Story

I wasn’t born in slavery but I was born in the white folks kitchen.  Bob Walker was ma mother’s Master and James Austin ma father’s Master.  They said he wasn’t good to none of dem, he was mighty tight.  Now ma mothers white folks was sho good to her.  When de war was all over me family jined and worked fer people not berry far from ma mother’s masters.  There was two brothers and a sister older than me.  She thought her white folks do better by her than anybody so she went back to em during her pregnancy and thats how come I was born in der kitchen a white mid-wife tended on er.  I never will forget her.  She was named Mrs. Coffee.  There wasn’t many doctors in the whole country then.  I was born in Haywood county Tennessee in 1866.  No’m I tell you when you first come I wasn’t born in slavery.  My white mistress named me, the young mistress, she named me Callie.  Bob Walkers girl married Ben Geeter.  I was right in Ben Geeters kitchen when Miss Sallie named me.  They seemed proud of the little black babies.

Ma mother was a field hand and she washed and ironed.  She was a good spinner.  She carded and wove and spun all.  She knitted too.  She knitted mostly by nite.  All the stockings and gloves had to be knit.  She sewed and I learned from her.  We had to sew with our fingers.

When I was a little girl I just set around, brought in wood.  Yes maam we did play and I had some dolls, I was proud of my dolls, just rag dolls.  We use to drive the calves up.  If they didn’t come up they sent the dog fur de cows.  One of dem wore a bell.  They had shepherd dogs, long haired, gentle dogs, to fetch the cows when they didn’t come.

Ma folks farmed in Tennessee till I married and den we farmed.  Agents jess kept comin after us to get us to come to this rich country.  They say:  hogs jess walking round with knife and forks stickin in der backs beggin somebody to eat em over in Arkansas.

No’m I aint seed none lack dat, I seed em down in the swamps what you could saw a good size saplin down wid der backbones.  I says I mean I seed plenty raysor back hogs, and long noses and long straight ears.  I show have since I come here.  The land was so poor in Tennessee and this was uncleared land so we come to a new country.  It show is rich land.  They use guano back in Tennessee now or they couldn’t raise nuthin.  Abe Miller an old slave owner what we worked wid come out here.  He was broke and he paid our way.  We come on the Josie Harry boat.  Der was several families sides us come wid him.  He done fine out here—­we got off the boat at Augusta and I worked up there in Woodruff county till ma husbands brother’s wife died and he had a farm his own.  We raised his boys and our family till dey was ob age.  I left em.  They went in big business here in Biscoe and lost de farm and everything.  Ma husband died I lives with ma girl.  I got one boy married lives in Chicago, and a girl up there too.  No’m dey aint rich.  Dem his children come home wid ma daughters on a visit—­Little Yankees ain’t got no manners.