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"Lordy, chile, I'se been ole so long, dat de 'fliction of years mek me fergit lots en lots I mought tell you. I was bawn en Jass'min County, Kaintucky, but I caint say what year, kaze white folks diden keep no 'count of dey slaves ages. Dey was jes' like chickens - like so many chickens."
"I knows I was er married 'oman when de wah come, en dey says I'se more'n a hundred, en Nannie she say I'se about 117. But I jes' doan know. Anyhow, I knows dat God's been awful good ter me."
"My mother was Betsy Hawkins, en my father was Milo Hawkins. How us come ter have de name of Hawkins, I caint say; kaze de on'y slave owners I knowed was Scotts en Perrys. Dey owned all our fam'ly, my grandmother, my mother en father, Mary, Fannie, Sophia, Marcie, Harvey, Charles en John - Jack dey called him. You see de Scott girl married en ter de Perry fam'ly, en dey jes' give em er lot er slaves, en so all our fam'ly was dey property."
"Dey nebber did give me er whippin, but dey sho done wuk me hard. I done er man's wuk on de place; puttin' up stone fences en rail fences, splittin' rails, breakin' hemp, plowin' fiel's, doin' cawn plantin', en eny thing de men spose ter do, en I was sposed ter say nothin'. De good Lord an'y knows jes' what I'se been t'rough."
"I member when one of my mother's sisters run off en got safe en ter Canady. She was er fine 'oman en she diden keer fer nothin', on'y ter be free. She done what more of em orter done - me, too, kaze I was grown en size long time fore us was free - but dey was jes' 'fraid."
"I married to Gilbert Burns fore de wah broke out. He went off ter wah en done come back home safe. Us had one son, little Jesse, but he died when he was jes' er little feller."
"When folks got sick dey diden call doctors, cept onct en er while. T'aint no use nobuddy sayin' jes' cullud folks done use herbs, kaze I knows better. White folks done use em same as any buddy else. Dey use ter use catnif tea, horehound, en lots o' roots cut up en put en whiskey fer use en case of sickness."
"I diden go ter school, but I larnt ter read de Bible. I got me er license fer ter be er 'vangelist. God jes' give me song en words. I sho b'lieve en dat ole song, "Where You Go I'll Go With You; Open Your Mouth en I'll Speak Fer You," kaze dat's what He's done fer me. I'se been all roun' dese parts preachin' God's words."
"But, honey, back en dem days, when us diden go ter church much, en diden have much 'joyment, but I sho loved dancin', en dat was jes' bout all de 'joyment us had. But I larnt ter praise God harder den I larnt ter serve de debbil, en ef it was'nt fer His power I woa'nt be here right now."
"When I moved out here en dis part of town it was'nt nothin' but woods. Me en Mr. Warfield had er cabin jes' crost de street fum here. Its been tore down fer years, kaze I done live en dis house fer about fifty years. I wisht I cud member more, kaze I been t'rough er lot, abut I doan member nothin' much no more.
"I still sing, "I'm Clim'ing Jacob's Ladder," en I knows I'se goin' ter set down 'sides my Saviour some o' dese days."
Ex-Slave, age said to be 117 years.
Interviewed at her residence:
On East side of South Limestone St.
three doors north of Johnson Ave.
Editor's note:
Lucy Ann Warfield is allegedly 117 years old and very feeble from the infirmities of her great age. She is light brown in color, her eyes a faded grey, and her eyebrows and hair the color and texture of cotton. Unable because of her advanced age to do any of the actual housework in her home, she supervises its care and keeps it in clean and cheerful condition.
