Part 7

*William M. Thomas, 87, now residing at 514 Hayes St., Fort Worth, Texas, was born a slave of Dr. Frank Thomas, in Lauderdale County, Miss. William's father was sold when William was a baby and his mother mated with another slave. It was seven years after they were freed that the family left their master and moved onto a tract of land. William stayed with them until he was twenty-four, then worked twelve years in Galveston, as a stevedore. He farmed until 1910, then worked as a mortar man at the Purina Mills in Fort Worth until 1931. He and his wife receive a $13.00 monthly pension.*

"I knows 'zactly how old I is. Massa done give my mammy de statement. He do dat for all he niggers when dey freed. I's borned May 17th, in 1850, and dat make me eighty-eight next May. Dat's on Massa Doctor Frank Thomas's plantation, over near Meridian, in Mississippi. Dere forty-four slave families on he place and he own 'bout seven hunerd acres land, so him have plenty pasture, wood and field land. De money crop was cotton, of course.

"My mammy and sis was in de place and my step-pa. My pappy am sold and took to Texas when I's so li'l I don't 'member him. After dat, mammy done took another man.

"All de slaves live in quarters 'cept de house servants, and dey live in servants' quarters, and dere's where I's de lucky nigger. My mammy am cook for massa and I's round de kitchen what 'twas plenty of good eats. And I plays with massa's two boys, 'twas Frank and Lawrence.

"I's so li'l 'fore surrender I never really works, 'cept to be de errand boy. I fetches eggs and sich. Massa have lots of chickens and us fetch in high as a thousand eggs in one day sometimes. Us have eggs to eat, too. Massa Thamas am awful good and dere am never de holler 'bout feedin'. I bet none dem niggers done live so good after dey free.

"Us have all de meat us want, mostest pork and beef and mutton. Dey kills five hunderd hawgs when killin' time came, and make hams and bacon and sausages. If yous ever ate sich ham and bacon what am made by massa's butcher right dere on de place, you say dere never am sich. Dat sausage, it make de mouf water to think 'bout it. 'Sides de meat, us have cornbread and 'lasses and de rations ain't measure out, 'cept de white flour on Sunday mornin'. All week de meals am cook in dat kitchen and serve in de big shed, but each family cook for deyself on Sunday.

"Us go to church if us want, 'bout four miles off. Massa give anybody de pass to go dere. Dere am no parties and sich, but old Jack saw on de fiddle and us sing.

"Massa didn't whip, only once. Dat 'cause a nigger steal he fav'rite pumpkin. He am savin' dat for to git de seed and it am big as de ten gallon jug. De corn field am full of pumpkins, but dat nigger done took massa's choice one. Dat pumpkin am so big, he have to tussle with it 'fore he git it to he cabin. It like stealin' a elephant, you can't hide it in de watch pocket. Course, lots of niggers seed dat cullud gen'man with dat pumpkin, and 'fore long massa knew it.

"Well, sar, it am de funny sight to see him punish dat nigger. First, massa set him down on de ground front de quarters, where us all see him. Den he make dat nigger set down and give him de big bowl pumpkin sauce and make him eat it. Him eat and eat and git so full him can't hardly swallow and massa say, 'Eat some more, it am awful good.' Dat nigger try, but him can't eat no more. Massa give him de light breshin' and it am funny to see, dat cullud gen'man with pumpkin smear on he face and tears runnin' down he face. After dat, us chillen call him Massa Pumpkin and massa never have no more trouble with stealin' he seed pumpkins.

"When war starts I's 'bout fifteen year old. 'Bout half mile from de plantation am de crossroads and one go to New Orleans and one go to Vicksburg. Dere am a 'Federate camp dere at de start, but after 'while dey goes and de Yanks comes. Dere a battle near, and us hear de shootin' but us have to stay on de place.

"I done slip off and see de camp, though. De Yanks puts up two big tents and use dem for de hospital and de wounded am fetch dere. What I sees and hears dere, I never forgits, and it done turn dis nigger 'gainst war. Why can't dey settle dey 'sputes without killin'? Dey's moanin' and cryin' and screamin' in dem tents.

"One day de Yanks come clean de crib of all de corn and de meat house of all de meat. Massa am smart and fix it so dey don't find all de rations. Him dig a big ditch in de woods and hide lots of rations.

"Us didn't know when freedom came. It a long time after dat de Yanks come tell us, and it de same way on all de plantations round dere. De Yanks come and make massa pay us all fifty cents de day. After dat massa puts dem what wants to go on pieces of land and dey ain't charge for it till seven year after. Den dey has to pay rent and part de crop, and for de mules and tools all de time.

"I stays with my folks till I's twenty-four year old and den I's on my way to Galveston and gits work as de stevedore. Dat am on de wharf and I works dere twelve year. I votes dere two times. Some white folks done come to us, and de boss, too, and gives us de ticket. It am all mark up. Boss say us don't have to work de next day, and us to report at a place. When us comes dere, 'twas a table with meat and bread and stuff for to eat, and whiskey and cigars. Dey give us something to eat and a cup or two of dat whiskey and puts de cigar in de mouth. Us am 'portant niggers, ready to vote. With dat cup of whiskey in de stomack and dat cigar in de mouth and de hat cock on side de head, us march to de votin' place and does our duty. Fix up de way us was, us would vote to put us back in slavery. And de nigger what didn't vote, after all dat, him am in for de fixin'. I means he gits fixed. Dey pounds he head till him won't forgit to do it right next time.

"But I gits to thinkin' how massa say when us leave him, 'Don't let no white folks use you for to make trouble.' I figgers dat what am happenin' with dat votin' business, and I quits votin' and goes to farmin'. I 'lieve de cullud folks should vote, but not de igno'mous niggers like us was den.

I farms till 1910 and den comes to Fort Worth, and dey am buildin' de Purina Mills Elevators on East 4th Street and I works dere at mortar work. Den I works at cement on lots de big buildin's in dis city, till 'bout ten year ago, when it git too hard for me. I has de back misery.

"I gits married to Phillis Wilson when I's twenty-nine, in Galveston, and us don't allushave lots, but us gits by and raises de family. Now us have to live on de pension from de State, what am $13.00, and sometimes us am awful short, tryin' to pay de rent and buy de rations and what clothes us needs, but us am glad to git it. Ten chillen am what us raises and five am dead and four am scattered and us don't know where, and one live here.

""Ain't it diff'rent how peoples lives? Us used to travel with de ox and now dey flies in de sky. Folks sings in New York and us sets right here and hears dem. Shucks! De way things am gwine, I's all fussed up and can't understand whether I's gwine or comin'."

Mary Thompson

*Mary Thompson was born a slave 87 years ago, in Denton, Miringo County, Alabama. Her mother, Viney Askew, and father, Wesley Jones, belonged to Green Askew, a Georgian. She was 15 when she was freed. Mary now lives at 1104 East Avenue, Austin, Tex.*

"I was bo'n in Alabama and my mother was Viney Askew. She belonged to Marster Green Askew. My father was Wesley Jones, 'cause he took his marster's name.

"My mother was a good cook and she cooked for de marster. She had a great big stove and she made salt-risin' bread, too. We and all de slaves lived in cabins near de big house and some of de slaves would have chillen by de marster.

"When we come home from de fields at night, de women cooked de food and den dey was so tired dey jus' went to bed. We didn' have fun in de evenin's, but on Christmas mornin' de marster give us eggnog and sich. Den we'd sing but I don' 'member de songs now.

"De crops in Alabama would be cleared by July 4 and den we'd have sev'ral days off, all de slaves. Dey'd give us pits of barbecue and pies and cakes to eat.

"When we was sick de marster would sen' for de doctor and we made teas outta herbs and sich. Alabama was full of chills and fevers in dem days and we drunk catnip tea for fevers and blue and white sage. Calamus root, looks like an onion, was good for de chillens' colic.

"My mistress' niece had a big plantation and she had a place whar she had de slaves whopped. She had a reg'lar whoppin' post. My marster jes' had a large cowhide whoop. Yes, I got a whoppin' more'n once. Sev'ral times marster took hold my ears and bumped my head 'gainst de wall. But gen'rally dey was good to me.

"We wasn't 'lowed no whiskey, 'less we was sick. De poor white folks was good to us, better'n rich folks. Dey'd give us a quarter now'n den.

"I can 'member how de slaves was fattened like hawgs and den marched to town and 'round and auctioned off like cattle. Some of 'em had done somethin' mean and was sold off. Some of 'em brought more'n a thousand dollars down in New Orleans.

"I knows of one slave who liked to run 'round at night. She was nuss to marster's girl and she give it morphine to put it to sleep. She give de baby girl so much morphine dat her body was full of it and she died. De cullud folks got to talkin' too much and de baby was dug up and 'xamined. De slave nuss was put in jail and kep' there a long time and den she was sold.

"Heap of de slaves would run away and go up north. Dey would try to find 'em by sendin' nigger houn's after 'em. Once de houn's caught a slave and he kep' sayin', 'O, Lawd ... O, Lawd!'

"After de war, when we was free, de slaves would go here and there and a lot of 'em died. Dey'd git de black measles, go out in de woods and die. Dey didn' know how to take care of demselves.

"I stayed at marster's house eight months, den hired out at ten dollars a month. Dat was de fus' money I ever made and I didn' want to go to school, 'cause I wanted to make dat money. Dat looked like big money to me. I was proud to have it, 'cause I could git what I wanted. I cain't read or write to this day.

"I was married to General Thompson, and he'd been a slave too, in Alabama. Yes, General was his given name. I was 16 years old when I married and a white preacher married us durin' a 4th of July celebration. Yes, we had a big time and a good time.

"We come to Texas later and my husban' farmed on the Brazos. We had eight chillen, and two of 'em is livin.' My husban' died and I buried him, den I took up with a Horace Foster, and he was nothin' but a gambler. I lived with him 'bout 8 years, but he never would marry me, so I lef' him."

Penny Thompson

*Penny Thompson, 86, now living at 1100 E. 12th St., Fort Worth, Texas, was born a slave to Calvin Ingram, in Coosa Co., Alabama. In 1867 Penny was brought to Tyler, Texas, and several years later she married Ike Thompson and moved to Fort Worth.*

"Do I 'member slavery days? Yes, suh! How could I forgit dem? For an old person I has good 'collection. I's 10 year old when de war start and my massa am Calvin Ingram. My mammy and pappy was a weddin' present to Massa Ingram from his pappy. Mammy give birth to 15 chilluns, but I never saw any of my brothers and sisters, 'cause they all born on Massa Ingram's pappy's plantation 'fore he give my mammy to Massa Ingram.

"De plantation dat Massa Ingram have was 200 acres or mo'. Him own 'bout 20 grown-up slaves, and on dat place dey raises 'bout everything we eats and wears, includin' de vinegar and de peach brandy. Everybody am 'signed to dey duties and my mammy am chief cook for de big house. I he'ps her and feeds chickens, gits eggs and totes water.

"De treatmen' couldn't be better. Massa am de bestes' and de kindes' fellow dat ever live. He am in Heaven, for sho', but de missy mus' be in Hell, for she sho' was a debbil. Massa have de fight with her lots of times 'bout de treatment of us, but he wouldn't let her 'buse us.

"We'uns was never hongry for food, 'cause we have lots of meat, chickens and eggs and cornmeal and 'lasses and honey. De hams is smoked on de place and dey am de hams, white man, dey am de hams! Den massa have a big cellar jus' full of everything and I never forgit de big, brass key what lock dat cellar. Dere was de jams and de jellies and de preserves, and de massa give us somethin' of all of dat. Him makes de gran' peach brandy and every mornin' we could have two fingers in de glass. 'Twas de same at night. Dere was somethin' else was reg'lar every mornin' and night and dat am de prayer. He calls all us together and says de prayers. I often thinks of dat brandy and de prayers, two times every day.

"As for de whuppin,' dere wasn't any on massa's place. Him have only one nigger what am unruly and dat am Bill McClure, and a bigger thief never lived.

"On de nex' plantation dey gives de whuppin' and we hears dem niggers beller. On dat plantation dey trades and sells de niggers all de time and de speculation wagon comes by often. Sometime it am awful to see de babies sold from de mothers and de wife from de husban'. Sich bemoanin' at some of dem sales, yous jus' can't 'magine.

"But on massa's place we has no tradin' of slaves and we'uns have pass for go to church and parties and de dance. When de night for de party come on our place, de yard am cleaned off and we makes sandwiches. One time massa come to me and say, 'Jus' wait a minute, I nearly forgits de mos' 'portant part,' and he give me a new pink dress. I's so happy I cries for joy, and everybody says I looks like de Queen of Sheba.

"De other big time am de corn huskin' bee. Once a year all de neighbors comes fust to one place den to de other. At de huskin's, dey gives de prize when you finds a red ear. De prize am two fingers of dat peach brandy. When dey gits de fus' one dey works a little harder, de second still faster, and de third, Lawd-a-massy, how dem husks do fly! Dey don't git drunk, 'cause you am lucky to find as much as three red ears at one huskin'.

"We has de weddin's too, but no preacher or cer'mony. When a man sees a girl him likes and de girl am willin', dey says dey wants a weddin'. De womens cooks extra and dey gits de cedar boughs and wets dem and sprinkles flour on dem and puts dem on de table. We sits at de table and eats and sings 'ligious songs and after supper dey puts de broom on de floor an de couple takes de hands and steps over de broom, and den dey am put to bed.

"We was never bother with de patter rollers, but I 'members a song 'bout dem, like dis:

"'Up de hill and down de hollow Patter rollers cotched nigger by de collar; Dat nigger run, dat nigger flew, Dat nigger tear his shirt in two.'

"In de war soldiers comes to massa's place and every time he feeds dem. You hears de clippity clop of de hosses and dey is off de saddle 'fore you gits to de door. Dey says, 'We wants de meal,' or maybe dey wants to sleep. Massa's wife say, 'I's not goin' do nothin' for dem blue bellies,' but massa make her fix de chicken. Dere was everything dere but manners, 'cause dey have de pistols drawed.

"After freedom, mos' of us stays with massa, 'cause we don't know where to go and we don't want to go, but 'fore long massa dies and dat was mournin' time. After de death, we all leaves.

I marries Bill Thompson but he won't work so after 15 year I gits de divorcement."

Albert Todd

*Albert Todd, 86 years old, was born a slave to Capt. Hudson, in Russellville, Kentucky. His master was killed in the Civil War and he then came to Texas in a covered wagon. His "Missus" kept him a slave for three years after the War. He now lives with his wife, daughter and two sons at 703 Center St., San Antonio, Texas.*

"I most suppose my memory is too jumpy, but I'll try to bring it 'long from de time I was born. I don't know de year, but it was in Russellville, Kentucky and my massa, Captain Hudson, had a fruit orchard. My reg'lar work was protectin' my young missus, Nannie Hudson. She had to walk five miles to and forth from school every day and I was her protector. I was only 8 and she was 11. I sat on the steps until she got through larnin' and then brung her home. She come to be grown and married and died, but I allus loved her.

"When war comes, my massa goes and gets kilt and my missus got 'gusted with the orchard and packs up in two covered wagons and heads crossland to Texas. We finally gets to Lavernia and gets a farm and us worked plenty hard.

"Our missus was good to us, but one white man neighbor got a new set of niggers every year. He say if they didn't die, they wasn't any good work left in them after they works for him a year. He allus cut off one they ears, so if they run away he'd know 'em.

"My clothes was a long shirt, made out of a meal sack. That's all I wore them days. I was a slave three year after the others was freed, 'cause I didn't know nothin' 'bout bein' free. A Mrs. Gibbs got holt of me and makes me her slave. She was a cruel old woman and she didn't have no mercy on me. She give me one sausage and one biscuit in the mornin' and nothin' else all day. One day she gone and I stole some biscuits, and she comes back and says, 'Did you take them biscuits?' She tells me if I tells de truth she won't punish me, but she knocks me down and beats me till I not know nothin'. But after 'while her house burns and she burns up in it.

"But 'fore that I was goin' to run away and I goes to the road and sits down and then my sisters comes 'long and finds me and takes me to a place where they was livin' on the ranch of a man name Widman. We works for him a long time and then I is free from that Gibbs woman."

Aleck Trimble

*His skin was of an extremely dark chocolate color, his hair thin and gray. A blue shirt was about his body while blue trousers enclosed his nether limbs. His bare feet protruded as he sat on an old dilapidated chair. Under his flat nose was a gray mustache, and one eye had completely lost its vision. This small negro man was Aleck Trimble who thoughtfully told the story of his life. [HW: Veth, Tex.]*

"I was bo'n in 1861. I warn't much of a chile when freedom come, but yet dey's right smart of t'ings I kin 'member in slavery times."

"My pa name was Aleck Trimble and dat's my name, too. My ma was Ellen Trimble and I was de onlies' son. I didn' hab no brudders. Ol' marster's las' name was Alexander, but I dis'member his fus' name."

"I uster hafter do a li'l wuk 'roun' de place like pullin' up weeds and drivin' de calfs. I 'member one time I was drivin' a calf up to de lot and I saw a crazy man. He didn' try to do nuffin' to me. I jis' walk up on him and he sittin' dere mumblin' and I know right den dere was sump'n' wrong wid him. He didn' try to hu't me nor run atter me, but he sho' scare me and I run away from him fas' as I kin."

"I warn't so glad when freedom come. I was a-farin' pretty well in de kitchen. I didn' t'ink 'eber see better times dan what dem was, and I ain't. I t'ought I was jis' as near hebben as I want to be. It didn' look to me like dey coulder been no betterer dan what dey was."

"I uster had jis' all I want to eat. Us hab biscuit and syrup, and plenty milk and butter. And dey give us all de collard greens and hog jowls us could hol'."

"Dey uster had lots of cows and all de milk and butter anybody want. Dey had a big bucket hangin' in de well. Dey put de butter in dat in de summer time to keep it from meltin'. How dey kep' it from sp'ilin'? Why, dey et it up, dat's how dey keep it from sp'ile."

"I neber see 'em do de slaves bad. Iffen dey did dey tek 'em off in de woods somers where nobody see 'em."

"Sometime nigger traders come 'long de road wid a big drove of niggers. I neber pay dat no min' though. It was jis' a drove of niggers to me."

"Dey gimme 'bout as good clo's as I got now. When I was doin' 'roun' de yard at Marster' house I wo' a shu't wid pleats 'cross de bosom in front."

"Dey gimme some britches befo' freedom come, and den I t'ought I's 'bout as big as anybody. Dey gimme dem when I was big 'nuff to dribe de calfs up from de lot. But I neber go in de fiel' to wuk."

"Atter freedom come I go to school to a white lady name' Mrs. Tunsten she had a son name' Waddy. She teach de school at Shiloh and all de white chillun and nigger chillun go to school in de same room. She teach her own chillun in dat school on de Huntsville road. I 'member de stages and t'ings gwine by. I t'ought she was a good teacher, but she whip me half a day one time 'cause I didn' spell "gangrene." She whip me 'till I learn how to spell it and I ain't neber forgit. I kin spell dat word yit. I's satisfy she from de Nor'f. Dere was a ol' stage stan' dere by de school house."

"I went to dat teacher and dat school t'ree or fo' year'. Atter she quit teachin' dey was other teachers what come drappin' in and teachin' t'ree or fo' months."

"My pa he uster wuk in de fiel' 'till freedom come. My ma she wuk in de kitchen. Dat how come I git so much outer de kitchen to eat. Sometime she hafter wuk in de fiel' too."

"Jis' like I say, I stay 'roun' de big house. I raise up wid de white chillun 'till I was 25 or 30 year' ol'."

"I t'ink dey stay at de ol' place a year or mo' atter freedom. Den dey 'gin to drif' 'roun' to diff'rent place w'ere dey find wuk to do. I stay wid de ol' folks and he'p s'po't (support) 'em wid what money I git for de wuk what I doin'. My ma lef' my pa at de ol' plantation, and her and me and a gal what was ol'er dan me, what was my sister, us move."

"De fus' wuk I done and de fus' money I mek was pickin' cotton for a white man. De fus' money I git I buy me a ol' Webster Blue-back speller. Lawd, I uster look at dat book sometime 'till dem A B C's all run togedder seem like."

"Dat plantation was de Johnnie Murchison plantation. Us stay dere 'bout five or six year'. Atter dat I lef' dere and went to wuk for cullud man what was name' Sam Scott. I wuk 'roun' in de fiel' and go to mill when I was on dat place."

"I 'member seein' de sojers. Dey was a big troop of 'em come marchin' down de road. Dey was all of 'em dress' up in blue coats and some of 'em had blue capes over dey shoulders. Dey had wagons and lots of sich t'ings comin' 'long behin'."

"I can't tell you much 'bout de ol' marster 'cause I didn' see him eb'ry day. Lots and lots of time I didn' hab no notion where he was."

"Dey was a large troop of cullud folks on de place. When dey want 'em dey blow a bugle or ho'n or sump'n'."

"I git marry in Houston county. I don' 'member what year it was but it was back in Cleveland's 'ministration. Den atter while she die and dat lef' me a widower. Den 'bout 28 year' ago I marry Ollie Washington. I was wukkin' for Scott befo' I marry Washington. Dat's my li'l 'dopted gran'chile dere. You see dat t'ing 'roun' her neck? Dat's hoss hair roll up in a clo'f. Dat to he'p when she teethin'. Dat good for stomach and bowel trouble, too. Long as she wear dat she ain't gwine to hab no fever in de head needer. I gwine to let her wear it 'till she finish cuttin' her teef. I jis' put dat rag 'roun' it to keep it from stickin' her. You kin see how healthy she is."

"Anudder t'ing what good for chillun when dey's teethin' is for to tek a rabbit head and 'noint (anoint) dey gums good wid rabbit brains. Some of de ol' folks wear a dime tie' 'roun' dey leg wid a hole in it for de rheumatism."

"May-apple for a good purgative too, but you got to know how to use it. Iffen you don' use it right though, it gwine to stir up your stomach and mek you sick. And you better not drink no milk when you tek dat May-apple root and you don' want to eat nuffin' needer. Dat's bitter'n quinine."