*Interview with Hannah Jones,*
*St. Louis, Missouri.*
*(Written by Grace E. White,*
*St. Louis, Mo.)*
_Bred Slaves Like Stock_
Hannah Jones was born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, August 3, about 1850,
the daughter of Lottie Oil and Noah Thompson. Her story follows:
"The niggers had three or four wifes before de war, as many as dey could
bear chillun by. But after de war dey had to take one woman and marry
her. My mother had three chillun by him and de odder wifes had three and
four chillun too. Old man, Ben Oil raised my mother. He was an old
bachelor but his brothers were all married.
"Ben Oil had 100 niggers. He just raised niggers on his plantation. His
brother-in-law, John Cross raised niggers, too. He had 125 niggers. He
had a nigger farm. His other brother-in-law we call old man English, had
100 niggers. Dey all jes' had nothin' else but niggers. Before de war
broke out, Tom Oil and John Oil come up dah and taken all us niggers but
eight and eight acres of land he left for Ben Oil's housekeeper. Old
Marse Ben died and after dat Tom carried us all back down der to New
Orleans wid him and opened up a nigger pen. Dat's a place like a stock
yard where dey auction us off. De old ones was de ones dey was anxious
to get shet of. We only know our ages by known' we is born in corn
plantin' and cotton pickin' time. We never even knowed de days of de
week.
"I had three aunts to die in all dat huddle of niggers. De doctors make
us go walking every day 'cause dat was de only exercise we git. One of
dem aunts dropped dead on de street while walking. De other two died in
de slave pen. My grandmother was a fine seamstress. She sewed all de
sewing for de white folks. Three days after her first baby was born dey
made her git up and make twelve stiff-front, tucked white shirts for her
old mistress' boy who be goin' off to college and she was so sick and
weak, some of de stitches was crooked. Old Miss ordered de overseer to
take her out and beat her 'bout it. Before he did de doctor looked at
her and said 'tain't no use beatin' her she won't do you no more good.
She's stone blind, but she can have chillun right on. So dey kept her
for dat and she bore twelve more head of chillun after dat.
"My mother was black as a crow and her hair was so long she could sit on
it. Dey brought a huddle of niggers over amongst de Indians from all
over de south and Maryland and intermarried 'em wid dere own sisters,
brothers, cousins, nieces and de like. De niggers didn't know for years
dey was any kin. When dey want to raise certain kind a breed of chillun
or certain color, dey just mixed us up to suit dat taste, and tell de
nigger dis is your wife or dis is your husband and dey take each other
and not know no better and raise big families to de white folks liking.
"I never can forget one Sunday morning de rebels come into Cape
Girardeau. De old Miss what raised me had just killed two hogs and put
'em in de smoke house. I got up bright and early dat Sunday morning. I
looked out toward de smoke house and seed two white men out dere dressed
in blue clothes and dey just went in Old Miss' smoke house and help dem
selves. I run right fast and told old Miss what was going on out der in
her smoke house. But dere wasn't no men folks around so we couldn't help
ourselves. Dey told us dey was 300 strong and just den some others come
over de hill and told 'em come on, hurry up so dey climbed de hill in a
hurry leaving dere. They had three gun boats and dey turned one of dem
things loose up der as dey was goin' and Lawd child dat thing destroyed
property for miles around.
"Some of dem rebels had ball bats, some had sticks, some riding and some
walking. Dey killed three of us niggers in our camp dat morning. All de
nigger men been taken away just leaving us nigger women and chillun. Dey
burned down frame and log huts just de same. My mother lived to be 115
years old, two uncles lived to be 100, one sister over 60. I use glasses
when I read but am blind in one eye. My husband has been dead 37 years.
He was an old soldier so Uncle Sam gives me a pension.
"I had 15 head of chillun. I have now seven grandchillun and four great
grandchillun. I has been in St. Louis 17 years and lives with my
daughter Nancy McDonald, 2804 Dayton Street."