William Byrd

William Byrd . 97, was born a slave of Sam Byrd. near Madisonville. Texas. William was with his mester during the Civil War. The old Negro is very feeble. but enjoyed talking about old stars. He lives in Madisonville.

"I has a bill of sale what say I's born in 1840. so I knows I's ninety-seven years old, and I's owned by Marse Sam Byrd . My mother's name was Fannie and I dunno pappy's name. 'Cause my mother allus say she found us a stray in the woods. I allus 'lieves my master was my papey, but I never did know for who'. Our quarters was log and the bed built with poles stack in the cracks and cowhide stretched over. and we'd gather moss 'bout once a month and make it soft. When it was real cold we'd git close together and I don't care how old it got, we'd sleep jes' re warm as these here feather beds. I split rails and shopped cotton and played with a wooden plow and druv Marse Byrd lots. 'cause he was a trader, slave trade most the time. He was good to as and give us lots toeat. He had a big garden and plenty sugar cane, and brown sugar. We'd press the juice out the cane 'tween two logs and cook it in the big washoot. "We had sheepskin clothes in cold weather, with the fur part inside, no shoes less'n we wrapped our feet in fur hides. But then clothes was warmer then dese here cotton overalls. They're plumb cold! Marse Sam was full of life and Missus Josie was real good. They had a nice home of that day. made out split logs and four rooms and a hall two ways through it. That great iron piece hung jes' outside the door and Marse Sam hit it at 3:20 every mornin'. If we didn't muster out he come round with that cat-o-nine-tails and let us have it, and we knowed what that bell was for nex' mornin'. Sometimes when Marse San was gone, we'd have a overseer. He'd let us go swimmin' in the creek when the work was done. "If a nigger was mean Marse Sam give him fifty licks over a log the first time and seventy-five licks the second time and 'bout that time he most gen'rally had a good nigger. If they was real mean and he couldn't do nothin' with 'on, he put them in the jail with a chain on the feets for three days, and fed 'em through a crack in the wall On Christmas Marse Sam had a great big eggnog and kilt a big beef and had fireworks, and the nigger, he know Christmas was come. We had plenty to sat and eggnog and did 'bout what we pleased that day and New Year's. The white folks allus said what we'd do on them days we'd do all year. That's all foolishment. but some still believes in it. "They give a big dance and all night supper when war started. Then Marse Sam , he carries me for waterboy and cook and to tend his hosses. He had two, and rid one this day and the other nex' day. He was 'fraid one git kilt and then he wouldn't be alone a-foot. "When them big guns went to poppin'. I jes' couldn't stand it without gittin' in a brush top. Then marse goes and gits shot and I has to be his muss. But, Lawd-a-me, one them Yankee gels, she falls in love with marse whilst he lays nearly dead, and she say, 'William , he's mine, so you got to take good care of him.' And him with a plumb good wife back home! "Then Marse Sam git well, be say he's gin' to 'nother place to fight. He was with General Lee when that old war was over and that there Yankee General Grant takes General Lee prisoner, and Marse Sam won't leave his general, and he say to me. 'William , you got to go home alone.' "I lights out a-foot to Texas and it's jest a year befo' I gits home, I travels day and night at first. I buys some things to eat but every tine I goes by a farmhouse I steals a chicken. Sometimes I sho' gits hongry. When I sit to the house. Missus Josis faints. 'cause she thunk Marse Sam ain't with me and he mus' be dead. I tells her he's in prison and she say she'll give me $2.00 a month to stay till he gits back. I's plumb crazy 'bout a little gal called 'Cricket .' 'cause she so pert and full of live, so I stays. We gits us a cabin and that's all to our weddin'. We stays a year befo' Marse Sam gits back. "He was the plumb awfulest sight you ever done seed! His clothes is tore offen him body and he ain't shaved in three months and he's mos' starved to death. Missus Josie she don't even rec'nize him and wouldn't 'low him in till I tells her dat am Marse Sam, all right. He stays sick a whole year. "I thinks if then Yankees didn't 'tend to fix some way for us pore niggers, dey oughth't turn us a-loose. Iffen de white folks in de South hadn't been jes' what they is, us niggers been lots worser off than we was. In slavery time when the nigger an sick, his master pay de bills. but when nigger sick now, that's his own lookout. "I never done nothin' but farm and odd jobs. I been married five tines, but only my fus' wife am livin' now. By four boys and two gals is all farin' right here in the county and they helps us out. We gits by somehow.
 

I was born in Walker County Texas in 1840 according to bill of sale that I has. I was owned by master Sam Byrd . My mothers name was Fannie Byrd . I dunno my fathers name as I was a stray found in the woods. I have one half brother, Charley Byrd , two sisters, one Louise and one Loreen Byrd . Of course, they married and both are dead now. We had fairly good quarters. Mother came from North Carolina to Texas several years before I came along. I never did have much to do with my brother and sisters. I'se always out of the family life because they knew I was just half brother to them. I never heard of my grandparents. I never knowed I had grandparents until long after I was grown, then I heard it by accident. I'se always believed my master was also my father, but I never did know, cause my mother, she would never tell who my father was.One corner of our room which was built out of logs, the bed I sleep in, it was built like this one forked post drove in the ground, then two poles lay in this fork and stuck in the craks of the wall of our room. It had cow hide stretched over these poles then we gather moss about once a month and piled on these here cow hides to make it soft. Then when it was cold we could get real close together and wrap up in these cow hides. We could keep real warm, I dont care how cold it got, we could sleep jest as warm as you can in a good feather bed. The work I did I split rails, chop cotton, plowed with wooden plow, then I'se drove my master lots because he was trader, dealt in slave trade most of the time. Yessir, he gave me nickel and dime several times and I would buy tobacco and candy when I could git it. Master always had plenty to eat, meat, corn bread, no biscuit, then he always had a big garden. We find bee tree and cut that and we would have honey on the table the year round. Yessir, I can eat possum with taters. I can eat a whole possum at a time with them taters around it. Then we always had plenty fish on the table as we lived close to the river and it was not any trouble to git all the fish we wanted. Master he ground lots of sugar cane. He always had plenty of this old time brown sugar all the time. of course, we never had the convenience to make it that we have now. All we had to do to get the juice out of that cane, was two log, to press it out with and we had to cook that in these here old time wash pots. In warm weather we had these here loyal clothes made in a long shirt opened all the way down the front in cold weather we had sheep skin clothes, made with the fur paxt turned in side. We never had no shoes except we wrapped our feet in fur hides. Oh boss, we had better clothes then than we do now, or we could keep lots warmer than we can now in these here cotton overalls. They are plum cold.

Master Sam Byrd , he was small man, plum full of life and he was a trader. Mistress Josie she was a real good woman had no children. She was good to her black folks. I never saw her when I thought she was mad. They had a real nice home of that day. It was made out of split logs and the crack was dobbed with mud. It had four rooms with hall run two ways through it. They just had mother earth for floors, except they had hides throwed around on the ground. They had plenty shade trees all around it. In fact, mister it was right in the woods but master he had about forty acres in his plantation. It took two or three days to ride around his land. Master Sam sometimes had hole bunch of slaves, then other times he never had but his regular number, six grown and eleven little slaves. Master, he had great iron piece hanging just out side his door and he hit that every morning at 3:30. The negroes they come tumbling out of there beds. If they didnt master he come round in about thirty minutes with that cat-o-nine tails and begins to let negro have that and when he got through they knew what that bell was the next morning. Sometimes master when he was gone would have overseer, but lord he was better to us slave than master was. He tells us to come on and us get this job done and when we would get through he let us go to the creek and go swimmin then he was always in good humor, never mad or cursing slaves, but lord son I have seen slaves whipped until they couldnt hardly move. Master he was always yelling bad words and he would stretch them slaves over a log and hit them fifty licks, the first time, then seventy five licks and then one hundred licks the third time. About that time he most generally had a pretty good negro. Master he had a jail on the plantation. Iffen he couldnt do anything with slave by whipping, he would put chain around his feet and put them in that there jail and let them stay three days, the first time then ten to fifteen days and when he feed them thro a crack in the wall and when he got thro with him he was a pretty good negro. I'se seen slaves sold and auctioned off both. Master he have negro washed up real good, clothes clean, have their face and hand greased, real good then he would auction negro to highest bidder, trade them for cattle mules, horses then some time he would take land. Of all the hollering and bellering it would take place when he would separate some of the negroes from their families, bawl jest like cattle. They tried hard to not let the negro know their children or children know who their father and mother was sos they wouldnt have such time separating them.Master he have man teacher that taught all his slaves how to read and write. We always went to the white folks church. Old Brother Goree he always preached to us when we went to church but I'se never cared very much about church cause I does not believe all that there junk. I does believe theres a God all right enough. We use to have great old camp meeting them was the the days, cause you could see every body two or three counties around. They use to come to them horse back, ox wagon, foot and every way in them days. They lets the negro do most as he pleased there sos he behaved his self, then the last week the preacher he baptized and o boy, all the white boys and girls they would wait until the camp meeting would start so they could get married. I'se seen a few negroes try to run away, but most of the time they got caught before they would get very far. They have pass from there master to go to certain farms, if they went where they didnt have pass negro would get whipped from that master or sometimes we would slip off after night to go to see our girl and wife and we could talk in a whisper and not get caught, but if they catch negro boy he would sure get whipped by his master and that master also. Sos the negro he was very careful to try and not get caught and he wouldnt iffen they wasnt dog to give the alarm. When they went to their quarters most time they would just go to bed and rest sos they would be fit to work the next day. No sir master always let us have Saturday sos we could clean up and rest for Sunday. Master would give the old negro pass sos he could stay all night with his wife, the young he would give them pass to dance on some plantation near by. The negro he would dance all night Saturday night until day light. On Christmas, master he first make great big egg nog and let the negro have all they wanted then he would have big beef killed then some fire works or he would shoot big old cannon and the negro he know Christmas was here. The negro he had plenty to eat on Christmas cause master he let the negro do as he pleased on that day and on New Years day, and white folks say what we would do on that day we would do on every day of that year. Of course, that is all foolishment, but some still believe in it I'se seen one ghost, it appeared late one evening just before my common wife died. It looked jest like a man without a head. Yessir in broad light that is all the ghost I'se seen. Boss, he use to and I'se still does see dat horse shoe hang over my door? Iffen we thought master was going to be mean to us that week we hang horse shoe over our door sos he would be good to us that week. Then I'se put stick under master door steps and drive it down in the ground one lick every night with out master seeing us or making any sign and if we could get it drove plum up why master he would be plum good to us until that stick plum rotted out. That would plum charm him sos he never would whip us while that stick was there. When slaves become sick master he would look after them he would first get old negro mamma. She would give us tea made from red oak bark for chills and fevers then she would tie camphor string around our neck. If she couldnt get us well then master he would have white doctor, cause we were too valuable to let die. He would lose lots of money iffen he didnt get us well.

Yes, I'se remember plenty about the war that brought our freedom. They give a big dance and all night supper when the war started to give the boys that wus goin' off to fight a last farewell. Then marser, he carried me with him as water carrier and cook and so's I could tend to his horses. He takes two horses so's he could ride one, one day and de other'n de nex' day. Then, too, he was afraid dat he would git one killed. If he had another horse, den he wouldn' be slam a-foot. Lawd-a-me, Mister, when dem big guns went to poppin', I just couldn' stand it wif out gittin' in a brush top. (Here the negro means a small scrubby tree) Then marser, he goes and gits shot and I'se have to be his nurse, but Lawd-a-me, one of dem there Yankee gals, she falls in love with marser while he lay there nearly dead and she comes over there and says, "William , he is mine, so's you got to take real good care of him so's he will soon be gittin' well." And, mister, he had a plum good wife back at home. When Marser gits well, tho', he say, "William , I'se got to go to another place to fight." Why Boss, he was with General Lee when dey tells dem that that ole war was over. That there yankee general, Grant , he takes General Lee prisoner, and marser, he wouldn' leave General Lee so's he say, "William, can you fin' de way back home?" "Yessir," I says. Then marser, he gives me a pass and tells me to git that I's plum free. But, mister, I'se learn them there Yankees taken General Lee and Marser both prisoners. 'Cause Marser, he was a officer in that there war. Then, Boss, I lights out a-foot back to Texas and it's most a year 'fore I gits back home. When I firs' sta'ts out, I travels day and night and I even runs part of de time. I buys some things to eat but evah time I goes by a farm house I steals a chicken. Some times I sho' gits hongry but I finally gits back home. And Mistress, when I come up to de house she faints. When she come to, she say, "William, where Master Sam? Den she say, "Is he dead?" Den she faint again. Boss, she don' know nothin' till de nex' day. Den I goes back up to de big house and tells her where Marser be. Den she tell me to go back to my quarters and dat she will gi' me $2.00 a month till Marser come back. Dat's what I done. But Lawd-a-me, Marser he had a li'l nigger girl that I'se plum crazy 'bout. Dey called her 'Cricket ' ca'se she plum full of life. I'se tell Mistress if she let me ma'y Criket and had her fer my own wife dat I'd be plum glad to stay. So, Mistress, she call up Cricket and tell her what I says. She say, "Yes, dat's a'right ca'se I wants William ." So, from then on, Boss, Cricket , she was mine till she die. That very day dat I tell Mistress dat I wants Cricket , den she fin's us a one-room house out at de back and we goes dar to live and dat was all dey was to our weddin'. But, mistress, she tell me dat I can't take Cricket away ca'se she de cook and de housekeeper. So's dat very night me and Cricket we goes and lives in our house and we stays dar till Marser comes back 'bout a year after dis. And when he comes home, he was de plum awfules' sight you ever seen. His clothes is plum tore offen his body and he haven't shave' in two, three months. Them there Yankees, dey had put him in prison. He was plum sick ca'se dey had starve him mos' nigh to death. Mistress, she didn' even know Marser Sam ; she wouldn't even let him come in the house ca'se she didn' believe dat it was him. She comes out to de back and ask me who is dat, and I tell her dat Marser, so's she lets him in, den. She give him a razor and make him shave and take a bath and put on some clean clo'es and den she know him. But, Boss, dat man ver' sick and he stay sick all dat year.

Well, son, you asks me what I 'spected from freedom, I jest don' know. I does know, tho', dat iffen de Yankees didn' 'tend to fix some way for de po' ol' nigger, den dey ought not to turn dem loose. Iffen de white folks in de South hadn't been jest what dey is, de nigger would have been lots wo'ser off dan dey is now. I believes, dat I fer one, really likes de slavery times bes' of all, ca'se now when de nigger sick, he got to take care of hisself, and den when he get well de white folks work him ag'in, but in slavery time, Marser, he take care of us and den we didn't have to worry 'bout having some place to live and somethin' to eat cause Marser, he feed us. Den, too, Marser, he pay all de doctor bills, we too valuable to die, dat would make Marser lose too much money. But now, Boss, when nigger sick and die, dat the nigger's lookout. And ca'se dey not worth much, when one die, den another one come along and take de othe'ns place. De white folks can get another one without it cos'ing him nothin'. 'Sides dat, Boss, 'bout all de nigger ever gits from de white folks is a curse, kicks, and worked hard. Oh, yes, de white folks have help de nigger in some way. They have buil' him some schools. The nigger he have progressed in some ways but the wages of niggers since freedom has been very small. Jest enough for him to kinda get by on, and the nigger has been very easy for the unprincipled white man to exploit because he was uneducated. (Here, quite evidently the old man was trying to quote from memory the phrase of some other person because of the difficulty with which he remembered the statement and the manner in which he pronounced the words that made them almost unrecognizable.) These people that has made plenty here in the South, most of them has made it with cheap nigger labor. Up to de present day, it has been a terrible struggle for the nigger to stay here. Boss, that is de reason why de South is in a terrible state. They is got too much cotton 'ca'se dey makes it with cheap nigger or pore whi' trash labor. You asks 'bout the Ku Klux peoples, dey made de niggers do a lot of things, especially right after de war. If de nigger tried to get out and buil' somethin', or tried to get out and hunt somethin' to do 'sides what he was already doin', den de Ku Kluxes took him out and beat him up good and plen'y. O' course, de nigger didn' leave his master. Iffen he did, den that old Ku Klux bunch would git him and what dey did was a plen'ty. Dey wouldn' let him vote or take any part in anythin' dat de white folks did. Dey even excluded him from de white folks churches and schools. And at dat time, de niggers didn' have hardly any schools nor churches. There were some few but very few that ever voted until the World War. Then the negro, he kind of began to take his place among the people as the taxes began to get heavy on him. All I ever did was farm. I's cut some cord-wood and split a few rails. Our wages has been very poorly. Oh! this here young race of negroes they are pretty sorry. I thinks if they had a better deal, could get fair wages for what they do, they would do lots better than what they is. Oh! they won't tell the truth nor hardly work---especially since this here relief come on. Boss, you ask one of them to chop cotton or cut some wood, they will tell you I am on the relief and I won't work because the Government is feeding me. I'se don't have to. Of course, the negro he has become more educated and more wise to the way of the world. Mister, you ask me how many children I'se have, 6 by my 5th wife. I'se been married 5 times. All my other wives are dead. I'se 4 boys and 2 girls, they are all farming here in Madison County. I don't have but 3 grandchildren yet.