fer old folks to try and fool. I is too shame to beg. I wants de
pension. Is you gwine to tell me 'bout it? Dis de truth, I is took a
chip fer food. If I could got to school and write fast as I can shake my
fist, I'd be a-giving out dat pension right fast. I likes character and
principle. I got a boy turned into 64 years. He got character and
principle, and he still do what I say. I never put my mouth amongst old
folks when I was young. Me and Zack often talks over old times."
Source: Elias Dawkins (84), Rt. 1, Gaffney, S. C.
Interviewer: Caldwell Sims, Union, S. C. 8/20/37.
Project 1885-1
FOLKLORE
Spartanburg Dist. 4
June 3, 1937
Edited by:
Elmer Turnage
STORIES OF EX-SLAVES
Upon learning where an ex-slave lived, the writer walked up to a house
on Pickenpack street where two old colored men were sitting on the front
porch. Asked if one of them was named 'Will Dill', the blacker of the
two motioned to himself and said,
"Come here, come in and have a seat," at the same time touching the
porch swing beside him.
He acknowledged that he lived in slavery days, "but was a small boy,
walking and playing around at that time". His master was Zeek Long, who
lived in Anderson County not far from "Three and Twenty Mile Creek' and
used to ask him:--what the rooster said, what the cow said, what the pig
said; and used to get a great deal of amusement out of his kiddish
replies and imitation of each animal and fowl. From his own calculation,
he figured he was born in 1862 in the home of his mother who was owned
by Zeek Long. His father, also, was owned by the same master, but lived
in another house. He remembers when the Yankees came by and asked for
something to eat. When they had gotten this, they went to the corn crib,
which was chock full of corn, and took the corn out, shucked it, and
gave it to their horses. All the good horses had been hidden in the
woods and only two or three old poor ones were left in the stables, but
the Yankees did not take these for they only wanted good horses. He
remembers seeing the patrollers coming around and checking up on the
'niggers'. He had an uncle who used to slip off every night and go to
see some colored girl. He had a path that he followed in going to her
house.
"One night Uncle Bob, he started to go see his gal, and it was pretty
late, but he followed his path. There were some paterollers out looking
for him, and t'rectly they saw him. Uncle Bob lit out running and the
paterollers started running, too. Here they had it up and down the path.
Uncle Bob, he knew there was a big ditch crossing the path, but the
paterollers didn't know it; so when Uncle Bob got to the gully, he
jumped right over it and run on, but one of the patrollers fell into the
gully and broke his neck. After dat, Uncle Bob, he stayed in and kept
quiet, for he knew the paterollers had it in for him."
He asked the writer if he had ever heard a chicken talk. He said that he
had, and described a scene at the house one day when a preacher was
there. The chickens and guineas came around the house as usual to get
their feed, but didn't get it. He "quoted" the rooster as saying; "Has
the preacher gone yet?" A guinea hen answered, "not yet--not yet".
He said that he often heard turkeys talk. They would ask each other
questions, and another fowl would answer. He once heard a mule that was
in the barn, say: "Lord! Lord! All I want is corn and fodder."
Being told by the negro who was sitting beside him, that he did not
believe animals and fowls could talk, he at once said:
"Sure--roosters and gobblers can talk, one day there was a turkey hen
and a lots of little turkeys scratching around a certain place on a
hill, the little turkeys were heard to say, 'Please mam, please mam'. An
old gobbler standing and strutting near, cried out, 'Get the hell out of
here'. The turkey hen then moved to another place to feed."
He said that he gets out in his porch early in the mornings and whistles
to the birds, and that soon a large flock of birds are all around him.
Offering to demonstrate his ability, he began to whistle in a peculiar
way. Soon thereafter, two or three English sparrows flew into the yard
from nearby trees.
"See thar! See thar!" he said, pointing to them.
"When the war was over," he continued, "we stayed on at Marster's
plantation for some time. I grew up, and was always a fellow who liked
hard work. I have railroaded, was a tree doctor, helped dig wells and
did a lot of hard work. The white people was always pleased with my work
and told me so. I went down a well once to help clean it out. It looked
like to me that well was caving in above me; so I hollered for them to
pull me out. When I got out, I told them I wasn't going down no wells
any more unless somebody threw me in."
He said that he had seen lots of wild turkeys when he was a boy. One day
when he was going to get some "bacco" for his aunt, he saw a hen and a
lot of little turkeys--
"I run after the little wild turkeys but I never kotched a one. That old
mother hen would fly from one limb in a tree to another limb in another
tree and call them. They was the runningest things I ever saw. I nearly
run myself to death but I never did get one."
Every now and them, he said, one of the men on the plantation would
shoot a wild hog and we would have plenty of meat to eat. The hogs ran
wild in those days, he said.
"I never saw a ghost," he said, "unless it was one night when we boys
was out with our dogs 'possum hunting. The dogs treed a possum in a
little scrubby tree. I was always a good climber; so I went up the tree
to shake the 'possum out. I shook and shook but the 'possum would not
fall out of the tree. I shook so hard that my hat fell off and I told
the niggers not to let the dogs tear my hat. That was no skunk in the
tree, 'cause we couldn't smell anything, but when I looked again at the
'possum, or whatever it was, it got bigger and bigger. I scrambled down
the tree right away, nearly falling out of it, but I wanted to get away.
The dogs acted kinda scared; yet they would run up to the tree and bark.
One old dog I had did not bark, he just hollered. We left the thing in
the tree. I don't know what it was, but it warn't no 'possum, for I'd
shook it out of the tree if it had been."
In further discussing the subject of fowls in talking among themselves,
he said that he had often noticed a rooster and some hens standing
around in the shade talking.
"The rooster will say something and the hens will listen; then answer
him back, 'yes'. One day I heard a turkey hen say, 'we are poor, we are
poor'. The old turkey gobbler said, 'well, who in the hell can help it.'
Yes sir, they talk just like we do, but 'taint everybody can understand
'em."
He said that he had fifteen children by his first wife. He remained
single for thirteen years after his wife's death, and never had any
children by his second wife.
"Do you reckon we'll ever get a pension in our old age?" he asked. "It
seems to me they would give us old fellows something to live on, for we
can't work. How can we live now-a-days? When a man has done good work
when he was able, the country ought to take care of him in his old age.
"I was a hand for hard work all my life. I was raised that way; but now,
that I can't do nothing, it looks like the state ought to take care of
me.
"My father told me when I was sitting up to a gal and I told him I was
gwinter marry her, 'Son don't you never cut that woman across the back,
for as sure as you do, that cut will be against you on Judgement Day."
"When I was laid up with the misery in my side, my feet swelled up and
busted, and I had a awful hurting in my side and back. People wanted me
to believe I had been conjured, but I did not believe it, and I told
them I would eat all the stuff that a conjure man could bring. Anybody
that believes in conjuring is just a liar. God is the only a person who
can bring suffering on people. He don't want to do it, but it's because
we do something He don't want us to when He makes people suffer. It is
the bugger man that does it."
"Uncle" Will said that his father and mother were married by a
"jack-leg" preacher who, when told that they wanted to get married, had
them both to jump backwards and forwards over a broom. He then told them
that they were man and wife.
Source: Will Dill, 555 Pickenpack St., Spartanburg, S. C.
Interviewer: F. S. DuPre, Spartanburg, Dist. 4 5/19/37
W. W. Dixon
Winnsboro, S. C.
THOMAS DIXON
EX-SLAVE 75 YEARS OLD.
Tom Dixon, a mulatto, is a superannuated minister of the Gospel. He
lives in Winnsboro, S. C., at the corner of Moultrie and Crawford
Streets. He is duly certified and registered as an old age pensioner and
draws a pension of $8.00 per month from the Welfare Board of South
Carolina. He is incapable of laborious exercise.
"I was born in 1862, thirteen miles northeast of Columbia, S. C., on the
border line of Kershaw and Fairfield Counties. My mother was a slave of
Captain Moultrie Gibbes. My father was white, as you can see. My mother
was the cook for my white folks; her name was Malinda. She was born a
slave of Mr. Tillman Lee Dixon of Liberty Hill. After she learned to
cook, my marster bought her from her master and paid $1,200.00 for her.
After freedom, us took the name of Dixon.
"My mistress in slavery time was Miss Mary. She was a Clark before she
married Marse Moultrie. I was nothing but a baby when the war ended and
freedom come to our race. I lived on my marster's Wateree River
plantation, with mother, until he sold it and went into the hotel
business at Union, S. C.
"My mother then went to Columbia, S. C., and I attended Benedict
College. I became a preacher in 1886, the year of the earthquake. That
earthquake drove many sinners to their knees, me amongst them; and, when
I got up, I resolved to be a soldier of the cross, and every since I
have carried the shield of faith in my left hand and the sword of the
Word in my right hand.
"The night I was converted, the moon was shining brightly. We was all at
a revival meeting out from Blythewood, then called Dako, S. C. First, we
heard a low murmur or rolling sound like distant thunder, immediately
followed by the swaying of the church and a cracking sound from the
joists and rafters of the building. The women folks set up a screaming.
The men folks set up a hollering: 'Oh Lordy! Jesus save me! We believe!
Come Almighty King!' The preacher tried to quiet us, but we run out the
church in the moonlight, men and women crying and praying. The preacher,
Rev. Charlie Moore, continued the services outside and opened the doors
of the church, and every blessed soul come forward and joined the
church.
"I married Fannie Irwin, and God blessed us all the days of her life. My
daughter, Maggie, married a Collins and lives in the Harlem section of
New York City. My daughter, Sallie, lives also in Harlem, Greenville
Village. Malinda, named for my mother, lives and works in Columbia, S.
C.
"On the death of my wife, Fannie, I courted and married the widow Lizzie
Williams. The house we live in is her own property. She had two children
when we married, a boy and a girl. The boy got killed at the schoolhouse
two years ago. The girl is working in Columbia, S. C. I am a
superannuated minister of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, and
receive a small sum of money from the denomination, yearly. The amount
varies in different years. At no time is it sufficient to keep me in
food and clothing and support.
"I have taken nothing to do with politics all my life, but my race has
been completely transformed, in that regard, since Mr. Roosevelt has
been President. Left to a popular vote of the race, Mr. Roosevelt would
get the solid South, against any other man on any ticket he might run
on. He is God Almighty's gentleman. By that, I mean he is brave in the
presence of the blue-bloods, kind in the presence of the common people,
and gentle to the lowly and despised Negro."
Project 1885-1
Folklore
Spartanburg, Dist. 4
Dec. 1, 1937
Edited by: Elmer Turnage
[~HW: (Dorroh~]
STORIES FROM EX-SLAVES
"I live wid my daughter in a four-room house which we rents from Doc
Hunter. He got it in charge. My husband died several years ago.
"My daddy was Harvey Pratt, and he belonged to Marse Bob Pratt in
Newberry. My mammy was Mary Fair, and she belonged in slavery to marse
Simeon Fair. When dey married dey had a big wedding. Marse didn't make
slave women marry men if dey didn't want to. Befo' my mammy and daddy
married, somebody give a note to take to Mrs. Fair, her mistress.
Mistress wouldn't tell what was in it, but daddy run every step of de
way, he was so glad dey would let 'em marry.
"Col. Simeon Fair had a big fish pond on his place down on de branch
behind his house, and he had a milkhouse, too. (This is where the
Margaret Hunter Park is).
"My great-grandmother come from Virginia. She was bought by Marse Fair
from a speculator's drove. Slaves had good places to live in and
everything to eat. Old Marse sho cared for his slaves. He give 'em
plenty of clothes and good things to eat. On Sundays dey had to go to de
white folks' church and he made dem put on new clean clothes dat he give
'em.
"I was born about two years befo' freedom, and I lost my mammy right
atter de war. I remember about de Ku Klux and Red Shirts.
"Everything we had was made at home, or on marster's big plantation in
de country. Marse told his son, Billy, befo' he died to take care of his
niggers and see dat dey didn't want for nothing.
"Marse made de slaves work all day and sometimes on Saturdays, but he
never let 'em work at night. Sometimes on de plantation dey had
corn-shuckings and log-rollings; den dey give de hands good dinners and
some whiskey to drink.
"One old nigger had a weak back and couldn't work much, so he use to
play marbles in de yard wid de kids most every day.
"Slaves couldn't go away from de place unless dey had a pass from de
marse to show de patrollers when dey caught dem out.
"My daddy use to cook at de old Newberry Hotel. He was one of de finest
cooks in dis part of de country. De hotel was a small wooden frame
building wid a long front piazza. In de back was a small wooden two-room
house dat servants lived in. Atter de war, de 'little guard house' stood
jes' behind where de opera house now is.
"Some of de slaves learned to read and write. Marse didn't keep dem from
learning if dey wanted to. Niggers used to sing, 'I am born to die'. Dey
learn't it from Marse Ramage's son, 'Jock' Ramage. He learn't 'em to
sing it.
"Atter de war, Marse told de niggers dey was free. Most of dem stayed on
wid him and took his name. Slaves most always took de name of deir
marsters.
"My mother married at Thomas Pope's place, and he had old man Ned
Pearson, a nigger who could read and write, to marry 'em. He married
lots of niggers den. Atter de war many niggers married over agin, 'cause
dey didn't know if de first marriage was good or not.
"Marse Fair let his niggers have dances and frolics on his plantation,
and on Saturdays dey danced till 12 o'clock midnight. Sometimes dey
danced jigs, too, in a circle, jumping up and down. In dese times de
young folks dance way into Sunday mornings, and nobody to stop 'em, but
Marse wouldn't let his slaves dance atter 12 o'clock.
"Everybody believed in ghosts. Nobody would pass by a graveyard on a
dark night, and dese days dey go to cemeteries to do deir mischief, at
night and not afraid. Doctors used to have home-made medicines. Old Dr.
Brown made medicine from a root herb to cure rheumatism. He called it
'rhue'. He lived in what is now called Graveltown. His old house has
been torn down. He made hot teas from barks for fevers. He made a liquid
salve to rub on for rheumatism.
"When freedom come most of de slaves stayed on. Some man come here to
make a speech to de slaves. He spoke in Marse Fair's yard to a big crowd
of niggers and told dem to stay on and work for wages. When de Yankees
come through here, dey stole everything dey could git deir hands on. Dey
went in de house and took food and articles. Marse put guards around his
house to keep dem out so dey wouldn't steal all de potatoes and flour he
had for his slaves. Ku Klux went around de country and caught niggers
and carpetbaggers. De carpetbaggers would hunt up chillun's lands, whose
daddys was killed and try to take dem. Dat was when Judge Leheigh was
here, and Capt. Bone was postmaster. Dey was Republicans, but when de
Democrats got in power dey stopped all dat.
"When I married John Dorroh I had a big wedding. We married at de Harp
place in Newberry, jes' behind de big house, in a nigger cottage. White
folks and niggers come. I was known amongst de best white families
'cause I served as cook for dem. I was married by Rev. J. K. Walls, a
nigger preacher from Charleston.
"I think slavery ended through de work of Almighty God. My mother always
said dat was it. My daddy left here and went to Memphis when I was five
years old. He sent home $40. He was in de army wid Major James Baxter.
He took care of de guns and things of de Major."
Source: Isabella Dorroh (N, 75), Newberry, S. C.
Interviewer: G. L. Summer, Newberry, S. C. 11/22/27.
Project 1885-1
Spartanburg, S. C.
May 31, 1937
Edited by: Martha Ritter
FOLKLORE: EX-SLAVES
"I was born in Newberry County, S. C. below Prosperity on Capt. George
De Walt's place. My daddy and mammy was Giles and Lizzie De Walt
Downing. My daddy belonged to de Outz family, but changed his name to
Downing--his master was Downing Outz. I was born about 1857. My mother
had 16 children, some died young.
I was a little chap when the war was here, but I remember de soldiers
coming home from de war. De Yankees went through here and stole all the
cattle and all the eats. De Ku Klux marched down de road dressed in
white sheets. Freedom come and most of the slaves went away, but I
stayed on wid Marse De Walt. Daddy worked wid Downing Outz for wages.
When I was 15 years old I worked in de fields like grown folks. I never
learned to read and write. We had no schools then for colored people. De
only church we had after freedom come was a small "brush arbor" church.
"We hunted rabbits, 'possums, squirrels, wild turkeys, doves and
partridges there.
"I joined de church when I was 20 years old, 'cause I thought times
would be better for me then. Of course, I kind of back-slided little
afterwards, but always tried to do right.
Source: Laurence Downing (80), Newberry, S. C.
Interviewer: G. Leland Sumer, Newberry, S. C.
Project 1885-(1)
Prepared by Annie Ruth Davis
Place, Marion, S. C.
Date, Jane 23, 1937
WASHINGTON DOZIER
Ex-Slave, 90 years
"Dis heah sho' Washington Dozier. Dat is wha' de hard time left uv him.
I born en raise dere in Florence County de 18th uv December, 1847. Don'
know 'xactly wha' my father name, but my mudder tell me he wuz name
Dozier. My mudder wuz Becky en she b'long to ole man Wiles Gregg dere on
de Charleston road. I hab two sisters en one brother, but not uv one
father. I s'ppose brother Henry wuz me whole brother en Fannie en
Ca'oline wuz jes me half sister."
"Well, dey ne'er hab so mucha sumptin, but I recollect dey make dey own
produce den. Oh, dey lib very well. We call it good libin' at dat time.
Coase de bedding de colored peoples hab wasn't much cause dey jes hab
some kind uv home-made stuff den. We raise in a t'ree room house wha'
hab floor on two uv de room. Hab house right dere on de Gregg
plantation. Family went from age to age in dat day en time wid dey own
Massa name. I 'member my gra'mudder was name Fannie Gregg. Now, I tell
yuh how I 'count fa me hab de name Dozier, I jes s'ppose dat come from
me father."
"Hadder do some sorta work in dem days lak hoe corn en replant en so on
lak dat, but ne'er didn't do no man work. Wuz jes uh half hand, dat is
'bout so. Dey gi'e us plenty sumptin to eat den, but ne'er pay us no
money. Coase dey didn't 'low us no choice uv wha' we eat at dat time.
Hab plenty meat en corn bread en molasses mos' aw de time. Den dey le'
us hab uh garden uv we own en we hunt possum many uh time en ketch fish
too. Meat was de t'ing dat I lak mostly."
"Dey gi'e us good clothes to put on us back wha' dey hab make on de
plantation en in de winter, dey gi'e us good warm clothes. Jes wear
wha'e'er de white folks gi'e us. Didn't take no 'ffect tall 'bout Sunday
clothes."
"Fust time I marry I hab uh very good wedding. Marry ole man Gurley
daughter o'er in Florence County. Don' know 'xactly how ole I was den,
but I c'n tell yah dis much, I wasn't in no herry to marry. Aw colored
peoples hadder do to marry den wuz to go to dey Massa en ge' uh permit
en consider demselves man en wife. I recollect dat we hab a very good
wedding supper dere. I marry Georgeanna de second time en I hab four
head uv chillun by me fust wife en four head uv chillun by me second
wife. Ne'er couldn't tell how many gran'chillun I got."
My Massa en Missus wuz mighty pious good people. Dey go to preachin'
dere to Hopewell Presbyterian Chu'ch aw de time. De man wha' wuz de
preacher dere den wuz name Frierson. De colored peoples go dere to dat
same chu'ch en sot en de gallery. Yuh know dere spirituals hymns en dere
reels. I c'n sing one uv dem dat I use'er sing in my slumberin' hours.
It go lak dis:
Chillun, wha' yuh gwinna do in de jedgment mornin'?
Chillun, wha' yuh gwinna do in de jedgment mornin'?
Oh Chillun, wha' yuh gwinna do in de jedgment mornin'
When ole Gable go down on de seashore?
He gwinna place one foot in de sea
En de udder on de land,
En declare tha' time would be no more,
Chillun, wha' yuh gwinna do?
Chillun, wha' yah gwinna do in de jedgment mornin'?
Chillun, wha' yah gwinna do in de jedgment mornin'?
Then chillun, wha' yuh gwinna do
When ole Gable go down on de seashore?
He gwinna place one foot in de sea
En de udder on de land,
En declare tha' time would be no more,
Then chillun, wha' yuh gwinna do in de jedgment mornin'?
"Now de angels sing dat to me in my slumberin' hour en dey sing it dat I
might gi'e it to de libin' heah on dis earth. Well, I know right smart
uv dem song cause accordin' to my 'sperience, de hymn book wha' to fence
de human family in. I got ah good set uv lungs en I wuz de one wha' lead
de flock den. Dere jes one grand reason why I can' sing right well dis
a'ternoon, yuh is take me on de surprise lak."
"I was jes uh chap in slavery time en I hadder stay dere home aw de time
whey dere didn't no harm come 'bout me. Dey le' we chillun play marbles
en ball aw we wanna den. Jes chunk de ball to one annuder o'er de house.
Dat how we play ball in dem times. My white folks didn't do nuthin but
stay home en go to chu'ch meetin's. Dey ne'er didn't punish none uv dey
colored peoples en didn' 'low no udder people to do it neither. I
couldn't tell yah how many slave dey own but dey hab more slave by de
increase uv dey families. Dey hab so many dat some uv de time dey'ud
hire some uv dem out to annuder plantation. Ne'er didn't see em sell
none uv dey colored peoples. I know dis much, dat wuz uh right good
place to lib."
"I heared tell uv trouble 'tween de whites en de colored peoples, but
dere wuzn't none uv dat 'round whey I stay. Dey say some uv de slave run
'way fa bad treatment en stay in de woods. Didn't hab no jails den en
when dey'd ketch em, dey'ud buff em en gag em en hoss whip em. Now, I
ne'er see none uv dat but I heared tell uv it."
"My Massa ne'er didn't work us hard lak. Coase uz de day' ud come, de
hands hadder go up to de big house en go 'bout dey business, but dey
al'ays knock offen early on uh Saturday evenin' en le' everbody do jes
wha' dey wanna dere on de plantation. Ne'er didn't use no horn to wake
dey colored peoples up en didn't wake em work en de big Christmus day en
New Years' neither. Ne'er hab no udder holidays but dem two. My Massa
gi'e aw his colored peoples uh big Christmus dinner to de white folks
house. Jes hab plenty uv fresh meat en rice en biscuit en cake fa
eve'ybody dat day."
"Dey hab funeral fa de colored peoples den jes lak dey hab dese days
'cept dey ne'er hab no preacher 'bout. Aw de slaves stop workin' fa de
funeral en dey'ud jes carry de body en permit it to de ground uz wuz de
usual t'ing dey do. Coase dey hab plenty singin' dere."
"Dem t'ing wha' people call ghostes, dey is evil walks. I know dis much,
de sperit uv de body travels en dat de truth sho' uz I libin' heah.
Coase I ain' ne'er see none uv dem t'ing en I ain' scared uv nuthin
neither. Don' ne'er pay no 'ttention to no black cat en t'ing lak dat.
Ain' bother wid none uv dem charm neither. De peoples use'er hab dey own
doc'or book en dey search dat en use wha' it say do. Dey ne'er use no
me'icine tall den but calomel en castor oil en turpentine."