Name: Sheets, Will

Address: 1290 W. Broad Street Athens, Georgia

Age: 76

Written by: Sadie B. Hornsby (Athens)

Edited by: Sarah H. Hall (Athens), Leila Harris (Augusta), and John N. Booth (District Supervisor Federal Writers' Project Residencies 6 & 7)

Citation: Federal Writers' Project: Slave Narrative Project, Vol. 4, Part 3, Kendricks-Styles (1936), Library of Congress, Manuscript/Mixed Material. https://www.loc.gov/item/mesn043/

Interview

Old Will Sheets readily complied with the request that he tell of his experiences
during slavery days. "No'm I don't mind, its been many a long day since anybody axed
me to talk 'bout things dat far back, but I laks to have somebody to talk to 'cause I can't
git 'bout no more since I los' both of my footses, and I gits powerful lonesome sometimes.

"I was borned in Oconee County, not far f'um whar Bishop is now. It warn't
nothin' but a cornfield, way back in dem times. Ma was Jane Southerland 'fore she
married my pa. He was Tom Sheets. Lawsy Miss! I don't know whar day come f'um. As
far as I knows, dey was borned and raised on deir Marsters' plantations. Dar was seven of
us chilluns. I was de oldes'; James, Joe, Speer, Charlie, and Ham was my brudders, and
my onlies' sister was Frances.

"You ax me 'bout my gram'ma and gram'pa? I can't tell you nothin' t'all 'bout 'em.
I jus' knows I had 'em and dat's all. You see Ma was a house gal and de mos' I seed of her
was when she come to de cabin at night; den us chilluns was too sleepy to talk. Soon as
us et, us drapped down on a pallet and went fast asleep. Niggers is a sleepyheaded set.

"I was a water boy, and was 'spected to tots water f'um de spring to de house, and
to de hands in de fiel'. I helped Mandy, one of de colored gals, to drive de calves to de
pasture and I toted in a little wood and done little easy jobs lak dat. Lawsy Miss! I never
seed no money 'til atter de War. If I had a had any money what could I have done wid it,
when I couldn't leave dat place to spend it?

"Dere ain't much to tell 'bout what little Nigger chillun done in slavery days. Dem
what was big enough had to wuk, and dem what warn't, played, slep' and scrapped. Little
Niggers is bad as game chickens 'bout fightin'. De quarters whar us lived was log cabins
chinked wid mud to keep out de rain and wind. Chimblies was made out of fiel' rock and
red clay. I never seed a cabin wid more dan two rooms in it.

"Beds warn't fancy dem days lak dey is now; leastwise I didn't see no fancy ones.
All de beds was corded; dey had a headboard, but de pieces at de foot and sides was jus'
wide enough for holes to run de cords thoo', and den de cords was pegged to hold 'em
tight. Nigger chillun slep' on pallets on de flo'.

"Marse Jeff Southerland was a pore man, but he fed us all us could eat sich as
turnips, cabbages, collards, green corn, fat meat, cornbread, 'taters and sometimes
chicken. Yes Ma'am, chicken dinners was sorter special. Us didn't have 'em too often. De
cookin' was all done at de big house in a open fireplace what had a rack crost it dat could
be pulled out to take de pots off de fire. 'Fore dey started cookin', a fire was made up
ready and waitin'; den de pots of victuals was hung on de rack and swung in de fireplace
to bile. Baking was done in skillets. Us cotched rabbits three and four at a time in box
traps sot out in de plum orchard. Sometimes us et 'em stewed wid dumplin's and
sometimes dey was jus' plain biled, but us laked 'em bes' of all when dey was fried lak
chickens.

"Oh! dem 'possums! How I wisht I had one right now. My pa used to ketch 40 or
50 of 'em a winter. Atter dey married, Ma had to stay on wid Marse Jeff and Pa was
'bliged to keep on livin" wid Marster Marsh Sheets. His marster give him a pass so dat he
could come and stay wid Ma at night atter his wuk was done, and he fotched in de
'possums. Dey was baked in de white folkses kitchen wid sweet 'tatoes 'roun' 'em and was
barbecued some times. Us had fishes too what was mighty good eatin'. Dere warn't but
one gyarden on de plantation.

"Slave chillun didn't wear nothin' in summer but shirts what looked lak gowns
wid long sleeves. Gals and boys was dressed in de same way when dey was little chaps.
In winter us wore shirts made out of coarse cloth and de pants and little coats was made
out of wool. De gals wore wool dresses." He laughed and said: "On Sunday us jus' wore
de same things. Did you say shoes? Lawsy Miss! I was eight or nine 'fore I had on a pair
of shoes. On frosty mornin's when I went to de spring to fetch a bucket of water, you
could see my feet tracks in de frost all de way dar and back.

"Miss Carris, my Mist'ess, was good as she knowed how to be. Marse and
Mist'ess had two gals and one boy, Miss Anna, Miss Callis, and Marster Johnny.

"Marse Jeff was a good man; he never whupped and slashed his Niggers. No
Ma'am, dere warn't nobody whupped on Marse Jeff's place dat I knows 'bout. He didn't
have no overseer. Ders warn't no need for one 'cause he didn't have so many slaves but
what he could do de overssein' his own self. Marse Jeff jus' had 'bout four mens and four
'oman slaves and him and young Marse Johnny wukked in de fiel' 'long side of de
Niggers. Dey went to de fiel' by daybreak and come in late at night.

"When Marse Jeff got behind wid his crop. he would hire slaves f'um other white
folkses, mostly f'um Pa's marster, dat's how Pa come to know my Ma.

"Dere was 'bout a hunderd acres in our plantation countin' de woods and pastures.
Dey had 'bout three or four acres fenced in wid pine poles in a plum orchard. Dat's whar
dey kep' de calves.

"Dere was a jail at Watkinsville, but Marse Jeff never had none of his slaves put
in no jail. He didn't have so many but what he could make 'em behavs. I never seed no
slaves sold, but I seed 'em in a wagon passin' by on deir way to de block. Marse Jeff said
dey was takin' 'em a long ways off to sell 'em. Dat's why dey was a-ridin'.

"Miss Anna larned Ma her A.B.C's. She could read a little, but she never larned to
write.

"Slaves went to de white folkses church if dey went a t'all. I never could sing no
tuns. I'se lak my Ma; she warn't no singer. Dat's how come I can't tell you 'bout de songs
what dey sung den. I 'members de fus' time I seed anybody die; I was 'bout eight years
old, and I was twelve 'fore I ever seed a funeral. No Ma'am, us chilluns didn't go to no
baptizin's - Ma went, but us didn't.

"Didn't none of Marse Jeff's Niggers run off to no North, but I heared of a Nigger
what did on de place whar my Pa was at. De only thing I knowed what might a made him
run to de North was dat Niggers thought if dey got dar dey would be in Heb'en. Dem
patterollers was somepin' else. I heared folkses say dey would beat de daylights mos' out
of you if dey cotched you widout no pass. Us lived on de big road, and I seed 'em passin'
mos' anytime. I mos' know dere was plenty trouble twixt de Niggers and de white folkses.
Course I never heared tell of none, but I'm sho' dere was trouble jus' de same," he slyly
remarked.

"Marse Jeff wukked dem few Niggers so hard dat when dey got to deir cabins at
night dey was glad to jus' rest. Dey all knocked off f'um wuk Sadday at 12 o'clock. De
'omans washed, patched, and cleaned up de cabins, and de mens wukked in dey own
cotton patches what Marss Jeff give 'em. Some Niggers wouldn't have no cotton patch
'cause dey was too lazy to wuk. But dey was all of 'em right dar Sadday nights when de
frolickin' and dancin' was gwins on. On Sundays dey laid 'round and slep'. Some went to
church if dey wanted to. Marster give 'em a pass to keep patterollers f'um beatin' 'em
when dey went to church.

"Us chilluns was glad to see Chris'mas time come 'cause us had plenty to eat den;
sich as hogshead, backbones, a heap of cake, and a little candy. Us had apples what had
been growed on de place and stored away special for Chris'mas. Marse Jeff bought some
lallahoe, dat was syrup, and had big old pones of lightbread baked for us to sop it up wid.
What us laked best 'bout Chris'mas was de good old hunk of cheese dey give us den and
de groundpeas. Don't you know what groundpeas is? Dem's goobers (peanuts). Such a
good time us did have, a-parchin' and a-eatin' dem groundpeas! If dere was oranges us
didn't git none. Marse Jeff give de grown folkses plenty of liquor and dey got drunk and
cut de buck whilst it lasted. New Year's Day was de time to git back to wuk.

"Marse Jeff was sich a pore man he didn't have no corn shuckin's on his place, but
he let his Niggers go off to 'em and he went along hisself. Dey had a big time a-hollerin'
and singin' and shuckin' corn. After de shuckin' was all done dere was plenty to eat and
drink - nothin' short 'bout dem corn shuckin's.

"When slaves got sick, dey didn't have no doctor dat I knowed 'bout. Miss Carrie
done de doctorin' herself. Snake root tea was good for colds and stomach mis'riss. Dey
biled rabbit tobacco, pine tops, and mulle in together; tuk de tea and mixed it wid 'lasses;
and give it to us for diffunt ailments. If dey done dat now, folkses would live longer. Ma
put asafiddy (asafetida) sacks 'round our necks to keep off sickness.

"Ma said us was gwine to be free. Marse Jeff said us warn't, and he didn't tell us
no diffunt 'til 'bout Chris'mas atter de War was dons over wid in April. He told us dat us
was free, but he wanted us to stay on wid him, and didn't none of his Niggers leave him.
Dey all wukked de same as dey had before dey was sot free only he paid 'em wages atter
de War.

"I 'members dem Yankees comin' down de big road a-stealin' as dey went 'long.
Dey swapped deir bags of bones for de whits folkses good fat hosses. I never seed so
many pore hosses at one time in my life as dey had. Dem Yankees stole all de meat,
chickens, and good bedclothes and burnt down de houses. Dey done devilment aplenty as
dey went 'long. I 'members Marse Jeff put one of his colored mens on his hoss wid a
coffeepot full of gold and sont him to de woods. Atter dem Yankees went on he sont for
him to fatch back de gold and de fine hoss what he done saved f'um de sojer mens.

"I heared tell of dem Ku Kluxers, but I never seed 'em. Lawsy Miss! What did
Niggers have to buy land wid 'til atter day wukked long enough for to make some
money? Warn't no schoolin' done 'round whar us lived. I was 10 years old 'fore I ever sot
foots in a schoolhouse. De nearest school was at Shady Grove.

"It was a long time atter de War 'fore I married. Us didn't have no weddin'; jus'
got married. My old 'oman had on a calico dress - I disremembers what color. She looked
good to me though. Us had 16 chilluns in all; four died. I got 22 grandchillun and one
great grandchild. None of 'em has jobs to brag 'bout; one of 'em larned to run a store.

"I think Mr. Lincoln was a great man, 'cause he sot us fres. When I thinks back, it
warn't no good feelin' to be bound down lak dat. Mr. President Davis wanted us to stay
bound down. No Ma'am, I didn't lak dat Mr. Davis atter I knowed what he stood for.
'Course dere is plenty what needs to be bound down hard and fast so dey won't git in no
trouble. But for me I trys to behave myself, and I sho' had ruther be free. I guess atter all
it's best dat slavery days is over. 'Bout dat Booker Washin'ton man, de Niggers what tuk
him in said he done lots of good for his race, and I reckon he did.

"Somepin' 'nother jus' made me jine de church. I wanted to do better'n what I was
doin'. De Lord says it's best for folkses to be 'ligious.

"No Ma'am, I don't 'spect to live as long as my Ma lived, 'cause dese legs of mine
since I done los' both of my footssa wid blood pizen atter gangreen sot in, sho' gives me a
passel of trouble. But de Lord is good to me and no tellin' how long I'se gwine to stay
here. Miss, you sho' tuk me way back yonder, and I laks to talk 'bout it. Yes, Ma'am, dat's
been a long time back."

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