Willis Woodsen

I waz bawn at a place called Whiterock , but don't rightly member any other name. Twas a long way from here though. I was the property of Marster Richards , but he sold me wid my maw and a lot of de other darkies to Marster Ike Isom . Yes'sm I members Maw sayin dat Marse Isom paid five hundred dollars for me, but I was perty little an couldn't do much work. Marster Isom decided to move to a new farm with all his niggers, an every body had to help in the loading of the wagons. We started on the road real early on morning when it was cold, and de snow was on de ground. Some of de darkies had to walk all de time cause dere wasn't nouf room in de wagons for all of dem. The women dat was old, and de small childerns rode, and de men and big niggers walked. We traveled real slow though, and it twern't any worse than plowing all day. One of Massa's sons rode behind on a big white horse, and seed that all de darkies stayed on de road, so none of dem would run away. Den at night, we fixed a big supper and went to bed. All de niggers were chained togeder and slept togeder on straw beds. The white men took turns guarding all de niggers soas dey would not leave at night. Effin dey had got loose, the nigger dogs would have caught dem befo daylight. Massa always fed us good, cause he said we couldn't work like we oughtta iffen we got too poor, and den we might git sick too. When we got to Massa's new farm, a long way from where we lived befo, all de big niggers started clearing de land so as de crops could be planted.


Marster Ike jist bought me and my maw a few days befo we started down here. We left my paw and brothers whar we come from. Dey was heaps older dan I was, dat's de reason I come wid my maw I guess. Don't know what ober happened to dem, hain't never seen or heerd tell of dem since de day Massa carried us home from de sale. Well when we got settled in de new house, Massa's wife picked me out to be nurse to her childern, since she say dat I waz too little to much work in de field. No'm I never did work in de field till atter I waz freed. My maw didn't work in de field either. My maw wasn't strong in her back. She say she done been hurt when she got a whippin when she wasn't grown. Mistress say to her: "Eva , you come in de kitchen, and make some chittlins, and iffin you can cook good, you can stay and work in my kitchen, iffen you can't, you will haft to work in de field wid de rest of de niggers." Maw she make de chittlins, and Mistress say she let her stay in de house and do de cooking of de vittils. I didn't have nothin to do, ceptin look atter the childrens, and help bring in de wood. Massa and Mistress lived in a big house, wid boards on de outside, ' steadin logs. It had big rooms, and in room dere was a big fireplace, reachin clear across one side. Me and anoder boy had to bring de logs to build a fire in dis fireplace, him totin one end, and me do other. But I didn't mind dat. Beins I stayed in de house, Mistress allas gived me good cloths to wear, and shoes too. Some of de niggers didn't have no clothes.

De most fun I guess I ever had was when Massa let me be footman for his carriage. He got me a uniform, mos like a soldier's uniform, ceptin mine was red, wid black stripes down de sides. I member it jist like it was yestidy, de first time I puts it on. Massa gived a big celebration at his house, and de regular doorman was sick. Massa handed me de suit, and tol me to hurry and put it on. Den he made me come to de front door, and let him in ova and ova, soas to git the hang of it. He told me to take his hat and cane and put it up, and to say "thank you," and "this way please", and not to say no mo to no body, and I didn't. After dat night, I opened de door lots of times, but I wore my red suit when I went to church wid de white folks, and held de horses, while dey listened to de serman. Yes'm talking about it makes me member lots of things dat I had jist about forgot. I never did see no niggers whipped, but I seed the whip a lots of times whar it hung in de barn. It was a big long thing, lots bigger dan a horse whip, and I know it was used sometimes, cause it was wored out at de end. Yes'm all de niggers lived in little one room cabins back of de big house, and eat in de big long kitchen jist back of de big house. We all eat good. All de entertainment we had was huntin and fishin. We could go huntin and fishin any night we wanted to so's we got a permit from Massa, but we had to work de next day anyhow. After night when all de work was done, Massa let all de big niggers git together hind the cabins and build a big bon fire. Den we sang all de songs dat we could think of, till nine o'clock, when Massa rang de bell, for all de noise to be cut out, soas all de white folks could go to sleep. Den we had to go to bed, or be awful quiet. No'm I never did go to school none, but my Massa got a man to come and he showed us how to read and write, and I'se read a lots since I got grown.

No'am my Massa didn't serve in de war, he war, he was gittin too old, but he helped in gittin up supplies to send to de soldiers. Den jist befo de war was over, some of de soldiers marched through Massa's plantation and killed all de cows, and burned de barns. Mistress begged dem not to burn de house, so dey didn't, but dey drove all de horses off. Some of dem come back tho. Yes'sm we was all freed, when de war was over, and mos of the niggers quit and left de plantation widout deir supper, but not me. I stayed on for two or three years, den I left and got a job in a saw mill, helping snake out logs. Den I jist drifted till I got married, den's when I settled down. I'se got seben children. Yes'sm dey's all livin, and I stays around wid first one den de oder. I helps dem all when I stays wid dem. I'se been patching up some fishin tackle today.