livestock. They raised cotton and corn and veg'tables, and mules and
horses and hawgs and sheep. On Sundays they had meetin', sometimes at
our house, sometimes at 'nother house. Right fine meetin's, too. They'd
preach and pray and sing--shout, too. I heared them git up with a
powerful force of the spirit, clappin' they hands and walkin' round the
place. They'd shout, 'I got the glory. I got that old time 'ligion in my
heart.' I seen some powerful 'figurations of the spirit in them days.
Uncle Billy preached to us and he was right good at preachin' and
nat'rally a good man, anyways. We'd sing:
"'Sisters, won't you help me bear my cross,
Help me bear my cross,
I been done wear my cross.
I been done with all things here,
'Cause I reach over Zion's Hill.
Sisters, won't you please help bear my cross,
Up over Zion's hill?'
"I seed a smart number of wagons and mules a-passin' along and some camp
along the woods by our place. I heared they was a war and folks was
goin' with 'visions and livestock. I wasn't much bigger'n a minute and I
was scared clean to my wits.
"Then they's a time when paw says we'll be a-searchin' a place to stay
and work on a pay way. They was a consider'ble many niggers left the
Bolings. The day we went away, which was 'cause 'twas the breakin' up of
slavery, we went in the wagon, out the carriage gate in front the
Boling's place. As we was leavin', Mr. Boling called me and give me a
cup sweet coffee. He thought consid'ble plenty of me.
"We went to a place called Mantua, or somethin' like that. My paw says
he'll make a man of me, and he puts me to breakin' ground and choppin'
wood. Them was bad times. Money was scarce and our feedin' was pore.
"My paw died and maw and me and the children, Nancy and Margina and
Jessie and George, moves to a little place right outside Sherman. Maw
took in washin' and ironin'. I went one week to school and the teacher
said I learned fastest of any boy she ever see. She was a nice, white
lady. Maw took me out of school 'cause she needed me at home to tend the
other children, so's she could work. I had a powerful yearnin' to read
and write, and I studied out'n my books by myself and my friends helped
me with the cipherin'.
"I did whatever work I could find to do, but my maw said I was a
different mood to the other children. I was allus of a 'ligious and
serious turn of mind. I was baptised when I was fifteen and then when I
was about twenty-five I heared a clear call to preach the Gospel-word. I
went to preachin' the word of Gawd. I got married and raised a family of
children, and I farmed and preached.
"I was just a preacher till about thirty years ago, and then Gawd
started makin' a prophet out of me. Today I am Mose Hursey, Head Prophet
to the World. They is lesser prophets, but I is the main one. I became a
great prophet by fastin' and prayin'. I fast Mondays and Wednesdays and
Fridays. I know Gawd is feedin' the people through me. I see him in
visions and he speaks to me. In 1936 I saw him at Commerce and Jefferson
Streets (Dallas) and he had a great banner, sayin', 'All needs a
pension.' In August this year I had a great vision of war in the eastern
corner of the world. I seen miles of men marchin' and big guns and
trenches filled with dead men. Gawd tells me to tell the people to be
prepared, 'cause the tides of war is rollin' this way, and all the
thousands of millions of dollars they spend agin it ain't goin' to stop
it. I live to tell people the word Gawd speaks through me.
420081
[Illustration: Charley Hurt]
CHARLEY HURT, 85, was born a slave of John Hurt, who owned a large
plantation and over a hundred slaves, in Oglethorpe County,
Georgia. Charley stayed with his master for five years after the
Civil War. In 1899 Charley moved to Fort Worth, and now lives at
308 S. Harding St.
"Yes, suh, I'm borned in slavery and not 'shamed of it, 'cause I can't
help how I'm borned. Dere am folks what wont say dey borned in slavery.
"Us plantation am near Maxie, over in Oglethorpe County, in Georgia, and
massa am John Hurt and he have near a hunerd slaves. Us live in de li'l
cabin make from logs chink with mud and straw and twigs am mix with dat
mud to make it hold. De big chimley am outside de cabin mostly, and am
logs and mud, too. De cabin am 'bout ten by twenty feet and jus' one
room.
"Would I like some dem rations we used to git, now? 'Deed I would. Dem
was good, dat meat and cornmeal and 'lasses and plenty milk and
sometimes butter. De meat am mostest pork, with some beef, 'cause massa
raise plenty hawgs and tendin' meat curin' am my first work. I puts dat
meat in de brine and den smokes de hams and shoulders. When hawg-killin'
time come I'm busy watchin' de smokehouse, what am big, and hams and
sich hung on racks 'bout six feet high from de fireplace. Den it my duty
to keep dat fire smoulderin' and jus' smokin'. De more smoke, de better.
Den I packs dat meat in hawgs heads and puts salt over each layer. Dat
am some meat!
"I mus' tell you 'bout dat whiskey and brandy. Massa have he own still
and allus have three barrels or more whiskey and brandy on hand. Den on
Christmas Day, him puts a tub of whiskey or brandy in de yard and hangs
tin cups 'round de tub. Us helps ourselves. At first us start jokin'
with each other, den starts to sing and everybody am happy. Massa
watches us and if one us gittin' too much, massa sends him to he cabin
and he sleep it off. Anyway, dat one day on massa's place all am happy
and forgits dey am slaves.
"De last Christmas 'fore surrender I gits too much and am sick. Gosh
a-mighty! Dat de sickest I ever be and dat de last time I gits drunk.
Yes, suh, dat spoil dis nigger's taste for whiskey.
"Now, 'bout whuppin's, dere am only one whuppin' what am give. Jerry
gits dat, 'cause he wont do what massa say. He tie Jerry on de log and
have de rawhide whip.
"Dere am system on dat plantation. Everybody do he own work, sich as
field hands, stock hands, de blacksmith and de shoemaker and de weavers
and clothes makers. I'm all 'round worker and goes after de mail, jus'
runnin' 'round de place.
"When de war start, all massa's sons jines de army. He have three. John
am de captain and James carry de flag and I guesses August am jus' de
plain sojer. Dey all comes home 'fore de war am finish. August git run
over by de wheel of de cannon truck and it cripple he legs so he can't
walk good. James gits sick with some kind fever misery and he am sent
home. Den John am shot in de shoulder and it stay sore and won't heal.
One day Jerry say to massa he want to look at dat sore. Him see
somethin' stickin' out and he pull it. It a piece of young massa's coat
and de bullet have carry it into de flesh and it am dere a whole year.
De sore gits all right after dat out.
"'Fore de boys goes to fightin' dey trains near de place where am de big
field for to train hunerds of sojer boys. I likes dat, 'cause de drums
goes, 'ter-ump, ter-ump, ter-ump, tump, tump,' and de fifes goes, 'te,
te, ta, te, tat' and plays Dixie. One day Young massa trainin' dem
sojers and he am walkin' backwards and facin' dem sojers, and jus' as
him say, 'Halt,' down he go, flat on he back. Right away quick, him say,
''Bout face,' 'cause him don't want dem sojers to laugh in he face, so
he turn dem 'round.
"When surrender come, all dem what not kilt comes home and dey have a
big 'ception in Maxie. Dey have lots of long tables and de food am put
on 'fore de train come in. Dere was two coaches full of de boys and dey
doesn't wait for dat train to stop. No, suh, dey crawls out de windows.
Well, dere am huggin' and kissin' of de homefolks, and dey all laughin'
and cryin' at de same time, 'cause of de joy dey's feelin'. Den dey all
sets down to de feast. Massa make de welcome talk. I done hide in de
wagon full of hams and cakes and pies and dere a canvas over dat stuff,
and dat how I gits to dat welcome home.
"I crawls out 'fore dey unloads de wagon and 'fore long massa see me and
him say, 'Gosh for hemlock! Boy, how comes you here?' I lets my face
slip a li'l, 'bout half a laugh. I says, 'I rides under dat canvas.' Dat
start him laughin' and he tells de people dat I'm a pat'otic nigger.
After dey all eats us niggers gits to eat. For once, I gits plenty pie
and cake.
"Us never have much joyments in slave time. Only when de corn ready for
huskin' all de neighbors comes dere and a whole big crowd am a-huskin'
and singin'. I can't 'member dem songs, 'cause I'm not much for singin'.
One go like dis:
"'Pull de husk, break de ear;
Whoa, I's got de red ear here.'
"When you finds de red ear, dat 'titles you to de prize, like kissin' de
gal or de drink of brandy or somethin'. Dey not 'nough red ears to suit
us.
"I'm thirteen year when surrender come. Massa don't call us to him like
other massas done. Him jus' go 'mongst de folks and say, 'Well, folks,
yous am free now and no longer my prop'ty, and yous 'titled to pay for
work. I 'member old Jerry sings, 'Free, free as de jaybird, free to flew
like de jaybird. Whew!'
"Some de cullud folks stays and some goes. Mostest dem stays and works
de land on shares. I stays till I'm eighteen year and den I works for a
farmer den for a blacksmith den some carpenter work and some
railroadin'. De fact am, I works at anything I could find to does. I
does dat most my life.
"It good for me to stay with Massa Hurt after freedom, 'cause den day
plenty trouble in every place. Dere am fightin' 'twixt white and cullud
folks over votin' and sich. Dey try 'lect my brudder to Congress one
time, but he not 'lect, 'cause de white man what am runnin' 'gainst him
gits a cullud preacher to run 'gainst dem both. Dat split de cullud
votes and de white man am 'lect. I votes like de white man say, couple
times, but after dat I stops votin'. It ain't right for me to vote 'less
I knows how and why. I larns to read and den starts votin' 'gain.
"After de war de Ku Klux am org'nize and dey makes de niggers plenty
trouble. Sometimes de niggers has it comin' to 'em and lots of times dey
am 'posed on. Dere a old, cullud man name George and he don't trouble
nobody, but one night de white caps--dat what dey called--comes to
George's place. Now, George know of some folks what am whupped for
no-cause, so he prepare for dem white caps. When dey gits to he house
George am in de loft. He tell dem he done nothin' wrong and for dem to
go 'way, or he kill dem. Dey say he gwine have a free sample of what he
git if he do wrong and one dem white caps starts up de ladder to git
George and George shoot him dead. 'Nother white cap starts shootin'
through de ceilin'. He can't see George but through de cracks George can
see and he shoots de second feller. So dey leaves and say dey come back.
George runs to he old massa and he takes George to de law men. Never
nothin' am done 'bout him killin' de white caps, 'cause dem white caps
goes 'round 'busing niggers.
"I comes to Texas 'bout 40 year since and gits by purty good till de
depression comes, den it hard for me. My age am 'gainst me, too, and
many de time I's wish for some dat old ham and bacon on de old
plantation.
"First I marries Ann Arrant, in 1898 dat was, and us have three chillen
but dey all dead. Us git sep'rate in 1917 and I marries Mary Durham in
1921, and us still livin' together. Us have no chillen. Mammy have ten
chillen but I'm de only one what am livin' now, 'cause I'm de youngest.
420088
[Illustration: Wash Ingram]
WASH INGRAM, A 93 year old Negro, was born a slave of Capt. Jim
Wall, of Richmond, Va. His father, Charley Wall Ingram, ran away
and secured work in a gold mine. Later, his mother died and Capt.
Wall sold Wash and his two brothers to Jim Ingram, of Carthage,
Texas. When Wash's father learned this, he overtook his sons before
they reached Texas and put himself back in bondage, so he could be
with his children. Wash served as water carrier for the Confederate
soldiers at the battle of Mansfield, La. He now lives with friends
on the Elysian Fields Road, seven miles southeast of Marshall,
Texas.
"I don' know just how ole I is. I was 'bout 18 when de War was over. I
was bo'n on Captain Wall's place in Richmond, Virgini'. Pappy's name was
Charlie and mammy's name was Ca'line. I had six sisters and two brothers
and all de sisters is dead. I haven't heard from my brothers since
Master turn us loose, a year after de war.
"Pappy say dat he and mammy was sold and traded lots of times in
Virgini'. We always went by de name of whoever we belonged to. I first
worked as a roustabout boy dere on Capt. Wall's place in Virgini'. He
was sho' a big man, weighed more'n 200 pounds. He owned lots of niggers
and worked lots of land. The white folks was good to us, but Pappy was a
fightin' man and he run off and got a job in a gold mine in Virgini'.
"After pappy run away, mammy died and den one day de overseer herded up
a big bunch of us niggers and driv us to Barnum's Tradin' Ya'd down in
Mississippi. Dat's a place where dey sold and traded Niggers jus' lak
stock. I cried when Capt. Wall sold me, 'cause dat was one man dat sho'
was good to his niggers. But he had too many slaves.
"Cotton was a good price den and dem slave buyers had plenty of money.
We was sold to Jim Ingram, of Carthage. He bought a big gang of slaves
and refugeed part of 'em to Louisiana and part to Texas. We come to
Texas in ox wagons. While we was on the way, camped at Keachie,
Louisiana, a man come ridin' into camp and someone say to me, 'Wash,
dar's your pappy.' I didn' believe it 'cause pappy was workin' in a gold
mine in Virgini'. Some of de men told pappy his chillen is in camp and
he come and fin' me and my brothers. Den he jine Master Ingram's slaves
so he can be with his chillen.
"Master Ingram had a big plantation down near Carthage and lots of
niggers. He also buyed land, cleared it and sol' it. I plowed with oxen.
We had a overseer and sev'ral taskmasters. Dey whip de niggers for not
workin' right, or for runnin' 'way or pilferin' roun' master's house. We
woke up at four o'clock and worked from sunup to sundown. Dey give us an
hour for dinner. Dem dat work roun' de house et at tables with plates.
Dem dat work in de field was drove in from work and fed jus' like hosses
at a big, long wooden trough. Dey had to eat with a wooden spoon. De
trough and de food was clean and always plenty of it, and we stood up to
eat. We went to bed soon after supper durin' de week for dat's 'bout all
we feel like doin' after workin' twelve hours. We slep' in wooden beds
what had corded rope mattresses.
"We had to learn de best way we could, 'cause dere was no schools. We
had church out in de woods. I didn' see no money till after de
surrender. Guess we didn' need any, 'cause dey give us food and clothes
and tobacco. We didn' have to buy nothin'. I had broadcloth clothes, a
blue jean overcoat and good shoes and boots.
"De niggers had heap better times dan now. Now we work all time and
can't git nothin'. Sat'day night we would have parties and dance and
play ring plays. We had de parties dere in a big double log house. Dey
would give us whiskey and wine and cherry brandy, but dere wasn' no
shootin' or gamblin'. Dey didn' 'low it. De men and women didn' do like
dey do now. If dey had such carryin's on as dey do now, de white folks
would have whipped 'em good.
"I 'member dat war and I sees dem cannons and hears 'em. I toted water
for de soldiers what fought at de Battle of Mansfield. Master Ingram had
350 slaves when de war was over but he didn' turn us loose till a year
after surrender. He telled us dat de gov'ment goin' to give us 40 acres
of land and a pair of mules, but we didn' git nothin'. After Master
Ingram turn us loose, pappy bought a place at De Berry, Texas, and I
live with him till after I was grown. Den I marry and move to Louisiana.
I come back to Texas two years ago and lived with my friends here ever
since. My wife died 18 years ago and I had a hard time 'cause I don'
have no folks, but I's managed to git someone to let me work for
somethin' to eat, a few clothes and a place to sleep.
420047
[Illustration: Carter J. Jackson]
CARTER J. JACKSON, 85, was born in Montgomery, Alabama, a slave of
Parson Dick Rogers. In 1863 the Rogers family brought Carter to
Texas and he worked for them as a slave until four years after
emancipation. Carter was with his master's son, Dick, when he was
killed at Pittsburg, Pa. Carter married and moved to Tatum in 1871.
"If you's wants to know 'bout slavery time, it was Hell. I's born in
Montgomery, over yonder in Alabama. My pappy named Charles and come from
Florida and mammy named Charlotte and her from Tennessee. They was sold
to Parson Rogers and brung to Alabama by him. I had seven brothers call
Frank and Benjamin and Richardson and Anderson and Miles, Emanuel and
Gill, and three sisters call Milanda, Evaline and Sallie, but I don't
know if any of 'em are livin' now.
"Parson Rogers come to Texas in '63 and brung 'bout 42 slaves and my
first work was to tote water in the field. Parson lived in a good, big
frame house, and the niggers lived in log houses what had dirt floors
and chimneys, and our bunks had rope slats and grass mattress. I sho'
wish I could have cotch myself sleepin' on a feather bed them days. I
wouldn't woke up till Kingdom Come.
"We et vegetables and meat and ash cake. You could knock you mammy in
the head, eatin' that ash cake bread. I ain't been fit since. We had
hominy cooked in the fireplace in big pots that ain't bad to talk 'bout.
Deer was thick them days and we sot up sharp stobs inside the pea field
and them young bucks jumps over the fence and stabs themselves. That the
only way to cotch them, 'cause they so wild you couldn't git a fair shot
with a rifle.
"Massa Rogers had a 300 acre plantation and 200 in cultivation and he
had a overseer and Steve O'Neal was the nigger driver. The horn to git
up blowed 'bout four o'clock and if we didn't fall out right now, the
overseer was in after us. He tied us up every which way and whip us, and
at night he walk the quarters to keep us from runnin' 'round. On Sunday
mornin' the overseer come 'round to each nigger cabin with a big sack of
shorts and give us 'nough to make bread for one day.
"I used to steal some chickens, 'cause we didn't have 'nough to eat, and
I don' think I done wrong, 'cause the place was full of 'em. We sho'
earned what we et. I'd go up to the big house to make fires and lots of
times I seed the mantel board lined with greenbacks, 'tween mantel and
wall and I's snitched many a $50.00 bill, but it 'federate money.
"Me and four of her chillen standin' by when mammy's sold for $500.00.
Cryin' didn't stop 'em from sellin' our mammy 'way from us.
"I 'member the war was tough and I went 'long with young massa Dick when
he went to the war, to wait on him. I's standin' clost by when he was
kilt under a big tree in Pittsburg, and 'fore he die he ask Wes Tatum,
one the neighbor boys from home, to take care of me and return me to
Massa George.
"I worked on for Massa Rogers four year after that, jus' like in slavery
time, and one day he call us and say we can go or stay. So I goes with
my pappy and lives with him till 1871. Then I marries and works on the
railroad when it's builded from Longview to Big Sandy, 'bout 1872. I
works there sev'ral years and I raises seven chillen. After I quits the
railroad I works wherever I can, on farms or in town.
420092
[Illustration: James Jackson]
JAMES JACKSON, 87, was born a slave to the Alexander family, in
Caddo Parish, La. When he was about two, his master moved to Travis
County, Texas. A short time later he and his two brothers were
stolen and sold to Dr. Duvall, in Bastrop Co., Texas. He worked
around Austin till he married, when he moved to Taylor and then to
Kaufman. In 1929 he went to Fort Worth where he has lived ever
since.
"I was bo'n at Caddo Parish, dats in Louisiana, on de Doc Alexander
plantation. My mother says I was bo'n on de 18th day of December, in de
year of 1850. I guess dat's right, 'cause I's 87 years ole dis comin'
December.
"Jus' 'bout dat time dey started shippin' de darkies to Texas. My
marster moved to Travis County, Texas, and tuk all his slaves wid him. I
was too young to 'member, but my mother, she told me 'bout it.
"It wasn' long after we was on Marster Alexander's new place in Travis
County, till one night a man rode up on a hoss and stole me and my two
brothers and rode away wid us. He tuk us to Bastrop County and sold us
to Doc Duvall. Marster Duvall sold my brother right after he bought us,
but me and John, we stayed wid him till de slaves was freed.
"On Marster Duvall's plantation de slaves all lived in log cabins back
of de big house. Dey was one room, two rooms and three room cabins,
dependin' on de size of de family. Most had dirt floors, but some of 'em
had log slabs. We had dese ole wooden beds wid a rope stretch 'cross de
bottom and a mattress of straw or cotton dat de niggers got in de fiel'.
We had lots to eat, like biscuit, cornbread, meat and sich stuff. Most
times dey made coffee outta parch cornmeal. We had gardens and raised
most of de stuff to eat.
"I herds sheep and is houseboy most of de time. When I was ole enough, I
picks cotton. I was jus' learnin' when de slaves was freed. Marster
Duvall had over 500 acres in cotton and he kep' us in de fiel' all de
time, 'cept Saturday afternoon and Sunday.
"Dey had meetin' and dances Saturday nights. I was too young to 'member
jus' what de songs was, but dey had a fiddle and played all night long.
On ever' Sunday de niggers went to Church in de evenin'. Dey had a white
preacher in de mornin' and a cullud preacher in de evenin'.
"Marster Duvall would whip de niggers who was disobedience and he jus'
call dem up and ask dem what was de trouble, den he would whip dem wid a
cowhide or a rope whip. We could go anywhere iffen we had a pass, but if
we didn' de paddlerollers would ketch us. They was kinda like policemen
we got today.
"In slavery, dey traded and sold niggers like dey do hosses and mules.
Dey carry dem to de court house and put dem on de block and auction 'em
off. Some sold for roun' $3,000. It was hard to sell one wid scars on
him, 'cause nobody wanted him. I seen 'em come by in droves, all chained
together.
"When de slaves was free dey was sho' happy. Dey all got together and
had a kin' of cel'bration. Marster told dem if dey wanted to stay and
help make de crop, he'd give 'em 50 cents a day and a place to stay.
Some tuk him up on dat and stayed, but a lot of dem left dere. Me and my
brother, we started walkin' to Austin. In Austin we finds our mother,
she was working for Judge Paschal. She hires us out to one place and den
another.
"Since freedom I done most everything anybody could do. I been porter
and waiter in hotels and rest'rants. I been factory hand, and worked for
carpenters and in de roun' house. I picked cotton and worked on de farm.
"I been married 61 years. I gits married at home, like civilize folks
do. I raised a big family, 12 chillen, but only five is alive today. I
moved here in 1929 and looks like I's here till I die.
420188
MAGGIE JACKSON was born a slave of the Sam Oliver family, in Cass
Co., Texas, near Douglasville. She is about 80 years old and her
memory is not very good, so her story gives few details. She lives
with her daughter near Douglasville, on highway #8.
"I am about 80 years old and was a chile during slavery times. My papa's
name was Tom Spencer Hall and my mama's name was Margaret Hall. My
brothers and sisters was Maria and Barbara and Alice and Octavia and
Andrew and Thomas and Hillary and Eugenia and Silas and Thomas. We was a
big fam'ly.
"My mama was Sam Oliver's slave, but my papa lived a mile away with
Masta Sam Carlow. We lived in box houses and slep' on wood beds and we
et co'nbread and peas and grits and lots of rabbits and 'possums. Mama
cooked it on the fireplace.
"Masta Sam's house was big and had six big rooms with a hall through the
middle and the kitchen sot way off in the ya'd and had a big cellar
under it. Masta Sam had a big orchard and put apples and pears in the
cellar for the winter. My brothers use' to slip under there and steal
them and mama'd whip 'em.
"The big house set 'mong big oak trees and the slaves houses was
scattered roun' the back. Masta Sam had a ole cowhorn he use' to blow
for the niggers to come outta the fiel'.
"Mos' all us chillen wen' fishin' on Saturday and we'd fish with pins.
One day I slipped off and caught a whole string of fish.
"We learned to read and write and we wen' to church with the white
folks. Masta Sam was good to us and gave us plenty food and clothes.
"I never was 'fraid of haints and I never see none, but I know some seen
'em.
"I married John Jackson in a white muslin dress and we was married by
Dan Sherman, a cullud preacher from Jefferson. I married John 'cause I
loved him and we didn' fuss and fight. I has five chillen and five
grandchillen.
420083
[Illustration: Martin Jackson (A)]
[Illustration: Martin Jackson (B)]