*I*
*Interview with Nellie Loyd*
*Newberry, S.C.*
--_G.L. Summer, Newberry, S.C._
"I was born in Union County, S.C., near Goshen Hill, about 91 years ago.
I belonged to Mr. George Buchanan. He went to the war and got his right
arm shot off. After the war, his sons moved to Oklahoma. He was good to
his slaves, and never allowed any negro under 12 years of age to work in
the fields. I helped around the house until I was 12 years old.
"The soldiers were called 'minute men'. They had wide hats with palmetto
buttons in front. They sometimes mustered at Goshen Hill. Some of the
slaves was hanged for stealing, but my master never hanged any.
"I married Nozby Loyd soon after the war, and had three children. I come
to Newberry about thirty years ago, and have worked with white families
or in the fields."
*II*
*Interview with Nellie Loyd (91)*
*Newberry, S.C.*
--_G.L. Summer, Newberry, S.C._
"I lived wid Albert and Carrie Coleman. Dey is no kin, but dey give me a
place to live. I am too old to work much, but I does what I can to help.
"I was born near Goshen Hill in Union County, and I was a slave of Marse
George Buchanan. He give us good quarters to live in and plenty to eat.
He was a good master. I believe he never whipped any slaves, for I never
did hear of it if he did, and he never allowed anybody else to whip dem
either.
"My grand-mother's mother come from Virginia. It was said she was kin to
de Indians.
"I worked around de house most of de time. My mother cooked at de home
of Marse George. She kept de keys to de smokehouse where dar was always
plenty of home-raised smoked meat. Marse made his own flour, too. He
made salt by digging a deep hole in de ground and getting de mud dat had
salt in it. We never had our own gardens, but we had small watermelon
patches. Marse had a big garden.
"Marse had a blacksmith shop and he used charcoal in it. To make de
charcoal he would cut down pine trees and pile de big limbs up and put
dirt over dem; den burn de limbs and dat would leave de charcoal. He
would pour water over it den.
"Some of Marse Buchanan's boys went to war, and some of dem got killed.
Dey had patrollers den, and if dey caught you off de place dey would
have twelve men to whip you.
"We never worked at night except sometimes when it rained and we had to
get de corn shucked or de fodder hauled to de barn. Sometimes we picked
cotton by de light of de moon. We worked on Saturday afternoons but not
on Sundays. On Christmas we had a good time and good things to eat. De
men would drink beer and whiskey. Beer was made from locusts and
persimmons, and everybody would drink some of it.
"De slaves never learned to read and write. Dey never had any churches,
but dey had to go to church and so dey went to de white folks' church
and set in de back or de gallery. Niggers had lots of dancing and
frolics. Dey danced de 'flat-foot'. Dat was when a nigger would slam his
foot flat down on de floor. De wooden bottom shoes sho would make a loud
noise. At weddings everybody would eat and frolic.
"We had our own leather made and tanned at home; den it was tacked to de
wood soles to make shoes.
"When anybody got sick, de old folks made hot teas from herbs dat dey
got out of de woods. One was a bitter herb called 'rhu'. It was put in
whiskey and drunk to prevent sickness. Marse always give it to de nigger
children, and to de grown ups, too. Dey hung asafetida bags around de
necks of de kids to keep down sickness.
"When freedom come, Marse said we was free, but he kept us till dat crop
was finished, and some of de niggers stayed on for several years and
worked for wages.
"De yankees come through our section, and Marse hid his meat and things
in deep holes dat he dug in de cemetery. He built a fence around de
cemetery. De yankees took good horses and left poor ones. Dey made
niggers cook for dem all night. De Ku Klux wore white clothes and white
caps. Dey made out dey was ghosts from de cemetery, and dey would get a
man and carry him off, and we never would see him again. De Red Shirts
come in '76. I 'member my husband voted once or twice. He was a
Republican; but dey soon put a stop to dat.
"I think Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson must have been all right; just
heard about them. Dey said dat Jeff Davis surrendered under a June apple
tree. Just heard about Booker Washington and dat is all I know. Reckon
he is doing good work.
"I joined de church when I was quite young, because meningitis was in de
neighborhood killing so many folks and I got scared.
"Atter de war de niggers started up hill; den went back. Since dat time
up to now, dey has been working most on farms. Some rent small farms and
some work as wage hands or share-croppers. Dem dat went to town have
worked as carpenters and other such work.
"I can't 'member anything more, except dat marse had a still-house on
his place, and other farmers did, too. Dey made brandy and whiskey from
peaches, apples and grapes dat dey raised; den sold it to other farmers
in de neighborhood who didn't have as much as dey did."