“Sho I seed a ghost once, I soed Miss Annie Wooldridge after she died up here on Main St. I was jes settin on de back porch steps jes a lookin while da white folks was er eatin supper.  Miss Annie allways got de eggs en I seed her dat day.  She jes come thru de hen house door en hit was locked en den thru de pantry door and hit was locked en I jes called her daughter and I knowed I seed her, sho, I did, it who was Miss Annie.

“Of course dar is hanted houses.  De ole Sharp house were dat er way and all de Sharps were ded but dis house were empty.  You neber did see anything but I sho had heared de doors slam en de silver rattle en at night in my cabin near to hit I’d sees lights bob up en down.  Any body in dis town can tell you dats so foh dey tore dis house down ter run de hants eraway.

“People don bother bout de moon much now but if dey would lissen ter de ole niters dey would always hev good crops.  Now if you plant pertatoes by de dark of de moon you will always hev good crops en if you plant dem on de light of de moon den you hes all vine.  Corn planted on de light de moon den you has a good crop.  I’se knows cause I ken member fore de niggers wore freed you could jes plant by de moon and plant anything in God’s ground en by de moon en de crops would grow.  Now dey jes buther up God’s ground en put ole stinky messy fertilizer on hit en de crops jes burn up.  Nobody oughter mess wid God’s ground.

“I’se a Publican who ever heared of a Democrat nigger.  Nigger neber did own enything so dey cant be Democrats en if dey vote a Democrat ticket dey is jes votin a lie.  Cause no nigger neber did own slaves only the old nigger slave traders and dey werent nuthin but varmints anyway.  Ye jes has to hev owned slaves to vote a Democrat ticket en den no nigger eber did own slaves er hed nothing.”

(Mary lives in Clarksville, Pike R.R. #1, Hopkinsville, Kentucky)

Caldwell Co. 
(Mary E. O’Malley) [HW:  Ky 6]

Coal Mine Slaves:  In 1836 large numbers of slaves were brought into Caldwell and worked by the owners of the ore mines, which necessitated extra patrols, interfered with local workmen, and so on.  The taxpayers complained to the Legislature and an extra tax was allowed to be levied for the benefit of the county.  In other books we find that the owners of the slaves who worked in these mines was President Andrew Jackson who brought his slaves from Nashville to the iron and lead mines in Caldwell and Crittenden counties; he is said to have made several trips himself to these mines.

The Missing Man: 

“In 1860 Mr. Jess Stevens owned a negro slave, and his wife.  Jess Williams, who lived in the north end of the county, bought the old slave, but did not buy his wife.

“One day one of Jess William’s boys went to Edward Stevens and an argument followed, causing Mr. Stevens to shoot him in the arm.  Later Jess Williams took the old negro and went to the field where Edward Stevens and the boy were planting corn.  They hid behind a tree and the negro was given the gun and was told to shoot when Stevens came down the road by them.