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Russellville, Arkansas
Age 75?
"No sir, I don't remember hearing my parents ever tell me just when I was born, the year or the month, but it was
sometime during the War. My parents' master was named Mentor--spelled M-e-n-t-o-r. We came to Pope County
several years after the War, and I have lived here in Russellville forty years and raised our family here. Father
passed away about fifteen years ago.
"Mother used to tell me that the master wasn't overly kind to them. I remember she used to talk of some money
being promised to them after they were freed, but I don't know how much. But I do know that none was over paid to
them.
"No sir, I cannot read or write.
"I have been a member of the A. M. E. Church ever' since I was a little girl."
NOTE: Mrs. House is very neat in her dress and general deportment, is industrious, and keeps busy working here
and there at odd jobs, but her memory is very uncertain as to many important details about her ancestry.
(Mrs. Mildred Thompson, Mrs. Carol Graham, El Dorado District,)
Ex-Slave - Hoodoo - Haunted Houses
Aunt Pinkey Howard, an old negress of slavery days, can't "comember her age but she must be about 85 or 86 years
old as she was about fourteen or fifteen when the war closed. In speaking of those days Aunt Pinkie said:
"Oooh, chile, you ought to been there when Mr. Linktum come down to free us. Poliecemen aint in it. You ought ter
seen them big black bucks. Their suits was so fine trimmed with them eagle buttons and they was gold too. And
their shoes shined so they hurt your eyes. I tell yo ah cant comember my age but it's been a long time ago.
"My ole Marsa Holbrook lived at Hillsboro and he was a good marsta. I never went hungry or wid out cloes in them
days. Slavery days was good old days. These days is hard days. Po' ole neeger caint git enough to feed herself.
Them days weuns made our cloth and growed our food and never paid for it. Never did want for nothin' and marster
had heaps of slaves. Use to bring them across Moro Bay and them neegers always fighting and running off. They'd
run off and go across Moro Bay trying to get back home. Marsta neva went after em. Said: "Let 'em go. Aint no
count no ways."
"I wooden take $100 for living in slavery days and I member when they all parted out. Mr. Linktum come down.
Yasum, Mr. Abe Linktum andhis partner Horace Greeley, comed down. Lieutenants and "Sarges" all comed. And
some big yaller buck niggers all dressed up fine. I served Mr. Linktum myself wid my own hands. Yasum I did. I
fotched cold water from the spring on a waiter and I stood straight an held it out just like dis in front of me. Yasum
and his partner, Mr. Horace Greeley too. And them big yaller buck niggars went in the kitchen where my mammy
was cookin and tole her: "Git out er hear nigger. You don have to wait on dese white fokes no much. Yasum dey
did. And they done said: "You aint got no more marster and no more missus. Yo don ' have to work here no more."
But my mother said: "I 'se puttin old marster's victuals on to cook. Wait till I gets em on." An they tole her again
that she didn't have no more marster and no more missus. "I tole my mammy to kick him down the step but she said
she was afeard he would shoot her. All I hates about them barges" and Lieutenants is they never did shave. Them
days all wore whiskers. I"comember" when I was a little chap standin on the block with my mammy and being sold.
But Ah always had a good marster.
"Ah members standin on muther block to cook. Tables was high to keep nothin from iraggin things off. Grandma
Aiken learnt me to cook an I stood on a block and made out biscuits with a spoon. Ah neber put my scratchers in the
dough in my life. And I could cook good too. Was knowed as the drummers cook. Drummers would come through
Am New Orleens and et at ole marsters and bragged on my cookin and tried to git me ter go wif them to New
Orleans and cook fuh they wives.
Mah fust name was Pinkie Dixon. I was married on ole mistesses front gallery and mah name was Cook then. Next
time ah married mah name was Howard.
"Ah can count but not to member hit. Ah don' know the number of my chilluns but ah kin name em. There's Alec,
Henry, Minnie, Ellen, Mary, Cola, Seebucky, Crawford, Sarah and Ruby. Seebucky was named fer Sears and
Roebuck. Cause at that time weuns ordered things fum them and ordered Seebuckys clo'es fore she cam fum ther.
That why we named 'er that.
"Ah deednt git no book larnin. Ah larnt enough to keep out of devilment and ah nowed how to cook. Now these
fools aroun here don' know nothin. They never did see Linktum or Horace Greeley. Ah wishes it was work time
agin but ah caint hold out now."
"Ah never gits hot nor cold lak yo does. Ah takes mah cold bath ever mornin and a feels good."
Thus old aunt Pinkey rambled on and on talking of this and that and especially De good days - slavery days. She
evidently thought that some of the army officers were Lincoln and Greeley. She probably heard her master or
mistress talk about whose men and got them confused with the army officers who visited in the home.
Old Marion Johnson was seven years old when the war closed. Is 79 now. chillun let me tell you ah don want to go
over what I done been over. Not agin. In slavery days we had plenty toeat and plenty to wear but since then Oh,
Lordy. my old Mawster's name was Alex Anderson and he lived in Jackson Parrish, Louisiana. ustuh say youh
wants me to tell you some tales about ole times, Chostes and the like. Well ah sure can if ah gits started but
somehow I jest don' seem wound up this mawnin.
"One time there was a man what had a house full of daughters and his girl Janie wanted to git married. Her lover
asked her father's permission to wed. He said: tell Mr. have you got any objection to me and your daughter Janie
maryin'?" The old man didn't want the young one to see how anxious he was to get rid of his daughter so he said:
"You wantin to marry my daughter, Janie? Janie don't want ter get married." The girl was behind the door listening
and when her father said that she spoke up and said: "Yes I do pappa, bad." The young man said: "See there now we
both wants to git married." The ole man spoke then and said: "Well, damn you, dash you, take her."
"You know what the clocks says? The big old mantle clocks we used to have ticked along real slow and they said:
"Take your time. Take your time. Take your time." The little alarm clocks of today say: "Get together. Get together.
Get together." And that is jes like the young folks. When I was young the young folks them days young folks took
their time and went together a long time and they married they stayed married. The young folks today rush around
and get married in a week and fust thing you knows they is done duvoced and married agin. They is jest as diffunt
as the decks is diffunt.
"You knows if you makes up yo mind to do somethin and asks the Lord to help you he will. I was comin along that
path in June 12 years ago. I chewed Brown Mule tobacco and wanted a chaw. I had been plowing all day and when
I pulled the tobacco outen my pocket it was wet where I had sweated on hit and the outer leaves was all curled up so
I said "Lord help me" and throwed it out in the weeds and havn't taken a chew since.
"Youns notice how the youngans cuss this day. The womens too. In the olden days the women didn't cuss out loud
but they did "wooden cussin." Now I bet you girls is done wooden cussin lots o times. Loose youre tamper and want
to say things and don't dare to you slams chairs around on the floor when you is movin them to sweep. That is
wooden cussin.
"You says you is interested in buried treasure? Well near Strong where the CCC Camp is was a place of buried
treasure. Madam Hartline and three other white folks and myself went down there in a car. With a finding rod
(divining rod) we located the treasure. Then I took this here proving rod you sees here and drove hit down in the
groun till hit struck somethin hard. A voice from somewhere said: "What you all doing here? What you after?" Ever
body lit a shuck to the car and nobody ever did go back to see about the treasure. You says why did I run? Dese
feets was made to take care of this body and I used am is all.
"When ah was a young man and livin down in Louisiana below Farmerville ah went with a bunch of white fellows
to dig fer buried gold. They didn't begin diggin until after dark. Six men were on guard. We dug by a light made by
a big pine torch. Dug and dug and dug. Finally we struck hit. Got hit all uncovered and sure nuff there hit was. Jest
then the torch blew out and we heard the quarest noises and ever' body run to camp. Hit jest poured down rain that
night and the next mornin, we went back to get the money and hit was gone.
"And you says you is interested in spooks and ghosties. Down in Louisiana Dr. Fred Hodge (white) had me to hitch
up his buggy and go with him on my horse to make a call many miles away from home one night. Hit must have ben
bout nineteen miles. I was ter go on some other place with him but the patient was so bad that he had ter stay and
sont me on in the buggy an kept my horse to ride back. I was glad to git the buggy sos I could take my gal for a ride.
The doctor stayed till bout four o'clock in the mornin. He had to go home by a graveyard. There was a big white oak
tree growin by the side of the road and when the doctor passed there every limb fell off the tree and left the naked
tree standin there. The doctor rode back to the house where he had been and he rode so fast that the horse was
winded when he got there. The man went in back with him and there stood the tree just as hit was afore ever a limb
fell ofn it.
"Nother man I knew went to town on horseback and bought a bolt of domestic for his wife and tied it on the back of
his saddle. He had to pass a cemetery. Jest as he passed he noticed a flapping sound and looked back tosee sumpin
white wavin behind. He whipped hi horse and made him run and the faster he ran the more the flapping sounded
and it got longer and longer behind him. At last he got home and found that the domestic had got unwrapped and
was flappin in the wind. The man was plumb weak and the horse died he had run him so hard.
"An talk of hainted houses. This here one that ahm livin in is hainted. Frank Thompson a yaller nigger died here
before me and mah wife moved here. Before mah wife died, weuns would hear things and mah wife said hit was
Frank Thompson come beck. We would be in bed and would hear fokes walkin aroun and the door would come
unlatched and come open. Mah wife would say that hit was Frank Thompson's sperit come back and as soon as he
got through ramblin aroun she would git up and bolt the door agin. One Satiday night me and her went to town. On
cur way back as we was comin acrost that little ditch out thar she said to me step aside Marion and let Frank
Thompson pass. Don' you see him comin? And we stepped aside an she said he passed and we come on home. Ah
hears him now at times walkin aroun and goin in and out the doors but ah aint never done seen him like she has.
"Now ah'll tell you about a curious happenin'. One time down in Louisiana a brown skin girl died. When they
started to the graveyard with her the sun was shinin as purty as hit is right now they lowered the coffin in the grave
and it "come-inced" to rain hard and ever'body run in the church and stayed till it quit raining. The rain stood in
holes and puddles and ever'body expected the grave to be full but when we went out there was not a bit of water in
the grave. How come if it wasn't hoodooed?
"Ah jes aint wound up right this mawnin to tell youns what you wants to know but if you all will come back ahm
sure ah can member some more ah knows."
"And Uncle Marion kept working with the chair in which he was weaving a new bottom if white-oak splits. Before
we left he showed us baskets that he had woven.
"Old Dellah Benton can neither read nor write and doesn't know her age she must be near seventy. Della was my
washwoman several years ago and I remembered hearing her tell something about hoodoes so we went to see Della
to get all we could about it.
"Honey don' you know that if you make a hole in a tree and put a hair from the head of the person you want to
hoodoo in the tree and seal it up in there the person will go crazy. Yas mam and ifn you puts pins and needles in
with the hair before you seals the hole they will die. Why my neighbor Angelina Thompson was hoodoed by a
woman and Ah'll jest take you all ovah and let her tell you for herself.
"And ifn you allwants to drive somebody away fun home sos they'll nevah come back take one of their hairs and put
hit in a steam of runnin water so hit'll run off and they all leave home and nevah come back.
"An somebody can git your track and run you slam crazy. Yasum they kin too. Where you steps in the clay or mud
they gits hit and takes hit up with sumpin and does things to you and you goes crazy.
"Now you chillun come with me ovah to Sister Thompson's and she kin tell you fer herself what was done done to
her when she was hoodooed."
We went to a nearby house and Della called Angelina out. She told us that she was truly hoodoed and what she said
was as follows:
"Sister Thompson tell these ladies about bein hoodooed. Oh they is alright. This is some of my white folks I used to
work fah long time ago."
The Angelina told the following:
"Yasum, I sholey was hoodooed. How hit come about I loaned my clothes to a woman. I dress and shoes. She put
something on them that looked like snuff. It was brown lookin and I jes though she had spilled snuff on em. That
was 18 years ago and me done hit outa jealousy. She wanted my ole man and she thought she would hoodoo me and
ahd die and she'd get him. And she woulda too ifn hit hadn a been for Mother Dye. You all know she's a doodoo
doctor who lived at Newport. An I went to her fer bout two years and she cured me. Mother Dye is daid now but
Jess Rogers, a man war does the docterin now.
"You all ask how hit fected me when ah was hoodooed. I tole you bout the brown stuff bein in my shoes and on
mak dress. Well ah put em on and in a little while his feet itched lak an could claw the bones out. Ah nevah was in
such misery. Then ah tuk somethin like the dry rot. The meat come off my fingers and toes. Jest look at them scars.
And look at these scars in mah hair. See how mah haid is all scarred up. At times ah had a mind that ah wanted to go
and didn' know where. They had to watch me all the time. But ole Mother Dye cured me and that woman didn' git
mah ole can aftah all."
Della and Angelina talked among themselves for a moment and Della said ah believe ah will. Then she said: "Does
you all know Phil Green? He lives about two miles and a half down the Junction City Highway and he is a hoodoo
man. He can tell you all things efn you all cares to go ahll go with you. He can tell you what is gwianter happen and
what has happened and he can hoodoo. Of course we were in for going right then while we had a car so Della
crawled in the back seat and we were away to Phil Green's. Went out the highway about two miles and turned off on
a country road. Up hill and down, around this field and that and through a big gate, winding around through a field
and orchard. At last we arrived. Phil Green looked to be a prosperous farmer. we drove up to the back of the house
and around front. Some negro had just killed a chicken for dinner. Several cars were parked in the yard. One bone a
Louisiana license. The porch was full of negroes. Della called and asked if Phil was there. They replied that he was
but that he wasbusy. Della said, "We wants to see him" and a black negro woman came out to the car. My.' but she
was furious. We had never seen a negro so angry before. The first thing she did was to tell us that they didn't serve
white people but the way she expressed it was a screem she said: "He don' use white people. No suh! We don' use
em. Hits too dangerous. Ah don't care who tole you Phil used white people We don'. He is may husban and ah won't
let him."
We soon pacified her by telling her that we appreciated her point of view and that it was perfactly alright with us.
Della crawled out of the car right now and said: "You all knows the way back to town don' you? Ah's going ter stay.
The next morning we went back to Della's. She told us that the people on Phil's front porch were from Marion
Louisiana and they had come to get him to tell them how to get one of the men of the family out of the penitentiary.
She apologized for taking us out there and declared that she believed that he once served white people. Aunt Dilcie
Raborn and all her family declared that she would be a hundred this must. She is an ex-slave and Mr. John Wright
of Louisiana was her master.
"Yas'm chillun I'se a hunnerd years ole. Ah was one of the las' young niggers on marster's plantation. Mah job was
nusin the chillun. Ole Marster's father was livin in them days and he fought in the Resolution War. Yasum he did.
He was rail old and my mother chawed fer him jes like she did fer her baby. I'se seen more hardness since I got old
than ah ever did in mah life. Slavery was the easiest time fall. Mah muthas name was Charity and she was the family
cook, yasum an ah was the nuss girl. I tuk care of the chilluns. Ole marster's wife lost her mind and they to watch
her all the time. Did you ask they send her to the sylum? No man Thar warn't no sylums in them days and anyway
ole marster had plenty of niggers to wait en her and take care of her and watch her sos she wouldn't git out and git
hurt. She did slip out one time and ah was totin the flour from mill from the gate to the kitchen and she grabbed hit
away fum me and throwed hit all ovah me and rubbed hit in mah face good and then laughed at me. Then she run
and got in the creek and set down in the watah and the niggas had to git in thar and git her out. Hit made her sick
and old marster sho did git them niggers fer lettin her git out.
"I she wish all times could be slavery times. Ah had everything nice then. I had some chillun. Ah cant count em but
ah can name em. Joe, Habe, Abram, Billy, Johnny, Charity and Caline. Ah makes mah home here with Charity, she
is mah baby chile and she if fifty.
"You asks is ah afeard of haints? Ah'v never taken no frightment off'n em. Ah'v lived in houses other folks couldnt
live in but ah'v never lived that way that I had to run from haints.
Ah lived jes like a millionaire when ah lived in slavery times, seed more hardness since I got old than I ever did in
mah life."
Then we left aunt Dilcie with her snuff and went to find Aunt Jame Carter.
After rambling around in Rock Island Quarters we at last found Jane Carter. She was living with her grand daughter
and was sitting out in the yard with a bunch of her great-grand-children. She was so deaf that we were not able to
talk to her, much to our disappointment. The granddaughter told us that she was 106 years old and that Mrs. Roscoe
Taunton's granfather was Jane's old master.
We later saw Mrs. Taunton and she told us that Jane had belonged to her grandfather Stephen Manning and was her
mother's nurse. Jane was grown when Mrs. Taunton's mother was born.
We were told about old Bill who lives in Barton Quarters and went to find her. She was sitting out on the porch of
her cabin and we sat on the edge of the porch much to the dismay of Bill who could not walk because of a sore foot
which she told us was caused by the bite of a rattlesnake years ago in slavery time.
"Ah don' want mah white folks to sit on the floo'. Honey go in dah and git dat shee and spred hit on the floo'. Ole
Bill would go herself efn she could walk. Honey you all is gwianter git blistered out in de sun like you is widout no
hats on. Don you all know you had orter take keer of that party whit skin of yourn? My ole missus never would git
out in the sun widout somethin on her haid. Ole Mawster thought she was purty and she aimed to stay purty.
"You all says you wants ter heah ole Bill tell about slavery days, lawsy chillun Ah say ter God ah'll be with mah
white chillun agin and play wah harp with em. We'll have plenty to eat and plenty to wear jes as we did when we
had our good mawster in slavery days. Marster's grown son used to say: 'Bill she's ruint to death.' Why I used ter git
de young mistesses dresses and put em on and git out in the yard and flounce and flip. de young mistess would scole
me but young marster would say 'Leave Bill erlone, ah lack to see her dance. Dance some moah Bill.' Mah white
folks use ter teach me. Now when white folks taugh me ahm a nigger done taughted.
"Honey ah jes don' like ter see mah white folks sit on the floo' ah wishes ole Bill would foch some cheers fer yo all
ter set on.
"How ole is ah? Ah jes don' member but ah's powerful ole.
"Yas'm ah was nurse girl for marsters chillun. I nevah had ter wuk hard a tall, all ah had ter do was play wid the
chillun and take keer of em. oncet a circus show comed thru and mawster bought a rattle snake fum em fer a pet. Hit
nevah did have hits teeth pulled (fangs). Hit was a plum pet too, allus followin us about. We would have to knock
hit back outn de way sometimes. One time ah was comin down de stairs wid a chile in each arm and de snake was
crawlin erlong sides me. Jest as we got ter the bottom hit crawled roun front of me and ah didn see hit cause of
havin the chillun in mah arms and ah stepped slambang on that snake an hit turnt aroun and bit mah foot. Ah nevah
drapped them chillun though. My ole man said ifn hit had been him he'd a throwd them chillun down and run but
not ole Bill. Marster and Mistess trusted Bill to take keer of them chillun and ole Bill sho did take keer of em. But
mah foot nigh bout kilt me and thet foot is whut is the witch wid me terday.
"You ask haint ah got no folks? No'm. Ah nevah had but one youngun and hit died wid the croup. The man next
doo' owns this heah house and lets ole Bill live heah. The guvment lady send me a check ever' month (pension) and
Joe Lyons gits hit and fetches hit out ter me.
"You ask does ah know erbout any hainted houses? No'm when ah fin's a house is hainted ah aint gwian in. No'n not
ole Bill. But sumpin happened not long ergo that give me a big fright. Hit waz long bout dusk ah seed two women,
white as anybody gwian down de road and when they got along thar they quit the road and come aroun the path. Ah
said: 'Howdy' and they never even speak jus kep' a goin'. Ah say: 'Whar is youall a goin' and they nevah say a work.
Then ah say to em: 'Won't you all come by and set with ole Bill a while' an still they nevah say nothin. Jus kep' on a
goin' roun' that house and down the road. ken ah got skeered and went in the house an ah doan set out late no moah.
Efn them fust had uh come in th house ah would a gone undah the house.
"You all chillun ain goin is you? Come back ter see ole Bill. Ah sholey hates to de mah white folks sit on the floor
but mebby ole Bill's foot will be bettuh next ime an she can git her white fokes some cheers."
Aunt Sally Fields said to be 106 years old lived in Mack Quarters about two and a half or three miles south of El
Dorado. She is blind and lives with Hattie Moseley. During slavery days she belonged to the Patterson family and
came with them from Alabama to Louisiana and later to Caledonia where she was living at the close of the Civil
War. Her mind was wandering to such an extent that we could not get very much from her and when asked about
slavery times she said:
"Slavery time is gone. The stars are passed. The white folks that raised me said: 'I want you all to get up in the
morning and tell me about the stars. Ch Lordy! The stars fell. Ole Missus would come say: 'Ah want to be standing
up behind the door. Ah don' want to be buried." My ole missus was good to all the niggers.
"There was a big spring on marsters plantation. When we would start to the spring mistress would say: Don't go on
the left hand side of the spring, go up the right hard side to the chinquapin tree."
It took Sally about twenty minutes to say that much so we didn't stay longer.
Interviewer Carol Graham
Person Interviewed Pinkie Howard (Add)
Age ? El Dorado, Ark.
"Mornin', honey! Here you is to see Aunt Pinkie again. What did you bring me? Didn't you bring old Aunt Pinkie
somethin' good to eat?
"Lawsy, honey, its been so long I can't member much bout plantation days. But I members the children on the
plantation would ring up and play ring games. And we used to have the best things to eat back in them days. We
used to take taters and grate them and make tater pudding. Made it in ovens. Made corn bread and light bread in
ovens too and I used to bake the best biscuits anybody ever et and I didn't put my scratchers in them neither. Old
Miss taught me how. And we had lasses pone corn bread and them good old tater biscuits. We used to eat parched
corn, and cornmeal dumplings was all the go back there.
"I worked all my life and hard, too, but I still is a pretty good old frame.
"He! He! He! Look at that black boy passing, will you? Them brichie legs is half way his thighs. He needs to put
sugar in his shoes to sweet talk his brichie legs down. And did you notice he didn't speak to old Aunt Pinkie. Young
folks ain't got no manners these days. Now when I was young back there on that plantation at Hillsboro old Miss
Aiken taught all her niggers manners. She would say to us, 'Now, you all don' clean your noses, or years, or
fingernails before folks; it's ill manners. And don' make no 'marks bout folks. Don' eat onions and go out in
company, if you does, eat coffee to kill the taste. Don't talk with yo' mouth full of sumpin' to eat; that ill manners
too. Don' eat too fast cause you is liable to git strangled. And don' wear yo' welcome out by staying too long.'
"Ain't it warm and nice today missy? Jus like a spring day. An see that bee after my flower? Wasn't it a bee? You
know, bees used to swarm in the springtime back on the plantation. The way they would catch em was to ring a bell
or beat on a old plow and keep beatin' and ringin' till they settled on a tree limb. Then they made a bee gum and
covered it and left a hole at the bottom of the gum for them to go in and out, then they sawed the limb off and put
the bees in the gum and put some sweetened water made from molasses so they can start to makin' honey.
Sometimes the bees would sting some of us and we would put a little snuff on it and cure it right up."
Interviewer Miss Irene Robertson"
