Harriet Chesley

Harriet Chesley , Born a slave of the Dr. Mahon family in Harrison County, Texas. Five miles south of Marshall on Hwy. #8. Later married Louis Chesley and moved to Marshall where he worked in the Cartwheel Foundry. Now lives at 108 Davis St., Marshall, Texas

I was 'bout 12 years old when de Niggers was freed. My father's name was George Thomas and my mother was named Kate Thomas . My brudder's and sister's was named Sarah , Paralee , Reita , John , Will , Edmon , Charley and Harry . We live in box houses and slep' on wood beds. I had a hard time and had to work in the fiel' all the time. I never did have no shoes even in the cold winter. That's the reason I have such a cole' all the time now. Dr. Mahon was a good man, but he wanted us to work. My father worked on halves so he made us work. We et co'nbread, peas, grits and lots of rabbits and 'possums. My mama cooked on the fireplace. We didn't know what a stove was. We had our own garden and chickens. The plantation was large and had four or five families livin' in it. The niggers use to go to the fiel' at daylight and stay till dark, den they would eat supper and go to bed. No, I didn't learn to read and write. I was so mean and fought all the chilluns' 'till they wouldn't let me go to school. The slaves had a church where dey went ever' Sunday. The Niggers' didn't work on Saturday evenin' but the women fo'ks washed and den ironed on Saturday night. On Sunday evenin' we would wrop our hair and rest. We didn't have to work on Christmas. Us chillens' would sot and watch up the chimley for Santa Claus, 'cause our parents tole us he would come but he never did. I don't know what made them tell us such lies. We would cry 'cause he didn't come to see us. All the Niggers would have a big meetin' at the chu'ch house on New Year's and pray for each other. We would pray all night long and shake hands, cry and shout. Fo'ks had more 'ligion than they does now. Fo'ks ain't got no 'ligion now. The only fun we ever had was when we would have co'n shuckins and guitar playins'. We would all go to some Nigger's house and somebody would play the guitar. We didn't know nothin' 'bout no piano or nothin' but the guitar and fiddle. We would have cake cuttings and put money in the cake and pay to cut to see how much we could win. We useta play marbles and make rubber shooters and shoot birds, I had me a bow and arrow and useta shoot at fo'ks houses and Ma said if I didn't quit they would put me in jail. I still carries my rabbit foot in my pocket. I 'member one time I seed a haint but I ain't scared of 'em. Thar was a woman lived nex' door to me and my husban' what died and when she died she wanted to take her baby with her and cried too but she couldn't. After she died wouldn't nobody live in dat house but nearly eve'y night the whole house would be lit up and you could see her over thar goin' from room to room lookin' for her baby. We use to take herbs, sassfrass tea and red oak bark tea when us was sick. My ma made me wear asafetida around my neck to keep from gittin' sick.

I married Louis Chesley , but I don't know how ole' I was. I was 'bout grown. I was out in de fiel' workin' and ma called me to the house, and tole me that Louis wanted to marry me. I was glad to git to marry anybody so I could quit workin' in the fiel' and I laked him too. I married in my cotton dress what I had on workin' in. I don' forgot the preacher's name but I 'members my husbin' brought him a bottle of wine and I didn't know what it was 'cause we didn't have no whiskey and wine.I jez' do 'member when we was freed, but we hollered and tole all the other Niggers. We didn't move from whar we was livin'.I had four chillens'. One is daid, one cooks for a man in Marshall, one with a minstrel in Oklahoma, one in Kansas City, one worked in WPA Sewing Room in Marshall. One of my grandchillens' lives with me and I don't know whether de others got any or not. I don't hear from them.