Louis Napoleon is now aged and infirm, his father and mother having died many years ago.  He now lives with one of his younger brothers who has a fair sized orange grove on the south side of Jacksonville.  He retains the property that his father first bought after freedom and on which they lived in Arlington.  His hair white and he is bent with age and ill health but his mental faculties are exceptionally keen for one of his age.  He proudly tells you that his master was good to his “niggers” and cannot recall but one time that he saw him whip one of them and that when one tried to run away to the Yankees.  Only memories of a kind master in his days of servitude remain with him as he recalls the dark days of slavery.

REFERENCES

Personal interview with Louis Napoleon, South Jacksonville, Florida

FEDERAL WRITERS’ PROJECT American Guide, (Negro Writers’ Unit)

Rachel A. Austin, Field Worker
Jacksonville, Florida
December 5, 1936

MARGRETT NICKERSON

In her own vernacular, Margrett Nickerson was “born to William A. Carr, on his plantation near Jackson, Leon County, many years ago.”

When questioned concerning her life on this plantation, she continues:  “Now honey, its been so long ago, I don’ ’member ev’ything, but I will tell you whut I kin as near right as possible; I kin ’member five uf Marse Carr’s chillun; Florida, Susan, ’Lijah, Willie and Tom; cose Carr never ’lowed us to have a piece uf paper in our hands.”

“Mr. Kilgo was de fust overseer I ’member; I was big enough to tote meat an’ stuff frum de smokehouse to de kitchen and to tote water in and git wood for granny to cook de dinner and fur de sucklers who nu’sed de babies, an’ I carried dinners back to de hands.”

“On dis plantation dere was ‘bout a hunnerd head; cookin’ was done in de fireplace in iron pots and de meals was plenty of peas, greens, cornbread burnt co’n for coffee—­often de marster bought some coffee fur us; we got water frum de open well.  Jes ’fore de big gun fiahed dey fotched my pa frum de bay whar he was makin’ salt; he had heerd dam say ’de Yankees is coming and wuz so glad.”

“Dere wuz rice, cotton, co’n, tater fields to be tended to and cowhides to be tanned, thread to be spinned, and thread wuz made into ropes for plow lines.”

“Ole Marse Carr fed us, but he did not care what an’ whar, jes so you made dat money and when yo’ made five and six bales o’ cotton, said:  ‘Yo’ ain don’ nuthin’.”

“When de big gun fiahed on a Sattidy me and Cabe and Minnie Howard wuz settin’ up co’n fur de plowers to come ’long and put dirt to ’em; Carr read de free papers to us on Sunday and de co’n and cotton had to be tended to—­he tole us he wuz goin’ to gi’ us de net proceeds (here she chuckles), what turned out to be de co’n and cotton stalks.  Den he asked dem whut would stay wid him to step off on de right and dem dat wuz leavin’ to step off on da left.”