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Forrest City, Arkansas
Age 85
"We was owned by Master Rucker. It seems I was about ten years old when the Civil War started. It seems like a
dream to me now. Mother was a weaver. They said she was a fine weaver. She wove for all on the place and some
special pieces of cloth for outsiders. She wove woolen cloth too. I don't know whether they paid for the extra
weaving or not. People didn't look on money like they do now. They was free with one another about eating and
visiting and work too when a man got behind with the work. The fields get gone in the grass. Sometimes they would
be sick or it rained too much. The neighbor would send all his slaves to work till they caught up and never charge a
cent. I don't hear about people doing that way now.
"My parents was named Clinton and Billy Bell. There was nine of us children.
"I never seen nobody sold. Mother was darker. Papa was light--half white. They didn't talk in front of children about
things and I never did know. I've wondered.
"After freedom my folks stayed on at Master Rucker's. I got to be a midwife. I nursed and was a house girl after the
war. Then the doctors got to sending for me to nurse and I got to be a midwife.
"My father was a good Bible scholar. He preached all around Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He was a Methodist. He
died when he was seventy-seven years old. He had read the Bible through seventy-seven times--one time for every
year old he was."
(Mrs. Mildred Thompson, Mrs. Carol Craham, El Dorado District, Federal Writers Project, Union County,
Arkansas)
Charley Williams, Ex-slave. Mawnin' Missy. Yo say wha Aint Fanny Whoolah live? She live right down de road
dar in dat fust house. Yas'm. Dat wha she live. Yo say whut mah name? Mah name is Charley. Yas'm, Charley
Williams. Did ah live in slavery time? Yas'm sho' did. Mah marster was Dr. Reed Williams and he live at New
London (SE part of Union County) or ah speck ah bettuh say near New London caise he live on de Mere-Saline
Road, de way de soldiers went and come. Marster died befo' de Civil Wah. Does ah membah hit? Yes'm ah say ah
does. Ah was bo'n in 1856. Mah ole mutha died befo' de wah too. Huh name was Charity. Mah young marster went
tuh de wah an come back. He fit at Vicksburg an his name was Bennie Williams. But he daid now tho. Dere was a
hep uv dem white William Chillun. Dere was Miss Narcissi an she am a livin now at Stong. Den dere's Mr. Charley.
Ah was named fuh him. He am a livin now too. Den dere is Mr. Raco Williams. He am a livin at Strong too. Dere
was Miss Annie, Miss Martha Jane and Miss Madie. Dey is all daid. When young marster would come by home or
any uv de udder soldiers us little niggers would steal de many balls (bullets or shot) fum dey saddul bags and play
wid em. Ah nevah did see so many soldiers in mah life. Hit looked tuh me like dey waz enough uv em to reach clear
cross de United States. An ah nevah saw de like uv cows as they had. Dey was nuff uv em to rech clar to Camden.
Is sh evah been mahried and does uh have any chillun? Yes'm. Yes'm. Ah's been mahried three times. Me an mah
fust wife had seven chillun. When we had six chillun me and rah wife moved tuh Kansas. We had only been der 23
days when mah wife birthed a chile and her an de chile both died. Dat left me wid Carey Dee, Lizzie, Arthur,
Richmond, Ollie and Lillie to bring back home. Ah mahried agin an me an dat wife had one chile name Robert. Me
an rah third wife has three: Joe Verha, Lula Mae an Johnnie B.
Is dey haints? Ah've hearn tell uv em but nevah have seed no hants. One uv mah friens whut lived on the
Hammonds place at Hillsboro could see em. His name was Elliott. One time me an Elliott was drivin along an
Elliott said: "Charley, somebody got hole uv mah torse." Sho nuff dat horse lod right off inter de woods an
comminced to buckin so
Elliott and his hoss both saw de haint but ah couldn' see hit. Yo know some people jes caint see em.
Yas'm right up dere is wha Aint Fannie live. Yas'm. Goodday Missy.FOLK CUSTOMS. We found Fannie Wheeler
at home but not an ex-slave. She was making a bedspread of tobacco sacks.
"Yas'm chillun ah'm piecing mahsef a bedspraid from dese heah backy sacks. Yas'm dey sho does make er nice
spraid. See dat'n on Eah baid. Aint hit purty. Hit was made Am backy sacks. Don yo all think dat yaller bodah
(border) set hit off purty? Ah'm aimin to bodah dis'n wid pink er blue.
What am dat up dar in dat picture frame? Why dat am plaits of har (hair). Hits uv mah kin and frien's. When we
would move way off dey would cut off a plait and give hit tuh us tuh membah dem by. Mos' uv dem is daid now but
ah still membahs dem and ah kin name evah plait now.
We were told that Sallie Sims was an old negress and went to see her she was not en ex-slave either but she told us
an interesting little story about HAINTS and BODY MARKS No'm, ah'm purty ole but ah was bo'n aftuh surrender.
Is ah evah seen a hant? Now ah nevah did but once and mah me said dat was a hant. Ah was out in de woods
waukin (walking) an ah saw sumpin dat looked lak a squirrel start up a tree and de fudder up hit got the bigger hit
got an hit was big as a bear when hit got to de top and ma said dat hit was a haint. Dat is de only time ah evah seed
one.
Now mah granchillun can all see hants and mah little great gran' chile too. An evah one uv dem was bo'n wid a veil
ovah dey face. Now when a chile is bo'n wid a veil ovah his face - if de veil is lifted up de sho can see hants and see
evah thing but if'n de vail is pulled down stid up bein lifted up de won't see em. After de veil is pilled down an taken
off, wrap hit up in a tissue paper and put hit in de trunk and let hit stay dar till sit disappear and de chile won't nevah
see hants. Mah grandaughter what lives up north in Missouri come down heah to visit mah son's fambly an me ah an
brang huh li'l boy wid hah. Dat chile is bout seben years ole an dat chile could see hants all in de house ah he
wouldn' go tuh baid till his gran'pappy come home an went tuh laid wid him.
Interviewer Miss Irene Robertson"
