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Mary A. Wilson, 80, 814 E. 2nd St., Ft. Worth, born a slave to a Mr. Calhoun on a large plantation near Abbeyville,
S.C. Mary's father was Oliver Halloway, owned by an adjacent plantation owner named Cavang who purchased him
in Va. from a Oliver Halloway. Cavang and Calhoun allowed Mary's parents to marry. Mary and her mother
remained on the home place a few years after freedom, then her father took the family to the Cavang place where he
was employed as a shoemaker, the trade he followed during slavery. Mary left home at 15 and married Alec Wilson,
30, a Union Soldier. They reared 9 children, 4 living yet, before his death in 1925. Mary receives a $9.00 monthly
Old Age Pension.
"Ise 80 yeahs old, an' Ise bo'n on Marster Calhoun's plantation neah Abbeyville, South Carolina. Ise sho 'membahs
de old plantation fo' 'twas a bigun an' 'twas lost ob slaves on it. Now Ise don't know fo' sure 'bout de numbah ob
slaves nor de numbah ob acres, jus' knows 'twas a big numbah. Den too, de plantation am 'bout two miles f'om de
home place whar Ise bo'n. Youse see de Marster have his home 'way f'om de plantation an' 'twas de house servants
dat lived dere.
"My mammy an' her family lives in de servant's qua'tahs at de home place. My father don't live dere 'cause he am
owned by de Marster
Cavang dat owns de plantation next to weuns an' he buys my father f'om f'om Marster Oliver in Virginia. My father
goes by de name ob Oliver Halloway 'cause he am bo'n on Marster Oliver Halloway's place. 'Bout de buyin' an'
sellin', my mammy have a sistah dat am sold in Virginia. Us'ally dey am sold 'way out to Alabama, Mis'sip' an'
tudder places. Weuns never heahs f'om her 'gain.
"Marster Cavang an' Marster Calhoun am good marsters 'cause dey 'lows weuns de pass to visit tudder places an'
dat's de way my parents meets. Dey meets, den asks der marster to 'lows dem to mai'y. Weun de commission am
given, den deys co'tship an' have de mai'iage.
"Ise never does much wo'k 'roun' de place 'cept runnin' errands. Ise 'membahs my aunt an' my mammy wo'kin' 'roun'
de house, cleanin' up, makin' beds, an' runnin' de old spinnin' wheel. 'Sides runnin' de spinnin' wheel dem two done
all de clothes sewin' fo' de whole place includin' de plantation. Tudder womens on de plantation he'ped spin de
thread aftah dey's wo'kin' houahs. Deys have de spinnin' house in dey's qua'tahs. Ise don't 'membahs how many
cabins am in dey's qua'tahs but 'twas lots.
"Tudder thing Ise 'membahs 'bout de old place am de food, 'twas all home made an' firm. Many's de time Ise watch
de smokehouse man cure de hams an' de bacons an' Ise also watch dem run de fish fo' de smoke in de smokehouse.
'Taint a fiah but de embahs ob de fiah dat am kep' smokin'. 'Twas bettah meat dan youse can git now. All de food
am kep' on de homeplace an' took to de plantation as it am called fo'. Dey grows all de veg'tables on de plantation
an' brings it all to de homeplace to be handled as de meats am. De fruit also, am put up an' kep' fo' to be used w'en
needed.
"Dere am one tudder thing Ise lak to watch de mens make. Dat am de black sorghum 'lasses. 'Tis hahd fo' me to
'splain it but Ise 'membahs deys have de ox walk 'round de thing in de middle dat am sorta hoppah outfit 'bout five
foot f'om de groun'. Dey pours de cane stalks in dere, rollers mash de juice f'om de cane, de juice runs down through
some holes in de chute de mashed cane stalks slides down. De stalks am used fo' foddah fo' de stock an' de juice am
put in sorta vat an' cooked slow 'til it am black. Now youse talk 'bout something dat am good black sorghum 'lasses
am good fo' sho.
"'Twarnt much fun on de old place. Since freedom Ise heah 'bout tudder places 'low de pahties an' have de chu'ch fo'
de slaves. Weuns don't have dat but Ise 'lowed to goes to de white fo'ks chu'ch one time. Ise don't 'membahs how
come it happened but my mammy dresses me all up clean clothes on Sunday mornin' an' tells me Ise gwine to de
white fo'ks chu'ch wid de Marster an' de Mistes. Ise goes over to de house an' waits fo' dem to come out.
"W'en de Marster comes out he tells me to climb up to whar de cullud coach driver am sattin'. Ise climbs up dere an'
de tudder fo'ks looks lak dey am small. Weuns lef' fo' de chu'ch. 'Twas 'bout 15 mile drive an' on de way weuns
passes lots ob fo'ks on de way somewhar. Ise sho proud way up dere wid my best clothes on lookin' down on
mostest ob de fo'kses weuns passes. Ise don't 'membahs one word de preacherman says dat day 'cause Ise gappin' at
de mostest white fo'ks Ise ever sees befo'. Co'se Ise goes to chu'ch reg'lar now. Ise listens to de preachah, too. Ise
don't do much chu'ch wo'k but 'taint de plan fo' de old fo'ks to does de chu'ch. My daughter tooks her place w'en she
am fo'ced to quit. Dat's de Lawd's plan fo' to carry out His wo'k.
"'Bout de trouble Ise never sees any. De fol'ks at de homeplace am good fo'ks so's dere am never any trouble dere.
Ise don't knows 'bout de fo'ks on de plantation. Ise never theahs 'bout deys trouble. De mostest trouble Ise sees am
de times w'en Ise outa line myself an' my mammy tooks me to task.
"Ise often heahs my mammy tells 'bout de Patterollers gwine up an' down de roads to skeer de cullud fo'ks into
stayin' to home. Deys makes youse show de pass if youse gwine somewhar. If youse widout de pass deys whup
youse, den tuks youse home what youse lakly to git tudder whuppin'. Ise never see de Patterollers but Ise sees de Ku
Klux Klan. Weuns am all gwine to bed w'ens weuns heahs de noise lak 'twas lots ob hosses drivin' up to de house.
Allus kids runs to de crack under de windah an' peeks out. Weuns sees 'bout 15 peoples on hossback wid white
robes an' white caps on. Dey call fo' my father to come out. My mammy tells him not to do it an' goes to de dooah.
Dey hollers, 'Come on out Uncle, weuns won't hurt youse. Weuns jus' wants to ask youse 'bout tudder fellow.' Man
am weuns skeert? Weuns shakin' all over. Father goes on out an' weuns heahs dem mumble 'twix demse'ves. Aftah
dey rides off Ise never sees tudder white cap.
"De Klux thing am aftah freedom. Ise don't 'membahs much 'bout w'en freedom comes. Ise jus' 'membahs some ob
de slaves leavin' an'
dat my aunt, my mammy an' Ise stays on fo' 'bout five yeahs aftah freedom. De freedom saves our fam'ly much
grief. Let me tells youse 'bout dat, too.
"Old Marster dies 'bout two yeahs befo' freedom. Deys only have one son an' de old Mistes 'cides to give my
mammy to him. Lucky fo' weuns him 'fuses to tooks her long's old Mistes am 'live but says he wants all de chilluns
w'en dey am old 'nough fo' de sep'ration. Youse know Ise done de dawgs lak dat since den but freedom saves weuns
f'om dat.
"Ise heah 'bout how de fo'ks wo'kin' niggers aftah de freedom am s'posed to pays de money. Ise don't know 'bout my
mammy gitten' money. Ise never see her wid any nor she never buys anything. My father am workin' on de Cavang
plantation as de shoemakah de same as befo' freedom He gits wages an' aftah five yeahs he comes an' gits de whole
fam'ly, aunt an' all an' tooks weuns to de Cavang place. Dey stays dere 'til deys both dead.
"W'en Ise 'bout 15 yeahs old Ise meets Alec Wilson. Him am Union soldier an' am 'bout 30 yeahs old. Weuns 'cides
to mai'y an' dat's jus what weuns done. Aftah 'bout two weeks wid my parents weuns tooks off f'om de old
homeplace an' goes f'om one fahm to tudder 'til weuns gits to Hillsboro, Texas. Weuns stays in Hillsboro 'bout 30
yeahs. He dies in 1925. Weuns raise nine chilluns but w'en he died dere am only fouah ob dem livin'; so Ise fo'ced
to come heah wid my daughter.
"Ise lak to wo'k fo' my livin' bettah but 'cause me leg am crippled Ise have to live off dem 'cept fo' de $9.00 a month
de State sends me fo' de pension. Ise sho thank de Lawd fo' dat 'cause it am through an' by Him dat Ise gits dis
money. Ise guess dat am all 'cept 'bout my leg. 'Tis cur'us how dat leg am crippled. Ise wo'kin' in de cotton field
'bout 40 yeahs ago w'en Ise gits de 'fection on de shin. Den Ise gits dew in de 'fection an' it am lots ob trouble to me
ever since.
(Wm. V. Ervin, P.W., McLennan County, Texas, District No. 8, 12 September 1937, (No))
