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I was born in Jackson, Miss., about 1844. That is about the best I can tell you. I was owned by William Neely and
married one of his slaves. My parents were brought here from Africa when they were young. My father's name Joe
Neely and mother's name Judie. I had 2 brothers, one name George and one Josh, one sister, Sarah. I was the oldest
one.
I'se done all kinds of work during slavery time such as cook, sew on my fingers, help run a spinning wheel, chop
and plow cotton, cut wood and clear land.
We could not read or write, sometimes Mistress would read to us out of the Bible.
I married John Neely a boy Maser raised before the war. We did not have a big wedding and show off, I just agreed
to go live with him if Maser would let me, so we asked him and he said we could and that was all there was to it.
We had 4 children. I have 16 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren. All my children farms and I stays with my
oldest son who is 69 years old.
I gets a small pension from the government but it is sure small and I have to do other things to get by on.
(Davis, B.E., Madisonville, Texas)
Ex-Slave Story of Sally Neely:
I was born in Jackson, Miss., about 1844, that is about the best I can tell you son. When I was born I was owned by
William Neely and was married to one of his slave boys. My parents were brought here from Africa when they were
young. I had one brother George, one named Josh, one sister Sarah, that was all the brothers and sisters that I knew
anything about. I was the oldest one and we had good times together until Maser put me to work. Father's name was
Joe Neely, mother's name Judie Neely.
Our home and quarters was pretty good, about the best in the whole country. It was built out of boxing planks, you
have seen these chicken houses, that is like our quarters looked, great long building with all the doors facing the
south, among lots of shade trees. It had no floor except old mother earth and we kept real warm and dry in it all the
time. Our beds they were built like this: one forked pole in the center of the room drove in the ground then another
drove in the ground in two places for the other ends of the railing to rest in them. We had strips nailed across these
and some hides stretched over them, and our beds then were pure old cotton that we picked the seed out by hand.
Then we had quilts spread over this and our quilts were made by hand to cover us with and they kept us real warm,
that son, was like our quarters back in slavery time.
No sir, I'se heard tell that my grandparents were pure old africans but I'se don't remembers any stories told me about
them. Yes sir, I'se heard talk of them when I'se young, but that was long time ago.
Well sir, son, I'se done all kinds of work during slavery time such as, cook, sew on my fingers, help run a spinning
wheel, chop cotton, plowed corn and cut wood, cleared land and so on if Maser had work for us to do. He used the
slave negro woman just like he did the slave man. He never did let the slave girl do one kind of work and the slave
boy another, he worked us right on together.
Well son, I might have earned money but I never seen any money except once and awhile Mistress would give me a
nickel or dime when I would go to town or church with her. Son I would buy candy with what little money she
would give me as it was not often that she ever gave me any.
Son we always had plenty to eat during slavery, water cornbread, fresh from the field, nothing in it except salt and it
was cooked on a big flat skillet on the open fire. Our meat was cooked the same way. Yes we had plenty pork and
beef too all the time, it was cooked or fired on big open skillet on the open fire place. Yes sir, we had some rabbit
meat and possum too, once and awhile as they were not very many there on the plantation that cared very much for
these kinds of meat, but fish we all loved that, and we had plenty of fish to eat nearly all the time. We cooked them
on the open fire in a big flat skillet with plenty of grease - all the negroes loved fish.
Well no sir, the slaves did not have their own garden, but Maser always had a large garden and he would give the
slaves what he wanted them to have out of his garden. The slave eat just about what their white folks eat anyway.
Son, we wore royal shirts open all the way down the front pinned together with thorns. In hot weather no shoes, in
cold weather, we wore wollen clothes and we had brogan shoes to wear and on Sundays we had white royal shirts to
wear that must be kept real clean. No shoes on Sunday did we have to wear. My wedding dress it was just plain
every day royal shirt, I never had no shoes when I married.
Well son, Maser he was a jolly good man but of course he was real strict with the slaves when he told them things
that was exactly what he meant for the slaves to do. Mistress she was right good to her black people but when she
spoke she meant business, there was no foolishness about her cause she was real religious woman. They did not
have any children, and the house they lived in was a big house with upstairs to it. They had 4 rooms downstairs and
2 rooms upstairs. Boss, that overseer John Wesley, he was a bad man to his slaves, yes sir, he would ride by the
slaves and slap him or her across the shoulders just cause he could, there was not a slave there on the plantation that
liked him cause he was too smart and mean to them. There was about 100 acres there in the plantation on the farm
and I believes there was 31 slaves. The overseer he rang a bell every morning to wake up the slaves about 4:30
o'clock and if the slaves were not up and out of their quarters he would go there with that cato-nine tails and use that
on the slaves until they would get up and out of their quarters. Well son, we would be in the field waiting for
daylight to come and we worked that day just as long as we could see how to work. Well son, the slaves were
whipped for being stubborn or if the overseer did not think they was working hard enough, yes and for sassing him,
if one ever tried it. Well if he had to whip one that week he would at the end of the week lock him in his quarters
and not let him or her go anywhere. No son, there was not exactly a jail there for the slaves but if he wanted to lock
them up he would lock them in their quarters, that was almost like a jail. I'se seen the overseer tie the slaves hands
together and pull them up over a limb on a tree and whip them unmercifully. They would have blood all over their
back, great big gashes clear across their back and legs.
Well son, I'se seen a few slaves sold and auctioned off. The first thing they did was to make the slaves take real
good bath and clean up real good, then grease all exposed places on their body real good with a greasy meat skin so
they would look real fat and greasy. Then they would trot the slave out to and fro in front of the bidders, and let
them look the slaves over real good. Then they would begin to bid on them and when they would get the highest bid
for that slave they would take it and bring out another slave, that was the way they did until all the slaves were sold.
When all the buyers would get their slaves and start to leave, all the hollering and bawling you never heard in your
life. Just like someone was dead. Well son, you have heard a bunch of cattle low and bawl for 3 or 4 days after you
have taken their calves away from them, that was just exactly the way the slaves were when they would trade or sell
off one of their members because the slaves would never expect to see that slave any more. Most of the time they
would go to some far off county with their slave just traded for or bought.
Well son, we traveled just about like they use to drive cattle to market - bunch of us in front of Maser and he would
ride along on behind us on a horse to see that we kept moving along. Well no son, I don't believes that I ever saw
any slaves in chains although I have seen them most every other way.
The white people did not learn me how to read and write as they thought about us like we do mules and horses
today. They did not ever think they could learn us anything
(The manuscript breaks off at this point.)
