Name: Willingham, Frances

Address: 288 Bridge Street Athens, Georgia

Age: 78

Written by: Sadie B. Hornsby (Athens)

Edited by: 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 4, Telfair-Young (1936), Library of Congress, Manuscript/Mixed Material. http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.mss/mesn.044

Interview

The interviewer arrived at Frances Willingham's address on a sultry July morning,
and found a fat and very black Negress sweeping the sidewalk before the three-room
frame house. There was no front yard and the front steps led up from the sidewalk into
the house. A vegetable garden was visible at the rear of the lot. The plump sweeper
appeared to be about five feet tall. Her wooly white hair was plaited in tiny braids, and
she wore a brown print dress trimmed in red and blue. A strand of red beads encircled her
short neck, and a blue checked coat and high topped black shoes completed her costume.
Asked if Frances Willingham was at home, the woman replied: "Dis is her you is a-talkin'
to. Come right in and have a seat."

When Frances was asked for the story of her life, her daughter who had doubtless
been eavesdropping, suddenly appeared and interrupted the conversation with, "Ma, now
don't you git started 'bout dem old times. You knows your mind ain't no good no more.
Tomorrow your tongue will be runnin' lak a bell clapper a-talkin' to yourself." "Shut your
big mouth, Henrietta. Frances answered. "I been sick, and I knows it, but dere ain't
nothin' wrong wid my mind and you knows it. What I knows I'se gwine to tell de lady,
and what I don't know I sho' ain't gwine tell no lie about. Now, Missus, what does you
want to know? Don't pay no 'tention to dis fool gal of mine 'cause her mouth is big as dis
room.

"I was born way off down in Twiggs County 'bout a mile from de town of
Jeffersonville. My Pa and Ma was Otto and Sarah Rutherford. Our Mist'ess, dat was Miss
Polly, she called Ma, Sallie for short. Dere was nine of us chillun, me and Essu, Harry,
Jerry, Bob, Calvin, Otto, Sallie and Susan. Susan was our half-sister by our Pa's last
marriage. Us chillun never done much but play 'round de house and yards wid de white
chillun. I warn't but four years old when dey made us free." Henrietta again interrupted,
"See dere, I told you she don't know what she's a-talkin' 'bout."

Frances ignored the interruption and continued: "Us lived in log cabins what had
jus' one room wid a stick and mud chimbly at de end. Our bedsteads was made out of
rough planks and poles and some of 'em was nailed to de sides of de cabins. Mattress
ticks was made out of osnaburg and us filled 'em wid wheat straw in season. When dat
was used up us got grass from de fields. Most any kind of hay was counted good 'nough
to put in a slave's mattress. Dey let us mix some cotton wid de hay our pillows was
stuffed wid.

"My grandmas lived on another plantation. I 'members once Grandma Suck, she
was my Ma's mammy, come to our house and stayed one or two days wid us. Daddy's Ma
was named Puss. Both my grandmes was field hands, but Ma, she was a house gal 'til she
got big enough to do de cyardin' and spinnin'. Aunt Phoebie done de weavin' and Aunt
Polly was de seamster. All de lak of dat was done atter de craps was done laid by.
"No Ma'am, nobody never give slave chillun no money in dem times. I never had
none 'til atter us had done been give our freedom. I used to see Old Marster countin' of it,
but de slaves never did git none of dat money.

"Our Old Marster was a pow'ful rich man, and he sho' b'lieved in givin' us plenty
to eat. It warn't nothin' fine, but it was good plain eatin' what filled you up and kept you
well. Dere was cornbread and meat, greens of all sorts, 'taters, roas'en-ears and more
other kinds of veg'tables dan I could call up all day. Marster had one big old gyarden
whar he kept most evvything agrowin' 'cept cabbages and 'matoes. He said dem things
warn't fittin' for nobody to eat. Marster let Daddy go huntin' enough to fetch in lots of
'possums, coons, rabbits, and squirrels. Us cooked 'em 'bout lak us does now, only us
never had no stoves den, and had to do all de cookin' in open fireplaces in big old pots
and long handled skillets what had big old heavy lids. I'se seed Ma clean many a 'possum
in hot ashes. Den she scalded him and tuk out his innards. She par-boiled and den baked
him and when she fetched him to de table wid a heap of sweet 'taters 'round him on de
dish, dat was sho' somepin good to eat. Daddy done his fishin' in Muddy Crick 'cause
slaves warn't 'lowed to leave de plantation for nothin' lak dat.

"Summertimes us wore homespun dresses, made wid full skirts sewed on to tight
fittin' waisties what was fastened down de back wid buttons made out of cows and rams
horns. Our white petticoat slips and pantalettes was made on bodices. In winter us wore
balmorals what had three stripes 'round de bottom, and over dem us had on long sleeved
ap'ons what was long as de balmorals. Slave gals' pantalettes warn't ruffled and tucked
and trimmed up wid lace and 'broidery lak Miss Polly's chilluns' was. Ours was jus' made
plain. Grown folks wore rough brogans, but me, I wore de shoes what Miss Polly's
chillun had done outgrowed. Dey called 'em Jackson shoes, 'cause dey was made wid a
extra wide piece of leather sewed on de outside so as when you knocked your ankles
'gainst one another, it wouldn't wear no holes in your shoes. Our Sunday shoes warn't no
diffunt from what us wore evvyday.

"Marse Lish Jones and his wife - she was Miss Polly - was our Marster and
Mist'ess. Dey sho' did love to be good to deir little Niggers. Dey had five chillun of deir
own, two gals and three boys. Dey was: Mary, Anna Della, Steve, John, and Bob. 'Bout
deir house! Oh, Missus, dat was somepin to see for sho'. It was a big old fine two-story
frame house wid a porch 'cross de front and 'round both sides. Dere was five rooms on de
fust floor and three upstairs. It sho' did look grand a-settin' back dar in dat big old oak
grove.

"Old Marster had a overseer, but he never had no car'iage driver 'cause he loved to
drive for hisself so good. Oh Lord! How big was dat plantation? Why, it must have been
as big as from here to town. I never did know how many slaves Marster had, but dat old
plantation was plumb full of 'em. I ain't never seed Old Marster do nothin' 'sept drive his
car'iage, walk a little, and eat all he wanted to. He was a rich man, and didn't have to do
nothin'.

"Our overseer got all de slaves up 'fore break of day and dey had to be done et
deir breakfast and in de field when de sun riz up. Dat sun would be down good 'fore dey
got to de house st night. I never seed none of de grown folks git whupped, but I sho' got a
good beatin' myself one time. I had done got up on top of de big house porch and was aflappin'
my arms and crowin' lak a rooster. Dey told me to come on down, but I wouldn't
mind nobody and kept on a-crowin' and a-flappin', so dey whupped me down.

"Dey had jails in Jeffersonville, but dem jails was for white folks what didn't behave
deirselfs. Old Marster, de overseer, and de patterollers kept de slaves straight. Dey
didn't need no jails for dem.

"I ain't never been to school a day in my life, 'cause when I was little, Niggers
warn't 'lowed to larn to read and write. I heared Ma say de colored preacher read out of de
Bible, but I never seed him do it, 'cause I never went to church none when I was a chap.
Colored folks had deir own church in a out settlement called John De Baptist. Dat's whar
all de slaves went to meetin'. Chilluns was 'lowed to go to baptizin's. Evvybody went to
'em. Dey tuk dem converts to a hole in de crick what dey had got ready for dat purpose.
De preacher went fust, and dem he called for de converts to come on in and have deir sins
washed away.

"Our Marster sot aside a piece of ground 'long side of his own place for his
Niggers to have a graveyard. Us didn't know nothin' 'bout no fun'rals. When one of de
slaves died, dey was put in unpainted home-made coffins and tuk to de graveyard whar
de grave had done been dug. Dey put 'em in dar and kivvered 'em up and dat was all dey
done 'bout it.

"Us heared a plenty 'bout patterollers beatin' up Niggers what dey cotched off deir
Marsters' plantations widout no passes. Sometimes dey cotched one of our Marster's
slaves and sometimes dey didn't, but dey was all time on deir job.

"When slaves come in from de fields at night de 'omans cleant up deir houses atter
dey et, and den washed and got up early next mornin' to put de clothes out to dry. Mens
would eat, set 'round talkin' to other mens and den go to bed. On our place evvybody
wukked on Saddays 'til 'bout three or four o'clock and if de wuk was tight dey wukked
right on 'til night lak any other day. Sadday nights de young folks got together to have
deir fun. Dey danced, frolicked, drunk likker, and de lak of dat. Old Marster warn't too
hard on 'em no time, but he jus' let 'em have dat night to frolic. On Sunday he give dem
what wanted 'em passes to go to church and visit 'round.

"Christmas times, chilluns went to bed early 'cause dey was skeered Santa Claus
wouldn't come. Us carried our stockin's up to de big house to hang 'em up. Next mornin'
us found 'em full of all sorts of good things, 'cept oranges. I never seed nary a orange 'til I
was a big gal. Miss Polly had fresh meat, cake, syrup puddin' and plenty of good sweet
butter what she 'lowanced out to her slaves at Christmas. Old Marster, he made syrup by
de barrel. Plenty of apples and nuts and groundpeas was raised right dar on de plantation.
In de Christmas, de only wuk slaves done was jus' piddlin' 'round de house and yards,
cuttin' wood, rakin' leaves, lookin' atter de stock, waitin' on de white folks and little
chores lak dat. Hard wuk started again on de day atter New Year's Day. Old Marster
'lowed 'em mighty little rest from den 'til atter de craps was laid by.

"Course Marster let his slaves have cornshuckin's, cornshellin's, cotton pickin's,
and quiltin's. He had grove atter grove of pecan, chestnut, walnut, hickor'nut, scalybark,
and chinquapin trees. When de nuts was all gathered, Old Marster sold 'em to de big men
in de city. Dat was why he was so rich. Atter all dese things was gathered and tended to,
he give his slaves a big feast and plenty to drink, and den he let 'em rest up a few days
'fore dey started back to hard wuk.

"I never seed but one marriage on Old Marster's plantation, and I never will forgit
dat day. Miss Polly had done gimme one of little Miss Mary's sho' 'nough pretty dresses
and I wore it to dat weddin', only dey never had no real weddin'. Dey was jus' married in
de yard by de colored preacher and dat was all dere was to it.

"Ma used to tell us if us didn't be-have Raw Head and Bloody Bones would come
git us and take us off. I tried to see him but I never did. Grown folks was all time skeerin'
chillun. When us went to bed at night, us used to see ghosties, what looked lak goats
tryin' to butt us down. Ma said I evermore used to holler out in my sleep 'bout dem things
I was so skeered of.

"White folks was mighty good and kind when deir slaves got sick. Old Marster
sont for Dr. 'Pree (DuPree) and when he couldn't git him, he got Dr. Brown. He made us
swallow bitter tastin' powders what he had done mixed up in water. Miss Polly made us
drink tea made out of Jerusalem oak weeds. She biled dem weeds and sweetened de tea
wid syrup. Dat was good for stomach trouble, and us wore elder roots strung 'round our
necks to keep off silments.

"Mercy me! I'se seed plenty of dem yankees a-gwine and comin'. Dey come to
our Marster's house and stole his good mules. Dey tuk what dey wanted of his meat,
chickens, lard and syrup and den poured de rest of de syrup out on de ground. Atter de
war was over Niggers got so rowdy dem Ku Kluxers come 'long to make 'em be-have
deirselfs.' Dem Niggers and Kluxers too jus' went hog wild.

"What did Niggers have to buy no land wid, when dey never had no money paid
'em for nothin' 'til atter dey was free? Us jus' stayed on and wukked for Old Marster,
'cause dere warn't no need to leave and go to no other place. I was raised up for a field
hand, and I ain't never wukked in no white folks house.

"Me I'se sho' glad Mr. Lincoln sot us free. Iffan it was still slav'ry time now old as
I is, I would have to wuk jus' de same, sick or no. Now I don't have to ax nobody what I
kin de. Dat's why I'se glad I'se free.

"Now, 'bout my marriage; I was a-living in Putnam County at dat time, and I got
married up wid Green Willingham. He had come dar from Jasper County. I didn't have no
weddin'. Ma jus' cooked a chicken for us, and I was married in a white dress. De waist
had ruffles 'round de neck and sleeves. Us had 17 chilluns in all, seven boys and 10 gals,
dere was 19 grandchillun and 21 great grandchillun. Dey ain't all of 'em livin', and my old
man, he's done been daid a long time ago."

Henrietta again made her appearance and addressed her mother: "Hush your
mouth Ma, for you knows you ain't got all dem chillun. I done told de lady you ain't got
your right mind." Frances retorted: "You shut up your mouth, Henrietta. I is so got my
right mind, and I knows how many chillun of mine dere was. One thing sho' you is got
more mouth dan all de rest of my chillun put together."

The interviewer closed her notebook and took her departure, leaving Frances
dozing in her chair.

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