America Morgan
From:
Indiana
Federal Writers' Project
of the W.P.A.
District #6
Marion County
Anna Pritchett
1200 Kentucky Avenue
FOLKLORE
MRS. AMERICA MORGAN--EX-SLAVE
816 Camp Street
America Morgan was born in a log house, daubed with dirt, in Ballard
County, Kentucky, in 1852, the daughter of Manda and Jordon Rudd. She
remembers very clearly the happenings of her early life.
Her mother, Manda Rudd, was owned by Clark Rudd, and the "devil has sure
got him."
Her father was owned by Mr. Willingham, who was very kind to his slaves.
Jordon became a Rudd, because he was married to Manda on the Rudd
plantation.
There were six children in the family, and all went well until the death
of the mother; Clark Rudd whipped her to death when America was five
years old.
Six little children were left motherless to face a "frowning world."
America was given to her master's daughter, Miss Meda, to wait on her,
as her personal property. She lived with her for one year, then was sold
for $600.00 to Mr. and Mrs. Utterback stayed with them until the end of
the Civil war.
The new mistress was not so kind. Miss Meda, who knew her reputation,
told her if she abused America, she would come for her, and she would
loose the $600.00 she had paid for her. Therefore, America was treated
very kindly.
Aunt Catherine, who looked after all the children on the plantation,
was very unruly, no one could whip her. Once America was sent for two
men to come and tie Aunt Catherine. She fought so hard, it was as much
as the men could do to tie her. They tied her hands, then hung her to
the joist and lashed her with a cow hide. It "was awful to hear her
screams."
In 1865 her father came and took her into Paduca, Kentucky, "a land of
freedom."
When thirteen years old, America did not know A from B, then "glory to
God," a Mr. Greeleaf, a white man, from the north, came down to Kentucky
and opened a school for Negro children. That was America's first chance
to learn. He was very kind and very sympathetic. She went to school for
a very short while.
Her father was very poor, had nothing at all to give his children.
America's mistress would not give her any of her clothes. "All she had
in this world, was what she had on her back." Then she was "hired out"
for $1.00 a week.
The white people for whom she worked were very kind to her and would try
to teach her when her work was done. She was given an old fashioned
spelling book and a first reader. She was then "taught much and began to
know life."
She was sent regularly to church and Sunday school. That was when she
began to "wake up" to her duty as a free girl.
The Rev. D.W. Dupee was her Sunday school teacher, from him she learned
much she had never known before.
At seventeen years of age, she married and "faced a frowning world
right." She had a good husband and ten children, three of whom are
living today, one son and two daughters.
She remembers one slave, who had been given five hundred lashes on his
back, thrown in his cabin to die. He laid on the floor all night, at
dawn he came to himself, and there were blood hounds licking his back.
When the overseers lashed a slave to death, they would turn the
bloodhounds out to smell the blood, so they would know "nigger blood,"
that would help trace runaway slaves.
Aunt Jane Stringer was given five hundred lashes and thrown in her
cabin. The next morning when the overseer came, he kicked her and told
her to get up, and wanted to know if she was going to sleep there all
day. When she did not answer him, he rolled her over and the poor woman
was dead, leaving several motherless children.
When the slaves were preparing to run away, they would put hot pepper on
their feet; this would cause the hounds to be thrown off their trail.
Aunt Margaret ran off, but the hounds traced her to a tree; she stayed
up in the tree for two days and would not come down until they promised
not to whip her any more, and they kept their promise.
Old mistress' mother was sick a long time, and little America had to
keep the flies off of her by waving a paper fly brush over her bed. She
was so mean, America was afraid to go too near the bed for fear she
might try to grab her and shake her. After she died, she haunted
America. Anytime she would go into the room, she could hear her knocking
on the wall with her cane. Some nights they would hear her walking up
and down the stairs for long periods at a time.
Aunt Catherine ran off, because "ole missie" haunted her so bad.
The old master came back after his death and would ride his favorite
horse, old Pomp, all night long, once every week. When the boy would go
in to feed the horses, old Pomp would have his ears hanging down, and he
would be "just worn out," after his night ride.
Interviewer's Comment
America believes firmly in haunts, and said she had lived in several
haunted houses since coming up north.
Mrs. Morgan lives with her baby boy and his wife. She is rather
inteligent, reads and writes, and tries to do all she can to help those
who are less fortunate than she.
Submitted December 27, 1937
Indianapolis, Indiana
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George Morrison
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Henry Clay Moorman
