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"I was bawn en Nawth Cahlina, near Ensfiel." I was er pretty big girl when de war started. But I doan known my real age, kaze ever time I was sold dey made my age jes' what dey wanted it. I jedge, t'ought I must a been about twelve er fourteen years ole when de war started."
"I member hearin' de big guns firs' fired over Fo't Sum'ter en South Cahlina. Dat was de startin' o' de war."
"I was sold on de block more'n onct, en I was owned by 'leven diffu'nt owners. I was sold fum my mother en father when I was jes sech er little tot dat I cant hardly member em a tall. My father was named James Arbor, an my mother she was Abbie Freeman."
"I member bein' sold ter ole Jordan White, David Gregory, en David Gregory, Jr., John Freeman, David Teller, Bradley Pickford, Ned Pickford, Kinglin' Powells, en Thomas Hurt, was my last owner."
"Ned Pickford stole me fum Bradley Pickford, an sold me ter Kinglin' Powells, down en Warsaw, South Cah'lina. Kinglin' Powells tuk me en fourteen other slaves ter Richmond, Virginia. Us left Wareaw one night on de train, en when mornin' come us was crossin de James Ribber, goin' en ter Richmond. Dat ole James Ribber was sho muddy dat mornin'. Dey tuk us ter de Trader jail, en give us somepen ter eat, en change o' cloes."
"Dat Trader Jail was sho' er big place. Us set roun' all day, en when night come, was put en rooms up stairs; de 'omans en girls all on one side, en de men an boys on de other side along narrer hall. Dem sho' was sad times. All us knowed it gwinter be de las' time us folks ud be together, en mos' likely, none us nebber see our folks no more. Eve'y onct er while, er keeper comes t'rough ter keep 'em fum talkin' en plannin'."
"Sale day come. De market place was bout er city block big, with seats fixed roun' like er race track. All de boys and men was fixed on one side; de big ones first, en so on, down ter de little ones. De 'omans en girls dey was fixed de same way on er udder side de market."
"I was put on de block en sold fer $900.00, ter Thomas Hurt. He bought three brothers together, so's dey woan be sep'rated, en he paid $1500.00 fer de three. I thought Marse Hurts was goin' ter be er poor white trash owner, kaze he was dressed en coarse jeans pants en er ole common shirt, with er big wide belt, en wore high top boots. Mos' all rich folks comin' ter sales done wore pleated bosom shirts and broadcloth suits. But when Marse Hurts open his belt he got jes' plenty money."
"Us went ter Halifax, Nawth Cahlina, en I was put to tending the chillun. Dey was jes' us four slaves, what he'd bought at the market en Richmond. But he had plenty o' poor white trash help,
what wuked fer flour, meal, syrup, en fer anything else he'd give em as pay fer dey wuk."
"Marse Thomas en Miss Patsy di'nt 'low us ter call de chillun nothin' but jes' dey first name, an dey had er moughty big family, fifteen of em. Miss Patsy she was er pretty, fair, brown skin cullud 'oman; but Marse Thomas he had tuk her en she was zame as his wife, en dey had all dem chillun."
"De chillun passed as white, en went ter white schools en churches. Miss Patsy was good ter all de slaves, en she was abolitionist at heart, but she didn't let Marse know it."
"I nebber visited no place cept with de slaves at Marse Thomas's son-in-law, Ishum Hubbard's. He was abolitionist, too."
"De plantation was big. I nebber was over all of it. Ole Marse he tended lots o' cattle en diffu'nt stock, en he raised wheat, en I jes doan know what all. Miss Patsy done de cooking with de girls en some de men fum de farm he'pin her. All us et de same, en had plenty of it."
"On sech days like Sundays en holidays us didn't do no wuk cept jes' what had ter be done. Miss Patsy she had funny ideas bout usin' de milk on Sunday, en she allus had it poured out somewhar. But dat poor white help mos' allus tuk it home with them, ef dey cud get hold of it."
"I went ter church on Sunday, but I set en er back o' de church. Det was er ole slave preacher what was talked about,
named Brother Josh Cain. I member hearin' em say what er good preacher he was."
"Miss Patsy had lots o' funny superstitions. Effen she heard a dog howlin' at night, she t'ought somebuddy was a going ter die en de family, en hoot owls near de house mean somebuddy gwineter be daid en dat house fo' long; en ef er black cat done cross your path it ud sho' bring bad luck. Den, too, ef you spill de salt dey's sho' ter be some fussing."
"Ef I was sent on er errand, an dey's feared I'd stay too long, dey'd say, 'Effen you stay too late de Raw Head en Bloody Bones will git you,' so course day scared me, en I jes' tried ter be back when I'se sposed ter be. Dar was er ole 'oman living way back en er woods en folks done say that she was er witch."
"One day de odder slaves of Marse Thomas was all run off, en I wondered what fur none de folks tole me. So one day I goes over ter Isham Hubbard's en he say: 'Anna, ain't Marse Thomas done tole you dat you is free?' I tole him, 'No he diden' tole me nothin but all de odders is done gone.' So he says fer me ter tell Marse Thomas dat he was wuking me 'thout pay, en dat I was free; en ef he diden' pay me something I was goin'."
"I went home an tole Marse Thomas what Ishum Hubbard done tole me, en he says, 'Anna, ef you wanna stay on here you kin, but I ain't gwineter pay you nothin'."
"When Miss Patsy got er chanct she talk ter me en say she diden' tole me 'fore bout being free kaze Marse Thomas dared her to; but fer me ter go up ter Monticello, Kentucky en she ud give me some money en my close. I went en made de trip alright. I got wuk with er white lawyer named Christie, en he paid me fifty cents er week."
"I went ter church in Monticello, en dere I met en finely married Henry Coffee. Henry he'd been in de war, en belonged ter de 6th Kaintucky Cavalry. Us was de third cullud couple ter git marriage license in 1868, en Monticello."
"Den us moved ter London, en Henry farmed en done first one thing en ernother ter mek er livin'. We bought er nice little place en lived real nice, en wuked en de church. What good meetin's dey uster have. Dey sung all de good ole time songs like, "Want Ter Go Ter Heaven When I Die"; "Was I Born Ter Die En Lay Dis Body Down"; 'en more'n I kain't mention. Folks done er lots o' dancin den, en dey ud dance ef dey had ter pat en dance; but dey mos' gen'rally used de fiddle."
"When my daughter was big nough ter go ter school, I wanted ter larn, en I went ter school too. I kin read en do my own writing, but lately I'se so nervous dat my han' shakes so I doan do no writin' no more. But I read mos' anything."
"I guess folks allus will praise Lincoln, kaze he was er great man; but I nebber heard of him 'fore I went ter Monticello.
Den I heard what he done ter free de slaves, but I know dey had ter fight fer what dey got. I allus felt proud of Booker T. Washington, en hated ter think of him havin' ter die."
"I lived here en Springfield sence 1915, en I belong ter de Nawth Street Church. I got one daughter, Martha Faghan, an dey is now five generations of us livin right here in Springfield."
Interviewed at her granddaughter's home, 535 S. Center Street.
Editor's Note: Anna Maria Coffee is estimated to be about 89 years old.
She is a full black negro, white haired, and very short, being four and one half feet tall. She lived in comfortable home with her granddaughter, and receives a Civil War widow's pension.
