep us warm. "The ii*l folks slap1 mos1 as long as they want to in daylight, but the big niggers have to corae out'n that bed fhout fo1 o1clock when tne big norn blow. The overseer have one nigger, he wake up early for to blow the horn and when h* blow this horn he make sich B holler then ell the res1 of the niggers better git outfn that bed and 'pear at the barn bout daylight, fte might not whip him for being late the fusf time, but that nigger better not forgit the secon1 time m& be late* "Massa Rimes didnft whip them much, but if fen they was bad niggers he jes1 sola them of fen the placo and let somebody else do the whippia*. Never have no church house or school, but Massa Himest he call thea in aad read the Bible to them. Then he turn the service over to some good, 4 JO Ez~slaveStorics (Texas) Page Five old, 'xigious niggers and let them finish with the singin1 and prayin* and porting. After peach cleared, a scnool was fstablish ana a wnite man come from tae norwi to teacri me ciaiaa cuillen, out beio1 that uuey didn1 takefno paius to teach txie niggers notnin1 * cep^m* to work, end tne wniwe cnillen aiun1* nave amen scnool neitner. t'That was onto plantation whet was run fsclu ivelv by itself, llassa Rimes have a commissary or sto1 house, whar he kep1 whatnot things them what make on the plantation and things the slaves couldn1 make for themselfs. That wasn't much, * cause we make us own clothes and shoes and plow and all farm tools and us even make our own plow line outfn cotton and iff en us run short of cotton sometime make them out'n hear grass and we make buttons for us clothes out'n li'l round pieces of gourds and kiver them writh cloth. "That wasn't sicn a "big plantation, '"bout a t'ousand acre and only *bout forty nigg-ra. Ther* was* a no jail and they didn't need none. Us have no re^JL doctor, hut of c curse there was a doctor man at Jasper and one at Newton, but a nigger have to be pu^ty sick ffore they call a doctor. There's allus some old tirae nigger what knowed lots of remedies and knowed all dif 'rent kinds of yarbs and roots. My grand-daddy, he could stop blood, and he could conjure off the fever and rub his fingers over warts and theyfd gii away. He make ile out'n rattlesnake for the rheumatis1. Por the cramp he git a kind of bark of fen a tree and it done the job, too. Some niggers wo' brass rings to keep off the rheum&tis1 and punch hole in a penny or dime llyf and they lived in Mississippi, Mother's name was Martha and my fat her fs name was John Green Selman. "liarster's folks come from Mississippi a long ways back and they had a big house mpde from hewed lo^s with a big hallway down the middle. The kitchen was out in the yard, steps from the house, garden was in it. f bout forty The yard had five acres in it and a big Marster had five slave families and our cabins was built in a half circle in the back yard. I seemed to be the pet and always v?ent with Ugrster Tom to town or wherever he was goin*. Then I learned to plow by ay mother letting me hold the handles and walk along with her. Finally she let me go 'round by myself, "Marster Tom was always good to us and he taught ,me religion. He was the best man I ever knew, blew the horn and we quit workin1. flhen Saturday noon come, they We went to church one Sunday a month and we sat on one side and the white folks on the other, ?, I never learnt to read and write, but I learned to work in the house and the fields. -1- Late in the day Aunt Dicey, who -a ~ EX-SLAVE STORIES (Texas) Page Two was the cook, called all us children out under the big trees and give us supper. Aunt Dicey. 1 This was in summer, tut nobody ever fed us but We all ate from one bowl, or maybe I'd call it a tray, cause it was made of woodt like a bread tray but bigger, big enough to hold threef four gallons. rnd give each chil1 a spoon. bread. She put the food in the tray Mostly we had pot likker and corn- In winter we ate from the same traiy, but in the kitchen. "I never seen runaway slaves, but Marster Tom had a neighbor mean to slaves and sometimes when they was whipped we could hear "em holler, SJhe neighbor had one slave called Sal lie, and she was a weaver and was to mean she had. to wear a chain. he e red her ghost one night. After she diedf I I was stay in1 with a white man who had the malariar-typhoid-pneuiaonia fever, and one night I heered Sallie scream and seen her chain drag back and forth. knowed it was Sallie, f I tol1 the man I cause Ifd heered that scream for years. But the man said she was dead, so it mus1 have been h^tr ghost. I heered her night after night, screamin1 and draggin* her chain up and down, "When Marster Tom says we's free, I goes to his sister, Miss Canine and works for her. After sevfral years I larned to preach and I*s the author of most the Baptist churches in this pounty. ***** 420';49 EX-SLATTS STORIES (Texas) Page One 17 CALLIS SKHFH3RD, *g* 84, Jives at 4701 Spring Ave., Dallas, Texas. She was born near Grilmers Texas, in 1852, a slave of the Stevens family. At present she is cared for by her 68 year old son and his wife. "Course I kin tell you, h-^ve nowadays. Dat f I got fmemberance like dey don*t cruise things is go in1 round and round too fast without no sett in1 ^d talk in* things over. lf f I s native born right down here at Gilmer on de old piece ?na Miss Fannie could tell -ou de same if she could be in your presence, but she went on to Glory many a year ago. right in de hou-:e with her own chill en. She de one wfcut raised me, I slep1 right in de house, in de Chilians* room, in a little trundle bed what jus1 pushed back under de big bed when de mornin* come. If her Chilian et one side de table I et tfother side, right by Miss Fanniefs elbow* "Miss Fannie, she Dr. Steven1s wife and dey from Georgia and lived near Grilmar till de doctor goes off to de WET xiess what he ain't never get peart from and died. de old place. and takes a sickDied right there on Ha was a right livin* man and dey allus good to rae and my mammy, what dey done brought from Georgia and she de main cook, "My mammy donft think they ainft nobody like Miss Fannie. My manmy, she a little red-Indian nigger woman not so big as me, and Miss Fanny tell her, Don't you cry 'cause dey try in1 make freedom, de doctor done say we is gwine help yoa raise your babies** -1- f cause Pa Ex-slave Stories (Texas) ^ * 18 "Some de niggers donft like de treatment what dey white folks gives fem and dey run away to de woods. Ifd hear de nigger dogs a-runnin* and when dey cotch de niggers dey "bites fem all over and tears dey clothes and gits de skin, too* niggers, f And de niggers, deyfd holler. cause dey tolt de chillen to look, groan1 and laid it on dey backs. heavy hand* Dey buckled f n down on de Sometimes dey laid on with a mighty But I ain't never git no whippin1 de cullud generation. I seed fem whip de f cause I never went with I set right in 1e buggy with de white chillen pnd went to hear Gospel preschin1. 11 1 danced at de balls in de sixteen figare round sets and every- body in dem parts say I de principal dancer, but I gits *ligion and left de old way to live in de * termination to live, beyon1 dis vale of tears. "I have my trib'lations pfter my old daddy die, * cause he good to us little chillen. But ray n^xt daddy a man mighty rough on us. Dat after Miss Fannie done goneback to Georgia and my back done hurt me all ce time from pullin1 fodder and choppin1 cotton. It make a big indif'rence after Miss Fannie gone, and d- war de cause of it all, I heered de big cannons goin' on over there jus1 like de bigges1 clap of thunder. "Me end de little chillen plsyin* in de road makin1 frog houses out of sand when we hear de hosses coming We looks and see de budallions shinin1 in de sun $nd de sojers have tin cups tied on side dere saddles and throwed dem cups to us chillen as dey passed* Dey say war is over and we is free. Miss Fannie say she a Seay from Georgia and she go back dere, but I jus1 stay on where 1*8 native born, ****** 220111 ^' Ox WUSiAVS STORKS (Texas) Page One i HBOTT SIMMQHS. 100 OP more, was born a slave to leftwidge Carter, In Macedonia, Alabama* She was stolon when a child, sold to slave tradors and later to a nan In Vexas, She now lives In Beaoaoat* Texas* U I think I9s 8bout a hunnerd and ono or two year old* papa was a free Ban. f My cause his old massa sot hia free 'fere I9s horn, and give his a hoss and saddle and a little house to live in, *My eld massa when I1* a chile, he name Mr* leftwidge Carter and when he daughter marry Mr, fash langferd, massa giro me to her. She was call Clementine, Massa iangferd has a little store and a man call Mebley go in business with him. Bis man brung down hs tro brothers and dey fair clean Massa Sangford out* He was ruint* , "But while all dis geln9 on ' didn9t know it and I was tag py* Dey was good to me and I don*t work too hard, jus9 gits in do mischief One time I she9 got drunk and dis de way of it. of whiskey and he sell de whiskey* tee* frills 9reund de beds, dey Massa have do puncheon Vow, in dem days, dey have wasn9t naked beds like nowadays, Dey puts dis puncheon under de beds and de frills hides it, but I9e nussin9 a little boy in dat room and I crawls under dat bed and drinks rat of de puncheon* Den I p&ke de head out and say 9Boo9 at de little boy, and he laugh and Imgh, Den I ducks back and drinks a little more and I say 9leot at him 9gatnf and he laugi and laugh* Dey was lots of whiskey ia dat puncheon and I keeps drinkln9 and sayin9 'Boo9* My head* it gits funny and I eeme out with de puncheon and starts to de kitchen. whore &y aunt Adeline was de cook* I jes9 arstompin9 and sayin1 de big words* -1- 19 Ex-slave Sterles Page Twe 0 Bey aerer lets me 'rawd where dat puncheen Is no mere. "When Massa Sangferd vai ruint and dey gain' take de store *w y from him, dey was treubl*, plenty ef dat* down d he brudder's place. me te go te de fence I was dere twe days and den de missy tell Dere was twe white men In a buggy and ene ef fea say, fI thought she bigger dan d&t,1 cook?1 One day massa send me Den he asks mef 'Betty, kin yen I tells him I been ceek helper twe, three month, and he way, r You git dressed and ceme en dewn three mile te de ether side de pest office.* Se I gits ay little bundle and when 1 gits dere he say, '3alf you want te ge beat 26 mile and help ceek at de beardim' heuset * He tries te make me believe Z won't be gene a leng time, but when I gits in de buggy dey tells me Massa Itangferd done les1 everything and he hare te hide out he niggers fer te keep he credickers frea gltt in1 dam* Seine af de niggers he hides in de weeds, but he stele me from my sweet s&issy and sell me se dam eredickers can't git me* "When we gits te de cressreads dere de massa and a nigger man* Bat another slave he gwine te sell, and he hate te sell us se bad he can't leek us in de eye*> Dey puts us nigigers inside de buggy, se iffen de cred~ Ickers comes along day can't see us, "Finally dese slave spec1 latera puts de nigger man and me en de train and takes us to Memphis, and when we gits dere dey takes us te de nigger traders' yard* We git* dere at breakfast time and waits fer de beat dey calls de 'Ohio* te git dere. De beat jus' ahead ef dis Ohle, Old Capt Wbra's beat, was 'streyed and dat delay eur beat twe hears, S fhen it come, Page Three gs-slave Stories (fexas) dey was 253 niggars oat of dam nigger yards in Memphis what gits on dat boat* Day puts da niggers upstairs and goes down da river far as Ticksburg, dat was da place 9 and den us gits of fen de boat and gits on de train gain and dat time wa goes to Hew Orleans* "I's satisfy den I los9 ay people and ain't never gain- to see dam no aore in die world, and I Beyer did. Day has three big trader yard in Haw Orleans and X hear de traders say dat town 25 mile square* I ain't like it so well, f cause I ainft like it 'bent dat big river, We hears soae of 9ea say dare1 a gwlneter throw a long war and us all think what day buy us for if we's gwine to be sot free. Some was still buy in1 niggers srery fall and us think it too fanny dey ksp1 on fill in9 up when dej gwlneter be eaptyin9 out soon* *9ey hare big sandbars and plants fix 9 round da nigger yards and dey have watchmans to keep dam from runnin 'way in da swggsp* Same of de niggers dey hare jus9 picked up on da road, day steals dea. dam 9wagon oyf and wagon gal.9 Day calls Day has one bit mulatto boy dey stole 'long de road dat way and he nassa find out 9hout hia and come and git hia and take hia 9wsy. And a woman what was a seaaeter, a aan what knowed her seed her in da pan and ha done told har nassa and ha coma right down and git her. road, too* She she9 was proud to git out. She was stole from 9long da You aees, if day could steal da niggera and sail 9ea for da good money, dem traders could make plenty aoney dat way* "At las9 Col* Jorteseue* ha buy aa and kap9 ae. Be a fighter in de Mexican far and ha coma to Haw Orleans to boy ha slaves* He takes ae *9 de Red River to Shreveport and dan by da buggy to Liberty* in Texas* 3- ^^ ^A E* slave -Stories (*ekas) H De Page Hour c oloael, he a good m&ssa to us*. He (lews us to woric do patch of ground for ourselves, and maybe have a pig m a couple chickens for ourselves, and he allus sake out to give us plenty to eat* "De massa, when a place fill up* he aLlua pick and move to a place where dere ain9t so such people* Dat how cose de Colonel fus9 left Alabama and cone to Texas, and to de place dey calls Beef Head den, but calls Gran1 Cane now* n When us come to Gran' Cane a nigger boy git stuck on one us house girls and he run away from he massa and foliar us* country and de boy outrun he chasers. It were a woodljr I heered de dogs after hia and he torn and bleedla* with de bresh and he run upstair in de gin house* De dogs sot down by de door and de dog-man, what hired to chase hi*, he drug him down and throw him in de Horse Hole and tells de two dogs to swim in and git hisu De hoy so scairt he yell and holler hut de dogs nip and pinch him good with de claws and teeth* When dey lets de hoy out de water hole he all bit up and when he massa lam how mean de dog-man been to de hoy he f fuses to pay de fee* "I gits married in slavery time* to George Fortescue* De massa But my husban9, he git he marry us sort of like de justice of de peace* kilt in Liberty, when he cuttln' down a tree and it fall on him* I ain't never marry no more* "I she9 wae glad when freedom come* put my little three year old boy in de field* 9 c &se dey jus* ready to Dey took 9em young* another baby call Mittiet and she too young to work* I has I don9t know how many chillen X's have, and sometimes I sits and tries to count 9em* Dey9s seven Q$y '^ Sx-8l*Te Stories Page J!T (f9X8M) llrin1 but I had 'bout fourteen. w Dey was pretty hard on de niggers* 1 Iffen us haw de baby us only lowed to stay in de house for one month and card and spin, and den us has to get out in de field* Bey allus blow de horn for us nannies to cone up and nuss de babies* "X seed plenty soldiers 9fore freedom. Dey's de Democrats* cause I never seed no Yankees* Us niggers used to wash and iron for den. At night us seed dose soldiers peep in1 f round de house and us run fway in de bresh. When freedom cone us was lay in1 bgr de crop and de mass a he giro |us a gen'rous part of dat crop and us more to Clerks place* fe gits on all ight after freedom* but it hard at first 'cense us didn't know how to do for rselves* But we has to lam* ************* 23 420105 SX-S.uft.ra STOHIBS (Texas) PageOne GEOBGB SIMMONS, oorn in Alabama in 1854, was owned by Mr. Steve Jaynes, wiio lived near Beaumont, Texas. George nas a good many memories of slavery years, although he was still a child when tie was freed* He now lives in Beaumont,Tex. A ,oJ* ^ #- Ts bofn durin1 slavery, somewiiar in Alabama, but I don1 1 member wiiar my mammy said. Dey brung me here endurin1 de War and I belonged to Massa Steve Jaynes, *nd he had fbout 75 other niggers, It was a big plnce and lots ot wofkf but 1*8 too little to do much cept errands 'round de house. "Massa Jaynes, he raised cotton and cofn and he have 'bout He spected de niggers to wo'k hard from mom in1 till 400 acres. sundown, but he was fair in treatin1 !em. He give us plenty to eat and lots of combread and black-eye1 peas and plenty hawg meat and sich. We ftad possum sometimes, too. Jus1 took a nice, fat possum we done cotched in de woods and skinned ,tm and put fim in a oven and roas1 f im with sweet ftatoes all * round and make plenty *ravy. Dat was good. "Massa Jaynes, he flowed de slaves who wanted to have a little place to make garden, veg1tables and dose kin1 of things. He give fem seed and de nigger could have all ne raised in nis little garden. ?e ^as all well kep* an& I don1 see whar freedom was imich no' better, in a way. Course, some massas was bad to dere slaves and whipped 'em so ha*d deyfs nearly dead. dat, * cause I heered it from de neighbors places. -1- I know J Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two QK * Some of dere slaves woxild run away and hide in de woods and mosf of fem was kotcned with dogs. Fin^y dey took to puttin' "bells on de slaves so ifien dey run awsy, dey could hear 'em in de woods. Dey put 'em on with a chain* so dey coulctn1 get fem off. "We could have church on Sunday and our own cullud church. Samffatson, ne was de nigger preacher and he's a slave, too. "I didn' know much 'bout de war, 'cause we couldn1 read and de white folks didn1 talk war much ffore us. But we heered things and I 'member de sojers on dere way hack after it's all over* Dey w&sn* dressed in a uniform and dey clotnes was mos'iy rags, dey was dat tore up. We seed em walkin1 on de road and sometimes dey had ole wagonst hut mos1 times dey walk. I 'member some Yankee sojers, too. Dey have canteens ov"\r de shoulderf and mos' of *em has blue uniforms on. "Massa, he tell us when freedom come, and some of us stays 'round awhile, * cause whar is we3uns so in1? We didn1 know what to do and we didn1 know how to keep ourselves, and what was we to do to get food and a place to live? ^ose was ha'd times, 'cause de country tore up and de business bad. H And de Kluxes dey range 'round some, but dey took mos' de time to scare de niggers. Dey soon plays out One time dey comes to my daddy's house and de leadert him in de long robe, he say, 'Niggert quick you and git me a drink of water.' My daddy, he brung de white folks drinkin' gourd and dat ELux, he say, 'STigger, I say git me a big drink bring me dat bucket. VB thirsty.1 He drinks three ~2~ Page Three Ex-slave Stories (Texas) buckets 01 water, we tninks he does, bat what you think we learns? He has a rubber bag under nis robe and is putt in1 dat water in derej ******** 26 420:299 EX-SLAVB STORIES (Texas) Page One BEN SIMPSOW, 90, was born in Norcross, Georgia, a slave of the Stielszen family. He had a cruel master, and was afraid to tell the truth about his life as a slave, until assured that no harm would come to him, " Ben now lives in Madisonville, Texas, and receives a small old age pension. "Boss, Ifs born in Georgia, in Norcross, and Ifs ninety years old. My father1 s name was Roger Stielszen and my motherfs name was Betty. Massa Earl Stielszen captures them in Africa and brung them to Georgia. He got kilt and my sister and me went to his son. His son was a killer. He got in trouble there in Georgia and, got him two good-stepping bosses and the covered wagon. Then he chains all he slaves roiurd the necks and fastens the chains to the bosses and makes them walk all the way to Texas. My mother and my sister had to walk. Emiaa was my sister. Somewhere on the road it went to snowin* and massa wouldnft let us wrap anything round our feet. We had to sleep on the ground, too, in all that snow, M Massa have a great, long whip platted out of rawhide and when one the niggers fall behind or give out, he hit him with that whip. the hide every time he hit a nigger. bout the line of Texas. plumb out of shape. It take Mother, she give out on the way, Her feet got raw and bleedin1 and her legs swoll Then massa, he jus1 take out he gun and shot her, and whilst she lay dyin1 he kicks her two, three times and say, 'Damn a nigger wbat can't stand nothin1.1 Boss, you know that man, he wouldn't bury mother, jus* leave her layin1 where he shot her at. You know, then there wasn't no law 'gainst killin1 nigger slaves. -1- | cgy Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two "He come plumb to Austin through that snow. He taken up farmin1 and changes he name to Alex Simpson, and changes our names, too. logs and builded he home on the side of them mountains. quarters. 88 He cut We never had no When night-time come he locks the chain round our necks and then locks it round a tree. Boss, our toed were the ground. All he feed us was raw meat and green corn. Boss, I et many a green weed. I was hongry. He never let us eat at noon, he worked us all day without stoppin1. Ife went naked, that the way he wrked us. We never had any clothes. "He brands us. that nearly kilt her. He brand my mother befo1 us left Georgia. Boss, He brand her in the breast, then between the shoulders. He brand all us. M My sister, Emma, was the only woman he have till he marries. Emma was wife of all seven Hegro slaves. jus1 befo' her baby was born. I never seen her since. "Boss, massa was a outlaw. bosses. gal. He sold her when she's 'bout fifteen, He come to Texas and deal in stolen Jus' befo1 he's hung for stealin* bosses, he marries a young Spanish He sho* mean to her* alone and live right. Whips her 'cause she want him to leave he slaves Bless her heart, she's the best gal in the world. was the best thing God ever put life in the world. massa go off. She She cry and cry every time She let us a-loose and she feed us good one time while hefs gone. Missy Selena, she turn us a-loose and we wash in the creek clost by. She jus' fasten the chain on us and give us great big pot cooked meat and corn, and up he rides. Never says a word but come to see what us eatin' He pick up he whip and whip her till she falls. -2- If I could have got a-loose I'd kilt Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Three But befo1 long after that him, I swore if I ever got a-loose I'd kill him. he fails to come home, and some people finds him hangin1 to a tree. that long after war time he got hung. > Boss, He didnft let us free, fe wore chains all the time. When we work, we drug them chains with us. to a tree to keep us from runnin1 off. At night he lock us He didn't have to do that, 'fraid to run. We knew he'd kill us. to get it off. It's put there with a hot iron. tfe were Besides, he brarids us and they no way You can't git it off. V* 4S0224 EX-SUWB STQHIKS (Texas) Page One 4 JAKES W. SMITH, 7?f was born a slave of the Hallman family, in Palestine, Texas. James became a Baptist minister in 1895, and preached until 1931, when poor health forced him to retire. He and his wife live at 1306 E. Fourth St., Fort Worth, Texas. M Tesf suhf I m birthed a slave, but never worked as sich, cause I*s too young. But I 'members hearin' my mother tell all about her slave days and our master. He was John Hallman and owned a place in Palestine, with my mother and father and fifty other slaves. My folks was house servants and lived a little better'n the field hands. De cabins was built cheap, though, no money, only time for buildin* am de cost. Dey didn't use nails and helt de logs in place by dovetailin1. Dey closed de space between de logs with wedges covered with mud and straw. De framework for de door was helt by wooden pegs and so am de benches and tables. Master Hallman always had some niggers trained for carpenter work, and one to be blacksmith and one to make shoes and harness. M We was lucky to have de kind master, what give us plenty to eat. If all de people now could have jus1 so good food what we had, there wouldn't be no beggin1 by hungry folks or need for milk funds for starved babies, H ffe didn't have purty clothes sich as now, with all de dif'rent colors mixed up, but dey was warm and last inf, dyed brown and black. De black oak and cherry made de dyes. when I think of de shoes. Our shoes wasn't purty, either. I has to laugh There wasn't no careful work put on dem, but dey covered de feats and lasted near forever. "Master always wanted to help his cullud folks live right and my folks always said de best time of they lives was on de old plantation. -1- 33 Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two Yest suh, he wanted dera to have a good time, but no foolishiaent, jus1 good, clean fun. mostest eveiy Saturday night. There am dancin1 and singin1 He had a little platform built for de jiggin1 Cullud folks coiaes from all round, to see who could jig de "best. Sometimes two niggers each put a cup of water on de head and see who could jig de hardest without spillin* any. It WPS lots of fun. H I must tell you fbout de "best contest we ever had. One nigger on our place was de jigginest fellow ever was. body to best him. Everyone round tries to git some- He could put de glass of water on his head and make his feet go like triphammers and sound like de snaredrum. He could whirl round and sich, all de movement from his hips down. How it gits noised round a fellow been found to beat Tom and a contest am franged for Saturday evenin1. There was a big crowd and mon^y am bet, but master bets on Tom, of course. "So dey starts jiggin1. Tom starts easy and a little faster and The other fellow doin! de same. faster. crowd am a-yellin1. Gosh! Dey gits faster and faster and dat There am fcitement. Dey jus* keep a-gwine. It look like Tom done found his match, but there am one thing yet he ain't done - he ainft made de whirl. Now he does it. Sveryone holds he breath, and de other fellow starts to make de whirl and he makes it, but jus1 a spponful of water sloughs out his cup, so Tom am de winner. H When freedom come, the master tells his slaves and says, fWhat you gwine do?1 Well, suhf not one of dem knows dat. dey gwine be put off de place. or share crop. Q> O* He always 'ranged for parties and sich. contests. , De fact am, day's scared But master says dey can stay and woric for money He says they might be trouble 'twixt de whites and niggers -2- Bx-slave Stories (Texas) Page Three and likely it be "best to stay and not git mixed in dis and dat org'ization. ,Mostest stays, only one or two goes away. Uy folks stays for five years after de war. Den my father moves to Bertha Creek, where he done range for a farm They hated to leave master1 s plantation, he's so good and kind. of his own. "Some the cullud folks thinks they's to take charge and run the gov'ment. Thejr asks my father to jine their org'ization. He goes once and some eggs am served. Dey am served by de crowd and dem eggs ain't fresh Father fcides he wants his eggs served dif'rent, and he likes dem yard eggs. fresh, so he takes master's advice and donft jine nothing. 11 When de Klux come, de cullud org'ization made their scatterment. Plenty gits whipped round our place and some what wasn't 'titled to it. Den soldiers comes and puts order in de section. Dey has trouble about votin'. De cullud folks in dem days was non-knowledge, so how could dey vote 'telligent? Dat am foolishment to sist on de right to vote. It de non-knowledge what hurts, Myself, I never voted and am too far down de road now to start, "I worked at farmin1 till 1895 when I starts preachin' in de Baptist church. to quit. I kept that up till 1931, hut my health got too bad and I had I has de pressure bad. When I preaches, I preaches hardt and de doctor says dat am danger for me, "The way I learns to preach am dis: after surrender, I 'tends de school two terns and den I studies de Bible and I's a nat'ral talker and gifted for de Lawdfs work, so I starts preachin1. "Jennie Goodman and me marries in 1885 and de Lawd never blessed us with any chillen. by on dat. r*^OK> We gits de pension, me $16.00 and her $14.00f and gits It am for de rations and de eats, but de clothes am a question.1 %< . ?&?;? ; ' vF- 420037 EX-SLAOT STOHIES (Sexas) Page One # J0BJ3QH SMITH, 86, was horn in Georgia, a slave of the Widow Hicks. When she diedf Jordan, his mother and thirty other slaves were willed to Ab Smith, his owner1s*nephew, and were later refugeed from (Georgia to Anderson Co., Texas, \fhen freed, Jordon worked on a steamboat crew on the Red River until the advent of railroads, for thirty years Jo I'd on worked for the railroad. He is now too feeble to work and lives with his third wife and six children in Marshall, Texas, supported by the latter and his pension of $10.00 a month. N I*s borned in Georgia, next to the line of North Carflinaf on Widow Hick's place. % "I Aggie. My papa died ffore I*s borned but my mammy was called My ole missus died and us fell to her nephew, Ab Smith. My gramma and granpa was full-blooded Africans and I couldn*t unnerstand their talk. H My missus was borned on the Chattahoosa River and she had 2,000 acres of land in culfvation, a thousand on $ach side the river, and owned 500 slaves and 250 head of work mules. She was the richest woman in the whole county. M Us slaves lived in a double row log cabins facin1 her house and our beds was made of rough plank and mattresses of hay and lynn bark and shucks, make on a machine, Ifs spinned many a piece of cloth and wove many a brooch of thread. "Missus didnft f low her niggers to work till theyfs 21, and the chillen played marbles and run round and kick their heels* The first woxk I done was hoeing and us worked long as we could see a stalk of cotton or hill of corn. Missus used to call us at Christmas and give the Id folks a dollar and the rest a dinner. When she died me and my mother went to Ab Smith gg ' -''.i^rVi Ex-slave Stories Page Two Texas Page Two ^' at the dividement of the property. Qff Master Ah put us to work on a hig farm he bought and it was Hell 'mong the yearlin's if you crost him or missus either. It was double trouble and a cowhidin' whatever you do. She had a place in the kitchen where she tied their hands up to the wall and cowhided* them and sometimes cut they back 'most to pieces. She made all go to church and let the women wear some her old, fine dresses to hide the stripes where she'd beat them. Mammy say that to keep the folks at church from knowin' how mean she was to her niggers. "Master Ab had a driver and if yoo. didnft do what that driver ssy, master say to him, f Boyf come here and take this nigger down, a hunerd licks this time.8 Sometimes us run off and go to a dance without a pass and fbout time they's kickin1 they heels and getting sot for the big time, in come a patterroller and say, 'Bavin1 a big time, ain't yimx? Got a pass?1 If you didnft, they'd git four or five men to take you out and when they got through you'd sho1 go home. "Master Ab had hunerds acres wheat and made the women stack hay in the field. Sometimes they got sick and wanted to go to the house, but he made them lay down on a straw-pile in the field. pile in the field. Lots of chillen was horned on a straw- After the chile was homed he sent them to the house. I seed that with my own eyes. "They was a trader y&rd in Virginia and one in Hew Orleans and sometimes a thousand slaves was wait in' to be sold. When the traders knowed men was comin1 to buy, they made the slaves all clean up and greased they mouths with meat skins to look like they's feedia1 them plenty meat. They lined the women up on one side nd the men on the other, ^A buyer would walk up and down 'tween Ex9slaye Stories (Texas) Page ThTee> o^ w the two rows and grab a woman and try to throw her down and feel of her to see how she's put up. If she's purty strong, hefd say, Us she a good "breeder?1 If a gal was 18 or 19 and put up good she was worth 'bout $1,500. Then the buyer1 d pick out a strong, young nigger "boy 'bout the same age and buy him. When he got them home he'd say to them, 'I want you two to stay together. I want young niggers* * H If a nigger ever run off the place and come back, masterfd sayt 'If you'll be a good nigger, 1*11 not whip you this time,1 'lieve that, But you couldn't A nigger run off and stayed in the woods six month, When he come back he's hairy as a cow, 'cause he lived in a cave and come out at night and fflfer round. They put the dogs on him but couldnH cotch him. Fin'ly he come home and master say he won't whip him and Tom was crazy 'nough to 'lieve it. Master say to she cook, 'Fix Tom a big dinner," and while Tom's eatin1, master stand in the door with a whip and say, 'Tom, I's change my mind; you have no business runnin* off and I's gwine take you out jus1 like you come into the world* "Master gits a bottle whiskey and a box cigars and have Tom tied up out in the yard. He takes a chair and say to the driver, 'Boy, take him down, 250 licks this time.1 Then he d count the licks. When they's 150 licks it didn't look like they is any place left to hit, but master say, 'finish him up.1 Then he and the driver sot down, smoke cigars'and drink whiskey, and master tell Tom how he must mind he master* Then he lock Tom up in a log house and master tell all the niggers if they give him anything to eat hefll skin em alive. The old folks slips Tom bread and meat* gain* When he gits out, hefs gone to the woods Theyfs plenty niggers what stayed in the woods till surrender* 3- . \x-\ Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Four 39 "I beared some slaves say they white folks was good to 'em, "but it was a tight figfat where us was. I's thought ever the case a thousand times and figured it was fcause all men ain't made alike. Itfs like that now. white. Some are "bad and some are good. Some folks you works for got no heart and sexge treat you I guess it allus will he that way. 11 They was more ghosts and. hants them days than now. I1 s comia1 up Jrhey was common as pig tracks. They come in different forms and shapes, sometimes like a dog or cat or goat or like a man. till I seed one* It look like when I didn't 'lieve in *em A fellow I knowed could see 'em every time he went out. Qae time us walkin' long a country lane and he say, 'Jerden, look ev&r m? rigjat shoulder.1 I looked and see a man walkia1 without a head. the man Ifs with. I broke and run plumb off from He wasn't scart of em. M I*s refugeed from Georgia to Anderson County *fere the war. I see Abe Lincoln onct when he come through, but didn't none of know who he was* I beared the president wanted 'em to work the young niggers till they was twentyone but to free the growed slaves. it. They say he give 'em thirty days to 'siderate The white folks said they'd wade blood saddle deep fforethey'd let us loose. I den*t blame 'em in a way, cause they paid for us. to free us. In f not her way it was right We was brought here and no person is spased to be made a brute. "After surrender, Mass a Ab call us and say we could go. Mammy stayed but I left with my uncles and aunts and went to Shreveport where the Tanks was. I didn't hear fate my mammy for the nex' twenty years. M In Ku Klux times they come to our house and I stood tremblin', but they I beared fem say lots of niggers was took down in Sabine bottom didnH bother us. and KLuxed, just f cause they wanted to git rid of *ea. I think it was desperados Ix~slave Stories (5exas) * f what done that, Bad Lands. Page five stead of the Ku 22ux. That was did ia Panela County, in the Bill Bateman and Balon Ore sham and Sidney Farney was desperados and would till a nigger jus1 to git rid of Mm. Course, lots of folks was riled up at the Kluxers and hlamed ,em for eve:rything. w f I s voted here in Marshall. The flag is what protects fem. denft have no place else to go. T nery nation has a flag "but the .cullud race* We wasnft invited here, hut was "brought here, and We was brought under this government and it*s right we be led and told what to do. The cullud folks has been here merefn a hunerd years and has hdp make the United States what it is. help the cause is separation of the races. it *s hound tot The only thing that'll I*11 not be here when it comesf hut f cause the Bible say that some day all the races of people will he separated. Since 1865 till now the cullud race have done nothing hut go to de- struction* There was a time a man could control his wife and family, hut you caaft do that now. "After surrender I went to Shrevepert and steamboated *rem there to New Orleans, then to Tickshurg. Old hands was paid $15.00 a trip. and railroaded 30 years, on the section gang and in the shops. I come here in 1872 Sincethen I farmed and I's had three wives m& nineteen chill en and they are scattered all over the state. Since Vu too old to fam I work at odd johs and git a $iCMX> a month pension* m 'Wv 420009 EX-SLAVE STORMS (Texas) Page One % MILLIE AM SMITH was horn in 1850, in Busk Co., Texas, a slave of George Washington Trammell, a pioneer plaater of the county. Tremmell bought Millie fs mother and three older children in Mississippi before Millie's birth, and brought them to Texas, leaving Millie1 s father behind. Later he ran away to Texas and persuaded Trammel! to buy him, so he could be with his family* "Its born 'fore war started and 'members when it ceased, I guess mammy's folks allus belonged to the Trammells, 'cause I 'member ay grandpa, Josh Chiles, and my grandma, call Jeanette. when they dies. I's a strappin* big girl Grandpa used to say he come to Texas with Massa George Trammell's father when Husk County was jus' a big woods, and the first two years he was hunter for the masse. He stay in the woods all the time, killing deer and wild hawgs and turkeys atid coons and the like for the white folks to eat," and the land's full of Indians. He kinda taken up with them and had holes in the nose and ears. They was put there by the Indians for rings what they wore. Grandpa could talk mos' any Indian talk and he say he used to run off from his massa and stay with the Indians for weeks. The massa1 d go to the Indian camp looking for grandpa and the Indians hided him out and say, 'No see him.' "How mammy and we'uns come to Texas, ,Massa George brung his wife and three chillen from Mississippi and he birrag we'uns. Pappy belonged to Massa Moore over in Mississippi and Massa George didn't buy him, but after mammy got here, that 'fore Ifs born, pappy runs off and makes his way to Texas and gits Massa George to buy him. *1** A^ ^X Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two '' "itassa George and Missy America lived in a fine, "big house and they owned more slaves and land than anybody in the county and theyfs the richest folks 'round there. Us slaves lived down the hill from the big house in a double row of log cabins ana us had good beds, lijce our white folks, niggers, too. My grandpa m-"de all the beds for the white folks and us Massa didn't want anything shoddy * round him, he say, not even his nigger quarters. "IPs sot all dray handia' thread to my mammy to put in the loom, cause they give us homespun clothes, and you*d better keep 'em if you didnft want to go naked. "Massa had a overseer and nigger driver call Jacob Green. If a nigger was hard to make do the right thing, they ties him to a tree, but Massa George never whip 'em too hard, jus1 'nough to make !em 'have. "The slaves what worked in the fields was woke up 'fore light with a horn and worked till dark, and then there was the stock to tend to and cloth to weave. The overseer come 'round at nine ofclock to see if all is in the bed and then go h&ck to his own house. When us knowed he's sound asleep we'd slip out and run 'round, sometimes. They locked the young men up in a house at night and on Sunday to keep fem from runnin* round. It was a log house and had cracks in it and once a little nigger boy pokes his hand in tryin* to tease them men and one of fem chops his fingers off with the ax. "Massa didn1 'low no nigger to read and write, if he knowed it George Wood was the only one could read and write and how he lam, a little -2~ J.O ** Ex-slave Stories (Texas) boy on the Page Three .. f jining place took up with him and they goes off in the woods **nd he shows George how to read and write. Mass& never did fifcid out fbout that till after freedom* M V7e slips off and have prayer hut darenft 'low the white folks know it and sometime we hums 'ligious songs low like when we's workin1. It was our way of prayin1 to he free, hut the white folks didnft know it; I fmember mammy us*d to sing like this: M f im I horn to die, to lay this body down, Must my trerablin1 spirit fly into worlds unknown, The land of deepes1 shade, Only pierce1 by human thought,1 "Massa George lo^ed them what wanted to work a little ground for theyselves and grandpa made money sellin1 wild turkey and hawgs to the poor white folks. Ha used to go huntin1 at night or jus1 when he could. "Then days we made our own medicine out of horbemint and butterfly weed and Jerusalem oak and bottled them teas up for the winter. Butterfly Weed tea was for the pleurisy and the others for the chills and fever. As reg'lar as I got up I allus draik my asafoetida and tar water. 11 1 member Massa George furnishes three of his niggers, Ed Chile and Jacob Greerfend Job Jester, for mule skinners. I seed the government come and take off a big bunch of mules off our place. Mos* onto four ye&r after the war, three men comes to Massa George and makes him call us up pjad turn us loose. I heered fem say its close onto four year we's been free, hut thatfs the first we kaowed 'bout it. "Pappy goes to work at odd jobs and mammy and I goes to keep house for a widow woman and I stays there till I marriest and that to Tom Smith. We had five chillen and now Tomfs dead a#d I lives on that pension from the government, what is $16.00 a month, and Vs glad to git itt old to work. ~ f cause Vs too ~0 43 420305 EX-SLAVE STORIES (Texas) page One ^ ** SUSAN SMITH is not sure of her agef but appears to be in the late eighties. She was a slave of Charles Weeks, in Iberia, Louisiana. Susan was dressed in a black and white print, a light blue apron and a black velvet hat when interviewed, and seemed to be enjoying the generous quid of tobacco she took as she started to tell her story. M I flieve I was nine or ten when freedom cose, 'cause I was nursing for the white folks. in Iberia. Old massa was Charlie Weeks and he lived His sons, willie and Ned, dey run business in de court house. One of dem tax collector and de other lookin1 after de land, and am de surveyor. Old missus named Mag Weeks. w My pa named Dennis Jo^ and ma named Sabry Joet and dey horned and raised on Weeks Island, in Louisiana. After dey old massa die, dey was fvided up and falls to Massa Charli is Weeks, and dat where I horned, in Iberia on Bayou Teche. "Massa Charlie, he live in de big brick house with white columns and everybody what pass dere know dat place. Dey have de great big tomb in corner de yard, where dey buries all dey folks, but buries do cullud folks back of de quarters. Dey's well fix in Louisiana, but not so good after dey ceae to Texas. M Dsy used to have big Christmas in Louisiana and lets of things for us, and a big table and kill hawgs and have lots to eat.But old Missus Mag, she allus treat me like her own chillen and make me set at de table with dezn and eat. -1- jJ4 ^ Ex~slave Steries (Texas) Page Two * /m H I was with Missus Mag on a visit to Mansfield when de war starts at six o'clock Sunday and go till six o'clock Monday. field and look at dem sejers dey kill. I went over dat battle- David McOill, a young massat he git kill. He uncle, William Weeks, what done hired him to jine the army in he place, he gees te the battlefield to leek for Mass a David. De enly wgr ho knowed it was him, he have two geld eye teeth with diamonds in dem. was prayin* and some cussin1. help me.1 Yeu could hear some dem hollerin1, 'Oh, Gawd, Dey was layin* so think yeu have to step over dem. H I seed de severs in Iberia. cotch de cow and kill it and eat it. on. Some dem hurt sojers Dey take anythin' dey wants. Dey Dey have de camp dere and dey jus1 carry I used te go to de camp, 'cause dey give me crackers and sardines. But after dat Mansfield battle dey have up white flags and dey ainft no mere war dere. But while it gwine en, I go te de camp and sometimes dem sejers give me meat and barbecue. Dey one place dere a lump salt big as dis house, and dqy sot fire to do house and left dat big lump salt. Anywhere dey camp dey burns up de house, "I didn't know I'm free till a man say to me, 'Sissy, ain't you know yeu ain't get no more massa or missus?' I say, 'He, suh.' But I stays with dem till I git marry, and slop' right in dey house and nuss for dem. Dey give me de big weddin', tee. De neter public in Iberia, he marry us. name Henry Smith and dat when I'm fifteen year eld. My husband I so big-limb and fat den I bigger dan what I is now. "I ain't had no husband for a time. dead so long. I can't cast de years, he been Us have fifteen chillen, and seven livin* new , ~2~ Ex-slave Stories (Texas) p^# Throe * "Sperrits? I used to see dem. natural and sometime like de shadow. Sometime doy looks Iffen day look like de shadow, jus1 kesp on leokin' at dem till day looks nat'ral. up side you. I scart of dam. Iffen you walks flong, day cone right Iffen you looks over you left shoulder, you see dem. - Dey makes de air feel warm and you hair rise up, and sometime doy gives you de cold chills. You can feel it when dey with you. I sot here and seed dem standin1 in dat gate. Day goes round like dey done when day a-livinf. M I heared talk of de bad mouth. Some say dey can't cross water* A old mman put bad mouth on you and shake her hand at you, and befe' de day done you gwine be in de acciden1. M I seed de Klu Klux. to be sleeping Pof Cajuns and redbenas, I calls dem. Doy ought One time I seed a man hangin1 in de wood when Ifu pickin* black- His tongue hangin1 out and de buzzards fly down on he shoulder. berries. breeze sot him to swingin' and de buzzards fly off. takes him down to bury, Ha a fine,young cullud man. Do I tells de people and doy I don't know why dey done it. Dat after peace and de Yankees done gone back home. M I been here in Texas a good while, and it such a rough road it got my f membrance all stir up. I never been to school, f cause I bound out to work. I lives with my daughter and dis child here my grandchild. more, 'cause my head ain't g*od as it used to be. **** I canft 'member no 4f> 420019 Page One ; ENSLAVE STOSIES (Texas) "JOHN SHBSDfbora near Austin, Texas, does not know his age, hut was almost grown hen he was freed. He belonged to Dr. Sneed and stayed with him several years after "Emancipation. n % l n homed on de old Sneed place, eight miles south of Austin, and my masmsy was Sarah Sneed and pappy was Ike. and dere five hoys and two gals. Dey come fro Tennessee De boys sm Dixie and Joe and Jim and Bob and aet and de gali name Katy ?n& Lou. TJs live in quarters what was log huts. cloth. Derefs one long, log house where v$-':. A' ',', EX-SLATE STORIES Page Four nt\ (Texas) !* 11 Iffen it a man he choose de gal and she have to kiss him to git t him out de well. If fen a gal in de well, she choose a man. M I well Member de day freedom !clared. dinner dat day* Us have de tearin*~down De niggers heller and cry and didnft want leave massa. He talk to us and say long as he live us be cared for, and us was* Dere lots of springs on he place and de married niggers pick out a spring and Massa Doctor give dem stuff to put up de cahin "by dat spring, and dey take what dey have in de quarters. hut not top far from massa. Dey want to move from dem slave quarters, Dey come to de big house for flour and meal and meat and sich till massa die* somethin1. He willed every last one he slaves Mos1 of 'em git a cow and a horse and a pig and some chickens* My mammy git two cows and a pair horses and a wagon and 70 acres land. She marries fgain when my daddy die and dat shif'less nigger she marry git her to sign some kind paper and she lose de land, "My wife was Nanny Madeira and us have six chillen and five is livin1. I followed cattle till I*s bout 26, I*s went up de Chisholm Trail eight or nine times and druv for Massa Biocker and Jedge Braekenridge and others. On one stampede I rode 24 hours straight and after we rounds up all de cattle, I goes to sleep under a tree. Dat day I has on a buckskin coat I in genfral wore and I feels somethin1 grab dat coat and bite my side. I rouses up and sees de big panther draggin1 me off to de thicket. couldn't git to it. at my nose# I has de six-gun but I Every once in a while dat panther lay me down and sniff I jes' hold de breath* fcause if dat panther cotch me breathin* dat been de end of me* He drug me to some bushes and den goes off a li'l way OV SX^SLATS STOBIES (fexas) and give de yell, man screamin1. Page Five Dat yell make me turn cold, fcause it sound jesf like a Den dat cat dug a shallow hole, I eases out my old gun, takes careful aim and den says, fl!hank you, old man,1 an& he turns to look at me and I shoots him right ftween he eyes. come runnin1, After * while, dat catfs sate and cub f cause he yell for dem, and I kilt dem, too "'Fother time, I seed de panther a^draggin1 a white man off and I slips up jes1, as de cat seizes him and shoots dat cat. man domi and cotch him, Us have to tun dat t cause he scared stiff when dat dead cat fall on him* "Some time after dat I works for a man what freights supplies fround Austin &n& Ifs one de drivers, TJs start in September with sevfral six-wheel wagons, fnough to las1 a town de year,and not git back to Austin till January. Sometimes de mud so bad it take six oxen to pull de wagon out. *One time us moTin1 and staatpedin1 de bunch cattle snd me and my brotner gits los* frca de reat and was los1. three days and nights. am parched corn. De grass nearly waist high to a man and us scoop out de hole in de ground and cut off tops de grass and weeds and make de fire* drap de cprn on de fire and parch it, and wolves. with us. All us eat De wolves de worst. Den us De woods full wild animals and panthers Day slip up on us to git de chicken us has At last us coma to a house and finds us folks. ****** VM/:;:, fy-i X 420228 f BX~SLAEB STOHISS (ffexaa) ,JT f~y Page One MiBIlH SffOTR, 89, was bom in Mississippi, a slave of Sam Miller, who brought her to Texas when she was five. Since Mariah1 s second husband died, twenty-two years agof she has earned her living ^y washing and cooking. How too old to do auch, she is cared for by her only living daughter, with the aid of a $10.00 monthly pension. *Ifs borned in Mississippi. Yes* sar. I 'longed to Massa Miller and he name am San, and my nt*me am Mariah# My pappy *as feldon Massa Saa fetches all us to Texas when I's jes1 and my m&maj$ Ann. five year old and we come in wagons and hossback* He done buy my maj&ay and pajpy in the slave market, so I don't know nothin1 fbout none my other *1 at ions. "Massa Sam live in a great big, ceiled house, and had plenty land and niggers* The quarters was logs and any kind beds we could git, We wore loweli clothes and I never seed nox other kind of dress till after surrender, fe et eat and collards and cornbread and rougji grub, and they biled all the victuals in a big, black pot what hung on a rack in the kitchen fireplace. We had red russet f flat shoes and no stocking, but in winter we made wool panties to wear on our legs* M Missy was name Patsy and she was purty good, and Massa Sam was purty good, too. Be*d whip us if we needed it* clothes and ihip in the field. khip us if we didn't need it. Hefd pull of oar But he wouldn't flo* the driver to Hot sar. terrollerw on the place. *1~ And he wouldn't have no pat- f Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two "The driver come round and woke everybody up and had fem in the field by daybreak. I!s seed a whole field of niggers abreast, hoein1. The rows of cotton was so long you couldn't make but one ffore dinnertime. I driv the gin, what was run by two mules. tied with ropes The cotton was wropped in baggin' and It was a long time after 'fore I seed cotton tied with steel like they bales it now. (< I seed plenty niggers whipped while I driv that gin, feets gnc* hands and rawhided 'em good. run ^way all the time. They tied the They tied a bell on one woman what They locks it round her head, M I seed lots of niggers put on the block and bid off and carry away in chains. cattle,1 One woraan name Venus raises her hands and hollers, f Weigh dem whilst she's bein1 bid off. "The big folks dances all night Sat1 day, That's all the fun we had. fe used to sing 11 I'm in a l dyls garden, Ifm in a lady's garden, So lftt me out, I'm suffer in1 for water and wine, "The slaves raost allus sin^s whilst theys workin* in the field, and one song was 11 When Ifs here you calls me honey, When I1B gone you honies everybody. or H The raccoon am de tnrmy thingt Ramblin* round in de dark, M Massa Sam have a cullud man what give us our JJ3Cfs, I still got mine, but didn't never git no further, "Uaesa Sam git kilt 'fore the war. -2- A mule throwed him. He had plenty rc*> ^x-slave Stories (Texas) Page Three * good kosses but allus rid a mule. Ke come in from a neighbors one day and the mule throwed him on a stob 'fore he got to the house. We heared a hollerin1 down the road, but didnft pay no 'tention, 'cause they!s allus all kind racket gwine on. Fin'ly somebody say, and we goes down there and it was massa. ! That sound like ja man,1 'Fore he die h^ calls all the cullud chillen to him and shakes hands and tells fei to be good. !, l7e ' lonf:s to he son, Ruben, then, and star/s with him three years after surrender. 'bout that war I Lordy me! How I hates to think of *em talki Young missy cry a whole week, folks gwine git kilt, They did> too. f n ?A ause she fear her men Her two boys, George and Frank, gits kilt, and heap of the neighbors boys gits kilt, too. M ?in!ly us leaves Mass a Puben and fjoes to Shreveport r>nd I marries Snyder, The 'Progo1 Marshal marries us. with tt&ry* \\> raises two gals and I lives Snyder died twenty-two years ago ,and all them years I made a livin* washin1 and ironin1 and cookin*, up to six years ago. pension from the gov^ment now and it aia $10*00 a month. I gits a It's mighty good of the white folks to take cere of this old niggerf but Ifd rather work, only I ain't able no more. ***** ~ 04 4:20144 E3USLAVK STORIES (Texas) Pago One , PATSY SOUTHWELL, 83, was born in Jasper Co. t Texas. Sh* has lived on or near the old plantation all her life. Her master was Bill Trailor. w My name Patsy Southwell and I lives at Rock Hill. I been livia1 on dat plantation all my life, but not allus in the very same place. I think|| the house was move and fnother builded. "My pappy was John Redd and he brung here from Virginny. f longed to Bill Trailor and he Mammy's name Rose Redd and she a yaller nigger, come from South Carolina and maybe she white and Indian, too. My brothers call Dennis, George, William.and Charles and dey all dead, *MWe all live in the quarters and massa a tol*able good one f sidering others what cut and slashes bad. Pappy and mammy work in the field and dey send pappy and he sons off six months at the time, over to Alexandria, to make salt. H My brothers hunt all the time and brung in deer and wild turkey, so we has lots to eat. We has butter and milk and heagy and pappy allushave he li'l garden patch. -We wears slip homespun dress make out ten cloth from us loom. I soever have shoes and us has no Sunday clothes. Massa was tel'ably good to the old folks and not so mean to the chillen. He wasn't no barbarian like some what whip the slaves every Monday morn in f befo* dey starts to work. "Massa plantation have fifteen hxuinerd acre in it and he -1- 55 Ex~slave Stories (Texas) Page Two 5A w didn't have fnoug3h slaves so the7 works awful hard* my mammy five huanerd licks and my pappy six huanerd. I seed faa hit Pappy have run 'way and been gene leng time and they cetch him in de water in the Heches Biver* He have meat and stuff and they say mammy feedin1 him, hut I think It the ether way. I think he gittin1 and sendin* her stuff* "The white folks has the "big church with the "bar cress it and the cullud felks sit behin1 the bar. If any wants to jine us tell massa and he tell the preacherf and he Id man Southwell. They baptise at the mill pond. I marries Jerry Southwell and us git marry at home. Jerxy wears the "black suit and I wears the dotted white Swiss dress with the overskirt. "When freedom breaks and massa say we free, we goes to he Haynes1 place and my pappy farms for hisself. We gits on better dan in slavery days and after fwhilt= pappy buys him some land and den we all right. Me and my husban1, we stays on with pappy awhile, but we gits our own faaa and farm all us life* ****** * EX-SLATE STORIES (Texas) PageOne fy LBITHBAN SPINKS, 82, was born a slave to Fay Thompson, in Hankin County, Mississippi. Soon after Leithean's birth, Mr. Thompson moved to E, Ffcliciana Parish, Louisiana. Leithean was happy in slave days, and stayed with her master two years after she was freed. She lives at 2600 Merrick St., Fort Worth, Texas, tt Does I look old nough to be birthed in slavery? Ps eighty-two years old and mammy had it right there in de Bible, marked when Ifs birthed, in 1855, Ps birthed in Mississippi but a little while after, massa goes to Louisiana, over in East Feliciana Parish, and when I9s old * nough to , memberf we'uns am there, 'twixt New Roads and Jackson, right near the Mississippi River. H Massa Thompson had a awful big plantation and more'n 300 cullud folks, and three rows of cabins *bout two blocks longf and fbeut one family to a cabin. No floors in dem cabins, you stands on dirt, and de furniture am something you knows ainU there. on and a homemake table and bunks. Why, man, there am jus1 benches to sit Dere am de fireplace but all de main cook in am done in de big cook in1 shed, and old Mammy Dice done it, with four to holp her. w De bell am rung when meal time comes md all de slaves lines up, with their pans and cups and passes de service table, and de food am put on dere pans and milk in de cup. niggers. Dat de one time massa could allus fpend on de Ihen de bell say, f Come and git it,1 all us am there. Us takes de food to de cabins and eats it. *Dis old nigger come near gwine to Glory once when mammy am gene to de cook shed. How ftwas am dis-a^wsy. -1- She latches de door on de eutside Bx^slave Stories (Texas) # Page Two to keep us three chillea in de cabin, my sis and brudder and me* # f>$ Well, in dem daysf U3 uses tallow candles for light and pine knots when candles am Mammy lights de pine knot befo1 she leaves and after she am gone, it short. fajlls off de hook and hits de ground and rolls a couple feet under de bunk. There am straw in de tick and right off de whole shebang am on fire* There am three of us with de door latch and all de grown-ups in de cook shed. Us hollers and yells but it am no use, and de hollerin1 don't last long, fcause de smoke gittin1 thick. De fire am spreadin1 fast and de bunks starts burnin1. Us am huddle togedder, skeert plumb out our wits and chokin1 and coughin1. H Den my brudder gits de idea and he grabs de big spoon and de iron poker and starts diggin* de dirt from under de log next de door# De smoke ainft so bad next de ground, and did yous ever see de dog diggin1 in de rabbit hole? Dat how us digs, and seems it never gwlne come a hole. Finallyf e hole busted through and lets in fresh ait/ and. den us dig some more, and it am big fnough for my little sis to crawl through. Den us dig some more and I crawls out and my brudder starts but he gits he head outside and his shoulders wedges and there he am, stucked. budge him. Us pull and pull, but naty a inch could us He try to back up but he shirt caught on a knot and he can't do dat. So us runs for de cook shed and yells, 'Mammy, de cabin on fire.1 starts to holler, 'Fire,1 Everybody and mammy busts in de door and yaaks brudder out dat hole, and he am sweat in1 like a latherin' mare. After dey puts de fire out with de water buckets, mammy sejr When sis gits outf why didn't she unlatch de door?1 'Cause de 'citement, us never think of dat! M Us have plenty hawg meat and veg1 tables and butter and 'lasses and -2~ Ex-slave Stories (Texas) honey* Page Thrm $ ^ * ruj De food ainft short no time fround massa. 'causa he say niggers works better when dejr feeds good* De mammies leaves de babies in de nursery durin' de day and dem chillen am take good care of and has lots of milk and am all fat like hawgs* * In de monlin1 when de bell ring, everybody goesto work, but I is little and does de chores and am gap tender* wants, here, there and all over. De cattle am 'lowed to run where day Fencesam fround de fields and yards add there am gates to go through, but us calls dem gaps. It am my job to open and close dem, 'cause somebody allus want in1 to drive or walk through dem gaps. W M* sis am de fly chaser of de peacock. She has de big fan make from de tail feathers 'Twas awful purty thing. She stands f round de itoite folks and shoo off de flies, "Massa Pay ain't hard on he cullud folks* drive dem, He works dem steady but donH Lots de slaves goes fishin' in de river on Saturday afternoon and Sunday, and day cotches plenty fish* H Us has parties and sing in and dancin' and fiddle music. Oh. Lawd^! lonesome I gits when I thinks 'bout dem days, and de music and singin*. How Some- times *bout a hunerd sings to once and dat sound purty and jus1 go all through me. "For ronnin' off am de only hard whuppinfs massa give. De run-off am tie to de log and massa lay de whuppln' on he back* Dejiantation aa ne&r de river and dere am lots of caves and cliffs to hide in. Massa cotch de run-offs with de nigger hounds and if he don't, dey git hongry and sneaks back. gits clear aw*y. Only one Bx-slave Stories (Texas) Page your J> * "One Sunday morn inf 'bout ten o'clock, mass a have de bell ring and calls all us to de front gallery and makes de talk. He say, f I's happy to tell yous is free and, 'cording to de law, yous am all citizens. Dem what wants to stay with me I'll pay de wages or dey can work on shares.' He gives us all de paper, with de name and age and where us am birthed. Me and mammy stays two years after freedom. I marries Sol Pleasant in 1872 and us has two chillen. De trouble amf he wants to be de bass of de Us sep'rate in 1876. job and let me do de work. I 'cides I don't need no boss, so I transports him, and says, 'Nigger, git out of here and don't never come back. If you comes back, I'll smack you down.1 "In 187>3 I marries Jrank Spinks and us has eight chillen and he dies in 1930. All dem eight chillen lives here and Ifs livin1 with one of demf Mrs. Covy Kelly. 'Tain't many years befo' old Gabriel blow he horn, and I's waitin1 for him. ****** r*t ^ ** ' 4 GJL96 X3USLAV2 STORMS <*exas) ^ f/ Page One > * GUT STEWART, 87, 209 Austin Ave.t Ft. Worth, was born Hov. 26# 1850# a slave of Jack Taylor, who also owned Guy's parents, 3 brothers and 3 sisters. They lived In Mansfield Parish, La. Stewart started work In the fields at seven years, and remained with his owner three years after h$ was freed. He then moved onto his own farm where he lived until 1898, when he moved to Port Worth* ^ "Yas, suhf Pse an ol' slave and I'se 9bout 11 years ol1 when da War starts* My marster am Jack Taylor and my family be*. longs to him* H I 'members de war well, 'causa we'uns hears shoot in1 and see soldiers. rittals. Day comes to marster's place and takes hosses and One time day wants some of de niggers for to help fix for de battle. Dere am heap of 'citement and de marster 'fraid de battle come too close. He say, f It's too close for saftment.' And he say, 'Put dis and dat away so de soldier cain't find it.1 "I starts woxk long'fore dat, shen I'se seven, in de cotton and co'n field. I just peddles 'round first. Marster sho9 am good to w and so good dat de other white folks calls us da 'free niggers.f "We'uns have cabins for to lire in and sleep in bunks with straw ticks on 'em. We?uns has lots to eat. all we wants. And we'uns have all da cLothes we needs. "Sho. we went to church with da marster. Heaven and de devil and sich. in de hands. Dey tol9 us 'bout But dey never 'lows us to have books Bey says It wasn' good for us to lam readin1 or writ in.' wm Q V)** Bz-Slare Stories (Texas) Page Tkree and works for myself, 1915. I gits married in 1877 and my wife dies in Tetun8 has one chile. In 1898 I cones to Tort Worth and gits me a jol> in de woodyard and sich* n White man, I sho1 likes for to see dat ol1 plantation down in Louisiana and it would do dis ol4 darky good. of de marster and de good times* I sits hers and thinks And de flsnin down dare! Is dere good fishin'? De folks here don* know what am fisnln', "You has dis nigger thinkin* heaps 'bout de ol1 plantation and de good times. If I don1 stop talk in* *********** 9 bcut dat, I gits to cryin1. -*0 b*5 420254 ENSLAVE STOHISS (Texas) Page One WILLIAM STOKE WAS born in a covered wagon, on the way from Alabama to Texas, about 1863,, Though he was too smell to remember slave days, he does recall many things told him by his parents and other ex-slaves. William lives in Mart, Texas. r! My parents done told me where I*s borned. It am in a covered wagon on de way from Alabama to Texas, two years ffore freedom. Old M&rse, Lem Stone, he left Alabama for Texas, where de war not so bad, and brung some he slaves with him. He done lost so much in Alabama, Yankees burnin1 he house and cotton and killin1 he stock, he want to git fway from dere. "First he coma to Busk County, den goes back to Shreveport and stays till freedom. Pappy and mammy was Louis and Caroline Stone. I lived in Louisiana till Ifs growed. "Mammy and pappy done told me all fbout do old plantation. It am hundreds of acres of land, part worked and part jus1 timber and pasture. It was near Montgomery, and fay raised more cotton den anything else, but had some corn and peas and cane, Dey made sorghum and ribbon cane !lassas and had boilin* vats for sugar, too. H De soldiers come through. Dey named, Yankees. Dey make mammy cook somethin1 to essy and den kilt all de hawgs and took de meat with d m, aa* burn de barn and house. in de bresh. Old Marse had pens to put cotton in, hid way out Dey picked it in gunny sacks and hides it, and slips it out to de gin by night and tries to sell it ffore dem Yankees finds it and bums it, "Mammy say dey all mni to church and had to drive four horses when de roads muddy in winter and sand deep in auBoer, *1 Jfoy allus carry dinner '/ '"-.>. Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two and stay all day* all go home. % Den in de evening after de niggers had dey preachin* , dey Sometimes a preacher come out to de plantation and hold church for de white folks in de mornin* and in de evenin1 for de niggers, out under a big oak tree, M De Lawd say if fen us trusts him and help to be good he gwine make our path straight. Dis was time in de days of den, ^f cause our white folks tooken care of us, befo1 dey was freedom and sech. Now, us gittin* old, and gits de old age pension when us too old to work. 11 1 works all up and down de old river when Ifs growed. has long staple cotton. cane to de boilin1 mills. Dey raise sugar cane and dere be twenty wagons haulin1 We was happy to do dat work, *cause we knowed it mean us have plenty 'lasses in winter. all de De plantations f Lawdy, I wiah I knowed I could have lasses and bread I wanted dis winter! Dem was good times, Lawd! Us sing dis song: tft We111 stick to de hoe till de sun go down, We1!! rise when de rooster crow, And go to de field where de sunshine hot, To de field where de sugar cane grow. Yes, chilluns, wefll all go,1 Mi can jes' see dera long rows of cotton and niggers drivin1 de oxen and mules. I know fnother song: MI Nigger mighty happy when he layin1 by de cornf Nigger mighty happy when he hear dat dinner horn; But he more happy when de night come on, Dat * sunfs a~slantinf, as sho's you born! Dat old cowfs a shakin^'dat great big bell, And de frogs tunin* up, * cause de dewfs done fell.1 ^Dat jes! after freedom. Dey have plantations and overseers like slavery, but most de overseers niggers, and dey didnH whip you den# On Saturday night de overseer pay us, mostly in rations. He give us five, maybe ... .-. -.... / -*.'.... j^: QO Ex**slave Stories (lexas) Page (Ebree I ** C>0 ten pounds rations of meat, and a peck or two or meal, and some coffee and *lasses. Mt Dat Old But And ration day come once a week, massa rich as Gundy. he give 'lasses all de weekf buttermilk for Sunday* Mt 01d massa give a pound of meat , I et it all on Monday; Den I et 'lasses all de weekt And buttermilk for Sunday ,* NjQl dis was down on de Mississippi bottom. Old Man Hiver was sho1 pUrty in de fall, when dem wild geeses coiae in droves and de blossoms red and yaller. De fogs come hang over and chills and fever gits started. De women sot by de fire piecin* quilts and spinnin* thread, and de old men weave cotton baskets and chair bottoms, and de young men work on de levees, so dey hold Old ManHiver back when he start prowlin* round Tgain. "Floods come down, no matter what time of year. One day Old ManRiver be runnin' 'long, jes* as peaceful and quiet, and everybody happy. Everybody meet de boats at de landin1. Den way in de night you wake up and hear a roarin* like thunder and dat river be on a tear. Folks know he am in de ugly mood, and starts movin1 to higher ground. Some jes1 gits to de levee. Everybody what have a wagon and mule gits out. It look like my folks told me when dey run from de Yankees, only dis time it's de river. Old Man River sho1 treach1 ous. After he go on one he rarin' and tearin1 spellsi den he gwine be so peaceful and quiet like. Look like he try to make up for he meanness. "I gits married and moves clost to de Trinity liver, and stays till my family done raised. Bey has free schools in Jexas den. I works in de sawmill and dere so much, wild game us can *at ejtsy. Bern days on de Mississippi bottom is like a d*#amf ^* w&*& I heaps talk 'bout Old M*n Sive^J^can dem big wafers ^ 420223 EX.SLA7B STOSIBS (lexac) Page lie TACE SSBXIOllUOf, 901 was harm a slave ef IPramk Hubert, im Bremham, Texas # His mcmery is peer and, theugh he recalled a gced maay imcidemts ef slavery days, he had little te say abeut his life frcm 1865 te the present He new lives im Wace9 Texas. M f I ll he aiaety~eme years eld next May, a&d I was beraed ia Breaham. My m&ssa and missus was Fraak Hubert amd Sarah Jtam Hubert. My daddy ceme fre de eld Africa aad was tdL 1 amd straight as a arrew. He was seld te a m&m what tteked him te California i& de geld rush ia 1849 aad me a^d mamay stays with Masaa Hubert. Dat hew ccme ay mame aim11 de same as massa have# H I get se much misery in de head I cam't fmember like I shwld* But I kacw us live im littleleg heuses all kiad ef grcup together, amd us eat im a le&g les&~te builded en te de big heuse. lcngf scccped-cut dish en a split leg table* im dat treugh amd us ate it like slep. Us ahillem had a What we had te eat was dumped But it she' taste geed when yeu beem huatim1 fer eggs er calves er gittia1 ia chips er breakim1 bresh. w Whem I*s big aeu.ugh I carries water, semetimes frem de spriag amd semetimes frea de deep well. Dere damger a little-child fall ia amd drewa amd massa, he say__miggers tee valmfble te risk dea dat w^r It was hard werk te tete water fer aiggers wcrk^a,1, fcaaise allus scuebcdy hcllerim* fer de water* I had te tret dewm de slippery balk threugh de therms te de spring er pull de heavy sweep te git it cut de well* * amd carry tweb-qickete meet Retime* '^^ y.;.^ *' H De overseer, him ring de hell 'bout half past four in de mornin1 and everybody what work go to de fields. work and didn't whip much. De massa purty reasonfble with de On Sundays de old slaves goes to de church and de chill en plays. "When war come dere lots of soldiers allus ridin1 t>y de place, all deck out in de uniform with big, shiny buttons on de coat. When us chillen seed des we took to de woods. * After freedom we'tfns moves to de next farm and works and I stays dere with my family till Ifs fbout 25 year old, and den I marries Tom Gould and move to McLennan County. But he so mean I didnft stay with him very long, and 'bout six months of his foolishness and I ups and leaves him. After two years I marries George Taylor and I lives with dat man for 12 years and took aough of his foolishness, so I leaves him, I8s had four chillen but Tom Gould nor George Taylor wasn't de father of any of em. No, ouh, I just found dem chillen. ********** yy^ ::J ,a-y' /// 420158 EX-SLAVE STORIES (Texas) PageOae JAKE TEPRIELL, born a slave of flelix Terriell in Raleigh, South Carolina, does not know his age. He was grown and married at the close of the Civil War, so is probably in the 90*8. He lives in Madisonville, Texas. & % \ "Pappy and mammy was called Tom and Jane and theyfs cotched in Africy and brung to America and sold. and my sisters Lucindy and Sally. My brother was called James Massa Pelix Terriell owned me and pappy and mammy "but when Ifs still a chile he done give me to he son, Massa Daiton Terriell. f, My pfpy was de wild man and he so wild Massa Jelix have to keep him locked up at night and in de chains by day to keep him from runnin1 off. He had to wear de chains in de field and den h couldn't run fast. "Massa Dalton growed de tobaccy. He was a good massa and give me de nickel and de dime sometime and Ifd buy candy. He have lots of slaves and de cook fix our grub in big old skillets. We allus have de cornbread and de syrap and some meat. I likes possum cooked with sweet Haters. "Missy Mary try larn me read and write but I never did care for de book l^raim1. Massa wake us '"bout four o'clock with de great iron and hammer and us work long as us could see* "Massa didn't have to viiip us but I seed p*ppy whip, with de rawhide with nine tails. He got thirty-nine licks and every lit; it brung de blood. ~1~ 78 Bx~slaveStories (Texas) Page 0?wo % M I seed slaves sold and you has heared cattle bawl whea de calves took from de mammy ajnd dat de way de slaves bawls, Whea massa sell de slave he make 'em wash up and grease de face good aad stand up straight and he fatten 'em jus1 like you do hawgs to sell* good massa. I had de He was good to black debbils, what he call us niggers. Us could rest whea us git to de quarters or go by de big tank and take de bath, and every Saturday night us git de holiday and have baajo and tin pan beat in' aad dance. On Christmas massa kilt de big hawg and us fix it jus' like us wants and have big dinner* "Massa have doctor when us sick. us sold us brung 'bout $1,000. well. He say us too val'ble. If Old mammy could fix de charm and git us She gather bark and make de tea. Most us sicloaess chill and fever. Sometime a slave git leg broke and massa say he no more 'count and finish him up with de club. "Massa nearly kilt ia de fightiaf and he had he doctor write missy to set us free. I had two wives and missy said I coulda't keep but one, so I takes Mary and us starts out for Texas, a-foot. to death 'fore us got here and then us have hard time. Us most starved But dere plenty wild meat and dat what us lived oa three, four year. Us had two chillea and den she dies and I marry a half-Iadian gal and she died. Us jus' 'greed to live together in dem days, no weddia'. Then I marries Lucie Orait aad us have 11 chillen and de preacher calls us man and wife. I's pappy to 17 chillea and I doa't know how maay grandchillea. ***** Lucie say more'a a hua'erd. H^Q *" 42017L E3USLAVB STORIES (Texas) Page One J. W. TEERILL was bora in DeSoto Parish, Louisiana, and is about 100 years old# His master was his father. He now lives in Madisonville, Texas f ft My father took me away ffoa my mother when at age of six weeks old and gave me to my grandmother, who was real old at the time. Jus1 befo1 she died she gave me back to my father, who was my mammy's master. He was a old batchelor and run saloon and he was white, but my mammy was a Negro. He was mean to me. "Finally my father let his sister take me and raise me with her chilla. She was good to me, but befo1 he let her have me he willed I must wear a bell till I was 21 year old, strapped 'round ay shoulders with the bell fbout three feet from my head in steel frame. That was for punishment for beinT torn into the world a son of a white man and my mammy, a Negro slave. I wears this frame with the bell where I couldn't reach the clapper, day and night. I aever knowed what it was to lay down in bed and get a good nightfs sleep till I was fbout 17 year old, when my father died and my missy took the bell of fen me* "Befo1 my father gave me to his sister, I was tied end strapped to a tree and whipped like a beast by my father, till I was unconscious, and then left strapped to a tree all night in dold and rainy weather. My father was very mean. He and he sister bruag me to Texas, to North Zulch, when I 'bout 12 year old. He bruag my mammy, too, and made her come and be his distress one night every week. He would have kilt eveiy one of his slaves rather than see us go free, 'specially me and ny nanny. ft 80 Ex~slave Stories (Texas) Page Two '' f, My missy was purty good to me, when ay father wasn't right round* But he wouldn't let her give me anything to e& but corabread and water and little sweet ftaterst and jus1 'nough of that to keep me alive. I was allus hongry. My manmy had a hoy called f*rank Adds and a girl called Marie Adds, what she give birth to by her cullud husbaja1, but I never got to plgy with them. Missy worked me on the farm and there was 'bout 100 acres and fifteen slaves to work em. The overseer waked us 'bout three in the mornin* and then he worked us jus1 long as we could see. If we didn't git 'round fast 'nough, be chain us to a tree at night with nothin1 to eat, and nex' day, if we didn't go on the run he hit us 39 licks with a betlLwhat was 'bout three foot long and four inches wide. W I wore the bell night and day, and my father would chain me to a tree till I nearly died from the cold and bein1 so hongry. My father didn't 'lieve in church and my nissy 'lieved there a Lord, but I wouldn't have 'lieved her if she try lam me 'bout fligionf 'cause my father tell me I wasn't any more than a damn mule, I slep' on a chair and tried to res1 till ay father died, and then I sang all day, *cause I knowed I wouldn't be treated so mean. When mifesy took that bell of fen me I thinks I in Heaven 'cause I could liite down and go to sleep* Hifhen I did I couldn't wake up for a long time and when I did wake up I'd be scairt to death I'd see my father with his whip and that old bell* I d jump out of bed and run till I give out, for fear he'd come back and git me. ~2- _, 81 Ex-slave Storias (Texas) Page Three W I was bout 17 year old then and I so happy not to have that bell on me. Missy make us work hard but she have plenty to eat sn& I could sleep. On Christmas she cook us a real dinner of beef meat* "Plenty time I listens to the cannon popping till I mos1 deaf, and I was messenger "boy and spy on the "blue bellies, When Ifd git back to the Southern sojers I hefped fea bury they dead and some what was jus1 wounded I he^ed carry home* M When we heered was was over and we's free, we all jus1 jumped up and hollers and dances. Missy, she cries and cries, and tells us we is free and she hopes we starve to death and she'd be glad, fcause it ruin her to lose us. They was a big bunch of us niggers in town and we stirrin1 round like bees workin1 in and out a hive. that way, W* was jus* I went wild and the first year I went north, but I come back fgain to Texas. 11 After fwhile I marries a Indian maid. but Indians 'round and there wasn't auich law. It was nothin1 much I lived with her fbout two year and then the Indians come and captured her jus1 befo1 she was to give birth. They kilt her or carried her fway and leff me for dead, and I n ver seed or heered of her since. While I was sick a outlaw, what was Tomas Jefferies, he*ped me git well and then I turns outlaw and follows all signs of Indians, all over the earth. But I never could git word of my wife. w It mus1 be fbout 15 year after that, I marries Feline Ford, by a preacher. maid. My first weddin* wee common weddin* with the Indian I jus1 give her deerskin in front of Tomas Jefferies and she my wife* ^^ _3_ mm++ . Q 2 ^^ 420017 EX-SLAVE STOHIES (Texas) sa Page One ALLEN THOMAS, 97f was owned by several ranchers of Jefferson and Orange Counties, Texas, "but recalls Moise Broussard of Hamshire the "best. Ill health has affected his memory and his story is not coherent. He is a faraaliar figure on the streets of Beaumont, Texas, a small man clad in none too clean and somewhat ragged clothes, with a tow sack across his shoulders, into which he puts such things as he finds in his wanderings about the city. Humor has it that Allen is fairly well to do and that his begging attitude is assumed, for reasons of ids own. iOf-v~ M I figgers I s ,~;wine be 97 year old on de fourth of August. borned over in Duncan ,foods, over in Orange County. Lockin Thomas. Beaumont. I never see my daddy. I*s My daddyfs name was He git drown in de river here at My mammy's Hetty Anderson. "I 'longed to three .^asters. One John Adam and he was mean. One Stowers, and he was mean but not so mean to me. Den dere Moise Broussard, he was purty mean, but he never beat me. De las1 man what finish raise me was Amos Harrison and he purty good man. He wife mme Mag and dey lives on Turtle Bayou over in Chambers County. Pinder. He was good. My brudder w?s Kelly Idonia *md I had a sister Lessie 'ifillirms. person. He buy me from Lewis Dey beat her with clubs. Us walk over many a, dead Dey beat fem to death. "Us had tins dishes dem times, master and slaves, too. wooden pa dies what us talce de food out de dishes with. Dey have De white folks sot at one table and de cullud folks have table to deyself, but, 'bout what de white folks has. "Us have watermilion and sugar cane and milk and butter. have de possum. Den us Us clean him and put him top de house and flow de frost -1- Ex-slave Stories (Texas) fall on him. Page Two Den us fill him full salt and pepper and put him in de oven. Sometime put sweet Haters all fround him. Us have de long, square oven with de lid on it . "Us wore knitted shirt make on derm looms and dey gives us boots with brass toes on 'era. Me and mammy work on ne spinnin' wheel-many a night up to one or two o'clock. I used to card de bats. M Dere plenty hawgs and houses and dem cattle what am longhorn. Us have plenty meat and raise veg'tables, too. I never seed no sojers but I heared de cannons, peace am corral1. I disremember when I come up here to Beaumont when I thank I's a man and I's "been nere every G-awd's since. "I see some sperrits, but I see 'em only special times. You see 'em twict a year, 'tween spring and summer and den lgain ' twixt fall and winter. still. Sometime dey comes rignt 'long and den sometime dey jis1 stanain' When you looks at 'em dey looks kinder vagueish. when sperrits 'round. Dey got a queer scent. steam gwineter hit you in de face. 'em. Dey look like men. I can allus tell "When you walk 'bout 20 feet, I can tell dey dere iffen I can't see Dey ain't white but dey got a pale look. ********* Q< 420066 EX-SLAVE STOHIES (Texas) ?c ?ge One BILL end ELICT THOMAS live in the Old Slave Settlement, 3 miles north of Hondo. Bill is 88 and Ellen is 81. They seem to he happy; their fields are tilled, a horse and a cow graze near the house; a kitchen garden is under way and several "broods of oaby chicks are in the ypxd. They were dressed in simplef ^lean clothes, and Ellen wears a string of nutmegs around her neck, to 'make yer eyes strong,* Uncle 3illfs Story, "Does you want me to start right at the heginnin'? I'll tell you jes1 how I went to this country. Well, I left Palls County where I belonged to the mm thftre that kept the post office. naoaed Chamlin. He was He had lots of land, I reckin about 50 acres. kep' us in a little house right in their yard. when he bought :ae? Jus* five years old! bought my mother and my sisters, too. mother, she wouldn't go without me. go if they didn1 buy me, too. They Reckin how old I was He give $500 for me, but he He had to buy me, f cause my No, suh, she tol1 "em she wouldn't An* the nian he bought us ff02E, he wanted to keep me, so he wo Idn't take less than $500 for me. bought the whole family, *cept my father# Massa Chamblin They sold him and we never laid eyes on him again. "My toother cooked. Massa Chaalin, he slw^iys fed us plenty, an' whatever they h-?df we hpd. If he cooked sausage, yox had it too; if he cooked ham, you got it too; if he cooked lye hominy, vou got it; an* if he had puddin', you got some. "When I was 6 or 7 years old I chopped cotton and I plowed too, and I could lay as straight rows with oxen as any you ever saw. "The massa whipped me with a dogwood wwitch, but he never did -1- fi Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two "bring no "blood. But it t?ken 7 men to whip my father. 11 1 1 11 tell 70U kow I got away f'ora there. carried it to Mexico. I drove one. 4 Masse, bought cotton and He taken his 2 boys with him and we had 3 wagons and I hsd 4 oxen nnd I hid 3 bales of cotton on ray wagon; he had 6 oxen rnd 6 bales of cotton, and the l^st wagon, it h*d 10 bales on it and 6 oxen. He had to ship it acrost the Rio Grande. he come across and took it over hisself. cotton? Reckin how much he got for that Yesfmf he sho1 did. He got 60^ o pound. If a Mexican bought it, Cotton was bringin1 that then. "I was freed over there in Mexico. I was about 14 years old. Chaalin, he stayed over there till the country was free. Massa He didn't believe in that fight in*. 11 1 cooked in a hotel over there in Mexico. I cooked two years at $1*00 a dsy. "When Massa owned me, h* always give us good clothes. Our pants was made out of duckin1 like wagon sheets, but my mother took some kind of brrk and dyed * em. I think it was blackjack bark. He give us shoes, too. They was h.?Jf~tan leather brogansj1 "I used to pipy the fiddle for dances when I was young, but not after I joined the churdu I pi eyed for the whit^eople. Oh, yes*ra, the cullud folks had dances, th^y sho1 did dance. lf Yes*ia, I s*.w a ghost onct. One night after I was livin1 down here, I was goin1 to Sabinal, me end another mm, and a great long thing passed right in front of us. six feet long. It was the blackest thing you ever saw. Yes*m, it sho1 was a ghost or sumpin; me lookin1 at it. It was about it disappeared, and The other fellow that was with me, he seen it, too. <-2- Q > Sx-slave Stories (Texas) Page Three ^^ Of * "Yes, they was lots of panthers &n& Vcrs her"*. was a bear, he sho1 was a, big 'un. If this ghost 7e hqd a ghost down here on the creek ve called the 'Itell wat^r Hoi* Ghost.' He was seen lots of times. used to stey down there, but he ain!t been seen lately. He My wife, she seen him." Aunt Ellen's Story "Yes'm, I seen him walkin1 'long the trail ahead of us. He had on a black hat, like a tall stovepipe hnt, snd a long blpck coat, and when we got up close he jes! disappeared. He was a big man, and tall, too. didn1 know which way he went; he jes1 seemed to disappear. ter s??.w him too. tfe My oldest daugh- Lots of folks did. He was always seen down at thp.t water hole somewhere. M Another time, I wo.? stayin' with Mrs, Reedes . Mr. Re*des was killed and all night long he'd came back and grind coffee and sprinkle it all over us. I was so bad scared I nearly died. over the floor, Next raornin' there1 d be coffee fe supposed it was Mr. Reede's ghost. was wicked they come back lik* that, all They say if a person Onct he pulled Mrs, Reedes outta bed and pitched her on the floor, and he would take the dishes out of the shelves and throw em down. goin1 home. I couldn't stand it but a night or two &nd I said I was Yes, mafaxa, it sho1 was a ghost. He shof did tear up that house every night. Why, they'd be a light shine in that room just as plain as daylight, nearly. They say ghosties will run you, but I never had any to run me#" f, I was born in Mississippi. grandma raised me. us. We come to Texas and my mother died, so I was jesf a bab^ when we come to Texas. Mr. Harper owned I remember the war, -ut it's so long a 0 I don't remember much. when John Harper read the free paper to us, I remember He had a big lot of slaves, but Ex-Slave Stories (Texas) Pa e Pour when he read the free papers they jes1 flew out likebirds. I was stick in ' to my grandiaother. But I didn't. She was on crutches and she stayed on at the Harper place. "After 173 was f^ee I worked for them a long time. ironed, milked the cows. I cooked, washed, He was pretty good to us, Judge Harper was. I went along with bin when h* went to war, his wife and chillen'did too, pnd I nursed them, I'd give a young baby shuck tea to break him out with the hives. For chills 'and fever I give quinine weed. It don't grow here. "When Judge Harper went up to Hondo my grandma grabbed me and kept rae. So I stayed and worked. grubbed, I was still a young girl, but I plowed, hp.uled and I used to wear 'cotton stripes.1 horse spun cloth. I remember *ea well. It -vas a I kn< * how to spin and weave end I could knit a pair of socks in two nights. "I never did h*ar much about hard times. I was treated good but I *?ot switched rr.^ny a tiipa. and took to Texas when Ifs so li*l I doa*t fmemher him. My pappy am sold After datt mmmy done took another maw M A11 de slaves live in quarters fcept de house servants, and dey live in servants1 quarters, and dere's where Ifs de lucky nigger. My mammy sm cook for massa and Ifs round de kitchen what Hwas plenty of good eats. And I plays with massa1 s two "boys, 'twas Frank and kawrenee. M I*s so lifl * fore surrender I never really works* *cept to he de errand hoy. I fetches eggs and sich. Massa have lots of chickens aftd * - us fetch ia Mgh as a theusaad eggs ia eae day s ae times. I**"' - Us have eggs Ex**slave Steries (Texas) te eat, tee. feedin1. Page Tn * Massa Themas am awful geed and dere am never de heller 'beut I "bet aene dera niggers dene live se geed after dey free* "Us have H de meat us want, mestest perk and beef and mutt en. Dey kills five hunderd hpwgs when killin' time cme, and make hams and bacen If yous ever ate sich ham and bac&m what am made by massa1 s and sausages. butcher right dere en de place, yeu say dere never an sich. Dat sausage, it make de meuf water te think fbeut it. 'Sides de meat, us have cembread and lasses prd de ratiens ainH measure eut, *cept de white fleur en Sunday morain*. All week de meals am ceek in dat kitchen and serve in de big shed, but each family ceek fer deyself en Sunday. H TJs ge t$ church if us want, de pass te ge dere. f beut feur miles tff. Massa give anybody Dere am no parties and sich, but eld Jack saw en de fiddle and us sing. M Massa didnft whip, enly ence* Dat 'cause a nigger steal he favfrite pumpkin. He am savin1 dat fer te git de seed and it an big as de ten gallen jug. De earn field am full ef pumpkins, but dat nigger dene teek massa1 s choice ene. Dat pumpkin am se big, he have te tussle with it ffere he git it te he cabin. packet. It like stealin1 a elephant, yeu can't hide it in de watch Ceurse, lets ef niggers seed dat cullud gen*man with dat pumpkin, and *fere leng massa knew it. "Well, sar, it am de funny sight te see him punish dat nigger* First, massa set him dewn en de greuad freat de quarters, where us all see him; Den' he make dat nigger set dewn and give him de big bewl pumpkin sauce and make him eat it* Him eat and eat and git se full hia caaft harily swalltw and -^* 9u i$$&&:/: Ix^slaye St tries (Texas) Page * ee massa say, *Eat sememere, it am awful geed.f eat n@ mere. Dat nigger try, hut him c 't Massa give him de light breshin* and it an funny te see, dat cullud genfraan with pumpkin smear en he face and tears runnin1 dewn he face. After day, us chillen call him Massa Ptjmpkin and massa never have a* mere trouble with stealin1 he seed pumpkins* w When war starts Ifs *beut fifteen year eld, fBeut half mile fr n de plantation an de cressreads and ene ^e t* New Orleans and ene ge te Vicksburg. Dere m a federate camp dere at de start, but after *?foile dey gees a#d de Tanks c ernes. Dere a battle near, and us hear de sheet in1 but us have te stay en de place. W I dene slip eff and see de camp, theugh. De Yanks puts up twe big tents and use dan fer de hespital and de weunded am fetch dere. What I sees and hears dere, I never fergits, and it d@ne turn die nigger *gainst war. Why can!t dey settle dey fsput'es without killin' ? Deyfs meanin* and cryin* smcl screamin1 in dem tents* "One day de Yanks c#me clean de crib ef all de cern and de meat heuse ef all de meat. ratiens. Massa am sm&rt and fix it st dey denft find all de Him dig a big ditch in de weeds and hide lets ef ratiens. M Us didnft knew when freedem cane. It a leng time after dat de YaPaks ceme tell us, and it de same way en all de plantatiens reumd dere, De Yanks eeme and make massa pur us all fifty cents de day. After da# massa puts dem what wants te ge en pieces ef land and dey ai**t charge fer It t1& seven year after. Den Ex-slave Sterles (Texas) * P^e F*ur f* * M I stays with my felks till I*s twenty~feur year eld and den I*s em my wgy te Galvesten and gits w ik as de stevedere. wharf and I werks dere twelve year . Dat am an de I vetes dere twe times. Seme white felks dene ceme te us, and de bess, te$, and gives us de ticket. all mark up. at a place. It am Boss say us demft have te werk de next day, and us te repert. Whm us c es dere, ftwas a table with meat and bread and stuff far to eat, and whiskey and cigars,, Dey give us something te e fc and a cup er twe af dat whiskey and puts de cigar in de raeuth. f pertant niggers, ready te vete. Us am With dat cup af whiskey in de stemack and dat cigar in de meuth and de hat ceck em side de head, us march te de vet in1 place and does eur duty. te put us back in slavery. him BB in fer de fixim*. Fix up de way us was, us weuld vete And de nigger what didn't vete, aftej: all dat, I means he. gits fixed. Dey pounds he head till him wemH fergit te de it right next time. w B4t I gits te thinkim* hew massa say when us leave him, let ne white filks use yeu fer te make treuble.1 ! Denft I figgers dat what am happenia1 with dat vetin' business, and I quits vetim' and gees te farmin1. I !lieve de cullud felks sheuld vete, but net de igme'meus niggers like us was de& I farms till 1910 and den eeraes te Fert fferth, and dey m buildim1 de Purina Mills Elevaters en East 4th Street and I werks dere at mertar wfcrk. Den I werks at cement en lets de big buildim1 s in dis cityf till fbeut ten year age, when it git tee hard fer me. I has de b&ek misery. QC ** Ex^slaveSteries (Texas) Page Five > ,r I gits married to Phillis Wilson .when Ifs twenty-mimef in Gal vest on, and us dt ft allushave lots, but us gits by and raises de family. Now us have to live on de pension from de State, what am $13.00, and sometimes us am awful short, tr7/iaf to pay de rent and buy de rations and what clothes us needs, but us am glad to git it# Tern chillen am what us raises and five as dead and four am scattered and us demft know where, and one live here. ""Ain't it diff'rent how peoples lives? Us used to travel with de ox and now dey flies in de sfcy* Folks sings ia Hew York and us sets right here and hears denu De way things am gwime, I!s all fussed Shueks! up and caa*t uaderstand whether VB gwime or $esatinfP ****** N r%A U*? 420G61 BJUSLAVB STORMS Page One (Texas) "I was bo*n in Alabama and my mother was Viney Askew. Sne belonged to Marster Green Askew. My father was Wesley Jones, 'cause he took his marsterfs name. "My mother was a good cook and she cooked for de marster. She had a great big stove and she made salt-risin1 bread, too. We and all de slaves lived in cabins near d*s big house and some of de slaves would have chillen by de marster. M When we come home from de fields at night, de women cooked de food and den dey was so tired dey jus1 went to bed. We didnf have fun in de evenin's, but on Christmas morain* de marster give us eggnog and sich. Den we!d sing but I don1 ^member de songs now. ^De crops in Alabama would be cleared by July 4 and den we'd have several days off, all de slaves, Deyfd give us pits of barbecue and pies and cakes to eat* SVhen we was sick de marster would sen1 for de doctor and we made teas outta herbs and sich. Alabama was full or chills and fevers in dem days and we drunk catnip tea for fevers and blue and white sage. Calsmus root, looks like an onion, was good for de chillens* colic* -1- nn *UU MAEY THOMPSON was born a slave 87 years ago, in Denton, Miringo County, Alabama. Her mother, Viney Askew, and father, Wesley Jones, belonged to Green Askew, a Georgian. She was 15 when she was freed. Mary now lives at 1104 East Avenue, Austin,Tex. ^ 4 Ex-slave Stories (Texas) n Page Two My mistress1 niece had a big plantation and she had a place whar she had de slaves whopped. She had a reg'lar whoppin1 My marster jes1 had a large cowhide whoop. post. -4/\^ XUJL whoppin1 more'n once# Yes, I got a Sev'ral times marster took hold my ears and bumped my head f gainst de wall* But gen* rally dey was good to me, 11 We wasn't 'lowed no whiskey, fless we was sick* white folks was good to usf better*n rich folks. De poor Dey'd give us a quarter now'n den. "I can 'member how de slaves was fattened like hawgs and den marched to town and 'round and auctioned off like cattle* of 'em had done somethin' mean and was sold off. Some Some of fem brought more'n a thousand dollars down in New Orleans, "I knows of one slave who liked to run 'round at night. She was nuss to marster's girl and she give it morphine to put it to sleep. She give de baby girl so much morphine dat her body was full of it and she died, De culiud folks got to talkin' too much and de baby was dug up and 'xamined. De slave nuss was put in jail and kep' there a long time and den she was sold, "Heap of de slaves would run away and go up north. try to find 'em by sendin' nigger houn's after 'em. Dey would Once de houn's caught a slave and he kep1 sayin'9 '09 Lawd ,.. G, Lawdl ' "After de war, when we was free, de slaves would go here and there and a lot of *em died. ~2- Dey'd git de black measles, go out in Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Three de woods and die. Dey didn1 know how to take care of deaselves- N I stayed at marster's house eight months, den hired oat at ten dollars a month* Dat was de fus1 money I ever made and I didn1 want to go to school9 'cause I wanted to make dat money* like big money to me. what I wanted. Dat looked I was proud to have it, 9cause I could git I cainH read or write to this day. "I was married to General Thompson,} and he*d been a slave too, in Alabama* Yes, General was his given name. I was 16 years old when I married and a white preacner married us dor in1 a 4th of July celeoration. Yesf we had a big time and a good time. H We come to Texas later and my husban1 farmed on the Brazos. We nad eignt Chilian, and two of Urn is livin. * My husban1 died and I buried him, den * took up witn a Horace Poster, and he was nothin1 but a gambler. I lived with him *bout 8 years, bit he never would marry me, so I leff him. **************** 4{\0 AU ^ 420127 EX-S1AVB STOBIKS (Texas) Page One PENNY THOMPSON, 86, now living at 1100 E. 12th St., Fort Worth, Texas, was born a slave to Calvin Ingram, in Coosa Co., Alabama. In 1867 Penny was brought to Tyler, Texas, and several years later she married Ike Thompson and moved to Port Worth. M Do I 'member slavery days? dem? Yes, suh! How could I forgit For an old person I has good 'collection. when de war start and my massa am Calvin Ingram. I's 10 year old My mammy and pappy was a weddin1 present to Mastfa Ingram from his pap^y. Mammy give birth to 15 ehilluns, but I never saw any of my brothers and sisters, f cause they all born on Massa Ingram1 s pappy1 s plantation fore he give my mammy to Massa Ingraia. M De plantation dat Massa Ingram have was 200 acres or mo1. own fbout 20 grown-up slaves, and on dat place dey raisis Him f bout every- thing we eats and wears, includin1 de vinegar and de peaeh brandy. Everybody am signed to dey duties and ay mammy ara chief cook for de big house. I hefps her and f^eds ahickens, gits eggs and totes water. "De treatmen1 couldnft be better. kindes1 fellow dat ever live. Massa am de bestes1 and de He am in Heaven, for sho1, but de missy mus1 be in Hell, for she sho1 was a debbil. Massa have de fight with her lots of times 'bout de treatment of us, but he wouldnft let her 'buse us. "We'uns was nerer hongry for food, 'cause we have lots of meat, chickens and eggs and eornmeal m^L 'lasses and honey. De hams is smoked on de pla.ee and dey am de hams, white man, dey am de hams! -1- , between Silrapn and Mapleville. He lived My brothers was Andy and John and Peter and there w*s two girls, Anna and Dorcus, aftd w was all born on Massa Tucker's plantation. My missy di^d 'fore I wss born and my old massa died when I was jest a shirt-tail boy and his chillen had a dividement of his lands and mammy ^nd all the chillen but me fell to the daughter and pappy was give to the son. for me to go with him that fin'ly they lets me. Pappy begs to hard I never seed my mammy after thfct, bein' as how Missy Smo^ne stpys in Alabama ?nd us come to Texas . "Massa George settles nepr Gilmer and he sho1 have a big place with lots of acres and a good house. He didn't 'low no beat in1 on that place but I've saw slaves on other places whopped till the blood run off them onto the groun'. When they was cut loose from the tree or whippia1 post they falls over like dead. lots to eat and wear. But our massa was good to us and give us We et pork meat and white flour jest like the white folks and every woman have to spin so many yards cloth 'fore she go to bed, so we allus had the clothes. "I've saw lots of slaves bid off like stock and babies sold from their mammy's breast. Some brung 'bout $1,500, owing to how strong they ~1- liB AJUU Ex~slave Stories (Texas) is. Page Two Speculators used to ride all over the country near our place and "buy up niggers --nd I've sew as majiy as fifty in a gang, like convicts. H But Massa George wouldaft sell and buy slaves and none of f^m ever run off f cept my pappy and one night he started to ;;o 'cross a shirt of woods to the neighbors and young massa was a pattyroller and tells pappy to wait and go with himf but pappy hard headed as a mule and goes hisself and the pattyroilers cotches him and nigh beats hiss to death. Young massa was dbto' mad as fire, 'cause he didn't want his niggers beat up. ,r Tbem circuit ridin' preachers come to the white church and tries to make the white folks bring their slaves to preaching, Preacher say, 'Nigger have a soul to save same as us all.1 Massa allus went to church but I don't 'lieve it done him any good, 'cause while he there at meet in1 the niggers in the field stacking that fodder. He did give us Christmas Day and a big dinner and 'cept for workin' the lights outten us, gen1 rally treated us decent and we had heap easier time than any other slaves 'round. 11 1 'member the war and Jeff Davis and Abe Lincoln was warfarins 'bout fr&ein' the niggers 'bout four year 'fore they fought. Massa Tucker jest grunted when we was freed, 'cause he knowed the thing was up, and he tells us if we*d stay and help the crop out he'd give us a horse and saddle, but we didn't git aothin1. So I lef him soon as the crop laid by the year of freedom and then moved with pappy to a farm aear Hallsville and stays with him till I marries. I had seven chlllen to be growed and married and I farmed aear Hallsville mas' my life, till I too old. My son, Beeves after me, owfts this farm and we's all right. Never did have hard times after freedom, like some niggers,'cause we j*st sot down on the laad. ***** -g-ff ^ XX f 4 0001 23USIAVE STORIES (Texas) Page One LCU TUHHEE, 89, was born at Rosedale, near Beaumont, Texas f on the Richard West plantation. She has spent her entire life within three miles of Beaumont, and now lives in her own little home,, with her da&xghter, Sarah. M I hears you been 5round to see me befo'f "but you ain't never gwine find me to home* I sho1 love to go f round visitia'. You know dey say iffen you treats the cat too goodt you ain't never know where the cat is. "I18 gwine on seventeen year old when freedom come. Ifs born right here near Beaumont 9 on the big road what they calls the Concord Road, in the place what they calls Rosedale. up young lady befo' I ever sees Beaumont. Ifs a growed- Ifs gwine on 89 ye&r old now, "Richard West, he's ay mass a and Mary Guidry she my missy, Dey used to call her the fCattle King.f and jes' a few slaves. old. Dey have a big plantation Dey raises my mammy since she eleven year Her name Maria and she marry Sam Marble. He come from Miss11 ippit W I stay up at the big house and missy fix my plate when she fix hers. God bless her heart, she kind to me, sassy to her but she didnft pay me no f I know now Ifs tent ion 'cause Vn li'l. I slep' on a trundle bed by missy's side and I git so sma t I allus Ms sm LX my bed to see iffen dey puts nice, clean sheets on mine like dey did on hers. Sometime I play sick, bit old missy a good doctor and she gimme beefoot oil and it so nasty I quit playing off. She Trench and she so good doctor they send for her to other folks houses. -1- 3 4 ft X1D Bx-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two "Old mis?y was real rich, i^U x ^ I's taken her money out of de wardrobe ane make tall playhouse out of gold and silver money, Iffen she have te buy somethin' she hawe to come and borrow it from me. Us allus has to figgsr how to take dat money out of de corners so de house wonft fall down* I cried and cried iffen she tored it up. M Shefd take me with her when she go to see her grandchillen in de French settlement. Us come in buggy or hack and bring jelly and money and things. I thought Ifs gwine to Heaven, cause I gits to play with lifl chillen. Us play 'ring place1 , dat's draw a ring and hop 'round in it. Us jump rope and swing. Dey have a hair rope swing with a smooth beard in it so it ainH scratch us behind "Old missy so kind but what got 'way with me, I couldn't go to school. I beg and beg, but she kep' sayinff Some day, some day,f and I ain't never sit in a school in my life. "Old massa didn't wort: 'em hard. He make fem come in when the sun got bad, 'cause he feared dey git sunstroke. He mighty good in early dayst but when he figger dey gwine loose he slaves he start be in1 mean. He split 'em and sold 'emt tryin' to make he money out of 'em. "De house what the white folks live in was make out of logs and moss and so was the quarters houses. Us slaves have de garden patch. the twenties. 1 The white folks raises hogs and kilt '*i by Dey smoke hams and shoulders and chittlin's and sich and hang em up in the smokehouse. strong clothes. Better'n Maw Orleans, dem quarters was. Us allus have plenty to eat and us have good, Missy buy my dresses separate, though. stripe cotton dress. -2~ She buy me pretty Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Ihree M Bout the only work I ever done was help watch the gmese and turkeys and fill the quilts. I larn to card. too. much, she jes1 like to scare me. She whip me with big, tall straw she git mt the field or wet a towel and whip my legs. I never forgit while I!s warm. Old missy never whip me My old mass a done a trick Vn big gal 'bout sixteen year old and us all 'lone on the place. He tells me to crawl under the coracrib and git the eggs. I knowed dey ain't nothin1 dere hut the nest egg, but I have to go. When I can't find nothin1 he pull me out backwards by the feet and whip me. I When old missy come home I ain9t know no better'n to tell her and she say she ought to kill hlmf but she shof fix hia, anyway. He say she spile me and dat why he whip me. "Old missy taken to preachin9. She was real good preacher. Dey have de big hall down the center of the house where they have services. A circuit rider come once a month and everybody stop workin* even if it wasn't Sunday. "When war was on us there wasn't no sojere round where I was9 but dat battle on Atchafalia shook all the dishes off the dresser and broke fem up. Jes1 broke up all the fine Sunday and company dishes. de H After/trouble my mamngr have get tin9 me *way from there when Old missy have seven li1! nigger chill en freedom come, she gits me after all. what belong to her slavesf but dey mammies and daddys come git (em. own my own mammy. I own my old missy and call her 'mama'* when us have to go with us mammy* arms and sing to me. I didn't Us cry and cry I 'members how old missy rock: me in her She sing dat '0f Susanna1 and telt me a story: M *3 * AC%^ 12\t Ex-slare Stories (Texas) Page Tour tt,Dere a big old brown bear what live in de woods and she have f lot8 of lifl cub bears and dey still nussln9 at de breast. Old mama bear she out hunt in1 one day and she come by de field where lots of darkies workin1 and dere on a pallet she see fat, li'l pickaninny baby. Mama bear she up and stole dat li'l pickaninny baby and takes it home. It hongry but after she git all de cub bears fed, dere ain't no milk left for de nigger batqr. Mama bear git so faasperated she say to her babies, fGo long, you go way and play#f Den she feed de lifl pickaninny baby and dat how she raise dat nigger baby*' M How, every time old missy come to dat place in de storyf she start laughin', cause I allus used to ask her, H, How come dey didnH no hair grow on dat baby*fM ****** 1 CM X Page One \' ,. x "My in Austin. name em John Walton, yesf suh, and I's born right here Dat on de 15th day of August, in 1849. on dat hut where dey is now I don't know. I done had de psgpers Pappy1 s named G-ordon Walton and I 'member he die while de war goin1 on, or jes1 befo1. I disremember. My mammy was a small woman, named ilaiy. "Massa Bill Walton owns all us, and he de brother of Buck Walton, and us live in Austin till it said de Yankees comin1. Some southern folks here in Austin ras di^gin1 ground for a fort, old Fort MacGruder, jes' south of Austin* So Massa Bill takes us all fwey ^roa Austin and up to Robertson County, f cause he done figured de Yankees can't git up dere. 11 1 done field work up dere and even us kids had to pick 150 pounds cotton a day, or git de whoppin1. Us puts de cotton in de white-oak baskets and some dem hold morefn 100 pounds. stamps you cotton in. It 'cordin* to de way you De wagon with de yoke of oxen standin1 in de field for to pour de cotton in and when it full, de oxen pulls dat wagon to de hoss-power gin* Us ginfrally use fbout 1,600 pounds cotton to make de bale. "Furty soon after Massa Walton opens he fana he die and Missus Walton den marries a Dr. Richardson and he git de overseer what purty rough on us. He want all us to stay right in lin* and chop flong andkeep up with de lead man. If us didn't it am de bullwhip. -1- He ride up and down and hit ug over ^n^ ***> Enslave Stories (Texas) Page Two * ' de hack if us donft do de job right. ^OA 1^" Sometimes he'd git off he hoss and have two slaves hold one down and give him de bullwhip. He'd give it to him, too. f, I helped break up de land and plant and chop cotton and a little of everything* Jesf what had to be done at de time, I goes out and does it* I run 'cross plenty snakes and one day one bit me right top de foot, Dere plenty varmints, too, "In de fall of de year us kill plenty hawgs and put up de gamblin* racks and hang dat meat up far de night. Dere some big dogs what watched de meat and one old dog, old Jefferson, was biggerfn any dog I ever seed. many 'nother dog* He kilt One night a big panther try steal de hawg meat and old Jeff cotch him and helt him till de men comes. De panther tore Jeff up purty bad. Us heered dem panthers scream at night, and if you didn't know, you'd think it a woman. I could tell de diff'rence, 'cause de panther scream have de little growl at de end. If he half mile 'way, you'd hear dat little nhang* M Qne night I goes out in de bottom with my dqg. I don't like what I finds. I was hunt in* but A big panther follows me and old Hig, dat my big, black bulldog, scart him fway from me. I shoLrun dat nightf and I never slip way no more at night. "Massa's big house sot 'way from our cabins. Us have de big room where de slaves' meals all cook and de fireplace 'bout four foot * cross and plenty ashes in de mornin' to make de ashcakes. ashcakes and bran-coffee or sassafras tea* roots de year fround and dey jes1 asijstrong* Tor breakfast us have meat and You could keep dem dried sassafras^ Us plowed 'em up in de field, 'cause day growed ^tld :. \&^&& %fiji\kli'& V!!Jt&i&& Enslave Stories (Texas) Page Jhree "Us didn't hare time for de playin' of games durte' de week, 'cause * dark when us goes out and it dark when xis comes back. tired. Us she1 was At night dat overseer walk by our cabins and call Out to ust to see if us all inside. If us don't answer he come up and find out why, and he'd find usf too* n I lamed to read and write a little jes' since freedom* Us used Webster's old blueback spellers and I has one in de house to dis day and I wouldn't take nothing for it. H 3Jhe first year after freedom I farms with mammy and my stepdaddy. Pappy done die* my life, Us done purty good de first year and I keeps on farmin' most I marries Georgia Axine Harper in 1875 or 1876 in Limestone County. Us have four chillen and three is livin1. I marries 'gain in 1882 to Missouri Fisher and us have eight chillen and six is living "Us gits 'long on what de state give us now, and it ain't so bad. Times is diff'rent. I nerer done much but faimf so I don't know so mack 'bout everything what goes on. *+*+*********+ 1p^ XfQ * 420S25 BUSLAVE STORIES (Texas) Page One SOL WALTON, 88f was horn in Mobile, Alabama, a slave of Sam Lampkin. Sol and his father stayed on the Laopkin Plantation, then in Mooringsport, Louisiana, until 1873, and farmed on shares. From 1876 to 1923 Sol worked in the T. & P. shops, in Marshall, Texas. Sol and his wife are supported "by odd jobs Sol secures about town and they receive money from a son who is in a CCC camp. M I was knockin1 round, a good-si zed chap, way back yonder in Buchanan's and Henry Clay1 s time, and belonged to Sam Lampkin. I was born in 1849, in Mobile, ilabama, My father waa bought by the Lampkins and he allus kept the name of his first master, Walton. My mammy was a Alabama Negro and her name was Martha, and I had four brothers and four sisters, Robert, Jim, Bichard, Alex, Anna, Dora, Isabella, Bettie, H My master was San Lampkin and his wife was Missus Maryf and their first plantation was in Alabama, but they moved to Mississippi when I was fbout 3ix, and we lived on Salt Water Creek. They had a big, frame house and we lived in log quarters, slept on rough rail beds and had plenty to eat, peas, pumpkins, rice and'other truck we raised on the place, and plenty of fish out of the creek. M The first work I done in slavery was tot in1 water and dinner to the field hands, in gourd buckets. We didnU have tin buckets then. The hands worked from sun to sun, end if the overseer seed * em slackin1 up he cussed fem ai^d sometimes whacked f iwith a bullwhip. I seed fem whipped till their shirt stuck to their back. I seed my mammy whipped for shoutin* at white folks meetin1. Old massa stripped her to the waist and whipped her with a bullwhip. Heaps of 'em was whipped jus1 ~1~ % cause 8 2r~slaw Stories (Texas) ?sge Two they could he whipped. Some owners half fed their hands and then whipped them for beggin' for grub. "After our folks came in ^T. the field they et supper and some went to Salt Water Creek to cotch fish and crabs. night, too. They used to spin at On Christinas Day massa allus give the slaves a little present, mostly somethin1 to wear, f cause he go in' to 3 it that anyhow. "Ivlassa never had but one white overseer. He got kilt fightin1. The hands was burnin' logs and trash and the overseer knocked a old man down and made some of the niggers hold him while he bullwhipped hia. The old nian got up njnd. knocked the overseer in the head with a big stick and then took a ax and cut off his hands end feet. Hassa said he dicta ft ever want another white overseer and he aade my cousin overlooker after that. M The slaves had their own prayer meetings and that's 'bout the biggest pleasure they h*?d. We'd slio off sometimes to dances and parties, but the patterrollers come and run us home with hounds. The black and white children all played together ^nd there was 'bout sixty of us. "The old folks told us ghost stories but I never seed a ghost but once, after I was married. Me and some men was walkin1 down the Shreveport road and saw a big house all lit up and fiddlin1 and dene in' goin* on inside. But when we got close the music stops and the lights went out. on past a piece it lit up and the fiddlin' starts 'gain. When we got I wasn't scared, but we didnft hang round to see what made it do that way* M Some of the cullud folks on our place could read and write. They larned it theyselves. The white folks didn't larn fem. ~2~ All they lamed fem A Q(S A ** x It ainft take us so long to git to Calvert, out dere in de bottom of Texas, and dey puts us on de barton plantation. We13 diggin' potatoes dere,when de Yankees come up with two big wagons and make us come out of de fields and free us. Dere wasn't no cel'bration fbout it. Massa say us can stay couple days till us 'cide what tc do* M fellf den samethin1 funny happen dere. De slaves all drinks out an oH J)eyfd drink water in de raornin1 and dey'd have de cramps awful bad 'bout well. dinner time and in de even in1 dey's dead. couldn't make de coffins for dera. dat way. Dey dies like flies, so fast dey Dey jes' sew dem up in sacks and bury dem Some de slaves say massa put de poison in de well. I don't know what kill dem but it sho' look funny. ff i ammy and me goes to Calvert and hires outt but 'fore long us come to Galveston and pappy go back to Louisiana. Parish. If he ain't dead he still live dere in St. liary*s I never seen him no more. 11 1 marries fbout 1886t and stays right here in Galveston. Cuney lots of times but I ain't nerer knowed him to talk to. I seen Wright I Member when dey say he be governor some day, but dey ain't gwine have no cullud man governor. Course, he did git to congress. ****** 420063 JX-SLAVS STORIES (Tesas) Page One ROSJL WASHINGTON is 90 years old and lives in her own little adobe house at 3911 Manz&na St., El Paso, Texas. She was horn a slave of the Watson family, on a large plantation seven miles from St. Joe, iouisiana. Her parents came from Georgia. After the Civil War she left her former owners, but later returned and was with them until they died. She came to Texas in 1921, and her three children provide for her. Her son, Le Hoy, hr-s oeen in the U. S Emigration service in El Paso for 27 years. ' My name's Rosa Washington and ray hasban* was Joe Washington. He's "been dead a long ttee. I w*s bo'n on n big plantation, white man's nrm? Bill Watson, wife Ann "atson, seven miles from St. Joe. tivvxa had four chillen and I hpd seven. of slaves. Marster hr.d a fine house and plenty I dunno how zaany. M 'Fore we was free we was in the fielf workin1 and they come out and got us. Everybody threw up their hands and started to run. The Y&nks busted open a sugar hogshead and give everybody all they wanted. Dey threw all de milk away and dey carried our Burster away by force and talc him to jail in Vicksburg. Our missus wept. When the Yankees got us, dty tuk us about three miles from whar we live, put us in a fine house, give us plenty to eat until war*s ended. Me and my chillen and my father and mother were together there. "We had a good cabin on the plantation,, made out-a plankst ole rip-rap plunder. Dey treated us good. worked in fiel*s when 10 years old. whop me, though. I worked in water garden, Hoe'd my row every day. Dey didn1 My mistress wouldn1 let fem. Marsa and iaissus good.to me# -1- 134 Ex -slave Stories (Texas) Page Two I not tell lie on *sa. Tell tfruf. Truf shines, M I seed niggers put in stocks, put *em in stocks head in fust. Tear their clothes off hacks, whop till sores come, den dey puur coal I see d&t with my own ejres. oil and turpentine in sores* the carriage, carried em *round all time. fiel1 like I do. Woric every day. My dad druv My mother worked in the Dey give us everything to eat. Marster and missus, too, give plenty, hut if ole cow died with cholera, they give to us niggers. I gat goad shoes once a yeax. Orleans, mama had to tie ay feet up in rags* Got up at 4 ofclock. of em. When marster went to Hew I had to work with the rest fe hefped on other plantations when dey*d Go he*p fem out. git behind. W I waited on overseers table, Joe Crusa. a fork in ay head. Ole Aunt Clarissie cooked for us. for us, had big fireplace. f losat f She cook in cabin She She had two rooms, all she do was cook, tell lies on me to white overseer. said I lef a fork dirty. He stuck She cook for all niters on the place. was mean to me, never married. Woman says, He was mean* That woman told a lie on me *cause He look at it, says, *Who rubbed dis fork?1 and he stuck the fork in my head* Missus turn him off nexf day* " ^Mfe had cofnbread, no sugar, plenty akra and coffee; plenty ailk, cause they had 17 cows. Ihey give us clabber and peaches* Eveiy day over-* seer blow horn in yard to wake us up, a bugle at four o'clock Sundays* We take cotton outta fiel1 and put it up on scaffold to dry iffen it rain. Overseer sit in dry, big overcoat on; we work in aad and rain. tfaejr carried its " ^^^^m %o whip us* vMk^ciLM^^'y ' Vi-'S^M-';*-: M One morn in1 Hjr WL&msk a&I aarster itever let Ex-slave stories Page t*U * itMj (Texas) f em whip me, but no white folks he*p me to read and write, He p me to do nothin1 but work. 11 Shit a folks had church. chillen every Sunday. church. Cullud I couldn' 0. people had to go way back in woods to have Never let white folks see *em. church, run like deer if faun1 out. chair whar we was gwine. lew. I hadda mind the white Had to slip and hide to have our Marster never know a bit more*n this He couldn1 ask us on Sunday, it be against the If fen niggers run away, dogs fud catch tea, f, Dey had doctor right dere. could work. Kep! us well. K?pf us well so's we Brother-in-law to marster. "When the niggers was married, dey put a brooia down and dey jump over the broom, same time missus and marster1 d marry fea. and she as witness. 'em a fine dress. Had fish frys. Sometimes celebrate. Hefd marry 'em She'd cook 'em some crfce, give We'd take meat sjad skillets down to the bar on Sundays. ffouldn1 take no fussy chillen to the bar. Vfe chillen would hav fish fry whar dey couldn't watch us. "Had to go to gin at four o'clock in evenin1. days, had to go in cabin s>nd be still. Couldn1 plry week- Never got to pipy much till Yankees come and got us, but we had a big ball rand dance in yard Christmas. Had candy, dey give us dresses snd socks and a good feast for Christmas. us things for 4th of July. dat day. scraps. Dey give us dat day. We had a big quiltin' Christmas day. Sois couldn1 quilt. Grive No, dey wouldn1 whip us We'd piece de quilts outta Dey'd dance in de y&rd all day. M We niggers got wool clothes in winter, good clothes woven on de place. Marster had "black sheep and white sheep. He bought our summer clothes in New Orients - linseyf calicy, plaid, some white ones. us color what we like. ^g*. Deyfd give Sx-slave Stories (Texas) Page ^few=* "Sure, I seed ghosts. Dey come with no head, come outta de fiel1 one night so late, 'bout eight, nine o'clock. I was scared, yes, suh, I sure was scared, "but my mommy ssy, 'Dey ain1 goin1 to hart you, "baby.1 Dey scar* me. My m?xmy give me beads for ray neck, chinaberry beads to keep !Cheyfd pretty. me well, I never had no other kind# "We never git no raoney befo1 freedom, rnd missus de first year, den go back. Had to pay f or rations. I stay away from Marster Dey give us 50^ a day after war. Better since war, though. No whippin's goin' on like thev did 'fore. "I'se a full Baptist - "been ever since *67. r, lines I gits too happy. church when I*se able. I'se hpppy# I don' move till de spirit move me. Sonie- I goes to But I'se gittin' too old to go now - I'se just wait in1 to go home. ****** i3^ 420040 EX-SLAVE STORIES (Texas) 2 SAM JONES WASHINGTON, 88, was born a slave of Sam Young, who owned a ranch along the Colorado River, in Wharton Co., Texas. Sam was trained to "be a cowhand, and worked for his master until 1868, receiving wages after he was freed. Ee farmed until 1905, then moved to Fort Worth and worked in the packing plants until 1931. He lives at 3520 Columbus Ave#f Fort Worth, and is supported by an $11,00 per month old age pension, supplemented by what Sam raises in his garden and m^kes out of a few hogs. iCg? !, How old I is? 1 Page One I's 16 year when surrender come, cause of massafs statement. surrender come. I knows dat, All us niggers gits de statement when I's seed plenty slave days. "Massa Young run de small farm 'long de Colorado River and him don't own many s^laves. and her four chillens. pappy. Dere my mammy and her six chillen, and Majoria My pappy am not on de place. Him am what dey calls de travelin' nigger. I don't know my Dey have him come for service and when 6.ey gits wh^t dey wants, he go back to he massa. De womens on Massa Young place not married. "Massa raise jes' a little cotton, dat two womens and de chillen could tend to, and some veg'tables and sich. food. Us have lots of good Us sleep in de sleepin' room, nex' to massa's house, but I sleeps in massa1 s room, M 0ne night massa say, 'Don't tie my hoss to de stake tonight.1 But I s sleepy and gits de nodfies and draps off to sleep. me and say, 'Did you stake de hoss?1 Mammy shake Massa sees dat hoss in de mornin1 and say, 'You done stake dat hoss and I told you not to.' He gives me couple licks and I larns to do what I's told. -1- He never whip nobody, * 138 Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two not de hard whippin' like other niggers gits. j[39 He am 3e good massa. 11 1 fust runs errands and den massa larn rue to ride, soon's I coald sit de hoss. Den I stays out with de cattle raos1 de time and Vs tickled. I sho' likes to ride and rope dem cattle and massa allus fix me up with good clothes and good hoss and g^od saddle. I stays dere till long after surrender. "Us have stampedes from de cattle. critters. Dat am cust'mary with dem Dat mean ride de hoss to turn de cattle. Us ride to side de leader and crowd him and force him to turn, and keep forcin' him, and by and "by dem critters am runnin' in de circle. Dat sho1 dangerous HLdin1. terment. stamp -ou to death. Dat keep dem from scat- If de hoss throw you off dem cattle Gabriel sho1 blow he horn for "ou den! ,f I sho1 'joys dat business, 'cause we'uns have de good time^. to town and have fun. ainft my fault. One time I comes near gittin1 in trouble, but it I's in town and massa, too, and a white man come to me and him sho^ de drink. Who you 'long to, nigger?1 he say. Young's nigger,' I says, polite-like. f I1 s Massa 'You looks like de smart nigger and I's de notion smack you one,' he say. I says. Us go You better not smack me any,1 You unnderstand, dat de way massa raise me. I don't unnerstand some cruel white mens gits de arg'ment, jus! for de chance to shoot de nigger. Massa am standin' near by and him come up and say, 'If you touches dat nigger, I'll put de ballet through you.' Dat man see massa have no foolishinent in he words and gits gwine. Bat if massa am not dere, Gabriel blow he horn for dis nigger's Jubilee, right den, yes, sar. -2- Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Three "I comesnear gi'.tin' cotched by de patterrollers once, 12 den and 'nother nigger and me, us want some cane stalk. raw, you knows. Jus1 peel de bark off and chew dat inside. 140 i jj^s jus1 It good to eat Well, we'uns in de man's cane patch, breakin' dem stalks nd dey makes- de poppin1 noise. A patterroller corne by and hear d=t poppin' , and holler, 'Who's dere in de cane patch?f Us didn't answer him, no, sar. I 'cides right quick dat I don't like cane and I comes 'way from dat patch. dat patte roller. way and dat way. I outsmarts and outruns I keeps to de cane fields and de woods and I runs dis I twists 'round so he co Idn't follow ray tracks. Like de snake's track, you can't tell if it am gwine north or comin' back. a-mighty! How fast I runs. Lawd I stays 'head of my shadow. I tells you, I's a-gwine! M De war? White man, we'uns didn't know dere am de war. some sojers at de starfi, but dat all. you gits $15,00 de month wages. he sold out. One day raassa say to me. 'After dis, I works for him three more years and den Den I goes farmin, till 1905. here in Port Worth den, till I's wore out, I works in de packin' plants f feout six year ago. de hawgs, not very many, and does what work I can git. State sho1 holps me. We. seed Now I raises Dat pension from de With dat and de hrwgs and de little garden I gits by, and so I lives. "Was I ever marry? Man, man, three time. and we'uns gits de seperment in 1871. Fust time, 'bout 1869 Dat woman sho' deal me mis'ryj She ^m de troublin' woman. Den fbout 1873 I marries 'gain and she die 'fore long. Den in 1905 I marries 'gain and she's dead, too. I never has de chillen. I's jus' 'lone and old now, and stay here till my time comes, I ' spect it quite a spell yit, 'cause Ifs got lots of substance left, yes, sar# ******** v 4J20072 i ; >1 p Se One i r' > SX-SLATO STORIES (Texas) tftf *4 ^ WHJJAM WATKINS, horn 1850, to Julia and Hudson Watkins. All were slaves on the Watkins plantation where William was horn, on the edge of Charlotte County, Virginia. William is tall, heavy set, and does not look his age. He lives with William Branch, who came from an adjoining county in Virginia. Both men served in the same campaigns in the United States Army. M My name is William Watkins, De name comes frum de name of Terbaccer Watkins, who owned de Watkins Terhaccer Plantation. He got a factory in Richmond and de plantation in Charlotte Covmty in Virginia, ! bout 50 mile east of Richmond, Uarse Watkins got a hig frame house Yassuh, deyf s other crops - and 400 acres and 100 acres is terhaccer. harley, wheat, oats, and den deyfs stock - hogs, cows, hosses and mules. "We lives in log cabins wid plank floors and we made de beds ourself. Day feeds us good and we gits milk and "bread ?nd lotsa pork. Marse Watkins got lotsa hawgs. M Yassuh, we's got a church. De slaves huilt it in de woods. We never got no wages hut sometimes he give us four hits or six hits. What we do wid it? We huys candy. Sometimes we run de rabbits or goes De Marster gives us lil1 patches of broun1. fishing. overseer's rough. Hefs good hut de He whips all de slaves. H Dey's a patrol what watches for slaves dat runs away, but we don*t have no patrol on our plantation. We has dances Sat!day nights. Sundays we didnft wuk much. ,f Deyfs gftosts dere - we seed fem. Dey's w'ite people wid a sheet on 'can to scare de slaves of fen de plantation. We wears charms * JL 1 Ex-slave Stories -to. Wat kins Texas to keep us well. Page Two Dere!s asafoetida in a bpg and we wear's it roan1 de It cure most evfryting. neck. i/lQ When we gits real sickf dey sends medicine frum de "big house. "Evfry year de slave traders comes and de Marster sells some slaves down river to New Orleans, all de way, Jes1 no count slaves. fiho dey sell? De traders dey rides in ox-carts, only to milk de cows. Jes1 dat, Dey walks We never wuk much Sundays, Yessuh, I was married on de plantation. De preacher say de words and we's married. H Den de war come and de Yankess come down thick as leaves, burns de "big house and de slave houses and ev!ryting. Dey Dey turns us loose. We ain*t got no home nor nuthin1 to eat, fcause <3ey tells us we's free. M Wefs gotta leave de plantation. gone, de stock1 s gone. De Marster!s gone, de crops is We goes to anudder place and works on shares, first time we sees de Ku Klux is right after de war. De Dey whips de slaves what leaves de plantations, dey don1 wan* deia to be free. M Bout 1870 I goes to Ohio end enlists in de army at Jefferson Bar- racks and right off day sends us to Texas to fight Indians. I goes to San Antonio and dey puts me on guard at de Alamo to fight off de Indians. Den I goes to fort Davis. I'm in de cullud Indian Scouts, Co. K, and dey's a banker name of Miller in de Chihuahua jail. One night de kufanel takes us from Fort Davis, and we marches all night wid guns and 150 rounds of ammunition in belts, and rations for 30 days. We marches all night long twel we gits to Del Norte, Texas (Presidio) and we crosses de river and takes Mr. Miller out of jail. w While wefs at Fort Davis a wagon train comes through de canyon and de Apaches rolls big rocks down on de #&ite people and kills 26 of dem. Ex-slave stories ffin, ?/atkins Texas Page Three Dey scalps all dey kills and we go out and fit de Apaches. is killed in de fight. * "fJL^ AxtO De lieutenant Y&ssuh, we fit Apaches all de time and when we goes to Fort Concho dey gives us a fit all 'long de road. de Cheyennes and dey is wust of all. Den we fitten Dey!s great "big Indians fbout seven feet tall and at de "battle of de Wichita in de Indian Territory a Cheyenne shoots an arrer through my wrist. (He exhibited the scar. Same "battle de- scribed in interview with Win. Branch.) H Den after my wound heals we*s sent to Port Clark and de sergeant, Jeff Walker, got it in for me. Kuhnel Andrews is at Port Davis and Jeff Walker trunrps up some charges dat Ifse mistrusted, so dey gives me a dishonnuble discharge * cause of dat Jeff Walker* I ainft had no court martial nor no trial and I cain't git no pension fcount of de dishormuble discharge. "And nowIfse strong and well hut I cainft git no wuk *cause I'se so ole. An.\ f cause Jeff Walker didn*t like me, I gits a dishormuble discharge. ********* 42U2H7 iSfc-SLAVE STORIES (T xas) 144 Page One DlAHiH tfATSON, 102, was born a slave of Tom Williams, at New Orleans, In 1870, Dinnah went to Jefferson, Texas. She now lives with a married daughter in the Macedonia Community, five miles northwest of Marshall, Tex, M My name ran Dianah Watson and Iused to k+tp my age, but I done got sick and can't 'member it now. I can't say 'zactly how old I is but I's a past-growed woman when the war broke out, and my old missy's daughter done told me once out the book I!s borned in 1335. "I's borned and br*d !bout a half mile from New Orleans, My mammy was sarah Hall and she's borned in Galveston, and my papa was Bill Williams. My old missy done take ne from my mammy when I's a small baby and raised me to a full-growed woman, I slep' in the saxue room with my young missy and had a good time in slaveryt didn't suffer for nothin' and never was cut rnd slashed lik* some. Me and liiss Laura come right up together and Ifs her own nigger slave* "Uassa Williams treated his black folks with spect. They was in the field from 'fore day till dark, but they was took good care of and fed and plenty clothes* Old Master Tom done th bossin1 hisself and when he's dyin' he calls all his five boys to his bed and sayf f Bovs, when Ifs gone, I dont want no cut tin' and si as bin1 my nigg rs, They's got feelin1 same as us.' "But the oldes' boy, William, got the debbil in him and hires a overseer, and he rid in the fields with a quirt and rope and chair on his saddle; When he dona take * notion to whip a nigger, -1~ he'd Bx-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two * make some the nen tie that nigger to the chair and beat him somethin1 scand'lous. He got mad at my mother's sister, Aunt Susie Ann, and beat her till the blood run off hor on the ground* She fall at his feets like she passed out and he put up the whip and she trips him and gits the whip ?nd whips him till he couldn't stand up. him off a cliff and broke his neck. Then some the niggers throwed His folks gits the sheriff but master's boys orders him off the place with a gun* The~e warn't no nore overseers on the place after that . "If niggers of these days don^ s*e what I seed in slavery time they'd pray and thank they Gawd every day# My master's place sot right 'cross the big road from a place thev cut and slashed they niggers. hear that white man's black folks bellerin* like cows. Youfd I's stood many a time on our front g-ilery and seed the \ cut and slash the blood off them niggers. I seed old women half-bent from beatin's goin* to th* field. They f overseer had a wooden paddle with nails in itt I used to say to missy, they cuttin1 and slashin1 them black folks that-a-way?* Vfhy Missy say, *Dianah. that there white roan got the debbil in bin,1 "I seed them sell my imma* I ask rcv old missy why .^nd she say, f To go to her husband.' "When the war brok# out Ifs a full- rowed woman. Hew Orleans was full of sojers and they wouldn't let us go to to\wu Me and yoxng Jir. Tom used to git on the roof and watch them. smoke thick and blade as clouds. at the niggers shout in1. The cannons was roarin1 like thunder and I got scart when they sot the niggers free, I didnH know what ftwas for. <$ /*;?. **<-> A Ex-*slave Stories (Texas) Page Three * Old Miss say to mef *They "been in slavery hut you don't know what slavery is, Dianah#f MTwo years after that ay old miss carries me tg Galveston to my mammy* She tell her to take good Gar* of ae a&d we lived there three years and moved to Jefferson* Our things come by boat bat we come in wagons. I married John Smith purty soon after that hut he died ffore long. married Noah Watson and now hefs dead. Tb*n I I done raise six chillen hut only one am livinT now and that's my younges1 gal and I lives with her here, N I tells the young race iff en they comi up like me they wouldn't act so smart. They needs somebody to take the smartness outten them. But my gal am good to me. I gits a pension and pays it to her to take care of me. I been here a hundred years and more and I won!t stay much longer, and I don't want to be no ?spense to nobody M ******* & * " A 420026 E3USLAVE STGBIES (Texas) Page One EMMA WATSON, torn in 1852 or 1853, in Ellis Co#, Texas, was one of the slaves of the Carl Forrester family, Emma worked in the fields most of her life, but is now too old to work, and is cared for by her daughter. They live at 318 Allen St., Dallas, Texas. "I axed my old missus when Ifs horned and she rec'lect Pm eight or nine year old when de freedom war starts. She say she donft make recall de 'xact time, but I takes May for a birthin' time. a time when some sich was writ in de Bible, but it got burnt up Ifs ageable, They's f fore I knows where I'm homed, though, and it am on Oapt. Forrester's farm in Ellis County. like she am my mammy. His mother, Miss Susan, raises me I calls her Sis Sue. She was old miss and Miss Lee was young miss. 7n M My paw, I don't know nothin1 'bout. My sister Anna and me, us have de same paw, but my mammy1 s sold out of Miss'sippi !way from ay paw 'fore my birthin1. My m^w kept de name of Lucindy Lane, but Martha and Jennie, my other sisters, had diff1rent paws. M f I .s gone through so much of hard times all my life, but when Ifs de li'l gal I didnft have much to do 'cept tend my Aunt Matilda's babies and wash they clothes. The rest the tine I jes' plays round. Miss Lee have a china doll with a wreath of roses round it head. takes turns playin' with it. We I had a rag doll, and it jes' a "bundle of rags with strings tied round it to give it a shape. Us make playhouses. Capt. Forrester goes away and I heared he gone to some war, but, law me, I didn't know 'bout war den. -1- Qt? Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two -iAfi 4*0 I's jus1 glad to play and eat anythin1 I can git. When I git a tin can of clabber and some "bread, that's what I wanted. nigger youngfuns to break up. bread with us fingers. They didn't buy no dishes for Us et bacon and beef and salt pork and corn- Muscle shells is what we dipped 'stead of spoons. I did love de souse, too. "When I had de chills, Sis Sue, dat Old Miss, come out to de quarters .*nd give me sweet milk boiled with pepper. I got shut of dem chills 'cause I didn't like dat pepper tea, but I lik it betterfn quinine or sage tea. I didn't like to be sick noways, f cause dey jus1 two bedsteads, one for ziy mammy and my steppaw, and one for us gals. "They allus promise ne they'll larn me to read and write, but never did git to dat. Aunt Matilda did most de spinnin' and weavin' and sewin'. I used to wear a shimmy and a dress in de week and a clean one for Sunday. In winter sometimes us have a lifl sacque and homemake calfskin shoes but mostly us have to stay inside iffen de weather ain't mod1rate. "De only frolics I 'member was candy pull in's on Christmas. us niggers kncwed Dat all r bout Christmas. "One day Miss Tilda git de boggy whip to whip my mammy. and dey had blowed de horn for de field niggers to come eat. whip and says, 'Miss Tilda, you ainft ,rwine do dat.' It's noontime, Maw grabs de Miss T Uda didn't say nothin' for a day or two, den she say, 'Lucindy, you git your young'uns and leave dis place. So us goes walkin1 down de road till us come to some folk's house and dey takes us in. Us dere 'bout a month wheh mammy git sick, Dem folks sends word to de Forresters dere niggers am sick and Sis Sue hitch up de hoss and come over. She brung food for us every day, and say, -S~ Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Ehree M / Q JL^y Now, Lucindyf when you git able you "bring your young1uns on home and 'have yourself.1 My mammy dies when Ifs 'bout ten year old. "After Capt. Forrester come "back home dey tell us to watch out for de Jfeds, Sis Sue say dey kill nigger young'uns. One day I*s comin1 through de fields and see three men in blue coats on big bay hosses. - I ran, bat d$y passes me by big as you please. asks for corn I seed plenty after day, 'cause dey come and and Sis Sue allus say us don't have fnough for de hosses. But cat night de coen allus leave de cribs. Dem Feds was she' thievin1 folks. f, I stays with de Forresters till Ifs 22 year old, and dey give me food and clothes, but never no money. old free nigger.f Sis Sue used to say, 'Come here, you li'l It make me so mad. But den I marries and have de swiss white dress and us walk 'cross de fields to de preachers. Bat every bit of fixin1 us have. 11 Den us raise crops on de half-shares and sot up housekeepin1 with a bedstead, some quilts and a li'l old stove. schoolin1 an schoolin1 and larnin1. +*** I has four young'uns and every one of dem had 420112 EJUSLAVB STOKISS (Texas) Page One ^ JAMES TOST, 85, was oorn a slave to Mr. William West, ne*r Bipley, in Tippah Co., Mississippi, Tnis was close to tne battle feugnt near Gorintk and James witnessed some exciting events* In lboD James came t Texas and now lives with a friend at li.14 Hardy St., SVit Wertft, fi'exas. "Yes, sou, I *ia moers de slavery days ana de War, 4 u 0ise I*s oorn in 18b4, on de T>lpjn,&tiQu of Massa William West, in Mississip1. It weren't a oi plantation, jus* 'bou* 100 acres, and Massa West owned ay mammy and four otner slaves, Buc , Ssmf Ruius arid Mary. I uonU kuow notJuxnA 'bout my pappy, 'cause I ain't never seed him* and my maiamy never told m* nothin' of him. M A11 us cullud folks lived in cabins and they has two rooms. De bunks is built to de wall and has straw ticks and we has floors and real windows. "Sam and Buck and Rufus m field workers and plants cotton and sich and looks after de stock. sometimes not. Sometimes de work is heavy and vfhen it am finish, de massa lets 'em go fishin' or visifcin1 or rest. \ve goes t church when we wants and we has parties with Ssua and Rufus to plsy de music, de fiddle and de banjo. How I wishes I could be back dere for jus' one year and have it like befo'. Jus' one year befo' I die! "We has a good massa in every way. eat. Him gives all we can Polks don't eat like we used to, 'cause we had home-cured hams, and when you put it in your mouth, it was a treat for your taster. As for de clothes, massa say, ' De 'tarial here and if yous don't -1- A > ,150 Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two 151 supply yourselves, its yous fault.1 ,fDere never anyone what gits whipping on massa's place, *cept dis nigger, but dey only spankinfs. devilment in me. Y0u see, dere was allus a bit of But de massa so good, we all tries to please him and we has no whipping. as 11 De massa gives me he goat and de shoemaker makes me de harness and cart for dat goat and when I gits him trained good, I has a job git tin1 de chips for kindlin1 and de wood and I totes de water. One day I takes Billy, de goat, * cross de road for wood and it downhill from de woodpile so I jus1 rides de load. Billy was gwine jus' as nice as yous kin like, but him says B A A H, nnd starts to run like a skeert bull. I thinks what kin be wrong with dat fool goat, when somethin1 hits me back of de neck like a coal of fire, and de cart hits a rock and off I goes. says I's skeert am not tellin1 de truf, and I starts holleria1. To It was de bee stung me m& when I gits to de house I looks Billy over and, sho1 nough, on his hip was de bee sting. Dat bee sting sho1 put de life in Billy. H bout de War time, de plantation was near wfaar dey fights a battle two days and I seed lots of soldiers. Before dat, de soldiers begins to come to massa's house and water de bosses and eat de lunch. Dey never did raid his place like other places round dere, but I hides when dey comes, f cause I skeert of dem. I quavers and gits skeert when I sees em. * We is jus1 sett in1 down to breakfast one aorain1 and we hears a big boomin1. When dat start, di* nigger donft eat his breakfast. -2- I Sx-slave Stories (Texas) Pa^e Three starts for seme place to hide. den I rans to another place, stays. I runs to one place, den I hears de boom, I finally crawls under de shed mi dere I Dey couldn't git me out and dere I stays for dat day and night and *til noon de nex1 day. I has no water or food. Lots of folks from Ripley what mass a knows was kilt in dat battle, "Buck and I goes to be battleground after de fight in1 quits and dere was heaps of dead bosses but day had dug de trench and buried de dead soldiers. W I don1 know about de ELux, but we use to sing a song 'bout de patter rollers, like dis, 'Run Hun Dat Dat nigger nigger nigger nigger runf run, run, losf patter roller kotch you, 'cause it almas1 day, dat nigger flewf his Sunday shoe.1 "I stays with de massa after freedom ftil I's 21 year old and den I leaves and works for diff'runt folks, I marries in Tennessee when I's 22 and we has one chile, but my wife takes him when he's five and leaves, and I never seen or heard of !em since. I comes to Texas fbout 52 year ago. M I has 'joyed talkin' f bout dem old days, 'cause talk am all I kin do since ay legs have de misery s bad. ************ j[jjjQ laooio 2S-SLATS STORIES (Texas) Page One AUSLINE WHITE, 80 odd Tears old, was bora at Opelousae, Louisiana, a slave of Dr. Bridget. She lives with her daughter, Lorena, in Beaumont, Texas* "I's horn at Opelousas and ny massa and niseis was Dr. Bridget and his wife* us. They was mean and they heat i* end put the hounds after They heat the little ones and the big ones and when massa ain't beat in* his wife is*. It am continual* My pappy call Thomas Narille and my mammy 'Melia Narille* They was born in Virginia. I had four brothers and two sisters, all dead now* "Like I says, old massa sho' whip us and when he whip he put us 'cross a barrel or chain us and status out with a rope* have much to eat and not much clothes* We didn't They weare v* clothes on the loom and make the dress like a sack slip orer the head* "(Xir cabin wasn't so bad, made of logs with dirt 'tween the logs. The chimney make out of sticks and dirt and some windows with a wooden shutter and no glass in lem* Massa give 'em lumber and paint to make things for the house and they hare homemake bed and table and benches to sit on* "Mas a a have the hoss power cotton gin and a hoss power sugar cane mill9 too* Us work hard all day in the gin and the sugar cane mill and doesn't hare no parties nor fun* Sometimes in the erenin1 us git together and talk or sing low. so the whit folks won't hear* "I faember going through the woods one tia*e and see in1 some thin' black come up 'fore me. It must a been a ghost* I got a boy call1 Henry -\ rxo Xuio Ex telave Stories (Texas) Page Two what live in Welch and he kin see ghost ies all the time* hack over he lef1 shoulder and see plenty of 'em* 154 He jus1 look He say they has a warm heat.ihat make him sweat* "Old massa didn't go &o the war and his boys was too little* We jus9 heered about the war and that it was go in1 to free us* In the night us would creep out way in the woods and have the prayer meeting pyayin1 for freedom to come quick* We has to be careful for if massa find out he whip all of us* sho1* We stays nearly all night and sleeps and prays and sleeps and prays* At las1 we hears freedom is on us and massa say we are all free to go* but if we stay he pay us some* Most of us goes, for that massa am sho1 mean and if we doesn't have to stay we wouldn't* not with that massa* "We scatters and I been marry twice. The first man was Eli Evans in Jennings * in Louisiana and us have six Chilian* he James White but I has no more chillen. called Lorena and she make me happy* The second man How I lives with my gal what She sho1 good to her old what ain't much good no more* ********** 480&UI SX-SLA.V3 STORIES (Texas) Page One 3YLVS3TER SOSTAN tflCKLIFEE, of Texas, was "born in St. Mary's Parish, Louisiana, in 1354. A free-horn Negrof iickliffe tells r>n interesting story about his life and that of his uncle, Homaine Vi&rine, who was a slave-holder, i'/ickliffe has a nicely furnished /hone in Beaumont, vnd two of his children have been to college . j/imesf "I1 s wh^t dey call a free-born nigger. Its a Ion/* story how dat coine about, but I can tell you. "Three Frenchmen come to Louisiana fron Trance. tions dey mix with Indians and Negroes. 'cumulate plenty property. cemselves. In three genera- Dey high-horn Frenchmen and Before dey die dey make 'greement frnongst When one die de property go to de other two; livin1 git all three plantations and all dat's on den de last one It so happen dat old man Vidrine's daddy live lon^es* , so he git it all. so good he divide up and my daddy gits forty acres good land. But he Uiy daddyfs great grandpas a was one dera first three Frenchman. n Uy daddy was Michael ancL mma was Lucy and dey a whole passel chillen, Frances, liary, Clotilde, Astasia rmd Tom, Samuel, Gilbert nnd Edward, ky daddy was part Indian and I had some half-brothers and sisters what wore blanket rand talk Indinn talk. Dey used to come see daddy and set round and talk half de ni^ht and I never understan1 a word dey savin1. "Mema didn't have no Indian blood in her, but she born in Louisiana and a right purty, brown-skin woman, probably some French or Spanish in her. -1 _ > 155 i]x~slave Stories (Texas) pPge Two Vrv* lOO M My unclef Eomaine Vidrine, de son of old man Vidrine, he have de ji^ges* property. Ha was a slaveholder,, Louisiana what owned slaves. Dey was a number niggers in Romaine, he have '"bout thirty-eight. was a big diffence make 'tween slave niggers and owner niggers. much dif'ence as 'tween white folks and cullud folks. Dey Dey so My uncle wouldn't low slave niggers to eat at de same table-.wit-h him or with any of us free-born niggers. "Folks come down from de north sometimes and mistook de slave for de owner or de owner for dc slave. he must of be*n a quadroon, all de time. My uncle was sach a purty, bright man, He had long burnsides and a long tail coat He was very dignified. he say work, he nean work. He was good to p31 he slaves, but when He ain't never flow none de slaves be familiar with' him. H D* old E0iaaine house was a oldfashioned house make out of cypress, Dat veriestin1. It come to a peak on top and dere was one big room what run de whole length* in de back and dat de sleepin1 room for all de li'l chillen. De growed-up folks have sleepin1 rooms, too. shack outside. Dey have a cook It a separate house. H Us live in a purty good house not very far from de big house. Dey have what &^y calls a private school. free-born niggers went to it, It was kep* by my uncle* Only de De older onee educated in French and de young ones in French and 'merican, too. After de war dey hire a white man najned Walliaza Devoe to be teacher. He educate de chillen to de third generation. He come to Texas with me and die 'bout five^rears ago. ~2- Ex~slaye Stories (Texas) psge Three 4 jg * # 4#M "When a couple want to git marry on de old Eomaine pi ace $ uncle sent for de priest from St. Martin, dey call New Iberia later. r Dout forty of us. Dey wasnft no priest round Franklin or what TShen I's most a growed boy. Ae priest come baptise He use de waterout uncle1 s cistern for de ceremony. When us goin1 down de road to de baptisin1 dey's a squirrel run 'cross de road and us chillen all broke and run to cotch it. Lawf dat jus1 my old godmother to death. and *fraid us git dirty* ! bout scare She took so much pain dat us all nice and clean Her name was JSfana Ramon Boutet and she live here in Ames settlement for many year. Us laugh many time *bout dat squirrel. w Dey used to call us de free Mulattoes from fcross de bayou. De nearest town was Pattersonville and it five mile away. Vidrinville for oUrd man Eomaine Vidrine. and a raw sugar mill. f finery in dem days. Now dey calls de settlement De plantation s\^>porf a grist mill Dey make de sugar dark, big grain, * cause dey ainft no Dey put de sugar in big five hunerd pound hogshead and take it by boat down de Teche to New Orleans and sell it. to buy coffee and cotton, I'B Dey use de money Us didn't raise cotton* I never see no cotton till a big boy and come to Fort Laffayette# M De grist mill was built 'way from de house. Dey have a long lever what stand out de side and hitch hosses with a rawhide belt to make de mill turn. Us folks ajl raise rice, Not like now, Lawdy, no. Dey jesf plant rice in rows like corn and cultivate it like any other crop, Dey wasnft no irrigation di ch. After, dft rice h^rves1 dey put it in a mortar make o&t a cy^reas log of l$ek and io^pk "..'it- ~3~ Ex-slave Stories Page Four (Tfeas) "Every fall as go hunt in1 deer round Chicimachi Lake* Grand Lake now, but de reg'lar Indian name am Chicimachi, of Indians by dat name. 4^ 4 Dey calls it Dere was a tribe Dey wasn't copper skin, but more yaller like. "When war commence it purty hard on folks* cross de bayou in blue suits* Us sel* soldiers comin* Dey raid de sugar mill and take de livestock and foodstuff on de Pumphrey place. Dat at Camp Beesland. on de Teche. Dey have a awful battle five mile away. Dat a awful battle! My brother go dere next day and see soldiers standin* up dead Against trees with dey bay1 nets still sot. ,f De Confed* rates come and took all de slaves to build de fort at Alex- andria. When dey come to de Fomaine place dey see niggers, and ain*t know which free and which slaves. Dey line my daddy up with deothers, but a white man from town say, *Dat a good, old man. good citizen. He part Indian and he free. He a He ainft slpose do work like dat,1 So dey didnTt take him. "De Yankees damage de Eomaine property *siderable. crop of sugar and corn and bosses. low money for dat. dey git it. Dey take a whole year Afterwards dey pass a law and de gov*ment It Was bout twenty year before dey git de'"moneyf but Bomaftne and he heirs git $30,000 for dem damages. "After war over, old man Eomaine tell he slaves dey free now* But he say* *You is most born right here and iff en you is bright you stay right here.* Dey all did stay. But dey ain*t never git to jine with de free-born. Dey still make a dif *ence* M After freedom I fcide to larn a trade. I 'prentice myself to de black- smith trade for clothes and board. I larn all I can in three year and quit and Ex-slave Stories (Page Five) Page Five " open a shop on Bayou Torti, 'tween St# Martin and Lafayette. I charge $2,00 for to shoe a hoss all de way round. and hack, Den I beat plows, build two-wheel buggy I make sweepstocks and Garrett and Cottman plow, Dat after de time of de wood mould boards. I make mine with metal* M I come to Texas in 1890, to Liberty, and been right round dere and Ames for forty-seven year, come. I start me a gin and blacksmith shop when I first I marry in Houston to Bpheme Pradia, Another free-born nigger, and I still marry to her after forty-seven year. Bat a good long hitch. We have seven chillen, all livin1. One gal went to de Catholic church school in Oalveston. One boy go to Pradeau University in New Orleans, Dey two blacksmith, one farmer, one good auto mechanic and de three gals keeps house, I member lots of songs us sirf; in French but I can't give fmerican H,, for dem, I know de song, LaLoup 5arou I try to translate one song far you: "Master of de house Give me meat without salt; When de stranger come, He give ae roast chicken,w **** A ru\ ***& 420084 EX-SLAVE STOBIES (Texas) Page 0n DJkPffiffi WILLIAMS was "born in Tallahassee, Florida, a slave to Mrs. Nancy Herring, Daphne does not know her exact agef hut must he close to or over 100, Sne claims to have witnessed the fall of the stars in 1833. She lives in Beaujiaont, Texas, A ,y 11 It wonH he long ffore Ps sleeping the long sleep. I expect I*s about the mos1 agreeahles person in the county, fcause Ifs so old* when. Ifs born in Tallahassee, in Florida, hut I dhon1 know The Herrings used to own me and I took their name. Missus1 name was Nancy Herring and the marster was still alive when Ifs born, hut he die when Ifs a hahy. I guess Ifs ahout 10 or 12 year old when us come to Texas. M Dat place where I!s horn was sno! a place 1 They have a three-story house with a porch at the front and another at the hack. They was posties whrt stand from one porch floor to the nexf and "brace it up. I used to live in the big house, the white chillen. ! cause Ifs nuss for I didn1 stay round with cullud folks a-tall. M The missus was a widow worcan ever since I 'member her. have two hoy and three gal, and that sho! was a lovely house. She They have they ownself painted in pictures on the wall* jus1 as hig as they is. They h?ve them in hig framce like gold. mirrors from the floor to tne ceilin1. walk in them. -1- And they have hig You could see you ownself 4 ft(\ XDU Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two "My motner was named Millie and my daddy named Daniel. know how many niggers missus have on the plantation. i6i I don1 I was never flowed to play with the ciillud chill en, bat I have two "brothers named Abram and Handy and I seed them sometimes. took 'era to church. I took care of the white chillen and If fen baby git to cryin1 I walked round with him, but you better he careful not to let the briar scratch him or he git a scar on nim and then they gwinter put a scar on you. "Tney give me pretty clothes to wear and make me k**p clean and expectable. down. T wore homespun and gingham dresses, jus1 cut straight They didn1 have no sewin1 f chine. They have a woman to cut out and sew and she do that all day long. "My white folks have mighty nice company. top. My missus up on the They have nice, fine, intelligen1 dishes and table cloth. "They give us holiday on Christmas and sometimes a whole week. They treat the white chillen snd, black chillen all good and give tern whippin1 iffen they needs it. When there's disturbance, missus hollert You all chillen, come in here to me,1 end whip us all, then she know she whip the right one. "I seed the stars fall. &od give me a good eyesight. The sun was shinin1 and it was plain daylight and tne stars fall jus* like hail, only they never fall all the way to the groun1. then they stop and go out. They fall so far and They stay up in the element all the time. Missus sent for the niggers to come up to the house and pray* time the stars was a-cominf through the element. All that All the darkies, little and big, was a-prsyin1 on their knees, fcause they thing the jedgment sho1 come then. -2- Enslave Stories (Texas) Page Three 162 "Before us move from Florida us git raosf us goods for clothes from North and South Carolina. the good of my recollection. The war commence in North Caroline to That was six month or a year after us leff Florida. They was a-tryin1 to smuggle it down then. When the missus fcided come to Texas sne sent the niggers on ahead and they done make two crops 'fore us git there. The place was five mile from Woodville.We come to Texas in a "boat what's big as a house. When the boat ;it there I was so fcited when I seed all the pretty trees. I never mever used to trees, fcause from where us come was jus1 prairie land far's you kin see. No tree round Tallahassee and no hill. f, ily motner was cook and when she like to die one time they starts breakin* me in to do the cookin1. Then when she die I was cook and been doing that two, three year when freedom come. "When they tol1 us freedom, come us thought they was foolin1. ky uncle say we s free arid to go and look out for number one. let us stay awhile, but they 'lowanced us. They If fen us spen1 the 'lowance us jus1 had to go rustle up something to eat or do without. My daddy was a widow man by then and he stay, fcause he say he want to see further into the subjec1. "One time I gwineter see my father and had my baby in my armst cause I done married. I was gwine through the wilderness and I heared something safc my mother. She run to de kitchen and jump behin1 de door and cover herself up in de big pile of dirty clothes. Dey never think to look for her there and she stay there all day* But de next day dey cot eh her and whip her, * Das whet runs a way, dey gits bloodhounds after 9em* Dey dumb de tree when day heered dem hounds com in* but de massa make dem git down and dey shoot den* if fen dey didn't. When dey gits down de dogs jumps all over dem and would tear dem to pieces, but de massa beats dem off* "Once de boss has company and one our niggers sleeps on de porch outside de company1 s room, and in de night he slip in dat room and thiefed de fine, lftlte shirt out de suitcase and wears it round de next morning 1- tag. Ex-.X . St.rl.s , (Texas) lt Coursa ha couldn't raad and ha ainft know da wg*t* aan have ha name on dat shirt. Whan da boss find It oat ha takes dat nigger down in da bottom and I crawls through da bresh and watches* Bey tia ha foots togeth r over da limb and lat ha haad hang down m& haat hla till da blood run down on da roots of dat tree. Whan day take bin down ha back look like raw meat and ha nearly dia. "Sometime when da niggar wonH Bind day pats da chain to ona foot and a ball on it 'bout big as a nigger's haad. and ha have to drag it down 4th hia who ever ha go, "My white folks aoved to Baetrcp in Louisiana and dan to Texas and brang me with then* When us work in de field us hare da cook what put us food on big trays and carry it to da fialdt dan wa stop and aat it under shade of a tree, if day any* Day give us bread and meat and syrup for dinner and us has bacon long as it last* "When I's free I rente land and crops 'round, after I gits marry. Befo1 datf I was here, dara and yonder, for my board and clothas and four bits da day. I give all ay Chilian da addication, leastwise day all kin read and write and dat1 a what I cain't do. "I 'longs to da Meth'dlst church and I don't uandeatan9 some dese othar churches very wall. Seams strange to me dat at dis lata time dqr's tryin1 find new ways of glttln' to Heaven." *e** ** ^0006 2JUSLAVE STORIES (Texas) Pa^e One LOU WILLIAMS, said to be the oldest citizen of San Angel , Texas, was horn in southern Maryland in 1829. She and her family were slaves of Abram and Kitty Williams, of that section, and Lou served as nursemaid to her master's children from the age of eight until after the Civil far. She then went to Louisiana where she worked as a cook for several years before coming to San Angela* She is very active for her 108* years and is a familiar figure about town, with her crutch. "Ifs have do bes white folks in Maryland. I s bora in a three-room frame house and I had one of them statements(birth certificates). When I five years old my old missy she say, f Dat gal, she sh 1 am gwine be dependable and I makes nursemaid out of her.1 I eight years old she trusts me with dem white chillen. When I loves to fish so well I*d take de li*l chillen to de creek and take off my underskirt and spread it out on de bank and put de chillen on it while I she* cotch de fish. Massa, he start leokin* for me and when he gits to de creek, he say, Dar,s de lill devil.1 He know dem chillen safe, so he jus1 laugh. H Ia de fall massa puts us nigger chillen on de bale of cotton and takes us to town and gives us money to buy candy and dolls with. We allus had good food and lots of fish and rabbits and possums, but when my missy see dem possums carryin1 de baby possums round she fall out with possum and she say, fNo more possum bein1 cooked f round here.f "When I jesf a lifl gal I seed de stars fall and when everything got dark like and dem bright stars begin to fall we all start ruanin* and hollerin1 to our missy and she say, f Chillen, donft git ~1~ A f * /" Sx-slave Stories (Texas) Page Twe 10? under ay coat, git em your knees and start prayin1, and when we begins to pray de Lawd he sends a shawer of rain and puts eut dem stars er de whole wotld weuld a been burned up, "When aassa take us to town he say he wast us to see how de mean slave owners raffles off de fathers and de husbanfs and de mothers and de wives and de chillen. He takes us fround to de big platform and a white man git up dere with de slave and start hollerin1 for bids, and de slave stands dere jes1 pitiful like, and when somebody buy de slave all de folks starts yellin1 and a cryin9. Dem sho* was bad times. Our massa wouldn*t do his niggers dat way and we loved him for it, too* f1 We had big gardens and lots of vegetables to eatf f2ause aassa had tbout eight hundred slaves and fbout a thousand acres in he plantation. In summer time we wore jes1 straight cotton slips and no shoes till Sunday, den we puts on shoes end white dresses and ties a ribbon fround our waists, and we didn't look like de same chillen. M Dere a big arbor for de whites to go to church and we goes, too* When we starts down de road to church, our aama, she start sayin1 things to make us be quiet. We pass de graveyard and she say, *3ee dat spirit runnin1 'long here with us?1 When we gits dere we hardly moves* We could jine, if we wants to. "My mama, she Black Creek Indian and none of dem white folks wants her. When aassa buys ay daddy aad us chillen we had done been sold fway from her and we cry and she cry, and den she follow us to our plantation and cry and beg our aassa let her stqr. He say, put her in de house and let her do some pat chin1 -3- f She ainft no good but and aendin'.1 Mama, \ !* slave Stories (Texas) Page Three she cry and say, 'Thank God, Thank: God! and li'l chillen. * I1 a git to he with my has ban1 She sake de good spinner and weaver and old missy, she say she couldnft do without her, f cause she spin cotton cloth for summer and woola cloth for winter. "Niggers didn't have much weddin's, but when massa find dem takin1 up he tells everybody to dress in white and de two what was takin' up together has to march up and down till de big supper comes off, Dey was man and wife den, but me, Ifs diff'rent. I's had a 'spectable weddin', cause missyt she say I's her nursemaid. De preacher, he reads, and I's all dressed in white clothes and sech a supper we n^rer had befo'# "All de slaves wasn't so lucky as we was, though. to de meanest owner in de country. We lives close Our massa wouldn't keep no overseer$ cause he say his niggers wasnft dogs, but dis other man he keeps overseers to best de niggers and he has de big leather bullwhip with lead in de end, and he beats some slaves to death. holler till dey couldn't holler no mo{ lick till dey die. We heared dem holler and Den dey jes' sorta grunt every We finds big streams of blood where he has whopped dem and *hm it rained de whole top of de ground jes' looks like a river of blood dere. Sometime he bury he niggers and sometime de law come out and make him bury dem. He put dem in chains and stockades and sometimes he would buck and gag dem. "We seed he niggers goin1 by our plantation with de oven on de heads Ground three o'clock in de mornin1 on de way to de fields. Dese ovens made of wood and tin over de tin cup dat fit de slaves' heads. %>m Bach nigger i68 Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Pag* your have he bread and some old hairy bone meat a-cookin1 with fire coals in dese ovens. Dey made not to burn de head and when dey gits to de fields dey sets dem down to finish cookin1 while dey works till breakfast time. De mamas what ejcpeciin* babies was whopped to make dem work faster and when babies was sick dey has to put dem in de basket on top dere heads and take dem to de cotton patch, and put dem under de cotton stalks and try to ftend to dem. lawd, Lawd, dem was awful timest and I sho1 is glad I has good white folks. "Some dat man's niggers allus runnin9 de nigger dogs on dem and cotch dem reos9 times. f way and dey sets Den dey treat ,oa so bad dey wouldn't never want to run away no more. "We allus gits Saturday even in1 off to wash our clothes and sometime we has dances Saturday night. I has two brothers9 Jim and William and William git kilt in de war. My two sisters named Belia and Laura. We has corn shuckl&'s and big suppers and on Christmas our massa buys us de present 9 most times shoesf f cause we didnvt have any shoes* w Whea de white folks dies or gits married everybody sho1 carries on big. When we sick dey gives us snakeroot tea and cansaile and sage tea and if wefs bad sick, dey gits de doctor. Missy, she nake hog hoof tea, jes1 bile de hoofs in good whiskey far de cold. Den she put camphor ball and asafoetida round our necks to keep off diseases. "When de war ends we sees a white man comin1 down de road on a hoss and de road full of niggers followin1 himf singin1 and shouti*1 **& prayln1. I stays with massa till he diefthen I marries and has one chile and one grandchile, and I lives with her. ******** i fia ^ JLU 420122 IX-SLAVE STORIES (Texas) Pafi one ' MILLIE WILLIAMS, 86, lives at 1612 E. Fourth St., Port Worth, Texas. She was born a slave to Joe Benford, in Tennessee, was sold to Bill Dunn, who brought her to Texas and traded her to Tommy Ellis for some land. She has lived in Fort Worth since the 1870's. 11 1 don't know when I was born, 'cause I was taken from my folks when I was a baby, but, massa told roe I was born in de spring of de year, in 1851. I know I been in dis world a long time, but I has have good white folks. I was born on Massa Benford's place in Tenn- essee arid my mama's na^e was Martha Birdon. Milton Y/ade, but I never seed him. She say my pappy1 s name And I didn't know my mama a long time, 'cause she's sold away from Massa Benford's place, and I was sold with her, den he took me back, and I never seed ray mama no m*f# "After I was sold back to Massa Benford, he puts me in de nigger yard. Dat whar de massa kep' slaves what he traded. It was jus' a bunch of shacks throwed together and dirty was no name for it, it was worse than a pig pen. De man what watch over us in dat nigger yard was de meanest man what ever lived. He'd take a club and beat de daylight out of us, 'c-oise de club wouldn't leave scars like de bullwhip, and didn't bring de price down when we is sold. "One day Massa Benford takes us to town and puts u$ on dat auction block and a man name Bill Dunn bought me. I was 'bout seven years old. Tallin' 'bout somethin' awful, you should have been dere. De slave owners was shoutin' and sellin' chillen to one man sad de mama and papfjrto 'nothsr. De slaves cries and takes on somethin1 awful. If a woman had lots of chillen she was sold for mo1, 'cause it a sign she a good breeder. -1- 1 70 - - Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two -j^" "Right after I was sold to Massa Dunn, dere was a big up~risin' in Tennessee and it was '"bout de Union, but I don't know what it was all about, but dey wanted Massa Dunn to take some kind of a oath, and he wouldn't do it and he had to leave Tennessee. He said dey would take de slaves 'way from him, so he brought me and Sallie Armstrong to Texas* Dere he trades us to Tommy Ellis for some land and dat Massa Ellis, he de best white man what ever lived. He was so good to us we was better off dan when we's free. "Massa Ellis1 plantation was one of de bigges', and he owned land as far as we could see. Dere was fbout 50 slaves and we lived in a row of log cabins long side de big house. In winter we sleeps inside but in summer we sleeps in de yard, and de same 'bout eat in1. Sometimes massa fed good and den 'gain he didn't, but dat 'cause of de War, has cornbread and milk and P11 de coffee you would drink. We On Sundays we fills de pot half full of meat and shell peas on top de meat. 11 1 ,iqember de time we steals one of massa's big chickens and its in de pot in de fireplace when we seed missy comin* . I grabs dat chicken and pot and puts it under de bed and puts de bedclothes top dat pot. Missy, she co.je in and say, ' I shof do smell somethin' good. ' I say, 'WhaX, Missy Ellis? ' She don't find nothin1 so she leaves. When she's gone I takes dat chicken and we eats it in a hurry. "De overseer woke 'em up 'bout four in de aornin1, but I works in de house. and Sunday. De field workers gits off Thursdays and Saturday eveninfs Da reason dey gits off Thursday is dat de massa has some kind of thought we shouldn't work dat day. -2- Maybe it was 'ligion, I Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Three don't know. M We has parties and sings Massa sleeps in de feather "bedf Nigger sleeps on de floor; When wefuns gits to Heaven, Dey1!! be no slaves no mo1.1 ,. M Den we has de song fbout dis: 'Rabbit in de briar patch, Squirrel in de tree, Wish I could go hunt in1 f But I ain't free. 'booster's in de henhouse, Hen's in de patch, Love to tjo shoot in1 , -But I ain't free.' "Yftien de nigger leaves de plantation without no pass, and de pado.er rollers kotched him, dey gives him 39 licks with de bullwhip. ,/hen we's in de fields and sees de padder roller ride by, we starts murmerin' out loud, 'Patter de pat-f patter de pat.1 took it up and purty soon everybody munaerin'. everybody know de padder roller 'round. One a.fter 'nother e allus do dat to let Den we sing songs 'bout 'em, too. M 'bout R ,*hen tfar start dere a. array c^np jus' below de plantation, and thousand soldiers, march,' all day long. le hears 'em shout, 'Halt* march, halt, Dey sung 'Lincoln's not satisfied, He wants to fight 'gain, AH he got to do, Is hustle \ip his men.f "I stays with Massa Sllis after we's freed. eighty pitrty sight when de slaves knows dey's free. ~3~ Dere sho' was a Dey hug one 'nother 172 Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Four and alraos1 tear dere clothes off. Some cryin1 for de husban*, and some cryin1 for de chillen. rt \iihen I was 'bout 20 I lef* raassa's home ^nd moves to Dallas, whar I marries my first man. His name was Bill Jackson. back to Dallas and I hear he die, so I marry Will How I been here since de Lawd know when. ******* He lef me and goes 'illiams and he dies. %7($ 420140 BDUSLAVE STORIES (Texas ) Page One 1?4 ROSE WILLIAMS la ever 90. She was owned by William Black, a trader whose plantation lay in Bell County. Texas* Hose and her parents were sold in 1860 to Hall Hawkins, of Bell County. Rose was forced to mate with a slave named RufUs when she was about sixteen, and had two children by him, one born after Rose was freed* She forced Rufus to leave her and never married* Tor the last tea years Rose has been blind* She lives at 1126 Haiq?ton St., Port Worth. Texas* If I fs one dayjeld. I*s way over 90, and "What I say am de facts. I*a born in Boll County, right hero in Texas, and am owned by Massa William Black. He owns mammy and pappy, too. Massa Black has a big plantation but he has more niggers dan he need for work on dak placef 'cause ho am a nigger trader. He trade and buy and sell all do tine. "Massa Black m awful cruel and he whip de cullud folks and works em hard and food dem poorly. Wefuns have for rations de cornmoal and milk and flasses and some beans and peas and meat once a week.' We9uns have to work in de field every day from daylight till dark and on Sunday wefuns do us washim*. Church? Shucks, we'uns don't know what dat mean. "I has de correct memorandum of when de war start. sold wo,uns right den. Massa Black Mammy and pappy powerful glad to git sold, and dey and I is put on de block with fbout tea other niggers. When wefuas gits to de tradia1 block* dero lets of white folks dere what come to look us ever. One man shows de imtres9 in pappy. Him named Hawkins. to peppy and pappy talk to him and say, 'Bern my woman and chiles. fcuy all of us and hare mercy on we'iina.1 -1- He talk Please Massa Haikins say, Bat gal as Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two a likely leokin1 nigger, she am portly and strong, "but three am more dan I wants, I guesses* "De sale start and * fore long pappy am put on de block. Mass a Hawkins wine de bid for pappy and when mammy am put en de block, he wins de bid for her# comes* Den dere am three or four other niggers sold befo1 my time Den mass a Black calls me to de block and de auction man say, 'What am I offer for dis portlyf strong young wench* Shefs never been '"bused and will make de good breeder*f "I wants to hear Massa Hawkins bid, hut him say nothia'. men m biddin1 fgainst each other and I she1 has de woriyment. Two ether Dere am tears com in1 down my cheeks 'cause Ifs beln1 sold to some man dat would make sep1 ration from my mammy. hear more? One man bids $500and de auction man ask, fDo I She am gwine at $500.00.* Den someone say, $525.00 and de auction man say, 'She am sold for $525.00 to Mass a Hawkins. Am I glad and 'cited! Why, Ps quiverin1 all over. M Massa Hawkins takes we'uns to his place and it am a nice planta- tion. Lots better am dat place dan Mass a Black's, what is growed and lots of chillen. De first thing massa do when we'uns gits home am give we'uns rations and a cabin. says dem rations a feast for us. white flour. Dere is 'tout 50 niggers You mus' believe dis nigger when I Dere plenty meat and tea and coffee and I's never tasted white flour and coffee and maaamy fix some bis- cuits and coffee. Well, de biscuits was yum, yum, yum tc me, but de coffee I doesn't like. M De quarters am purty good. Dere am twelve cabins all made from logs and a table and some benches and bunks for sleepin' and a fireplace A JL t*y?z ' Ex-slave Stories (Page Three) (Texas) for cookin1 and de heat. page Jfhree Dere am no floor, jus1 de ground, "MassaHaikins am good to he niggers and no* force fem work too hard. Dere am as much diff once 'tween him and old Massa Black in de wsgr of treatment as Hwixt de Lawd and de devil. Massa Hawkins flows he niggers have reason1 hie parties and go fishin' , hut wefuns am never teokea to church and has no hooks for larnin1. Dere am no edumcation for de niggers* "Dere am one thing Massa Hawkins does to me what I canft shunt from my mind. him I knows he donft do it for meanness, hut I allus holds it fgainst What he done am force me to live with dat nigger, Eufus, fgainst my wants* "After I "been at he place fbout a 7earf de massa come to me and say, Tou gwine live with Eufus in dat cabin over yonder. Go fix it for livin1.1 Ifs fhout sixteen year old and has no larnin1 f and Ifs jus1 igno'mus chile. I1 s thought dat him mean for me to tend de cabin for Rufus and some other niggers. Well, dat am start de pesvigation for me. H f I s took charge of de cabin after work am done and fixes sapper. Nowf I don't like dat Bufus, fcause he a "bully. he think everybody do what him say. He am big and cause he so, Wefuns has supper, den I goes her and dere talking till V* ready for sleep and den I gits in de bunk. After Ifs in, dat nigger come and crawl in do bunk with me fore I knows it. I says, What you means, you fool nigger?1 He say for me to hush de mouth. f Dis s ay bunk, too, he say. "You's teched in de head. Git out,1 I9s told him, and I puts de feet gainst him and give him a shove and out ho go on do floor fforo he know JL^G Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Poor what I9s do in9. Dat nigger jump up and he mad. He leek like de wild bear. Be starts for de hunk and I Jumps quick for de poker* It am fheut three foot leng and when he comes at me I lets him have it over de head. nigger stop in he tracks? Ifs say he did. He ldoks at me steady for a miaute and youfs could tell he thinkin1 hard. and say, head. 'Jus wait. Did dat Den he ge and set on de bench You thinks it am smart9 hut youfs am foolish in de Dey's gwine lam you something H, Hush yous big mouth and sty 'way from dis nigger, dat all I wants,' I say, and jus8 sets and hold dat poker in de hand. lookin1 like de bull* He jus1 sets* Dere wefuns sits and sets for 'bout an hour and den he go out and I bars de door* tt De nex1 day I goes to de missy and tells her what Rufus wants and missy say dat am de massa's wishes. and Rufus em de portly man. She say, 'Yous am de portly gal De mass a wants yeu-uns for to bring forth portly chillen. w f I s thinkin1 'bout what de missy say, but say to ayse'f, not gwine live with dat Rufus.1 l f I s Dat ni-frt when him come in de cabin, I grabs de poker and sits on de bench and says, 'Git 'way from me, nigger, f fore I busts yous brains out and stoop on dem.' He say nethin' and git out. M De nex1 day de massa call me and tell me, f1fomm, Ifs poy big aoioy for you and I's done dat for de causa I wants yous to raise me chillens. Jts pUt yo^a ^o live with Hufus for dat purpose. Now, if you doesn't *ant whippin1 at de stake, yous do what I wants. -4- 'l^'V ' X/ . St.ri paga nn 178 H I thinks fbout massa buyin* me Qffen de block and savin1 me from bein1 sepfrated from my folks and fb0ut bein1 whipped at de stake. it am* Dare So I fcides to do as de massawish and so I What am I*s to do? yields. "When wehins am given freedomf Massa Hawkins tells us we can stay and work for wages or share crop de land. folks aM me stays. Some stays and some goes. My We works de land on shares for three years f den moved to other land near by. I stays with my folks till they dies. "If my mem1 random am correct, it am 'bout thirty year since I come to ?ort Worth* Here I cooks for white folks till I goes blind fbout ten year ago. "I never marries, f cause one 'sperience an f nough for dis nig- ger. After what I does for de massa, Ifs never wants no truck with any man, De Lawd forgive dis cullud woman, but he have to fscuse me and look for some others for to 'plenish de earth. +m+++++m*+*+*+ 420025 For Ex-Slave Volume Page one 179 EX-5LC7E STORIES (Texas) :.TT. 3HV3 ^UTOBIOG-Ii^Mir STEVE V/IUJL&L was born a slave of the Bennett x'amily in 1855 Thay were residents of Goliad County, (Texas and owners of only a small bunch of slaves. Tie and the other slaves were driven away hurriedly after the soldiers had threatened the slave owners for not having turned the slaves loose as soon after emancipation as they should have. Steve worked around his old home for his victuals and clothes a. few years, then drifted about the country as a farm hand, finally landing in San Angelo, [Texas where he worked for awhile as cook at a barbecue stand. He now lives alone in the back yard of nis nieoe and is hardly able to get in and out of his small cabin on his crutches. Steve relates the story of his life as follows: "I wasn't very big when I was a slave. Eact is, we was Page two J^Q set free 'fore I was big enough to remember much about how dey does bat I's hear my mother tells 'bout dem Louisiana slave holders, dem what had dem drivers, rough on dem. low dey was aho* My mother 's name was Charlotte Williams and my father he was name Bill and dey belong to de Williams dere, you see, and was sold to Mr. Bennett and brought to; Goliad. Dats how come l s named Williams and my marster named Bennett, our little log huts was put up 'round in de back yard and our beds was home-made, ^ea' kind of pj&ni: scaffolds like, ton beds. our beddin' waan t too good, jes' fair cot- Ole marster s folks dey have big feather beds and a nloe log house. "I never seen any money when I was a boy to 'mount to anything and for a long time after dat war I never seen too muoh. We had pretty good to eat auoh as vegetables from de bosses garden and plenty of all kinds of meats, some of de colored folks likes 'possum de beat but I always likes coon. Jes* bile him, den bake him good and brown and aint no 'possum oan oome up wid dat. "We had good home-spun alothes and some times we have shoes. *I never aid see none of de slaves sold but I hear my mother tells 'bout how horrible dat was. I didn' learn muoh readin* and writin' 'cause no body never teach me none. *We goes to camp meetin' after de war but not muoh, . o,, den dat was de white folks meetin'. page three "On Christmas we usually have a shoat and cakes and lots of fiddlin' and dancin*. "Slaves didn have no weddin's. De boss he jes* puts dem in a cabin und gives dem a wife und dey all calls dat married. Fact is,ciey Jes' wasn' so much i^rryin' done mong de colored* "Yfhen we hear we was free we hear it from some of ae other slaves and we was held longer aen some in de north, but one day our boss comes from town and he say to his wii'e, he say, 'Dem soldiers say iffen we don't git dem niggers 'way from here dey goin' come out here and sweeps us oua of d e cradle "He sho' got busy den* lie comes out and he say, 'You all git, I mean git fromiiere'. So we jes* scatters 'round, here and yonder, not knoyin' zactly what to do. some of ua works on one iarm and some on another for u little co Tn or some clothes or food. Finally I worxs 'round 'til I comes to San Angelo, Texas ixnC I cooks barbecue ror a long time 'til I jes' finally breaks down, nothin' but <}es' hobble 'round y now I don' try to do little on my ole crutches". JLS1 MUSLATO STORIES (Texas) Page One > WAYION WILLIAMS does not know his age9 but he was a snail boy when the slaves were freed. He was born in Mississippi, but the first place he remembers is the Sanama plantation on the Trinity river, in Texas. He now lives on North Tails St.f in Mart, Texas. "I was one of four chillen of Calvin and Julia Williams, of de state of Mississippi, when they was first married, f fore they come to But de earlies1 lection I has, was livin1 on a plantation be- Texas. long in1 to a Mr, Sanama. bottoms. It was on de Trinity riverf right down in de My folks stayed on dere after freedom and I lived with dem till I was nearly growed. Dere mass a give dem supplies and let dem work a piece of land and they give him half de crop. "I 'member times us go bant in1 and kill most mythlng we want, wild turkeys and wild hawgs and deer. My father used te go out and kill deer and not git out of sight of de house. Livin1 was easier dan now, for we had all dem things without bavin1 to buy dem. I 'member de bear hunts. We had great big, brlndle dogs for de bears and dey surreun1 him and stand him at bay till de men come and kill him. n A man by name of Burton lived near us, and one day he sent one he boys to town on a little race hoss. Ob de way home dat boy crossin' de river bottom and a panther git after him, and he race he hoss and outrun dat panther. He jump off de hoss and run in de house and lock de door. De panther try te git in and de men in de field hear he cries and shoots him. In dose days de men took guns to de fields. "They cotched wolves and bears in traps but de panther was de most dangerous animal us have to fight. -1- Us never know when he goin1 to strike. J^^g Sx-slave Stories (Texas) pag0 ipw(> One our neighbors go to town after a turkey and on he way home a panther was sit tin1 in a tree by de road, and he make a lunge at de man and grab de turkey and tear de man's arm. Once ay grandpa ridln9 'long one night, cross in1 de river, and a panther git after him. He had a fast hoss and outran dat panther, and got to de house, and two our bear dogs kep1 it off till he shot it, I knows dese things am true, for they happen Jos' like I tell it. "Our house was close to de boat landin' on de river and my father halped unload supplies from de boats, when he not woricin* in de fields. Jedge Beavers own de storehouse what kep1 de supplies, and he ship he cotton tyr boat to de Gulf, mostly to Galveston. M De 'Federate sojers pass our house and go to Jedge for him to give dea something to eat and he allus did. dem feed for de hoases. Sometimes dey was men on bosses and he give Once a crowd young fellows comin' home from de war on bosses and dey got supplies, and de Jedge give dem a little toddy for to make dea feel good. Dey feels so good dey gits some ribbon from de store and tie it to de hosses heads and rides off, with dat ribbon jes' a-streamin1 from de bosses mane. M De Jedge enjoy all &&y. welcome to what he have. He felt like dey been fight in' for him and dey It was de common thing for de sojers to stop at the bouse and ask for food or to sleep. North 'fore freedom, Sometimes niggers come, what run away to de Dey done got tired of dat cold weather up dere and when freedom come, dey ready to come back home. "When de slaves sot tree, day have big times, and feel like dey not work at all. ftit when old massa give dem a place to farm and tell dem if fen dey don't work dey won't eat, dey stays with him and worics de crops on halves, mostly. De nigger do de work and massa feed him and give him team and tools, den massa git half de crop. m2 Bx-slare St.ries (Texa ) Page Three A H> -*-0* M De slaves what went up North and come back, tell how dey call 'Contrabands1 up dere, Dey didn't know what it mean, but dey come back anyway "Some white school teachers from up North come to teach de Chilian, but dey didn't talk like folks here and didn't understan1 our talk. Dey didn't know what us mean when us say Hitty' for sister, and 'budder1 for brother, and 'nanny' for mammy, Jes1 for fun us call ourselves big names to de teacher, some be named General Lee and some Stonewall Jackson, next day. We be one name one day and 'nother name Until she git to know us she couldn't tell de diff'rence, cause us all look alike to her. Us have good times tellin1 her 'bout black magic and de conjure. Us tell her night birds fall of magic and dere feathers roast in ashes work spells what kill evil conjure. If a rabbit run 'cross de path, turn your hat round and wear it hind part befo1 to keep bad luck away. neck make teethin9 easy, dat. A buxxard's claw tie r nd de baby's De teacher from de North don't know what to think of all But our old missy, who live here all de time, know all 'bout it. She lets us believe our magic and conjure, 'cause she partly believe it, too, H I lives on dat place till I's a big boy and den works for Mr, John Mergersen Dey coae from Mississippi right after freedom and was jes1 like and a Mr, Porter. homefolks. So I works for dem till I gits married and starts out for myself. "I 'member some songs my man my and old missy larnt me. One go like dis: M, De top bolls aln' open, De bottom bolls am rotten, I can't git my number here, I has to quit and go 'way. H 'ffhen de sun go down and de moon go up, If fen I caaft ** *y number, I canft 1* *y pay*1 "Ihen I was little, my father split de rails out of trees to make fences, -3- Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Fear and I hare an aunt what was de big womm, and she help. She have a song what go like dist and when she sing, she come down on a rail, 9biff9. "fTimes are gittin9 hard,' (biff) Money's gittin scarce,1 (biff) Times don9t git no better here,1 (biff) I bound to leave dis place.' "But when de big meet in1 go in1 on, dis one de songs dey likes to sing: fM As I went down in de valley to pray, I met de debbil en my way, What you reckon he say to me? You1 re too young to die, And too young to pray, I made him a lie, and kep9 on my way*9 "We raised corn and cotton and potatoes and lots of vegetables and fruit. We didn9t have no wheat, so we eouldnH have floor and it too high to buy. All dem what could buy it, was de landowner. "When de corn ctthered, us pile it in piles and have corn shuckin1 at night, cook our supper and all eat together and listen to de stories tell by When dey git de piles of com ready for shuckin9, dey lay a de old folks. rail in de middle and vide de piles, and de side what git through first git supper first. De song go like dis: H9 Elts a mighty dry year, when de crab grass fail, Oh, row, row, row, who laid dat rail? Hit am mighty dark night when de nigger turn pale, De big foot nigger what laid dat rail! Oh, row, row, row, who laid dat rail? Rinktum, ranktum, laid dat rail. Show me de nigger what laid dat rail, Oh, row, row, row, who laid dat rail? "'When de niggers fuss, de white folks fail, Oh, row, row, row, who laid dat rail? We1 re gittin9 dere now, don9t tell no tale, Show me de nigger what laid dat rail* I911 stick he head in a big tin pall. Oh, turn me loose, let me tech dat rail, Oh, row, row, row, who laid dat rail? -4- -3i^ ia ^ Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Five "First us have white preachers and dan, after freedom, de niggers starts to eit up in meetin1 and talk to sinners, and dey call dem fExhorters.f De white folks lamt de exhorters to read de Bible and some songs, and de niggers all lam de songs, too. De exhorter git up and read de scripture and it fbout King Neb'kadneezer, when he have a golden image with silver horns, and all de kings and rulers come and bow down 'fore dat imaget 'cepting three* Shadrack and Maysack and A-Bad-Hegro, Dem was Dey would not bow dcmi, so de old king throw dem in de furnace and dey not burn up, and dey say, (De Gawd us worship am able to deliver us from de fiery furnace.1 HDen de exhorter say: 'flow, you no osunt niggers, what you mean stealin* de white folks chickens and watermlllions? dan de white man back am turned. Dey ain't safe no longer D0 you think Gawd would save you? No, sif*.1 You be turned into de pillar of salt iffen you don't stop you unrightious ways, and den where you be? Tou wonft see no danein1 or hear no chickens hollering Come on into de pearly gates and live right* Leave your steal in' and cues in1 and dancin' to de debbil, and come to de mourners1 bench, Ht Let de sun of salvation shine square on you face, Tight de battles of de Lawdt fight soon and fight late, And you* 11 allus find de lateh to de golden gate. No use for to wait till tomorrow, De sun mustn't sot on you sorrow, Sin's sharp as a bamboo briar, Ask de Lawd for to fetch you up higher*f wDem songs was de gateway to enter, de pearly gateway* git on de mourners1 bench and git saved. ** * All de niggers Xt$G 420121 ^ SX^SLAVE STOEIBS (Texas) Page Oae WXlkXE WIIilIiMS, 78 f was bora a slave to Mr, William M&ddox, who owned about 90 slaves, iacluding Willie*8 pareats, fire toothers and a sister, The plantation was ia Vermillioa Parish, la. f aear Sparta. Ia 1867 Mr, Maddox took Willie, who was still werkiag for himf to Texas. Willie mow lives ia Fort forth. w Dis aigger am 78 years old, and Fs horn ia slavery, dowa ia old leuisiaaa, Marster William owned met aad he am de father of Marster Ed Maddox what aow roas de Maddox Milk and Ice Compaay here in Port Worth, I kaowed him whea him aad dis nigger am tiny chiles, I goes and visits with him of tea and we talks '"bout old times aad sidh. We laughs fbout some thiags and de tears come ia de eyes 'bout some thiags. Him allus give dis aigger de quarter or de half dollar for old times sake, "Marster William owns sich a "big plaatatioa dat it was miles aad miles frouad aad had fbout 90 grown aigger slaves. I 'members it well and sho1 am glad for to tell yous 'bout it aad how dey does. De marster have a two-story house foahis family aad de place look like a towa with all de buildiags. Dere was de aigger quarters with 30 cabias aad de aursery for de youag aiggers, de sheds aad de smokehouse for de meat, Dea dey have de gia aad de mill for to gria* de gristt de spiaaiag house aad de shoe shop, "Marster have a aigger what make de shoes out of hides taaaed dere off de cattle what am killed for meat* Him makes good shoes, they las*~ a loag timef but they sure is tough oa de feets. -1- 187 Ex-slmve Stories (Texas) ^ Pa e Tw0 ^ "Marster William raises de corn and rice and wheat and barley and vegetables and honey, and lots of cotton* Dey works animals, de miles and de oxen, but I seed de niggers hitched to de plow sometimes. But de marster allus took good care of his diggers and him feeds plenty good victuals. etables. Every Sunday dey measures out de rations, fcept de veg- But if what dey give am not fneughf we*uns calls for mere, De marster wants for wefuns to have plenty. "All us m given de pass for to go to de church or to de party and dere's a place near de quarters for de dance and sich. Soiae fool nig- gers sneaks off without de pass sometimes and gits catched by de patter rollers and gits couple passes from de whup. "One time de niggers puts one on dem patter rollers. Dere am de dance and some niggers has no pass and de patter rollers am a-comin1. De niggers 'aide to best *em and one gits de psn of hot ashes and when dem patter rollers comes to de door de ashes m thrown in de face, ^e niggers all rush out and knocks de rollers down, and de niggers am gone. Dats once de niggers fprise de rollers. "On dat plantation dere am sort of hospital fix for to care for de sick. Dey uses herbs and sich and sometimes calls de doctor. De small chillens is kep1 dere and de marster she1 am ftieular fbout dem. lots of times he look dem over and say, fDat one be worth a t,ousand dollers,1 or *Dat one be a whopper.* young mules. *2 You see, 'twas jus1 like raisin1 Sx-slave Stories (lfexas) Page Ehree "On dat plantation, dere am no weddin1 'lowed for to git married* Dey jus1 gits married, but some not * lowed to git married, f cause de marster anxious to raise good, big niggers, de kind what am able to do lots of work and sell for a Heap of money. Him have fbout ten wenches him not *low to git laarrled and dey am big, strong women and de doctor fxamine dem for de health. f Den de marster picks out de big nigger and de doctor xamine aim, too. Dat nigger do mo work but watch dena womens and he 3m de busban* for dem all. De marster she1 was a-r&isin1 some fine niggers dat way. M JLs for de whippin1, dey gives dat punishment, Dey straps de nigger over de barrel but de marster donft flow for to draw ie blood. "Durin1 de War, dere am de shortage of food and one time we is ! bliged eat all de chickens, and ftwarnt hard to do. We hunts de wild hawg and wild turkey and de deer and sich* "When freedom come, dey tell all us niggers wef$ free and we can stay or leave and work for wages if we stijr. Three yt^ax after freedom de marster sells de plantation and comes io Fort Worth and I and five other niggers still with him. I works for him ftil he dies, fbout 50 year ago. ****** giOOOOOO 4;Ry 4^0:347 S3USLAVE STORIES (Texas) Page One LULU WILSON, blind, bedridden Negro, does not know her age, but believes that she is ninetyseven. She was born near the Mammoth Cave, in Kentucky. Lulu owns a. little home at 1108 Good Street, Dallas, Texas, "Course I*s born in slavery, ageable as I am. .-Ita a bid time, slevery woman and the way I been through the hackles, I got plenty to say 'bout slavery. Lulu Yfilson says she knows they ain't no good in it and they better not bring it back* "My paw warn't no slave. He was a free man, mammy was a full blood Creek Indian. f cause hfe But my maw was born in slavery, down on Vash Hodges' paw's place, and he give her to lllfash when he married. That was theonly woman slave what he had and one man slave, a young buck. My maw say she took with my paw and I's born, but a long time passed and didn't no more young'uns come, so they say my paw am too old and wore out for breedin* and wants her to take with this here young buck. So the Hodges sot the nigger hounds on my paw and run him away from the place and maw allus say he went to the free state. So she took with my step-paw and they must of pleased the white folks what wanted niggers to breed like livestock, f cause she birthed nineteen chillen. "When I*s lifl I used to play in that big cave they calls Mammoth and Ps so used to that cave it didnft seem like nothin' to me. But I was real li'i then, for soon as they could they put me to spinnin11 cloth. I 'members plain, when I was li'l there was talk of war in them parts, and they put me to spinnin1 and I beared 'em say it was for sojers. They marched round in a li'l, small drove and practices shootin1. -1- 190 Sx-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two "Now, when I was li'l they was the hardes1 times. us to death. They'd nearly heat They taken me from my mammy, out the li'l house built onto they house and I had to sleep in a bed by Missus Hodges. I cried ^or my maw out I had to work and wash and iron and clean and milk cows when I was most too li'l to do it. M The Hodges had three chilluns and the olderes1 one they was mean to, 1 cause she so thickheaded. She couldn't lam nothin1 out a book hut was kinder and more friendly like than the rest of the lot. /ash Hodges was jes' mean, pore trash and he was a bad actor and a bad manager. money and he starved it out'n the niggers. He never could make any For years all I could git was one li'l slice of sowbelly and a puiy, lifl piece of bread and a ftater. I never had nough to stave the nongriness out'n my belly. "My maw was cookin' in tue house and she was a clink, that ara the bes1 of its kind. She could cuss and she warn't Afraid. Wash Hodges tried to whop her with a cowhide and she'd knock him down and bloody him up. Then he'd go down to some his neighbor kin and try to git them to come holp him whop her. say, >I don't want to go up there and let Chloe Ann beat me up." But they'd I heared Wash tell his wife they said that. "When m w was in a tantrum, my step-paw wouldn't partiali&e with her. But she was a 'ligious woman and 'lieved time was comin1 when niggers wouldnH be slaves. She told me to pray for it. She seed a old man what the nigger dogs chased and et the legs near off him. She said she was chased by them bloody hounds and she jus1 picked up a club and laid they skull open. She say they hired her out and sold her twict but allus brung her back to Wash Hodges. -2~ Ex-slave Stories I (Texas) Page Three "Now, Missus Hodges studied 'bout meanness morefn Wash done. She was mean to anybody she co Id lay her hands to, out special raean to me. She teat me and used to tie my hands and maice me lay flat on the floor and she put snuff in my eyes. I went Mind. I ain't lyin' 'fore Gawd when I say I knows that's why I did see white folks sometimes what spoke right friendly and kindly to me. "I gits to thinkin1 now how Vfash Hodges sold off maw's chillun. He'd sell 'era and have the folks come for 'em when my maw was in the fields. When she'd come bsck, she'd raise a ruckus. Then many the time I seed her plop right down to a settin' and cry '"bout it. But she 'lowed they warn11 nothin* could he done, 'cause it's the slavery law# She said, M 0, Lawd, letrae see the end of it 'fore I dief and I'll quit my cussin' and fightin' and rarin'.' Uy maw say she's part Indian and that 'countable for her ways. M 0ne day they truckled us all down in a covered wagon and started out with the fam'ly and my maw and step-paw and five of us chillun. past twelve year old. I know Ifs We came a long way and passed through a free State. Some places we druv for miles in the woods 'stead of the big road, and when we come to folks they hid us down in the bed of the wagon. ~/e passed through a li'i place and my maw say to look, and I s^ed a man gwine up some steps, totin' a bucket of water. She say,'Lulu, that man's your paw.' I ain't never think she's as consid'ble of my step-paw as of my paw, and she give me to think as much. My step-paw never did like me, but he was a fool for his own young1 uns, 'cause at the end of the wars when they sot the niggers free, he tramped over half the country, gatherin' up them young'uns they done sold 'way. -3- Ex-Slave Stories (Texas) Page Four . "Ue went to a place called V/adefield, in Texas, and settl-4 for some short passin1 of time. They was a Baptist church next our house and they let me go twict, I v/as fancified with the singin1 and preachin1. Then we goes on to Chatfield Point and vfash Hodges "built a log house and covered it with weather boarding and built my maw and paw quarters to live in. taters and hawgs. They turned in to* raisin8 corn and I had to work like a dog. I hoed and milkei ten cows a day. f, MicSUs told me I had ought to raarry. She said if Ifd marry she'd togger rae up in a white dress and give me a weddin* supper. She made the dress and V/ash Hodges married me out'n the Bible to a nigger 'longin* to a nephew of his'n. I was fbout thirteen or fourteen. Hodges got a doctor to rae. I know it warn't long after that when Missus The doctor told me lessfn I had a baby, old as I was and married, I'd start in on spasms. So it warn11 long till I had a baby. M In 'twixt that time, Wash Hodges starts layin* out in the woods and swamps all the time. I heared he was hidin1 out from the war and was sposed to go, 1 cause he done been a volunteer in the first war and they didnft have no luck in Kentucky. "One night when we was all asleep, some folks whooped and woke us up. Two sojers coue in and they left more outside. midnight and to git f em something to eat. They found Wash Hodges and said it was They et and some more come in and et. They tied Wash's hands and made rae hold a lamp in the door for them to see by. n hey had some more men in the wagon, with they hands tied. They druv away and in a minute I heared the reports of the guns three or four times. Hex* day I heared they was sojers and done shot some conscripts in the bottoms back of our Place, "Wash Hodges was gone away four years and Missus Hodges was meaner'n the devil all the time. Seems like she jus1 hated us worser than ever. She said -4- A ( ^ -*-tfo Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Five 111/" ^ hlobber-mouth niggers done cause a war. "Well, now, things jus' kind of drifts along for a spell and then Wash Hodges come back and he said, 'Well, now, we done whop the hell out them blue "bellies and thatfll larn 'era a lesson to leave us alone.1 tiThen my step-paw seed some Fed'ral sojers. by in droves of fifty and a hundred. I seed them, too. They drifted My step-paw 'lowed as" how the Feds done told him they ain't no more slavery, and he tried to pint it out to Wash Hodges. Wash says that's a new ruling, and it am that growed-up niggers is free, but chillun has to stay with jthey masters till they's of age. "My maw was in her cabin with a week old baby and one night twelve Klu Kluxses [done come to the place. They come in by ones and she whopped 'em one at a time. "I don't never recall just like, the passin' of time. I know I had my little [boy young'un and he growed up, but right after he was born I left the Hodges and felt hike it's a fine, good riddance. My boy died, but he left me a grandson. He growed up and went to nother wat, and they done somethin' to him and he ain't got but one lung. [He ain't peart no more. He's got four chil3.un and he makes fifty dollars a month. I'm |crazy 'bout that boy and he comes to see me, but he can't holp me none in a money way. So Vm right grateful to the presid^^t for gittin' my li'l pension. I done study it out in my mind for three years and tell him, Lulu says if he will see they ain't mo more slavery, and if they'll pay folks liveable wages, they'll be less stealin* and slummerin' and goin's on. folks. I worked so hard. For more'n fifty years I waited as a nurse on sick I been through the hackles if afflr mortal soul has, but it seems like the pres- ident thinks right kindly of iae, and I want him to know Lulu Wilson thinks right kindly of him. **** 420252 EX-SLAVE STORIES (Texas) Page One 195 WASH WILSON, 94, was horn a slave of Tom Wilson, in Louisiana, near the Ouchita Road. Wash and his family were purchased hy Bill Anderson, who brought them to Rohertson Co., Texas. Wash lives in Eddy, T exas. f, I was 'tout eighteen years old when de Civil War come. it de Freedom War. Us calls I was born in Louisiana, clost to de Ouachita Roadf and Marse Tom Wilson owned raarnray and us chillen. he come from Texas to buy us from Marse Tom. But Marse Bill Anderson Marse T?omf he 'lowed de gov*ment gwine let dem damn Yankees give de South a whuppin1 and dere wasnft gwine be no slaves nowhere. But Marse Bill say wefs a likely bunch of chillen and mammy am a grand cook, so guess he take de resk. "Marse Tom starts to Texas where he had a passel of land* Us was sold on de block to him, cause Marse Tom say he gwine git all he done put in us out us,- if fen he can ffore de Yanks take dis country, "Mammy was najaed Julia Wilson Sis Sally was oldest of us chillen, den brudder Harry and me. Marse Bill he had 27,000 acres of land in Robertson County what he git for fight in1 Indians and sech. He lived in seven mile of Calvert, Texas, and dat where he brunged us and de supplies and sech. Us traveled in ox carts and hoss back, and de mos1 us niggers walked. "Us was sot free on ;e road to Texas. come talk with Karse Bill. I is.' Us camp one night and some folks De next mornin' he told us, 'Boys, you s free as Us was only bout sixteen mile from where us gwine and Marse Bill say, 'All what want to stay with me can.' -1- Us didn't know nobody and didn't Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two have no thin1 and us liked Marse Billt so all us stayed with him. "/hen we got to his place us did round and 'bout, clearin1 new ground and buildin1 cabins and houses. Dere was three log houses but us had to build more. 11 My pappy name was Bill Wilson. All tqy folks am dead now, but on de plantation in Louisiana we had a good time. weave. Mammy could cook and spin and Dey raised cotton p.nd sugar cane and corn. 11 Dere wasn't many Indians when us comet in our part de country. All I sver saw jes1 steal and beg. Dere was plenty wild turkeys and wild hawgs and d*<*r -;nd prairie chickens. !, Qn liarse Bill!s place every quarters had its barn and mule, but Marse ? nd he wife, Miss Deborah, lived in de quality quarters* Round dem was de blacksmith shop and smokehouse and spinnin1 house and Marse Bill have a lifl house jui! for he office. De cookhouse was a two-room house side de big house v/ith . covered passage to de dinin1 room. De milk house was de back part de cook house. 11 In de smokehouse was hams and sides of hawg meat and barrels of syrup end sugar and lardf and bushels of onions, end de Hater room was allus full. Dey dug a big place and put poles and pieces of cane and lumber cross, like a top, pn/iput dirt and leaves and banked de dirt round de Hater room. Deyfd 1 ave a place to crpwl in, but dey kep1 it, tight and dem Haters dey kep* most all winter. "Dey was hayricks and chicken roosties and big lye hoppers where us put all de fireplace ashes. Come de rain znd. de water run through dat hopper into de trough under it, and dat make lye water. De women put old meat; skins and "bones and fat in de big, iron pot in de yard and put in some lye water and bile ~2~ iSif] . a ^ Ex-slave Stories (Texas) soap. , A1J:7 Page 5w* Den dey cut it when it git cold and put it on de smokehouse shelves to dry. Dat sho1 fine soap. "Mammy worked in de kitchen mostly and spin "by candlelight. "bottle lamp. Dey used a Sat a rag or piece of big string, stuck in de snuff bottle full of tallow or grease. Later on in de years, dey used coaL oil in de bottles. Sometimes dey wrap a rag round and round and put it in a pan of grease, andlight dat for de lsmp. Dey used pine torches, too, "De black folks1 quarters was lo^ cabins, with stick and dirt chimneys. Dey had dere own garden round each cabin and some chickens, but dere wasn't no cows like in Louisiana. huntin1 . Dere was lots of possums in de bottoms and us go coon and possum I likes combread and greens, cook with de hawg jowls or strip bacon. D&t's what Ifs raised on. Us m^d lots of lye hominy dem days. feed everybody good on his place. Marse Bill, he gwine Den us had ash cake, make of corn meal. Us didn't buy mud' till long time after de War* tf Us had poles stuck in de corner and tied de third pole cross, to make de bed. Dey called 'Georgia Hosses.1 Us filled ticks with corn shucks or crab grass and moss. Dey wasn't no cotton beds for de niggers, 'cause dey wasn't no gins for de long time and de cotton pick from de seed by hanfl and dat slow work. De white folks ha,d cot- ton beds and feather beds and wool beds. M Earse Bill allus had de doctor for us if fen de old women couldn't git us well. All de seven families Marse Bill done buy in Louisiana stayed round him and he family till dey all dead, white and cullud. Ifs de onlies' one left. w Us piled 'bout a hundred or two or maybe three hundred bushels corn outside de shed. Us have cqrn shuckin' at night and have de big time. de corn, he give a big supper and have all de whiskey us want. .3 De fellow what owned Nobody got drunk, Ex-sl&ve Stories ( Texas) Page Four i QW *> X * cause most everybody carry day liquor purty well. After shuckin' us have ring plays. . For music dey scratch on da skill at lids or beat bones or pick de banjo. Dere be thirty to fifty folks, all cullud, and sometimes dey stay all nightf and build de big fire and dance outdoors or in da barn. M D re wasn't no music instruments. Us take pieces a sheep's rib or cow's jaw or a piece iron, with a old kettle, or a hollow gourd and some horsehairs to make de drum. Sometimes dey'd git a piece of tree trunk and hollow it out and stretch a goat's or sheep's skin over it for de drum. high and a foot up to six foot 'cross. or sticks on dis drum. Dey'd be one to four foot In gen'ral two niggers play with da fingers Never seed so many in Texas, but dey made some. take de buffalo horn and scrape it out to make de flute, long ways off. teeth. Dey'd Dat sho' be beared a Den dey*d take a mule's jawbone and rattle de stick 'cross its Dey*d take a barrel and stretch a ox's hide 'cross one end and a man sot 'stride de barrel and beat on dat hide with he hands, and ha feet, and if fen ha git to feel in1 de music in he bones, he'd beat on dat barrel with he head. man beat one wooden side with sticks. 'Nother Us 'longed to de church, all right, but dancin' ain't sinful iffan da foots ain't crossed. Us danced at de arbor meetin's but ,s isho1 didn't have us foots crossed! "Whan de niggers go round singin' 'Steal Away to Jesus,' dat mean dare gwine be a 'ligious meetia* dat night. Dat de sig'fication of a meetia'. Da masters 'fore and after freedom didn't like dem 'ligious meetin'st so us natcherly slips off at night, down in de bottoms or somewheres. Sometimes us sing and pray ^11 night. M I voted till I's 'bout forty fiva year oldf dan I jes' kinder got out da habit. Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Five JUjU I got married in a suit of doeskin jeans, ainft none like dem nowadays. I married Gornelia Horde and she wore a purty blue gingham de white folks buyed and made for her. Us had six chillen, Calvin and Early and Mary and Fred end Prank. "Iffen you knows someone workin' a conjure trick fgainst vou, jes' take some powdered brick and scrub de steps real good. sfco1, Bat111 kill any conjure spell, De bes' watchdog you can get for de hoodoo is a frizzly chicken. If fen you got on- dem on de pl^ce, vou can rest in pence, 'cause it scratches up every trijk lay flown ' gainst its owner. If fen you see dat fri zly chicken scratchia' round de pl?*cef it a sho1 sign you been conjured. A frizzly chicken cone out he shell backwards, and day why he rie devil's own. 11 De old folks allus told me to make a cross inside y shoe every morn in1 'fore leavin1 de house, den ain't no conjurer gwine git he conjure 'gainst yon foots, If fen you wear you under clothes wrong side out, vou can't be conjured. 'nother way ?m to put saltpetre in de soles you shoes. If fen you wears a li'l piece de 'peace plant' in you pocket or you shoe, dat powerful strong 'gainst conjure. A piece of de Betsy bug's heart with some silver money am good. But iffen you can't git none dese, jes1 take a piece newspaper and cut it de size of you shoe sole and sprinkle nine grains red pepper on it. Dere ain't no hoodoo gwine ever harm you den, 'cause he'd have to stop and count every letter on dat newspaper and by dat time, you gwine be 'way from dere. "Iffen you want to find de conjure tricks what done been sot for you, jes' kill you a fat chicken and sprinkle some its blood in de conjure doctor's left palm. E n take vou forefinger and hit dat blood till it spatter, and it gwine spatter in -5- Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Six de direction where dat trick am hid. gQ() Den when you find de trick, sprinkle a li'l quicksilver over a piece of paper and put de paper on de fire, and dat trick gwine "be laid forever. "Old folks dona told me how to make a conjurer leave town. hick'ry fire and let it hum down to coals. Den you take up two live coals. dese gwine be you, and de other gwine be de luck. you eneray* try; One Take up one dead coal , and dat Den you jes1 keep 'wake till de rooster crow ^or midnight. eid of de day. Make up a Dat am de Now you chunk de live coal what am you to de south, de warm coun- den throw de other live coal to d east; den chunk de dead coal, you enemy, to de north, de cold country. Nothin1 of de conjurer canft git over fire, and 'fore de week out, dat conjurer be leavin1. "A old Indian who used to hang round Marse Billfs place say to git de best of a conjurer, git some clay from de mouth a crawfish hole, and some dirt from a red ant's hole. Mix dem and wet dem with whiskey or camphor. and boil dem and add de worm water to de clay and dirt. pusson with dis, he trouble done go 'way. ***** Grit some angleworms Iffen you rubs de conjured 420044 EX-SLAT STORIES (Texas) Page One 201 WILLIS MM claims to "be 116 years aid. He was bera ia Louisiana,a slave of Bob Winn, who Willis says taught him from his yeuth that his "birthday was March 10 f 1822. When he was freed Willis and hi father moved to Hope, Askansae, where they lived sixteen years. Willis then sieved t# Jexarkana and.fr^m there ts Marshall, where he has lived _. fourteen years. Willis lives al#ne in a ne-roem leg heuse in the rearef the Heward Vestal home sn the Powder Mill Road, north of Marshall, and is supported by an $11.00 per month Id age pension. A ^ fy H fhe enliest statement I can make '"bmit my age is my eld master, BabTfWinn, allus teld rae if anyone ask me h w old I is t^ say Ifs berned on March the tenth, in 1822. Ifs kn wed my birthday since Ifs a shirt- tail boy, but can!t figure in my head. "My psppy was Daniel Winn and he come from Alabama, and I 'aestber him allus sayin1 he'd like t g back there and get seme chestnuts, was najaed Patsy and they was nine ef us chillen. Ummy The five boys was me and Willie and Etesea and two (Jeerges, and the gals was Carolina and Dera and Anna and Ada* and all us lived te be grewed and have chillen. "Itassa Beb's heuse faced the quarters where he ceuld hear us holler when he blewed the big hem for us t& git up. All the houses was made ef legs aaad w slept on shack and grass mattresses what was allus fall 1 ef chinches. I still sleep en a grass mattress, 'cause I ca ft rest en cettan mA feath*r beds. **We et yell*w bread a&d greets and black-eyed peas ant f^tlic^* \ ^8#^l *lmttSv ITs and the whit* felks all cetked in fireplaces A " ,,; hig ir^i^ti huag m& ^ the yatd fer t* bile greens and heg jewl and si<^>i;;(:rit^ Ex-slave Stories (Texas) like. Page Two 20 We didn't know nothingn'bout bakin1 powder and made our soda from burnt c@bs. That's jes' as good soda as this Arm and Hammer you get in the store. We et flour bread Sundays, but you darsn't git catch with flour dough fcept on that day. Mammy stole lots of it, though. She rolled it up ; and put it round her head and covered it with her head-rag. Wild game was a ll wer the country, buffalo and bears and panthers and deer and possum and coon. The squirrels 'most run over you in the woods. We et at a long, wooden trough and it was allus clean and full of plenty ferub. falo and fish bones for spoons, and some et with they hands. We used bufThe grub I liked best was whatever I could git, *Us slaves didn't wear nothing but white lowell cloth. us pants for Sunday what had a black stripe down the leg. They give The chillen wore wo l clothes in winter, but the big folks wore the same outfit the year round. They didn't care if you froze. "I can show you right where I was when the stars fell. covered the ground like snow, but nary one ever hit the ground. , in 'bout twelve feet of the ground. them. Some say they They fell The chillen jumped up and tried to cotch I don't 'member how long they fell, but they was shot in' through the i air like sky-rockets for quite a spell. "Missy Callie had one gal and two boys and Mass a Bo> had three overseers. He didn't have nigger drivers, but had his pets. 'cause they was allus tattlin* whom we done anything. We called them pimps, His place was jes' as far as you could let your eyes see, 'bout l#8O0 or lf900 acres, and he eimed jlx-slave Stories (Texas) Page Three ' j3()3 . , n I still got the bugle he wake us with at four in the morn inf. When the bugle blewed you'd better go to hollerin', so the overseer could hear you. If he had to call you, it was too "bad. The fi^st thing in the morn in1 we'd go to the lot and feed, then to the woodpile till breakfast. They put our grub in the trough and give us so long to eat. Massa hollered if we was slow eatirf, 'Swallow that grub now and chaw it tonight. he in that field by daybreak.' Better i We worked from see to can't. 11 1 1 s seed many a nigger whipped on a 'buck and gag' bench. They "buckled 'em down hard and fast on a long bench, gagged they mouth with cotton and when massa got through lay in' on that cowhide, the blood was runnin' off m the ground. Next mornin' after he whip you, he'd come to the quarters when 70a git up and say, 'Boy, how is you feelin' ? No matter how sore you is, you'd better jump 2nd kick you heels and show how lively you is.' Massa hated me to he dying day, 'cause I told missy 'bout him whippin' a gal scandously in the field, 'cause she want to. go to the house to her sick baby. hut she'd twist our nose and ears nearly off. pinchers. Missy Callie didn't whip us, Them fingers felt like a pair of She stropped on her guns and rode a big bay horse to the field. "Massa had a gin and I Muled cotton to Port Oaddo, on Caddo Lake. I druv eight oales and hauled eight bales of cotton. two mules and tw* bales of cotton. Massa followed me with I usually had a good start of him. The pat- terrollers has eotehed me and unhitched my mules and druv 'em off, leavin' me ia the middle of the road. They'd start back home, but when they overtook &a sa they stofpad, fcause ha druv the load mules* lo^*^ He fotched 'em ba&k m& le gho* ciiosed them potterrollers aad ss&id heJ^l Sx-slave Stories (Texas) Page Four 204 "They was sellin' slaves all the time, puttin1 'em on the block and sellin' 'eia, 'cerdin' to how much work they cauld do in a-day and how strong they was. I's seed lots of 'em in chains like cows and mules. If a owner have raore'n he needed, he hit the road with 'em and sold 'em off .to 'joinin' farms. try it. None of 'em ever run off. They couldn't git away. I*s seed too many If the patterrollers didn't cotch you, some white folks would put you up and call your massa. They had a 'greement to be n the watch for runaway When the massa git you back home and git through with you, you'd sho1 nigger's. stay home. "In slavery time the niggers wasn't 'lowed to look at a book. I lamed to read and write after surrender in the jail at Hot Springs, in Arkansas. "They give us cake at Christmas and eggnog and 'silly-bug'. inpde from whites of eggs and 'silly-bug' from yallers. Eggnog is You have to churn the whiskey and yallers to make 'silly-bug.' "Corn shuckia^s was the things them days. I liked to see 'em come. They choked up guineas and ducks and chickens and sometimes roast a pig. Massa kept twenty, thirty bairels whiskey round over the place all the time, with tin cups hangin' on the barrels. ^ t-git drunk. You could drink when you want to, but sho1 better Massa have to watch he corners when, corn shuckim1 am over, or ua diggers grab him and walk him round in the air on their hands. Ml Bhen some of the white folks died every nigger en the place had to * to the grave and walk rwand a&d drap in some dirt on him. They bt&ri'ed the ^SCera aay*ay* Dig a m&$h a&& covwr '6 %^ & eaai show you right now down .la ioaisiana where I was raised, forty aeres with nethin* but niggers buried , c, '\ ' -.. '..,.'. - , . .-.;., , -., ' '.' . : ' -. . .". .- . ' : :.: - ,'. '.'.'., -' Sx-slave Stories (Texas) Page Five Qt\El fW on 'em. H I ^member lots 'bout the war but can't tell you all, 'cause every war have its secrets* Thiat war had four salutes, and you'd better give the right one when you meet the captain. to a sour apple tree,1 Ifs heared the niggers sing, J&onna hang Jeff Davis My pappy fought in the last battle, at Mansfield, and so did Massa Bob* "Vlhen the federates came in sight of Mansfield they was carryin' a red flag, snd kept it raised till surrender. When the Yanks come in sight they raised white flag and wanted the 'Federates to surrender, but they wouldn't answer. It wasn't long till the whole world round there smelt like powder. Guns nowadays jus1 goes pop-pop1, but them guns sounded like thunder. "After surrender, massa freed the laen and missy freed the women, but he didn't let us loose when he ou^ht. I heared 'bout. They wasn't no places Wided with niggers as . Niggers in Louisiana'say Queen Elizabeth sent a boatload of gold to America to give the free men, but we never seed any of it. Massa give us each a barrel meal, a barrel flour, a side of meat and ten gallons 'lasses 2nd tell us we can work for who we pleases. Daddy bought two cows and a horse and eight hawgs and a goat from massa on credit and we moved and made three crops. "The Yanks stayed round Louisiana a long time after surrender. They come to white folks houses what hadn't freed they slaves and busted they aefcl and flour barrels and burn they meat and say, 'If we have to face you 'gain, we'll sweep you from the cradle up. H I's been cotched/by them Ku Kluxers. f fun makin' me $ut cs^eff. They,didn't hurt me, but have,lots The^ pull* W clothes off oaqe a^ ma^ four hunerd yards and stand on my head in the middle the road. Ex-slave Stories (Texas) P^ge Six "They is plenty niggers in Louisiana that is still slaves. A spell "back I made a trip to where I was raised, to see my old missy *fere she died, and there was niggers in twelve or fourteen miles of that*place that they didnft kn w they is free. They is plenty niggers round here what is same as slaves, and has worked for white folks twenty and twenty-five years and ainft drawed a five cent piece, jus1 old clothes and semethin1 to eat. That^ the way we wgs in slavery. M Bout four years after surrender pappy say he heared folks say gold was covering the ground at Hope, Arkansas, so we pulled up and moved there. faund lots of money where theyfd been a big camp, "but no gold. We We lived there sixteen years, then I come t Texarkana and worked twelve years for & W. Oeerge Ffcwcett's sawmill. I never married till I was old, in Little Washington, JLrkansas, and lived with my wife thirty-six years 'fore she died. We raised eighteen chillen to "be growed and nary one of fem was ever arrested. W I was allus wild and played for dances, but ay wife was fligious and after I married I quieted down. up. When I jimed the church, I burned my fiddle I allus made a livia* from public road work since I left Texarkana, till I got no count for work. The only time I voted was in Hope, and I voted the 'publican ticket and all my folks got mad, M If it wasnH for the good white folks, I!d starved to death, Fore I e here to the Testals, I was livin1 in a shack oa the T. & P. tracks and I wouldn't pay mo rent. I was sick and the woman made me git out* * &ad me down by the tracks* eatia1 red clay. Master Vestal If4 lived for three days on six Ex-slave Staries (Texas) tsmataes. Page Sevea I et tw a day. Master Vestal went home and his wife ceeked a big pat af stew, with meet and petateesfand fetched it te me. Then they built a hause dawn behind their bo@k yard and Vn lived~a th fem ever since. 11 1 allus say the cullud race started eff wre&g when they was freed and is still wrang today. can't keep mmey. They had a shet te be well eff, but they Yeu give one a bank af meney a&d hefll be busted taraerrew. I tells yeuns niggers every day they aught te eeae dewsi, fhere they111 have s me sense, I serves the Lard at herae aM de&'t meddle with 'em. ****** m? moom 'fi?ip B3USLA71 STGBIES (fexas) Page One HJBB WOT, 87, was a slave of Jess Witt of Harrison County, -Texas. He enlisted in the Confederate Army at Alexandria, La., and was sent to Mansfield, but his regiment arrived after the victory of the North. He worked for his master for a year after the war, then moved to Marshall and worked for Edmund Key, Sr., pioneer banker and civic leader. Rube cooked for eighteen yearsat the old Capitol Hotel in Marshall, and took up preaching as a side line* He and his wife live at 70? I. Crockett St., in Marshall. They receive a $15,00 pension. 11 1 was born on the Jess Witt place, right here in Harrison County, *& on the tenth day of August, in 1850, and allus lived in and round Marshall. My father and mother, Daniel and Jane, was bred and bora in Texas, and belonged to the Witts. I had five brothers, named Charlie and Joe and George ' ' and Bill and Jim, and six sisters', named Mary and Susan and Betsy and Anna and Sffie and Lucinda. They all" lived to be growed but Vm the onliest chile still living "Master Witt had a big place, I don't recall how many acres. didn't have so many slaves* Slavery was a tight fight. He We lived in lifl cabins sand slept on rough plank beds and et bacon and peas and patched corn* We didn't hardly know what flour bread was. clothes to a time and sometimes shoes, Master give us one outfit of fe worked all day in the fields, v. come in and fed the stock said did the chores and et what lifl grub it took to do us and went to bed. 1 You'd better not go nowheres without a pass, cause them patterroilers was rolling round every bush* *My missus was named Kate and had two chlllea. good set f niggers and didn't have to whip much* he Witts had a Sometimes he give us a Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page fw light brushin1 for piddlin1 round at work. 200 I seed plenty niggers whipped on ole man Ruff Perry and Pratt Hughes places, though. They was death on fem. Lawyer Marshall used to whip his niggers goin1 and comin1 every day that come round. M I fmemhers white folks sayin1 war was start in1 'bout keep in1 slaves and then I seed fem mendin1 the harness and wagons to go and fight. I was the househoy for the Witts durin1 the war and fhout time it was over I enlisted at Alexandria as a soldier and they sent me to Mansfield, won the victory when our reg*ment got-there, the "best we could, The Yanks had done They turned us loose to git home I come hack to the Witts and master calls up >all the slaves and says we was free, "but if we stayed and worked for him we!d have plenty to eat and wear, and if we left, it'd he root, hawg or die. I stayed a year, Most of f,em left.hut Youfd ought to seed fem pullin* off them croaker-sack clothes when master says we*s free* "I come to Marshall with my mother and the whole state was under United States law. The.8th Begiment of Illinois was at Marshall for two years after the war, and no man, hlackf white or red-or what is you, darsn't git cotched after dark without a pass, lhen they'd stop you, if you couldnt give the U S sign, Grant's Friend,1 theyfd shoot the devil out of you, Y0u didnH pass less you knowed the sign* w The Confederates had a hig gun powder mill on Millfs Creek, two and fc half miles north of Marshall and it stayed operatin1 two or three yearsr But Gen, Atichon and Gapt. Bishop ^d it* Hives and a hunch of Yank* tried ,* capture it and the C#^federates hfwed it up. " SIT ^^^|^;;&/-'r,fir''''i-.",.'':V'' '"".''''. ' ;-"''' ^ t t Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page f hree "When I was 'bout sixteen my mother hires me out to a Mr. Acorns, who was refugeed from Georgia to Marshall, Ole man Acorns was a mile of hell anywhere you met him and he nearly heat me to death andr-I run away. His son and him and 'nother man starts after me and I has to light a shuck. We sho* had some race down that hill over where the new water tower is in Sunny South, hat thay didn't cotch me. The white folks round here didn't flieve us niggers . was free then. M ?hen I goes to work for Mr. Edmond Key, Sr.f and stays with him till I'm growed. I used to help chase rahbits where the court house is now. I re- calls the Buzzard Boost Hotel and some stores was on that square then. M I cooks for the old Capitol Hotel eighteen years, then I quit and tries railroading hut it apron. didn't take long to decide to go hack to the cook I allus made a livin1 from cookin1 and preachin1 forty-five years. f scad. I*ve preached The only times I voted was for high sheriff once and for President Garfield -and President Grant* H I marries in 1915 and my wife is still with me, 1% too stove up with rhxsaatis1 now to work and her and me gits $15.00 a month from the government. ********** ^^^MM&^Ai^^S^r-^^/^ ilfiifeiiSiiSi^^^^i Ei.SLi.VE STOHES (Texas) an Page One / RUBEN WOODS, bale and strong despite his 84 years, was "born a slave of the John Woods family in Taladlga County, Alabama* He served as'TiouseBoy in their home until he was 21, then came to Tyler, Texas, with one of his master's children. He now lives in SI Paso, Texas, ^ ^ M I*se de oldest of seven chillen. She w&s a cook for de marsterfs Hfoods, mother Laura Woods, family on de plantation. hewed in de woods. My father was John We lived in a log house, logs was De marste^s house was plastered inside. He had 1,000 a^res plantation and 96 slaves. care of 'em* He took good Onct a week dey would come and dey allowanced f em out pervisions. no, dey didn1 gib tem Not fine stuff; nothin1 like dat ham and such. Dey would gib you enough flour for "biscuit for Sunday mornin1 and dey gib potatoes. I tell you how dey done dat; ev'ry family, he had a hasket and when dey blow de hofn in de evenin1 ev*ry chile dat was big enough come and he know his haaket and take it home* w De quarters was all in rows* You had to have a pass from de mass a to go from one place to anudder or the pateroller would ketch ycru and tfaop you. 11 Overseers whopped lem, too. You worked frua time you could see Hill dark. You couldn1 git oufeta dat, no suh, time you coul1 see de stuff in de fiel*, you was but working '' - . .- - ..\v . .: . : ,:> ';: ? .. '. , ' . ' .' ' ;:" /.-' \.,. "..:*. : "> Sx-slave Stories (Texas) page Two He wouldn1 raise cotton 01e man Woods was a powerful good num* for sale, only jus* enough for de women to make clothes. and cattle. island, I 'member Ben Averit; QA p &*><* He raised hogs he had a big plantation over on de Wefd hear de boats Took "boatloads of slaves and work *em hard. go over, clop^clop. M Wefd take two yoke of oxen with co*n and wheat to de aillf stay all d-y, den bring it back to give ev!rybody. and allus drive oxen. I go to mill lots of times In hot weather, dey run of to de creek. What you talkin1 erbout, when it gits hot and dey smell dat water, dey travel J "I 'member stagecoach., Had erbout six or eight hosses to fem. Driver1 d blow bugle for stops jus1 like trains. Dey didn1 have much trains dem days* "When de war comes, we had soldiers. / marehin1. I sefed dem hep-hep-hep! I se!ed em drillin1 and Yes, ma1 am, when de Yanks come we was j a runnin1 s nd a squattin1 like partridges a hidin1. f Dem guns was a firin1 and shootin1 dem cannon, spoilin* fiel s and killin1 hawgs. Drums a beatin1. It was excitable, yes, ma'am. Wasn't no ftin. We had to run and hide. He all run up to whut dey call a cave and down in dat cave we had eats. All come what could git in dere. fem niggers. De soldiers tsy to roun1 fem up, but not All run from one place to anudder. 11 1 learned to read and write after freedom, no book larnin1. Dey not allow you Obey your marster and missus, dat's all. H I !member jist as well as dat Ifse sittin1 here, when freedom some. Marster had fea all come near de gate and he say, 'You all is free as I am now. He hollered and cried. It tickled me to see him cry. 3~ And Sen Ex-Slave Stories (lexas) Page. Shree t he say, !But now iffen you want to, all kin stay and finish up de crop* 1*11 feed you.1' Some, day go to de neighbors. Dey hadn1 been taught to do for deiaselves. more. Dey didn1 know whut to do. But dey couldi*1 whop *em no I stayed Hill I was 21. H No* raa1^, I .never coul1 singf "but I Member jane song. It went dis way: 1 1821 1822 1823 182& 1825 1826 1827 1828 1829 *+ - Jesus work is jus1 began; Jasus brcu^it de sinner ihrou^a; Jesussot cte prisoner ftfee; Jesus preached 'mong de poor; Jesus brou^fc de dead to life; Jasus had all things fixedj Jesus rose and went to Heben; Jesus made de plain way straight; Jesus turned de blood to wine.1 "We played hide-ar-hoop. And hide-a-switch We do dis; you'se huntin1 switch and git tin1 hot, gittin1 col1, dey take after you, dey have a base to go to. M Den if dey ketch dea dey whop fenu We played fAnthony Over,* over de house. wi^,Lci-.'! 3l!iii.-- 420300 E3USLAVS STOBIES (Texas) Page One 216 James (K Woorling, of Fort Worth, Texas, tells the story of Uncle Dave, tne of the slaves that belonged to Mr. Woorlingfs father, who owned a large plantation near Point, in Rains County, Texas. The story relates how Uhcle Dave provided for his family after they were freed, and is valuable as an example of how many ex-slaves managed to secure a foothold in a world fbr which alatery had aot prepared them* M During pre-war days my father owned a plantation near Point, in Eains County, as well as a large number of slaves, including one Uncle Dave. After the Negroes were emancipated, my father placed a large number of them on tracts of land within the plantation and famished them with a mule team, a few sheep, some chickens, and the implements needed to cultivate the land. The Negroes were privileged to occupy the land for seven years and to keep whatever they made iuring that time. After the expiration of the seven years they were to pay in money or percentage of crops for the use of the land. This plan was followed "by a numher of plantation owners. "Uncle Dave was an exceptional Negro, He was a natural mechanic, hut could do carpenter work, blacksmithing, shoemaking and many other things equally well. He was a good manager, frugal and industrious, and it is doubt- ful if he paid out $50,00 in a year1* time for food, clothing and other necessities during the seven years that he lived on the seventy-five acres on our plant at i on m w He never "bought a horsecollar, but made than himself, shaping them to prevent galling and packing them with corn husks. He made the hameo from oak timber and made the ftfctal accessaries. 1- Enslave Stories (ftetf) page Two 0\^J ^X' "The shoes for Dave1* family he made from hides of animals slaughtered for the meat supply. About the only farm implements he bought were those that required high, grade steel. H Aunt Julia, his wife, did her part* ing, and knew how to cure meat. She was adept at cooking and preserv- Salt and spices were purchased, but they raised barley and roasted it, to use in the place of tea or coffee. and ribbon cme and made their own sugar and molasses. They raised sugar Aunt Julia told father that eggs were traded for any articles of food that could not be obtained from the farm, "Following the Civil War the production of cloth by power driven machines enabled manufacturers to sell cloth at a price that did not warrant continuance of the hand method, But that did not interest Dave and Julia* They had a spin- ning wheel and a loom sa^de by Uncle Dave himself, and they made all the cloth needed by the family, dying it with the bark of blackoak, cherry or other trees. "When the seven year period ended, my father thought that Uncle Dave waild stay on the land. He had cleared it, built a house and barn and other structures, which all belonged to my father under the agreement. interested in renting the land. But Uncle Dave was not He had saved enough money to buy a thousand acres between the towns of Point and Emory, He built a house and barn and moved his family. tt Uncle Dave came home one day from a trip to town with a load of cotton. He had a tea gallon keg, which he painted black. He cut a slit in the side of the keg and made a plug for the hol^.and told Julia the keg was to hold his surplus cash, -2- Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Three "Uncle Dave hid the keg and during the next twenty years refused to tell his wife, children or anyone else where it was. It is obvious that all the money he received for his crops, except a small sum, was surplus, Julia often asked Uncle Dave to tell her where the keg was, and told my father that Uncle Dave had not been well and she feared the possibility of his dying without disclosing the secret. morning. Hot long after, Uncle Dave was found dead one Money was needed for fUneral expenses, but the keg could not be found and Julia had to borrow the required amount, H The family searched first in the more likely locations, then made a minute search of the whole place, but the keg was never found. farm a fortune is cached. On Uncle Dave*s The keg must have long ago disintegrated, but the gold and silver money, the savings of twenty years,remain in their hiding plaee. ***** SIS 120185 - EI^SLATE STORMS (leas) Page One OiO ^XV CAROLINE WRIGHT, about 90 years aid* was horn near Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Dr. Warren Worths* owned her parents and their 14 children* Caroline was 12 when they were freed* Her father *~\ io I tw / vv "r- - <-c Robert Vaughn* (movsd)to Texae,J " *p< - . p^-** where he presperiBTand bought more than 300 acres of Tehnacana bottom land in McLennan County. Caroline and her husband now live at 59 Grant St., Waco* in a little house they bought after their fa ily was grown* # "I was bofned in Louisiana on Jones Creek, ty Baton Rouge* "bout 90 years ago* I diaremember the year. My pappy wae Bob Vaughn and my maonmy was Rose Inn* Dey was bo'nad by Baton Rouge* I had six sisters9 Betsy Ann* Lydla* ffancy, Paga and Louiean; and three brotherst Horace* Robert and Tom* We was all owned by Dr Warren Worthos and his wife, Annie. Mr* Bob* de doctor8s brother, had us in charge, and he hired us out to Hays Whitef who owned a sugar plantation on ds Mississippi River by Baton Rouge. Us all stayed at his place two year, Dere was sugar cane, cefnf peas and tomatoes raised on de farm* We lived in a leg cabin made of pine logs and our beds was made outta pine timber with co'n shucks tacked on de bed, and our kirers wae feather beds* * In Clinton, in Louisiana* we was all put on de block and valued. I was six year old and I was valued at $1,500* But our family wasn1 sold to anyone* I was given to Mies Muriel, Dr* Worthy's daughter* Me and sqr sisters was made house slaves and ay mammy and pappy and brothers was made f ielf slaves. 1- M , r * * Enslave Stories (Texas) Page Two 0ur marster, Dr. Wortham, sho1 was a fine doctor* whip us. De young missus learned us our A B C9s school for de slaves. f 230 He never cause dere was no Dere wasn1 no church on de plantation* but us all went fcasionally to a big log cabin and camp shed. Sometime a white would preach and sometime a cullud preacher. W I only * member one slave who ran away. iie came back when he got ready. mean, just lazy. whipped. He was so worthless. He wasn9 punished, cause he wasn1 I never saw no jail for slaves and never saw any We allus had from Friday noon to Monday morn in' off. "On Christmas, the white folks allus give us presents and plenty to eat, and us allus had a big dance five or six time a year. Dr. Wortham lived in a great big log house made from cedar logs. "One day, I seen a lot of men and I asked de missus what day was doin1. She to!1 me dey come to fit in de war* De war got so bad dat Mr* Bob tol9 us we was all gwine to Texas. Us all started out on Christmas Day of de firs* year of lincolnfs war. We went in ox wagons and us nad mules to ride. w 0n de trip to Texas, one evenin1 a big stoxn come up and Mr. Bob, he asked a man to let us use a big, empty house. Dey put me by de door to sleep 9cause I was de lightes1 sleeper. Some time in de night, I woked up and dere stood de bigges1 hatfct He was ten feet high and had on a big beaver coat. P*Rpy 'Pappy, wake up, derefs a haint.1 and dey was no thin1 outta place* a haint jus9 can't be cote had* m2m I ever saw. I hollers to my Hex1 mornin1 we got up No, ma1 am, we didn9 cotch de haint, #x~slave Steries (Texas) Page Three * vX "Hex1 moraim1 we started agin on our journey * and soee tine in March we reach Texas, They took us all f cross de Brazos on a ferryboat, jus1 'bout where de 'spension bridge is now. H De doctor took us all on de farm on de other side of where Bosque is now. SP1 On de farm us raised all kinds vegetables and grain and sugar cane to make sorghum, but no cotton. We all lived in one and two room log cabins, made out of cedar posts. Us dldn1 make any money for ourselves, but us had plenty of hog meat, beef, butter, milk, cornbread and vegetables to eat, lots mo9 dan us have dese days. Us did all de cookin1 in de fireplaces. Us sho1 did have plenty of possu, and rabbit, and us cotched lots of fish eutt^ de Bosque River. M De women slaves, eleven of us, had our own gardens and us spun all our own clothes* In de summer us all wore cotton stripe and in de winter, linsey dresses. On Sunday us had lawn dresses and us sho1 did come out looking cnoicesoms, H Br. Worthaw had Si for an overseer. had forty or fifty slaves to work it. It was a big farm and Us got up fbeut four in de aomin1 and ate breakfas* *bout nine o'clock, All de slaves had to *ork from sun to sun, and when us was sick, de marster treated us. "When I was fbout 16, I married William Wright. slave near Eqpid Passt Kentucky. He was bo*n a *hen he was eight year old, he and his family1 s owner died, and he went to the daughter, Mrs. Richard Mason, on Black River, in Louisiana, as Mheir property.1 He was raised dere, but when he's freed he comes to Texas and works for y Ex-slave Steii.es (Texas) Page four &aney Mason, seven mile east of Waco, He's 105 year old now and you cainH ha'dly unnerstan* what hefs talkin1 'bout. ried on the 23d day of Decemberf in 1869. have a fine weddin1. and ate* We was mar- Will and me shof did De women cooked for three days and we danced My weddin1 dress was elegant. blue ribbons. 2SP ^ It was white lawn with Will and me had 12 chillen and raised 9, and us has 14 grandchildren, "Will and me has been married 'bout 75 year and is still marrieda Itfs disrespectful how de young folks treats marriage now- adays. "Ten year after our chillen's growed, we swaps what land we ftas for die little house, but we had to pay some money, too. Will was more'n 90 years old and I was eighty some years old, but we got this house and we Is happy. We can sit under that big cnina- terry tr*e in de fron1 yard and look at de big trees over dere on Waco Greek, and one of our sons lives with us. 420264 EX*SLAV2 S2J0BIES (fexas) . Page Ons VSILLIE WRGSfi, 81, was born a slave on Mike Surdette*s plantation near Austin, Her parent fs were field workers* In 1874 Sallis married John Wros and they raised elev n chil~ dren. Sallis owns a small farm on the outsorts of Austin. One of her daughters lives with her "Befo1 I*s marrisd, I s Sallis Burdette. Be white folks tsll me I reckon I!s dat old, I's born eighty-one ysars ago, I know Iun ******* x- r *te&**>- ^^ -- *^- *W?-^V- ^ |l#l^^%t%|r^ii -%:i r&- $..%m*.\. ...,:, '-,,, - "..' . /. :'- .'; -.. ' .' : . ; ./,..; -; Ex-slave Stories (Texas) 11 Page Two 224 Pappy a purty good Tnnnf ^siderin* he a slave mszu One day pappy and Uncl* Pnul pud Uncle Andy and Uncle Joe was takinT "bales of cotton on ox wagons down to de Rio Grande. Each m^n was drivin1 a ox wagon down to Brownsville, where day was to wait to m*et Massa Burdette. But pappy and da others left do wagons 'long de river "bank and rolled a "bale of cotton in de river and all four of dera gits on dat bale and rows with sticks * cross over into Mexico. Dis was durin* de war. and say he don git !long fins with Mexico,. Pappy come "back to us after freedom He larnt to talk jts* like dera. "Me and mammy stays on. at Massa Burdette*s place de whole time pappy m gone. It was on June 19 we was made fret and Massa Burdette say ifftn we stsys on his plact and gather de crops, he give each of us a free eggnog. We ainH nev r got no eggnog befo* so it sound purty good and we stays and gathers de crops. But dat eggnog mad me sick. "My cousin Mitchell com* and got us and. brung us to Chapel Rill. He done rent him a farm dert and looks out far us till pappy comes back. He brung some monty back from Mexico and takon us-all to Brenhsm, and buytd us somfc clothts. Den he moved u up to Austin and done any work he could git* I stayed home till 1874 and dtn married John Wroe, and he rented land and farmed and died in 1927. 11 We raises eleven chillen and dty all good and 'havtd* All my grand- chilltn calls me *Big Mama,1 but I*t so 11*1 now dty ought to call me ^Vl Mama.* I owns dis HU faa di <^ John savtd Hoagh v&n*? to buy it btfo* hi I gto arlill po&si^ and my &a $*fc** worfca an* when she1* lorkl^r , V S^andchiii liases Cart of mo, ****** ,.^t.v 420194 BUSLAVE STORMS (Texas) Page One vV FAwNIB YABSROJQH, blind and bedridden, was born a slave of the McKinney familyf near Egypt, Kaufman Co.f Texas. She was about six when the Civil War started. At that time her Job was to herd sheep. After freedom" she, ner motner and sisterv stayed with the McKinney1 s for a tim*. ?annie married Green Yarbrough in Hunt Co., Texas and they now live in a little cabin at 843 Plum St., Abilene, Texas* o "Oie Marster had a world of sheeps. dem sheeps and watch 'em. Every day we take The wolves was mean. We'd git to playin1, all us little niggers, and forgit them sheeps and nex1 thing you know an old wolf would have hiase'f a sneep. "Sometimes we'd keep playin9 so late it was dark 'fore we knowed it and wefd start runnin* them sheeps home. He says, Now, chill en, you didn1 be at de big gate to let us in. git back with all the sheep.' 01' Marster would We'd say, f01* wolf got 'em.1 But he knowed ol1 woli didn9 git all de ones missin' and ne'd say, You're storyin1. Then purty soon some of the little stray ones come home. Then he knowed we'd run tne sneep home and he'd say, 'I 'spose I'll have to whip you/ bat he never did. Those were sweet times! 01' Marster was so good, and he give us more to eat than you ever saw. Hog meat every day and sweet Hatoes Jto big we'd have to cut fem witii an a* "After we et our supper, we had to spin a broach of thread every night 'fore we went to bed. I lamed all 'bout spinnin1 and weavin1 when I was little and tyr time I's 10 I*d make pretty striped cloth. -1- 225 #x-Slave Stories (Texas) Page Two "How we played and played! &26 On Sundays we'd strike out for the tog woods and wefd gather our dresses full of hickory nuts, walnuts and berries and a sour apple called maypqp.f snakes and dance and sing that ol1 song 'bout, Hurrah! Bluecoat, Toodle~0. f0f Bat Lady's Beat in1 You.1 We'd kill Mister It meant his pardner wets be at in1 him dancin.f 11 I was jes* lyin1 kere dream in1 'bout how we use to go to the woods every spring and dig the aaypop rootsf then bring 'em uocie and wash 'em good and dry 'em - but,mind you, not in the sun then all as Chilian would sit 'round and poun1 dem roots, tied up in little bags of coarse cloth, till it was powder. Then we'd take a little flour and jes9 enough water to make it stick, and we'd make pills to take when we got sick. And work you? Lawd amighty! When we took dat stuff we had to keep tend in1 to de dress tail! tt fe went over to Flat Rock to church and de singin1 was gran#f All day long we'd be at preachin' and singin'. Singin' dat good ol' spiritual song 'bout, 'You shan't be Slaves no More, since Christ have made you free*1 I lay here yes'day and heered all them foolish songs and jubilee songs that cosies over the radio, and den some of them ol' time spirituals come and it jes' made me feel like I was in ol' times. "I vent back every year to see my ol' marster, as long as he lived. How it won' be long till I sees him agin, some day** ********** 420043 EX-SLAVE STORIES (Texas) Page One ' . 22"? LITT YOUNG was born in 1850, in Vicksburg, Miss., a slave of Martha Gibbs, on whose property the old battleground at Vicksburg was located. Litt was freed in 1865, in Vicksburg, and was refugeed by his owner to Harrison Go f Texas. He was freed again on June 19, 1866, and found work as a sawmill hand, a tie cutter and a woodcutter during the constructionof the Texas & Pacific Railroad from Marshall to Texarkana. The remainder of his life, with the exception of five years on a farm, has been spent as a section hand. Litt lives alone on the Powder Mill Road, two and a half miles north of Marshall, and is supported by a $12.00 monthly pension from the government. I 11 Ifs born in 1850 in Vicksburg, and belonged to Missy Martha Gibbs. Her place was on Warner Bayou and the old battlefield was right there in her field. fever. She had two husbands, one named Buckley and he died of yellow Then she marries a Dr. GUbbs, what was a Yankee, bat she didn't know it till after the war. "Massa Heckley bought my daddy from a nigger trader up north somewheres, but my mammy allus belonged to the Gibbs family. I had a sister and two brothers, but the Gibbs sold them to the Simmons and I never seed em any more. ' "Old Missy Gibbs had so many niggers she had to have lots of quarters, ffhey was good houses, weatherboarded with cypress and had brick chimneys. Wefd pull green grass and bury it awhilef then bile it to make mattresses. That made it black like in auto seats. and not scared of no man. Missy ^ras a big, rich Irishwoman s he lived in a big, fine house, and buckled on two guns and come out to the place most every morning. rt**"- She out-cussed a % Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two man when things didn't go right.., A yellow man driv her down in a two-horse avalanche. She had a white man far overseer what live in a good house close to the quarters. It was whitewashed and had glass windows. She laailt a nice church with glass windows and a trass cupole for the blacks and a yellow man preached to us. She had him preach how we was to obey our master and missy if we want to go to Heaven, hut when she wasn't there, he come out with straight preachin1 from the Bible. "Good gracious, what we had to eat. The y give us plenty, turnip greens and hog-jowl and peas and cornhread and milk by the barrels. Old women what was too old to work in the field done the cookin1 and tended the babies. They cooked the corn bread in a oven and browned it like cake. When they pulled it out, all the chillen was standin1 round, sineltin1 th^y-lips. Every Christmas us got a set white 1 well" clothes and a pair brogan shfces nd they done us the whole year, or us go naked. "When that big bell rung at four o'clock ym%& better get up, 'cause the overseer was standin1 there with a whippin1 strap if you was late. My daddy got a sleepin* most every morning for oversleeping. Them mules was standin1 in the field at daylight, waitin1 to see how to plow a straight furrow. If a nigger was a 500 pound cotton picker and didn't weigh up that much at night, that was not gitting his task and he got a whipping. The last weighin1 was done by lightin' a candle to see the scales. M TJs have small dances Saturday nights and ring plays and banjo and fiddle playin1 and knockin' bones. banjoes from sheep hides. There was fiddles make from gourds and I fmember one song, 'Coffee grows on white oak River flows with brandy -e. That song was started in Ticksburg l$r m$.i 020 - Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Three the Yankee soldiers when they left to go h mef 'cause they so glad war was over, "Missy have a big, steam sawmill there on Warner Bayou, where the steamboats come up for lumber. Mississippi. It was right there where the bayou empties in the I 'member seein1 one man sold there at the sawmill. He hit his massa in the head with a singletree and kilt him and they's fixin' to hang him, but a man promised to buy him if he'd promise to be good. He give $500 f or him. H Dr. Gibbs was a powerful man in Vieksburg. He was the 'casion'of them Yaitffs takin' 'vantage of Vieksburg like they done. 'lore the war he'd say to missy, 'Darling, you oughtn't whip them poor, black f oiks/S9 hard. gwine be free like us some day.' Missy say, 'Shut up. They is Sometimes I 'lieve you is a Yankee, anyway.' "Seme folks say Dr. Gibbs was workin' for the North all the time 'fore the war, and when he doctored for them durin' the war, they say they knowed it. The 'federates have a big camp there at Vieksburg and cut a big ditch out at the edge of town. S^me say Gen. Grant was knowin1 all how it was fixed, and that Dr. Gibbs let him know. "The Yankees stole the march on the 'federates and waited till they cme out the ditch and mowe& 'em down. The 'federates didnft have no chance, 'cause they didn't have no cannon, jus1 cap and ball rifles. The main fight started 'bout four in the morning and held oa till 'bout ten. Dead soldiers w$s layim* thick on the ground by then, After the fight, the Yanks cut the buttons off the coats of thea that was kilt, fer Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Four "I seed the Yankee gunboats when they coiae to Vicksburg. us niggers went down to the river to see 'em. All They told us to git plumb away, 'cause they didn't know which way they was gwine to shoot. Gen, Grant come to Vicksburg scad, he blowed a horn and them cannons began to shoot and jus* kept shooting When the Yankees coiae to Vicksburg, a big, red flag was flyin' over the town, five or six hours after them cannons started shootin1 they pulled it down and histed a big, white one, We saw it from the quarters, "After surrender the Yanks arrested my old missy and brought her out to the farm and locked her up in the black folks church. day and night. She had a guard They fed her hard-tack and water for three days 'fore they turned her a-loose. Then she freed all her niggers. 'Bout that time Massa G-ibbs ran out of corn to feed he stock and he took my daddy and a bunch of niggers and left to buy a boatload of corn. and starts to Texas. runnin1 'way. Missy seized a bunch us niggerc She had Irishmen guards, with rifles, to keep us from She left with ten six-mule teams and one ox cook wagon. Them v?hat was able walked all the way from Vicksburg to Texas. We camped at night and they tied the\nen to trees. We couldn't *it away with them Irishmen havin1 rifles. Black folks nat'rally scart of guns, anyway. Missy finally locates bout three miles from Marshall and w$ made her first crop and on June 19th, the next year after 'mancipation, she sot us free. M Dr, Oibbs followed her to Texas. He said the Yanks captured his. niggers and took his load of corn as they was comin1 down the Tennessee River, 4 where it jiaes the Mississippi. see daddy 'gain. Me and mammy stayed in Texas, and never did When us freed the last time us come to Marshall and I works in. a grist mill and shingle mill. I cut ties for 15^ apiece, I cut wood for the afaiasaa^.^ .^^^-jfedj^wi^a^j^^ ^...-.^ v. o >** A>0 Ex-slave Stories (Texas) first engines and they paid me $1.25 a c rd. a day. # Page five S^JI x I gat where I cut three cards I helped clear all the land where Texarkana is now. When the rail- road s quit using wood, I worked as section hand far $1.25 a day. I farmed five years and never made a cent and went "back t$ the railroad. H I marries in Marshall sa long age I dane forget. I raises six gals and has three sets grandchillen. Theyfs all livin1 bept one. Since my wife died and Ifs too ailing to work, I's been kept "by the pension. "They had provost law in Marshall when us come to Texas. voted when they let us. These young diggers ain't like what us was. I allus Peniten- tiaries was made for the white folks, T>ut the y^uog miggers is keepin* ********* f eia full. 4;2()!23L EX-SLAVE STOBIBS (Texas) Page One 10UIS YOUNG, 88, was born a slave of Hampton Atkinson, on a small farm in Phillips County, Arkansas. When Louis was twelve, his master sold him and his mother to Tom Young, who took them to Robinson Co,, Texas. Louis now lives at 5523 Bonnell St. , fort Worth, Tex. Mamny done put my age in de Bible and I'm eighty-eight years oH Ifm born in 1849. now. But I can git round. tut, shucks, I done my share of work already. Course, I can't work nop, I works from time Ifm eight years old till I*a eighty pastf and I'd be workin' yit if de rheumatis1 misexy didn't git me in de arms and legs. It make me stiff, so I canft walk good. M Yes, suh, I starts to work when eight on dat plantation where Ifm born. Dat in &rkansawt and Massa Hampton own me and my mammy and eight other niggers. My pappy am somewhere, but I donft kaaow where or nothin1 fbout him. M Us all work from light to dark and Sunday, too. I don't know what Sunday am till us come to Texas, and dances and good things, I don't know nothin1 f bout dem till us come to Texas. Massa Hampton, he am long on de work and short on de rations, what he measure out for de week. Seven pounds meat and one peck meal and one quart 'lasses, and no more for de week. If us run out, us am out, dat's all. "One day us gits sold to Massa Tom Young. and looks on her for marks of de whip. Massa Haiapton say no, he want $1,000. Massa Young say he give $700, but He say, fYous takin' dem to Texas, where dey sho1 to be slaves, 'spite de war.1 1- He feels mammy1 s muscles QQp ** v Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Page Two D >*> "Finally Massa Young gives $900 for us and off us go to Texas. Dat in 1861, de fall de year, and it am three teams mules and three teems oxen hitch to wagons full of farm things and rations and sich. Us on de road morefn three weeks, maybe a month, befo1 us git to Robinson County. "When us git dere, de work am build in1 de cabins and house and den clear de land, and by Spring, us ready to put in de crops, de corn and cotton. Massa Young am good and give us plenty to eat. He has fbout twenty slaves and us works reason'ble, and has good time fpared with befo1. On Saturday night it am dancin1 and music and singin1, and us never heared of sich befo1. "One day Massa Young call us to de house and tell us he don't own us no more, and say us can stay and he pay us some money, if us wants. He ask mammy to stay and cook and she does, but Via strongheaded and runs cfff to Calvert and goesto work for Massa Brown, and dere I stays till Ifm growed. He paid me $10.00 de month and den $15.00. "When I's twenty-five I marries Addie Easter and us have no chillen and she dies ten years after. Den I drifts f round, workin1 here and yonder and in 1890 I marries dat woman sett inf right dere. Den I rents de farm and if de crops am good, de prices am bad, and if de prices am good, de crops am bad. So it go and us lives, and not too good, at dat. I quits in 1925 and comes to Port Worth and piddles at odd jobs till my rheumatis1 git so bad give years ago. M I done forgit to tell you fbout de Xlux. trouble. Bern debbils causes lots of Dey done de dirty work at nightf come and took folks out and whip dem. -2~ Ex-slave Stories (Texas) Pe4je Three * & QI> a M Sorae cullud folks am whip so hard dey in "bed sev'ral weeks and I knowed some hanged by dey thumbs. Maybe some dem cullud folks gits out dere places, hut mostest dem I knows gits whip for nothin1. orneriness dem Klux. It jus1 de It so "bad de cullud folks ffraid to sleep in dey house or have parties or nothin1 after dark. ditches and sleeps dere. Dey starts for de woods or It git so dey can1^ work for not sleepin* t from fear of dem Klux, Den de white folks takes a hand and sojers am brung and dey puts de stop to dem debbils. M 'Bout de livin1 now, us jus1 caa*t niake it. Us lives on what de pension am and dat $30.00 de month, and it mighty close us has to live to git by on sich. I thinks of Massa Young,and us live better den dan now. "I never votes, 'cause'I"can11 read and dat make troublement for me to vote. How I gwine make de ticket for dis and dat? ^ead, dey can vote. ***** For dem what can 4200S7 O'Vi SX-SLAVB STORIIS (l x a) TESHAI YOUNG, 86, was oora a slare to Ba kner Scott, who owned a plantation in Harrison County, Texas, A. ^V and kad OTer one hundred slares, Teskan married Moses Toung in 1867 and lived near ker old borne until 1915, wben ska moved to Tort Wortk. Sbe lives in a negro settlement on tke outskirts of Stop Six, a suburb of Jbrt fortk. ; - oT *' Iise 86 years ole. Bofn in Harrison County, Texas. Marster Seott earned me and my parents, one brudder and three sisters,, Marster never sold any of we1 one9 so dere was no separation of de family long1 a we llred on de Marster*s place. He kad awful big 9 plantation, bout seven miles long, rt 0n dat plantation de Marster kave everything. Hims have de gin and de mill for to grind de meal and feed, de big blacksmitk skop and dere was a kouse ukar dey spins de yarn and makes de elotk, de skoes and si eh. He kave fbout 30 quarters for de eullad folks back of kim9s kouse, and dere am a kouse for de nursery, wid a big yard dat kave swings and siek for de eullud ekillens. ^Eack eullud family have de cabin for tksmself* Be cabins kave bunks for sleepln1, fireplace for to cook, bench for to set on - but dat9s all de furniture* niggers good. plenty of meat, Marster Seott feeds all us We*uns kave beans, peas, milk, vegetables, *lasses and De marster kave kawgs on top of kawgs on dat place, for to make de meat, "We'uns kave all de clotkes dat wefuna need for to keep warm. De marster says, fDe nigger BUS* kare plenty of food and keep ~1~ **w d&O 3& slave Stories (Vexaa) Page Two wan for to work good* How maisy hours we9uns work? de time of de year it am ^o(J Dat depen9s on When its time for de hoe in9 or de pickin9 of de cotton, dey work late* 9 5Pwara9t sick lone hours udder times* But de uarster makes de eullud folks work and whips 9em when dey don1* I9ee 'member one slave dat gits whipped so bad hims never cits up, hims died* We9uns Chilians would go roanf whar hims was and look De Uarster lets we1 tins do dat at im. "Yes, suk, dey whipped pow9ful hard sometimes* whipped one time My mammy gits f cause she come from de fiel9 for to nuss her baby, and once for de eause sha don9 keep up her row in de fiel9* fits shoot in de shoulder by de overseer* whuppin*9 9 eause hims runs from de 'fwas dis way, de overseer sajfs, whup you for not workln9 like I says.1 My pappy 9 0ome here* I9se gwine Dere was a fence dere and my pappy runs for dat and am srawlin9 over it when de overseer shoot * "1*86 'bout 10 year ole when de war starts* dat I9se Members f f cept de Marster jines de arny* It makes no diff9rence* I9se tend to all de eullud ehilien while dey mammies workin9 in de fiel9* sho1 particular 9bout dem ehilien* bread, 9 lasses, vegetables and sick* He feeds De Marster am 9 em well. mush9 milk, De food am put in de long bowl, like de trough, De ehilien have wooden spoons and we9uns line dem 9 Den de fun starts* Ions de bowl* I9se have de lone switch and keeps welkin1 back: and forth to make dem deblls behave* De Marster comes in sometimes and hims laugh at dem* dey so funny. w After I*se jits married, I9se has 13 ehilien of ay own. I9se -3~ Sx^slaYe Stories (Texas) Page Three nerer calls de doctor for my chillen. Sits de plants and de herbs. 23*? I9se goes in de woods and For de stomach misery I9se uses de red petals, lolls dat and takes de Juice. For de cold, I'se takes deJEs&emss Root, boils dat and takes de Juice, 11 When de chores am done on Sunday or Christmas, we'uns can hare de music, dance and slngln9. times. We1 tins hare some good ole De songs am de ole timers, sich as Swannee Stiver, Ole Black Joe and dere m de fiddles and banjos dat dey play* eel1 brate on Christmas. sich. We9uns she9 De women all cooks cakes and cookies and De men saves all de bladders from de hawgs dey kill, blows em full of air and lets *em dry. De youngfuns puts dem on sticks and holds 9em over a fire in de yard. goes 'bang1 Jus9 like a gun. Dat makes 9em bust and dey Dat was de fireworks. "Marster comes back from de war widout gettin9 hurt. At de time freedom comes, some cullud folks stays on and works for money, J Jwas de fust money dey ever hadt and dey don9 know what to do wid it and what its worth. have bought, quarters. Some of dem are still on dat larfj Dey rents or Ky brudder lives dere, Jus9 a few yards from de ole My pappy worked for ole Marster till he died. I9se stays wid him till I marries, "I'se married in a cullud church and I9se have a pretty pink dress and hat. plantation. My husban9 have hims own farm, part of de ole We finally buys it from de Marster. dies and Ifse stays dere till 1915. In 1902 my husban9 Den I9se cosies to fort Worth. I se still nussin9 some but I9se gettin9 de pension of nine dollars a month. Dat sho9 helps out. ******* |l^