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Lavinia Lewis
"My folks cum from de state of Missippi wid Dr. George Wyche, about de year 1859, jes befo' de Civil War. Dr.
Wyche was practicin' medicine in Missippi an' had a plantation an' several hundred slaves. W'en hit looked like de
war was cumin' he 'cided to sell his plantation an' he did dis an' freed his slaves, all dat did not want to come to
Texas wid him. A few of de ones dat had been wid him for years cum's an' dey moves in covered wagon's and
drives de oxen to hit. Dey had some horses dat dey bring for de boys to ride.
"Dey was four boys an' four girls; besides de doctor an' de Misses an' de slaves. De oldest boy an' girl was nearly
grown, an' de rest was little chillun. Dey names was Eugene, James, Fred, an' Jack; de girls was named Fannie,
Mary, Laura, an' Lizzie she was de baby. Dey is all so happy to cum to dis West dey hear so much about, de new
country dat so many of de old states folks are movin to. De boys bring dey guns, an' dey hunt for de wild game to
eat on de way, an' de girls has to stop an' pick de bluebonnets dat dey has never seen befo' on de side of de roads.
Hit is de spring time, an' de country all in bloom wid de wild flowers.
"De new country is not supposed to have de rains like dey do in de old Missippi whar dey has de overflows an' wash
away dey crops so much an' causes sickness; so de Massa was huntin' a healthier country an' one dat will be farther
away from de fightin w'en de war cum's as everybody is expectin'. So dey sell dey home in Missippi an' joins de
crowd's dat is cumin' to Texas jes befo' de war.
"But he had a brother who cum's wid him' an dis brudder has freed his slaves too, an' dis brother helps him, an' goes
on ter California an' is in de state. An' wid his money dat he changes ter de Union money, he git to be a wealthy
man, an' den he is a Judge an' practices law in San Francisco. Den on account of de climate bein' so damp, he moves
ter Olympia, Washington, whar he practices de law an' is a Jedge, an' he does not fergit us who is down in dis new
country.
"An' den de Massa settles near de town of Anderson in Grimes County at a little place called Bedias, an' he lives on
a little farm an' de slaves dat cum wid him makes de crops, while he practices medicine. Dey does not have de big
old fashioned, two story house like dey had in ole Missippi. Dey has de little old log cabin wid de cracks all chinked
wid de clay, an de furniture dat dey brought from dey old home, but dey is young an' happy, an' dey goes ter work,
an' pretty soon dey has a crop made an' some fruit trees, dat dey bring from ole Missippi wid dem, is growin' in dis
Texas soil, an' everything look like hit goin' ter be fine w'en dey cum's de War, an' den de Doctor has ter go ter de
war. An' he is at Galveston, an' 'stid of buildin' up a practice in de new home, he is practicin' for de soljers, an' takin
keer of dem, until he has de ole fashion spell of de Grippe, an' den dey say dat he is put in de Post Office an is in hit
until de war is over, but I does not know w'en dey do dis, for w'en he cum's home, my folks say dat he tells dem all
'bout de war an' de blockade at Galveston. But I will tell yer about dat later,
I must talk ter yer about what de Mistis did when he was away. Dey had a little cotton, de first year ter help, an' de
next de Yankees cum by an' burn all de cotton an' take de corn de Mistis had for de stock, an' so my folks went right
ter work ter plant another crop an' de Mistis' had been a teacher in Tennessee befo' she was married, an' de blood of
one of de old explorer's run in her veins. She was a Miss Flora Kent Kane, an' one of de descendents of Elisha Kent
Kane who tried ter find de North Pole an' wrote a book on hit dat de Mistis had, so she said dat if she was any good
kin of dis Kane den she could take keer of de fambly if de Yankees did take everything dey has. So she git up a little
school in de community an' she teaches while de nigger an' de big boy an' girl, dey call Eugene, an' Fannie, stay
home an' keep de little chillun.
"One of de big girls goes wid her to de school, an' dey rides dey horses an' w'en dey git ter de school house, de girl
hides de hosses in de thickets so de soljers wont see dem as dey pass dat way on dey way to join de Yankee dat is
stationed at Galveston. Dat girl dat hid de horses was de one dat has been my Mistis as long as she lived, an' my
mammy cooked for de ole Mistis, she was named Miss Laura. So by de ole Mistis teachin' de school, de fambly had
enough money ter make de crop an' live while de doctor was in de war.
"I does not remember much dat my mammy tell me about how dey got along at de house while de Mistis away at
school but de oldest girl stayed an' helped ter look after hit. De Indians was livin on de reservation over in East
Texas but sometimes dey would cum by de house an' beg for something ter eat. My w'ite folks would always put a
plate of food out for dem, an' dey sometimes would chop some wood ter show dat dey appreciated what dey did,
dese was de friendly Cherokees. De Comanches dat dey was all so afraid of, had gone father west. But I kin
'member hearin how de Mistis would take de doctor's saddle bags dat he left, an' some medicine an' git on one of de
hosses, an' ride ter de neighbors w'en dey was sick an' give dem medicine, an' stay all night, an' help ter look after de
folks dat was too poor to have a doctor w'en dey had de Grippe an' de pneumonia in de winter time. In de summer,
dey had de chills an' de fevers an' she take de quinine, an' de medicine for dem an' so, she was de teacher, de doctor
bof', for de folks in dis community while de Massa at de war.
"For de young folks' good times, dey had de possum an' de coon hunts on de moonlight nights, an' all de boys an de
girls aroun' would go. An' w'en de dogs trees de coon or de possum, den dey bark until de boys an' girls cum an'
pokes him down. For de coon or possum won't come down long as de dogs are barkin'. Den dey has de candy
pullin's w'en dey has de parties, sometimes dey has dances, but not so much. If hit in de summer, an' de nights are
moonlight, dey has de parties out doors, an' in de fall of de year, dey has de hickory nut hunts in de woods, an'
sometimes dey ketch de coon or possum an' cook dem out in de woods. I hear my folks tell 'bout dis w'en I was a
gal.
"After awhile de doctor cum's home from de war, he is broken in his health from de exposure, in de winter, campin'
out at Galveston, an' he goes back ter his practicin medicine wid Dr. Neblett of Anderson, Texas, but he does not
live but a few years. An' den de Mistis is all broken up, an' she has ter depend now on de grown children an' de
slaves dat still wid dem. Dey git along somehow, an' in few years she an' de doctor bof' die. I will tell yer some of
de things dat de doctor told our folks about de war. Dey was so many things but jes a few dat I kin think of now. De
best thing that I think of, was how dat w'en de soljers git sick, dey has ter do without some of de medicine dat dey
need de most, 'count of de blockade, an' dat was de whiskey ter use in de Grippe an' de pneumonia cases, an' de
Morphine dey needed w'en de soljers was wounded an' needed hit, an' how dey run out of de bandages an' had ter
boil de sheets from de beds, an' tear dem up ter make de bandage.
"He tell about w'en General Magruder cum's ter run de Yankees out of Galveston de Christmas or'bout dat time in
1863. He has his headquarters at Houston, an' hit was jes fifty miles down de Buffalo Bayou ter Galveston. So he
takes his soljers, some from de cavalry, an' some from de infantry, an' dey looks aroun', an' finds an' old cotton
steamer wid some bales of cotton on hit. Dey takes dis boat, an' leave de cotton on ter use for dey breastwork. Dey
slips up on de Yankees in Galveston de night of de last day of de year. W'en dey asleep at dawn, dey open fire, an'
de Yankees must have thought dat a whole fleet was after dem de doctor say, an' dey steamed away.
"Dey did have a few killed. De "Bayou City" was one of de boats dat de rebels had, an' de "Harriet Lane", an' killed
de Commander an' his lieutenant named Lea. Dis lieutenant's father was Major Lea an' was wid de rebels. W'en de
rebels went on de deck of de Yankee boat, de Major found his son dyin' dat he did'nt know was on dis boat. Dis is a
true story dat de Massa told w'en he cum's back from de war, for he went on de deck an' saw de Major an' his son
w'en dey found him dyin'.
"Hit was not all sad, for dey had ter have a little pleasure. De soljers had a good time dat Chrismas our Massa tell de
folks. W'en dey not on duty, dey goes ter de dances in Houston an' Galveston, an' de young ladies so proud dat dey
cum ter run de Yankee boats out of de Gulf, so dey can git dey supplies, dat dey show dem how glad dey is by
givin' dem dinners an' dances. In de spring of 1864, de city was full soljers, an' dey has many a flirtation goin' on
wid de young ladies of de town. De doctor tell de folks, an' how dey write de letters ter each other. He was in de
Post Office den.
"In dis year, de rebels was helpin' ter ship de cotton thro' Galveston an' on down de Gulf ter Mexico. General Kirby
Smith was helpin' ter sell dis cotton ter Mexico for fifty cents, gold money, ter help feed de soljers, an' so Galveston
was full of soljers mos' of de time dat our Massa was in de war. He tell his folks dat de cotton was ordered ter be
burned befo' de enemy should have hit.
"But lets talk 'bout what dey was doin' back at de Massa's home. Yer see w'en dey has de blockade on in Galveston,
an' all de Texas shippin' places, den dey is some things dat dey can't buy. One of dem is coffee. I has heard my
young Mistis (de one dat hid he horses in de thicket for her mother, dat de Yankees not find dem) tell lots of times
about how dey parch de corn an' use hit for coffee. Dis was little bit like coffee an' dat is what dey used. Den dey
had ter use de meal an' make corn bread fer dey could not git de flour whar dey was.
"Dey has a few sheep, an' w'en dey shut de shippin off, dey cards de wool an' weaves hit into thread ter knit de
socks an' de sweaters for de soljers an' de home folks, an' dey makes de cotton thread too, an' weaves hit into de
homespun dresses an' clothes for de fambly. An' so, dis is de way dat de fambly lived while de war was goin' on an'
de Massa was gone ter hit.
"Den dey had somethin' else besides waitin for de war ter be over to look forward to, an' dat was de letters dat cum
'bout every six months from Mississippi an' de folks dat stayed whar dey had lived. De two sisters an' de brother of
de Dr. Wyche, dey names was Mrs. Mary Wyche Thomas an' Mrs. Fannie Wyche Morrison, dey lived in de cities of
Jackson Miss. an' Vicksburg, durin de war wid dey husbands. De one dat lived in de Vicksburg had ter live in one
of de caves in de bluff, an' she writes dem after de war 'bout how de Yankee sharpshooters would pick out de men
as dey bring de supplies ter dem, an' how dey learn ter eat anything dat dey could get.
"De one dat lived in Jackson wrote 'bout how, after de city surrendered, dey had ter go ter de Yankees fer dey
rations, an' so dey finally leave dey homes an' refugee back ter de little town whar dey was born an had dey
plantation befo' de war, called Byram, Missippi. Dey bof' goes back ter dis little town an' live de last years of dey
lives. Dey is now poor folks an' has lost all dey had in de war, but ter de slaves dat stayed on wid dem, dey is still de
quality, an' dey never was what dey call de poor white trash ter de nigger dat was faithful ter dem.
"In de year 1870, Mrs. Thomas cum's ter see Dr. Wyche befo' he dies an' she tell dem lots of things dat happened
'bout de war. One of de things dat she told dem was how her home in Jackson was burned an' she had ter live in a
nigger cabin befo' she could refugee back ter de ole home in Byram' an' den she tells of her trip ter Texas, how w'en
she cum's, she find de ole Missippi River is on one of hit's overflows an' she has ter wait for hit to go down befo' she
can cross hit, an' how de folks dat lived by whar she went ter, took her in an' took keer of her until she could git
across.
"Soon after dis visit, de ole Massa (de doctor) dies, in de year 1871 an' de Missus has done gone on befo' him, so de
young Massa an' de young Misses moves ter de country near de town of Bremond, Texas. Here dey has a little farm
an' de young Mistis, dat I has lived wid, teaches a little school in de community dey is livin in. She teach for year or
two an' den she meets a young man from Tennessee an' dey marry an' dey moves ter de new country dat dey call de
"settlement east of Big Creek", in de year 1877. De rest of de folks stay in de country aroun' Bremond whar dey mos
of dem marries an' has dey own home.
"Dis is w'en my folks stay in de Brazos bottom an' I will tell yer how we lived down in hit, but w'en dey is makin so
much cotton in dis country, we lives near Calvert, Texas, in Robertson County. About dis time, de Houston an'
Texas Central rail road was built from Bremond to Waco, an' dey can ship dey cotton now from Waco to Houston
an' Galveston, so dey goes ter raisin hit more, an' de Brazos bottom is makin' all dey kin handle. I kin 'member de
big plantations an de long rows of cotton an' corn down by de river, an' de niggers as dey is hoeing an' pickin' hit.
De men would be runnin' de plows, an' de wimmen an' chillun would be pickin de cotton in de fall, an' in de spring
dey be choppin' de cotton, an' de corn, an' I kin jes hear dem singin'.
"E'en hang up de fiddle an' de bow-ow-o, Lay down de shubbel an de hoe-o-o, Fur dere's no mo' wuk fur pore Uncle
Ned, Fur he's gone whar de good niggers go.
"An' now I mus' tell yer more about de young Mistis dat I calls my Mistis all dese years, de one dat taught de school
like her mother did. After she married de young man from Tennessee, den dey moves up in de "Big Creek
Settlement", dey find jes about six famblies in hit, an' dey buy some land an' goes ter farmin' an' as de money is
scarce, she teaches de first regular school in dis settlement, an' has twenty eight pupils, an' dey is all de chillun for
miles aroun', all in de whole community dat is big enough ter go ter school, an' dey use de church for dey school.
"De way dey has de church, one of de settlers is a Baptist preacher an' he preaches to dem over in de house whar de
stage coaches stop across Big Creek. He tells dem dat de "Voice of One cryin in de wilderness, ter prepare de way,
an' make His path's straight," so hit is de place of de ones dat is here first ter prepare de place for de ones dat is to
come after dem to worship in. An so from dis sermon de settlers git together an' make up de money to build what
dey called de "Willow Springs Baptist Church", an' dis is whar de Mistis teaches her school. Later on, de name was
changed to Mart, an' de town was built across de branch from de school, an' de cemetery is now whar de church an'
school used ter be.
"After dey git to raisin de cotton in dis settlement den we nigger's from de bottom commences to cumin' up to help
ter gather de crops, an' so me an' my ole man cum's an' lives on de young Mistis' place an' works for her until my ole
man dies. Dey has de big crops on de black land an' lots of new folks cum' to de town an' we goes right on livin our
lives jes like dey did in de old days, until now de folks is talkin about our times w'en dis country was new bein' de
ole days, why! dey is de new days in de new country yet to some of us.
"I is proud to say dat my young Mistis did her part in dis new country, jes like her mother did in de days of de Civil
War. She take her place in de community an' w'en she does not have to teach, she raises her fambly an' helps to take
keer of de ole-time slaves' chillun dat cum' to de new country, by givin dem work an' helpin' dem ter git dey start in
life. Dey is more dan one fambly dat buy dey land an'
owes ter dis young Mistis de help an' advice dey needed to know how to manage. W'en she passes into de Great
Beyond dey goes to see her de last time, an' dey mourn wid de white folks at her passing on.
"I must tell yer 'bout what de Mistis called de "rainbow of hope" dat helped dem all in de early days, she tell us dat
w'en hit git dark an' de rainbow goes behin' de clouds, dat after awhile de clouds all go away an' de rainbow cum's
out more beautiful dan ever.
"An' now I will tell yer more 'bout who my young Mistis was, an who hit is dat belongs to dese folks dat I has been
tellin yer 'bout how dey lived in de days from de Civil War up to de settlin of dis country.
"De one dat is writin dis story is de grandaughter of de old doctor an' de ole Misses dat kept de fambly on dey feet
in de Civil War, an' de daughter of de young Mistis dat I followed up to dis country w'en hit is being settled up.
"An' now de sorrow of her folks bein gone is upon her, an' she is left alone, wid jes me to look after her w'en I am in
dis country, an' I is tryin ter do like de young Mistis, Mrs. Laura Wyche Cowan would want me to do, an' dat is to
try to show her de "rainbow of hope" dat her mother always held up to us in de years of misfortune, an' dat hit is
still shinin' thro' de clouds for her, some as hit did for de ones dat has gone on befo' us.
"Dis is a true story dat has been handed from de days dat I has talked about to dis daughter of de Young Mistis of de
days jes after de war, from de doctor an' de young an' de ole Mistis, an' den from my own daddy an' mammy dat
cum wid dem ter Texas w'en de West was beckonin' dem to cum an' cast dey fortunes wid de rest of de pioneers.
Reference: Lavinia Lewis, R.F.D. Mart, Texas.
Lois Osburn, PW Houston, Texas District 6 (9-3-38 (Yes))
