I's glad to tell what I knows, but yous have to 'scuse me, 'cause my 'cellection am bad. I jus' den' 'member much, but I's bo'n on Masta Alex Clark's plantation in Patrick County, Virginny, on June 28th, 1847. Dat's what my mammy tel' me. You see, we cullud folks have no schoolin' dem days and I can't read or write. I has to depen' on what folks tells me. Masta Clark has right smart plantation in ole Virginny and he owns 'bout twenty other slaves dat wo'ked de big place. He had three girls and four boys and when I's a chile we'uns played togedder and we'uns 'tached to each other all our lives. In mammy's family dere was five boys and four girls. I don' 'member my pappy. When I's 'bout ten, I's set to work, peddalin' 'round de house. bout three years 'fore de war marster sol' his plantation for to go to Texas. I 'members de day we'uns started in three covered wagons, all loaded. 'Twas celebration day for us chillun. We travels from daylight to dark, 'cept to feed and res' de mules at noon. I den' rec'lec' how long we was on de way, but 'twas long time and 'twarn't no celebration towards de las'. After while we comes to Sherman, in Texas, to our now farm. When we was dare 'bout a year, dare am heaps of trouble, Dare was a neighbor, Shields , he's drivin' wood to town and gets caress masta's yard and day have arg'ments. One day we chillen playin' and masta settin' on de front perch and Shields come up de read. Masta stops him when he starts to cross de yard and de fust thing we knows, we nears 'bang' and dat Shields shoots de masta and we seem him fall. Dey sen's young Alex for de doctor and he makes dat mule run like he never run 'fore. De doctor comes in de house and looks as de masta, and listens to his heart and says, 'He am dead.' Dare was powerful sorrow in dat home. After dat, Masta Alex takes charge, and in 'bout one year, he says 'We'uns goin' to Fort Worth.' So we goes, and if I rec'lects right, dat year de war started. After dat, dere was times dere wasn' enough to make de clothes, but we'uns allus and plenty to eat, and we gives lots of feed to de army man. I don' 'member bein' tel' I's free. We'uns stayed right dere en de farm, 'cause is was de only name we know and no reason to go. I stays dere till I's twenty-seven years ole, den I marries and my husban' rents land. We'uns has ten chillun and sometimes we has to skimp, but we gets on. When my husban' dies fifteen years age. I comes hare. I's allus been to busy tendin' to my 'sponsibilities for to git in de debilment', and nows I's happy, tendin' to my great gran'chile.

Betty Farrow , 90, now living with a son on a farm in Moser Valley, a negro settlement 10 miles N.E. of Ft. Worth on Tex. Hwy. #15, was born a slave to Mr. Alex Clark, plantation owner in Patrick Co., Virginia at that time. Betty is such a perfect negro mammy type that she is addressed as "Mammy Farrow ". Her story:

Ise glad to tells w'at Ise knows, but yous have to scuse me, 'cause my 'collection am bad. Ise jus' don' 'member much. Ise bo'n on Marster Alex Clark's plantation in Patrick County, Virginny, June 28th, 1847. Dats w'at my mammy tol' me. You see, we uns cullud fo'ks have no schoolin' dem days. Ise can't read nor write. Ise have to depen's on w'at fo'ks tells me. Marster Clark had right smart plantation in ol' Virginny. He owns 'bout 20 other slaves dat wo'ked dat big place. He had three girls and four boys. W'en Ise a chile, we uns used to play togedder. We uns was 'tached to each udder all our lives. In my mammy's fam'ly, dere was five boys an' four girls. Ise don' 'member 'bout my pappy. Ise 'collects mammy ta'kin' 'bout him some. W'en Ise 'bout ten, Ise was set to wo'k peddalin' 'roun' de house. As Ise gits ol'er, dey gives me mo' wo'k to does. Ise always used mos'ly fo' housewo'k. Twas 'bout three yeahs befo' de wah dat Marster sol' his plantation fo' to gwine to Texas. He keeps all de slaves an' takes dem wid him. Ise 'members de day we uns started in three covered waggins, all loaded. De Marster's wife, she cries powe'ful hahd 'cause we uns leavin' de ol' home. We uns chilluns was a havin' a good time, 'twas celeb'ation day fo' us. We uns travels f'om daylight to dahk, 'cept to feed an' res' de mules at noon. Ise 'collects comin' over de mountins. Lawd, we uns was skeert some ob de time. Some times de Marster's wife an' de girls screetched, 'cause we uns could looks down, down, an' down. If de wagin tips over, whar we uns go? But, thank de Lawd, we uns never tips over. Ise don' 'collects how long we uns was on de way, but 'twas a long time an' 'twarnt a celeb'ation to'ards de las'. Aftah w'ile w'en we uns comes to Sherman, Texas, de Marster stops on a fahm. W'en we uns was at Sherman 'bout a yeah, dere am heaps ob trouble. Dere was a neighbor, Shields , he's us'ta hauls wood to town an' drives 'cross Marster's yahd. De Marster an' hims have a'guments 'bout dat. One day, we uns chilluns was a playin' back ob de house, Marster was a settin' on de f'ont porch, an' Shields was a comin' up de road wid de load ob wood, gwine to town. Marster stops Shields w'en him stahts 'cross de yahd. De road had been dere long times, but de Marster wants to change it. Marster an' Shields was a ta'kin' loud. We uns peaks 'roun' de side ob de house, young chillens lak, to see w'ats a doin'. De fust thing we knows, we uns heard "Bang"! Dat man Shields shoots de Marster, an' we uns sees de Marster fall. Den Shields says "Giddap" to de mules an' drives on lak nothin's happened. We uns was skeert plum to 'straction an' runs in de house. We uns hid behin' de stove. Marster's wife an' de girls goes a runnin' to de Marster, picks him up an' carries him in de house. Dey sends young Alex fo' de doctor mans. He rides a mule an' he makes dat mule run laks he never runs befo'. We uns was all a cryin' an' moanin'. De girls was a washin' de Marster's face wid wauter an' 'ubbin' his hands. 'Twarnt long 'til de doctor mans comes drivin' in a buggy, an' de hoss was a runnin' lak lightnin'. He comes in de house an' looks at de Marster, listens to his heart an' sez, "He's am dead". Dere was pow'ful sorrow in dat home. 'Twas a long time befo' Mamma Clark was able to be herse'f. Aftah dat, de Marster's boy, Alex , takes charge. Him an' his mamma runs de fahm. One day, 'bout a yeah aftah de shootin' Marster Alex sez to us, "We uns have sol' de lan' an' am gwine to Fort Worth." We uns packed de wagins ag'in, an' drove to Village Creek. Dats 'bout ten miles east ob Fort Worth. Dere, dey settles on a fahm an' we uns all wo'ks hahd, 'cause we uns wants to git on for Mamma Clark an' de boys. If Ise 'collects right, de war started de yeah we uns moved to Village Creek. Two ob de boys jined de ahmy. Durin' de wah, we uns all wo'ked hahd an' 'cepted w'at Mamma Clark had fo' us, 'cause she tol' us w'en de wah started, "Now, de country is in heaps ob trouble, an' we uns mus' he'p de bes' we uns can, an' not complain". Dere was times w'en dere was not nuff mate'als to make de clothes. You know, we uns made alls our clothes dem times. We uns always had plenty ob things to eat, but some times dey had to supply de ahmy mans an' dat makes us short ob some things. W'en de wah was over, de boys comes home, lookin' as pert as befo' dey goes. We uns stayed on wo'kin'. Ise don' 'member bein' tol' Ise free. Dey might have tol' my mammy. Ise don' see no diffe'nce, we uns jus' stayed. 'Twas our home an' dey was good to us, 'twarnt any reason to leave. Mamma Clark died some yeahs aftah de wah. Ise jus' can't 'member w'en, but we uns all stays on wid de boys, an' keeps raisin' de co'n an' de wheat. My mammy stays wid de Clark fam'ly all ob her life. Ise git ma'ied w'en Ise 27, den Ise lef' de w'ite fo'ks place. My husban' rents a piece ob lan'. We uns fahmed dat fo' some yeahs, den we uns bought a fahm here in Moser Valley. We uns have fahmed all our lives an' cared fo' our chilluns. We uns had ten chilluns, an' it takes lots ob things to care fo' dat many. Some times we uns had to skimp, but we uns gits on. De ol'est chile is 62 an' Ise livin' wid him now. W'en my husban' died 15 yeahs ago, Ise comes here an' have been here ever since. Ise never been in trouble, Ise always too busy tendin' to my 'sponsibilities fo' to git in de devilment an' now Ise happy, tendin' to my great gran'chile