Aleck Woodward
From:
South Carolina
=Project #1655=
=W.W. Dixon=
=Winnsboro, S.C.=
=ALECK WOODWARD,=
=EX-SLAVE--83 YEARS.=
"You knows de Simonton place, Mr. Wood? Well, dats just where I was born
back yonder befo' de war, a slave of old Marster Johnnie Simonton. Five
miles sorter south sunset side of Woodward Station where you was born,
ain't it so? My pappy was Ike Woodward, but him just call 'Ike' time of
slavery, and my mammy was name Dinah. My brother Charlie up north, if he
ain't dead, Ike lives in Asheville, North Carolina. Two sisters: Ollie,
her marry an Aiken, last counts, and she and her family in Charlotte,
North Carolina; sister Mattie marry a Wilson nigger, but I don't know
where they is.
"Us lived in a four-room log house, 'bout sixteen all told. Dere was
pappy and mammy (now you count them) gran'pappy, Henry Davis, Gran'mammy
Kisana, Aunt Anna, and her seven chillun, and me, and my two brothers
and two sisters. How many make dat? Seventeen? Well, dat's de number
piled in dere at night in de beds and on de floors. They was scandlous
beds; my God, just think of my grands, old as I is now, tryin' to sleep
on them hard beds and other folks piled 'scriminately all over de log
floors! My Gran'pappy Henry was de carpenter, and old marster tell him
'if you make your beds hard, Henry, 'member you folks got to sleep on
them.'
"I was just a little black feller, running 'round most of de time in my
shirt tail, but I recollect pickin' cotton, and piddling 'round de
woodpile, fetchin' in wood for white house and chips and kindling to
fresh up de fires. Us had plenty to eat, 'cause us killed thirty-five
hogs at a time, and de sausages and lights us did was a sight. Then de
lard us made, and de cracklin' bread, why, I hungers for de sight of
them things right now. Us niggers didn't get white flour bread, but de
cracklin' bread was called on our place, 'de sweet savor of life.'
"Money? Us had eyes to see and ears to hear, but us just hear 'bout it,
never even seen money.
"My marster had a fish pond, signs of it dere yet.
"My white folks attended church at Concord Presbyterian Church. Us went
dere too, and us set up in de gallery. Yes, they asked us. De preacher
asked us to jine in some of de hymns, especially 'De Dyin' Thief' and
'De Fountain Filled Wid Blood,' and dat one 'bout 'Mazing Grace How
Sweet de Sound Dat Save a Wretch Like us.'
"Our young Marster Charlie went off to de war, got killed at Second Bull
Run. Marster Watt went and got a leg shot off somewheres. Marster Jim
went and got killed, Johnnie too, Marster Robert was not old enough to
carry a gun.
"De young mistresses was Mary and Martha. Marster John, old mistress and
all of them mighty good to us, especially when Christmas come and then
at times of sickness. They send for de doctor and set up wid you, such
tendin' to make you love them. When de Yanks come us all plead for
Marster John and family, and de house not to be burnt. De house big, had
ten rooms, big plantation, run fifteen plows.
"You ask 'bout was dere any poor white folks 'round? Not many, but I
'members old Miss Sallie Carlisle weaved and teached de slaves how it
was done. Marster give her a house to live in, and a garden spot on de
place, good woman. She show me how to spin and make ball thread, little
as I was. Marster John had over fifty slaves, and they worked hard, sun
up to sun down. It's a wonder but I never got a whippin'.
"Did I ever see a ghost? Mr. Wood, I seen sumpin' once mighty strange, I
was gwine to see a gal Nannie, on de widow Mobley place, and had to pass
'tween two graveyards, de white and de colored. She was de daughter of
Rev. Richard Cook. When I was just 'bout de end of de white graveyard, I
saw two spirits dressed in white. I run all de way to de gal's house and
sob when I got dere. I laid my head in her lap and told her 'bout de
spirits and how they scared me. I still weepin' wid fear, and she
console me, rub my forehead and soothed me. When I got quiet, I asked
her some day to be my wife, and dat's de gal dat come to be years after,
my wife. Us walk to church hand and hand ever afterwards, and one day
Preacher Morris, white man, made us husband and wife. I 'members de song
de white folks sung dat day. 'Hark from de tomb a doleful sound'. Don't
you think dat a wrong song to sing on a weddin' day? 'Joy to de World,'
was in our heart and dat tune would have been more 'propriate, seems to
me.
"Marster John give de slaves every other Saturday after dinner in busy
seasons, and every Saturday evening all other weeks. Us had two doctors,
Doctor Brice at first, and when he git old, us had Doctor Lurkin.
"Was glad when marster called us up and told us we was free. De Yankees
made a camp on de Doctor Brice place, and foraged de country all 'round.
They made me run after chickens and I had to give up my onliest blue hen
dat I had. My pappy was took off by them to Raleigh, wid dat I 'member,
was de saddest day of slavery time.
"Nannie and me, under de providence of de Lord Jehovah, has had three
chillun to live, and they have chillun too. I owns my own home and land
enough to live on, though it is hard to make both ends meet some years.
"How I got my name, you ask dat? Well, after freedom us niggers had to
come to Winnsboro and register. Us talk 'bout it by de fireside what us
would lak. When us come, Marster Henry Gaillard had a big crowd of
Gaillard niggers 'bout him beggin' for names. One of them say, 'Marster
Henry, I don't want no little name, I wants big soundin' name.' Marster
Henry write on de paper, then he read: 'Your name is Mendozah J.
Fernandez, hope dats big enough for you.' De little nigger dwarf seem
powerful pleased and stepped to de register. De rest of us spoke to
Captain Gaillard and he said no better name than Woodward, so us took
dat name. Its been a kind of a 'tection to us at times, and none of our
immediate family has ever dragged it in a jail or chaingang, Bless God!
and I hope us never will."
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Mary Woodward
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George Woods
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