On July 6th, I interviewed Susan Hamlin, ex-slave, at 17 Henrietta
street, Charleston, S. C. She was sitting just inside of the front door,
on a step leading up to the porch, and upon hearing me inquire for her
she assumed that I was from the Welfare office, from which she had
received aid prior to its closing. I did not correct this impression,
and at no time did she suspect that the object of my visit was to get
the story of her experience as a slave. During our conversation she
mentioned her age. "Why that's very interesting, Susan," I told her, "If
you are that old you probably remember the Civil War and slavery days."
"Yes Ma'am, I been a slave myself," she said, and told me the following
story:
"I kin remember some things like it was yesterday, but I is 104 years
old now, and age is starting to get me, I can't remember everything like
I use to. I getting old, old. You know I is old when I been a grown
woman when the Civil War broke out. I was hired out then, to a Mr.
McDonald, who lived on Atlantic Street, and I remembers when de first
shot was fired, and the shells went right over de city. I got seven
dollars a month for looking after children, not taking them out, you
understand, just minding them. I did not get the money, Mausa got it."
"Don't you think that was fair?" I asked. "If you were fed and clothed
by him, shouldn't he be paid for your work?" "Course it been fair," she
answered, "I belong to him and he got to get something to take care of
me."
"My name before I was married was Susan Calder, but I married a man name
Hamlin. I belonged to Mr. Edward Fuller, he was president of the First
National Bank. He was a good man to his people till de Lord took him.
Mr. Fuller got his slaves by marriage. He married Miss Mikell, a lady
what lived on Edisto Island, who was a slave owner, and we lived on
Edisto on a plantation. I don't remember de name cause when Mr. Fuller
got to be president of de bank we come to Charleston to live. He sell
out the plantation and say them (the slaves) that want to come to
Charleston with him could come and them what wants to stay can stay on
the island with his wife's people. We had our choice. Some is come and
same is stay, but my ma and us children come with Mr. Fuller.
We lived on St. Philip street. The house still there, good as ever, I go
'round there to see it all de time; the cistern still there too, where
we used to sit 'round and drink the cold water, and eat, and talk and
laugh. Mr. Fuller have lots of servants and the ones he didn't need
hisself he hired out. The slaves had rooms in the back, the ones with
children had two rooms and them that didn't have any children had one
room, not to cook in but to sleep in. They all cooked and ate downstairs
in the hall that they had for the colored people. I don't know about
slavery but I know all the slavery I know about, the people was good to
me. Mr. Fuller was a good man and his wife's people been grand people,
all good to their slaves. Seem like Mr. Fuller just git his slaves so he
could be good to dem. He made all the little colored chillen love him.
If you don't believe they loved him what they all cry, and scream, and
holler for when dey hear he dead? 'Oh, Mausa dead my Mausa dead, what I
going to do, my Mausa dead.' Dey tell dem t'aint no use to cry, dat
can't bring him back, but de chillen keep on crying. We used to call him
Mausa Eddie but he named Mr. Edward Fuller, and he sure was a good man.
"A man come here about a month ago, say he from de Government, and dey
send him to find out 'bout slavery. I give him most a book, and what he
give me? A dime. He ask me all kind of questions. He ask me dis and he
ask me dat, didn't de white people do dis and did dey do dat but Mr.
Fuller was a good man, he was sure good to me and all his people, dey
all like him, God bless him, he in de ground now but I ain't going to
let nobody lie on him. You know he good when even the little chillen cry
and holler when he dead. I tell you dey couldn't just fix us up any kind
of way when we going to Sunday School. We had to be dressed nice, if you
pass him and you ain't dress to suit him he send you right back and say
tell your ma to see dat you dress right. Dey couldn't send you out in de
cold barefoot neither. I 'member one day my ma want to send me wid some
milk for her sister-in-law what live 'round de corner. I fuss cause it
cold and say 'how you going to send me out wid no shoe, and it cold?'
Mausa hear how I talking and turn he back and laugh, den he call to my
ma to gone in de house and find shoe to put on my feet and don't let him
see me barefoot again in cold weather.
When de war start going good and de shell fly over Charleston he take
all us up to Aiken for protection. Talk 'bout marching through Georgia,
day sure march through Aiken, soldiers was everywhere.
"My ma had six children, three boys and three girls, but I de only one
left, all my white people and all de colored people gone, not a soul
left but me. I ain't been sick in 25 years. I is near my church and I
don't miss service any Sunday, night or morning. I kin walk wherever I
please, I kin walk to de Battery if I want to. The Welfare use to help
me but dey shut down now, I can't find out if dey going to open again or
not. Miss (Mrs.) Buist and Miss Pringle, dey help me when I can go there
but all my own dead."
"Were most of the masters kind?" I asked. "Well you know," she answered,
"times den was just like dey is now, some was kind and some was mean;
heaps of wickedness went on just de same as now. All my people was good
people. I see some wickedness and I hear 'bout all kinds of t'ings but
you don't know whether it was lie or not. Mr. Fuller been a Christian
man."
"Do you think it would have been better if the Negroes had never left
Africa?" was the next question I asked. "No Ma'am," (emphatically) dem
heathen didn't have no religion. I tell you how I t'ink it is. The Lord
made t'ree nations, the white, the red and the black, and put dem in
different places on de earth where dey was to stay. Dose black
ignoramuses in Africa forgot God, and didn't have no religion and God
blessed and prospered the white people dat did remember him and sent dem
to teach de black people even if dey have to grab dem and bring dem into
bondage till dey learned some sense. The Indians forgot God and dey had
to be taught better so dey land was taken away from dem. God sure bless
and prosper de white people and He put de red and de black people under
dem so dey could teach dem and bring dem into sense wid God. Dey had to
get dere brains right, and honor God, and learn uprightness wid God
cause ain't He make you, and ain't His Son redeem you and save you wid
His precious blood. You kin plan all de wickedness you want and pull
hard as you choose but when the Lord mek up His mind you is to change,
He can change you dat quick (snapping her fingers) and easy. You got to
believe on Him if it tek bondage to bring you to your knees.
You know I is got converted. I been in Big Bethel (church) on my knees
praying under one of de preachers. I see a great, big, dark pack on my
back, and it had me all bent over and my shoulders drawn down, all hunch
up. I look up and I see de glory, I see a big beautiful light, a great
light, and in de middle is de Sabior, hanging so (extending her arms)
just like He died. Den I gone to praying good, and I can feel de
sheckles (shackles) loose up and moving and de pack fall off. I don't
know where it went to, I see de angels in de Heaven, and hear dem say
'Your sins are forgiven.' I scream and fell off so. (Swoon.) When I come
to dey has laid me out straight and I know I is converted cause you
can't see no such sight and go on like you is before. I know I is still
a sinner but I believe in de power of God and I trust his Holy name. Den
dey put me wid de seekers but I know I is already saved."
"Did they take good care of the slaves when their babies were born?" she
was asked. "If you want chickens for fat (to fatten) you got to feed
dem," she said with a smile, "and if you want people to work dey got to
be strong, you got to feed dem and take care of dem too. If dey can't
work it come out of your pocket. Lots of wickedness gone on in dem days,
just as it do now, some good, some mean, black and white, it just dere
nature, if dey good dey going to be kind to everybody, if dey mean dey
going to be mean to everybody. Sometimes chillen was sold away from dey
parents. De Mausa would come and say "Where Jennie," tell um to put
clothes on dat baby, I want um. He sell de baby and de ma scream and
holler, you know how dey carry on. Geneally (generally) dey sold it when
de ma wasn't dere. Mr. Fuller didn't sell none of us, we stay wid our
ma's till we grown. I stay wid my ma till she dead.
"You know I is mix blood, my grandfather bin a white man and my
grandmother a mulatto. She been marry to a black so dat how I get fix
like I is. I got both blood, so how I going to quarrel wid either side?"
=Source:= Interview with *Susan Hamlin, 17 Henrietta Street.
NOTE * Susan lives with a mulatto family of the better type. The
name is Hamlin not Hamilton, and her name prior to her marriage was
Calder not Collins. I paid particular attention to this and had
them spell the names for me. I would judge Susan to be in the late
nineties but she is wonderfully well preserved. She now claims to
be 104 years old.
S-260-264-N
Project #1885
Augustus Ladson
Charleston, S.C.