Bearing Witness: Memories of Arkansas Slavery

Randolph County

before Benford’s time. It was just after peace had been declared. I don’t know where Andrews come from, nor how much learning he had. Most of the people then got their learning from white children. But I don’t know where he got his. “Wesley was his first church as far as I know. Before the War all the churches were in with the white people. After freedom, they drew out. Whether Wesley was his first church or not, he was Wesley’s first pastor. I got a history of the church. “They had a real Sunday-school in those days. My sister when she was a child about twelve years old said three hundred Bible verses at one time and received a book as a prize. The book was named ‘A Wonderful Deliverance’ and other Stories, printed by the American Tract Society, New York, 150 Nassau Street. My sister’s name was Mollie Jackson.” Randolph County Allen, Hannah Age: 107 Fredericktown, Missouri Interviewer: J. Tom Miles [S2:2: 138–42] Note. Aunt Hannah, to date, is by far the oldest ex-slave that this writer has interviewed. She claims to be 107 years old, having been born on December 24th, 1830. When she made application for a marriage license in Fredericktown in 1912, she gave her age then as 82, according to the Madison County Recorder of Deeds. Since she receives an Old Age Pension further proof is being made to verify her age through the Old Age Assistance Office in Fredericktown. From talking to some of the better informed persons in Fredericktown, the idea is confirmed; they are agreed the “Aunt” Hannah is probably 107 years old.She is still able to do the work around her house and,at times,walks up town. She can see very well without glasses and is not apparently feeble except for the fact that her feet bother her at times. In a former report sent in it was stated that “Aunt” Hannah is not all negro. Her grandfather was a white man and she is far from a black person. Her face is comparatively free from wrinkles. Her bearing is splendid and her mind active. Possibly health can be attributed to several causes. She was treated well when young and a slave under the ownership of the Bollingers. 352 Lankfordtext:Lankford / Final Pages 7/14/09 10:06 AM Page 352 Being childless, she has never had to experience the tortures of childbirth. She has been content to live on the same spot for the last 71 years. And being a negro, she naturally does not take life too seriously but lives it as it comes. Down in Pocahontas,Arkansas, a man had 400 slaves and the boss would allow an old colored man to have meetings every Saturday night and on Friday night they would have a class meeting. Several of them got religion right out in the field an would kneel down in the cornfield. The boss went home and told his wife he thought the slaves were losin’their minds cause they was all kneeling down in the field. The boss’ daughter also got religion and went down to the mourners bench. The colored church finally made the boss and his whole family get religion. The ole white mistress would sing and pray while she washed dishes, milked the cows and made biscuits. So they called the doctor and the doctor come and said that God had got hold of her. One of the darkies had a baby out in the field about eleven o’clock one morning. The doctor came out there to her. She was sick a long time cause she got too hot before the child was born.After this happened the boss got to be a better man. This old boss at first would not let the darkies have any church meetings. On Sunday there at home the colored folks could get all the water that ran from the maple trees. The slaves would get through their work for the boss and then there would sometimes be three days when they could work for themselves. Then they would get paid for working for others and then buy clothes. They had the finest boots. They did not want the mistress to tell me when we were free cause there was only two of us slaves left there. The other slaves had already run off. I did not want to leave.When I was...