HANNAH JONES                 0546-ALA/#277
     LAWDY, IT'S BEEN SO LONG DAT I'S MOS' FORGOT 'BOUT DEM SLAVERY DAYS, BUT I
WAS BORN IN BUNKER HILL, AMELIA COUNTY, VIRGINNY.  MY PAPPY WAS NAMED SIMON JOHN
SON AN' MY MAMMY WAS RHODA JOHNSON.  MY MARSTER WAS ALFRED WOOD AN' MY MISTIS WA
S MISS TABBY WOOD.  WHEN MASSA DIED, DE 'STATE WAS 'VIDED AN' I FELL TO DE SON
DAT WAS TOO SICK TO TAKE CARE OF DE PLACE AN' DE SLAVES.  SOON I WAS TUK TO RICH
MOND AN' SOLD TO JEDGE MOORE OF ALABAMMY FOR TWELVE HUNDRED DOLLARS.  DAT WAS DE
 FUST TIME I EVER SEED A SLAVE SOLD.  I WAS 16 YEARS OLD.  WHEN JEDGE MOORE'S PL
ANTATION WAS SOLD DE NIGGERS WENT WID DE PLACE AN' IT WAS BOUGHT BY MARSE ISAIAH
 AN' MARSE BILL SMARR.  IT WAS CALLED DE GILLUM PLACE AND DAT IS EAST OF PRAIRIE
VILLE.  I WAS HOUSE GIRL AN' HOPE WID DE SEWIN' AN' DE SPINNIN'.
     US HAD GOOD HOUSES BUILT OUTTEN CEDAR LOGS AN' DE QUARTERS LOOKED-J S'-L K
DIS STREET DAT I LIVES ON NOW.  WE HAD GOOD BEDS AN' PLENTY VITTELS TO EAT:  GRE
ENS, CAWN BREAD, MEAT AN' ALL KINDS OF SWEETS.  SOME TIME DE MEN FOLKS WOULD KET
CH A 'POSSUM OR RABBIT.  MARSTER HAD A BIG VEGETABLE GARDEN AN' WE WAS 'LOWED TO
8HELP OURSELVES F'UM DIS HERE GARDEN.  US HAD TWO EVE'Y DAY DRESSES, AN' WE DONE
 OUR WASHIN' AT NIGHT.  WHEN I WAS MA'IED, DE CEREMONY TUK PLACE AT MY MAMMY'S H
OUSE AN' I WO' A PRETTY WHITE DRESS.
     OUR OBERSEER WAS HARVEY WILLIAMSON AN' HE WENT 'ROUN' AT NINE O'C OCK TO SE
E IFFEN US NIGGERS WAS IN BAID.  SOMETIMES ATTER HE DONE BEEN 'ROUN' US'D GIT UP
 AN' HAVE SOME FUN.  AT DE BREAK OF DAY ALL DE SLAVES WOULD GIT UP jN' pO tO WOR
K.  DOSE GOIN' WAY DOWN IN DE FIEL'S WOULD HAVE TO GIT UP EVEN BEFO' IT WAS LIGH
T SO'S TO BE DAR WHEN DE DAWN BROKE TO COMMENCE DE DAY'S WORK.  DEN DAY WOULD CO
ME BACK AT TWELVE O'CLOCK FOR DINNER AN' RES' AWHILE, DEN GO BACK AN' WORK TILL
SUN DOWN.
     WE USETA HAVE A MAN ON DE PLACE DAT PLAYED A BANJO, AN' WE WOULD DANCE AN'
PLAY WHILE HE SANG.  DIS WAS ONE OF HIS SONGS:  WHITE FOLKS SAYS A NIGGER WON'T
STEAL BUT I COTCHED SIX IN MY CAWNFIEL' IF YOU WANT TO SEE A NIGGER RUN SHOOT AT
 DAT NIGGER WID A GATTLIN' GUN.
     MY LAST MARSTERS WAS TWO BROTHERS AN' DEY HAD ONE SISTE, MISS2SjR H sMAR.
     WE DIDN'T HAVE NO JAIL ON DE PLACE, AN' MOST OF US NEVER WENT OFFnN DE-PLjN
TATION, JUS' STAYED 'ROUN' AN' HAD A GOOD TIME PLAYIN' AMONGST OURSELVES.  US NI
GGERS HAD A CHURCH DAR ON DE PLACE AN' A WHITE MAN PREACHED TO US, BUT IN VIRGIN
NY WE WENT TO DE SAME CHURCH AS DE MARSTER DID.  I DIDN'T JINE NO CHURCH DOUGH T
ILL I COME TO ALABAMMY.
     NONE OF US SLAVES EVER TRIED TO RUN AWAY TO DE NAWTH 'CA'SE DEY WAS GOOD TO
 U\.
     WE USETA HAVE A DOCTOR DAT'D COME ROUN' EVE'Y TWO WEEKS TO SEE HOW DE SLAVE
S WAS DOIN' AN' IFFEN WE WAS SICK HE WOULD GIVE US SOME MEDICINE.  SOME OF DE WO
MEN WOULD TIE ASSFEDITY 'ROUN' DE CHILLUNS NECKS TO KEEP SICKNESS AWAY.
     SOME SADDAYS WE HAD TO WORK AFTER DINNER, BUT MOST OF THE TIME MARSTER6wOuL
D LET US HAVE A GOOD TIME.  ON CHRISTMAS DAY US HAD A BIG CELEBRATION AN' DIDN'T
 DO NO WORK AT ALL.
     DIDN'T NOBODY HAVE NO TIME TO LEARN US HOW TO READ AN' WRITE.
     I DON'T KNOW NOTHIN' 'BOUT MR LINCOLN 'CEP'N HE FREED ALL US2sLAe  ,& )'WH
EN WE HEARD DAT US WAS FREE ALL DE NIGGERS MARCHED TO PRAIRIEVILLE AN' HAD A CEL
EBRATION.
     HONEY, I'S HAD NINE CHILLUNS, TWENTY FIVE GRAN' CHILLUNS, TWENTY SEVnN pREA
T GRAN' CHILLUNS AN' THIRTEEN GREAT GREAT GRANCHILLUNS, AN' I IS EXPECTIN' MO' T
O COME ALONG PRETTY SOON.  I GUESS MAYBE I'LL HAVE 100 DESCENDANTS FO' I SHUFFLE
 OFF.
  X   XXX