Barbara Haywood
From:
North Carolina
N. C. District: No. 2 [320127]
Worker: Mary A. Hicks
No. Words: 547
Subject: AUNT BARBARA'S LOVE STORY
Story Teller: Barbara Haywood
Editor: Geo. L. Andrews
[TR: Date Stamp "AUG 4 1937"]
AUNT BARBARA'S LOVE STORY
An interview with Barbara Haywood, 85 years old. Address
1111 Mark Street, Raleigh, North Carolina.
Anything dat I tells you will near 'bout all be 'bout Frank Haywood, my
husban'.
I wus borned on de John Walton place seben miles southeast of Raleigh.
My father, Handy Sturdivant, belonged to somebody in Johnston County but
mother an' her chilluns 'longed ter Marse John Walton.
Marse John had a corn shuckin' onct an' at dat corn shuckin' I fust saw
Frank. I wus a little girl, cryin' an' bawlin' an' Frank, who wus a big
boy said dat he neber wanted ter spank a youngin' so bad, an' I ain't
liked him no better dan he did me.
He 'longed ter Mr. Yarborough, what runned de hotel in Raleigh, but he
wus boun' out ter anybody what'ud hire him, an' I doan know whar he got
his name.
I seed Frank a few times at de Holland's Methodist Church whar we went
ter church wid our white folks.
You axes iffen our white folks wus good ter us, an' I sez ter yo' dat
none of de white folks wus good ter none of de niggers. We done our
weavin' at night an' we wurked hard. We had enough ter eat but we was
whupped some.
Jest 'fore de war wus ober we wus sent ter Mr. William Turner's place
down clost ter Smithfield an' dats whar we wus when de Yankees come.
One day I wus settin' on de porch restin' atter my days wurk wus done
when I sees de hoss-lot full of men an' I sez ter Marse William, who am
talkin' ter a soldier named Cole, 'De lot am full of men.'
Marse Cole looks up an' he 'lows, 'Hits dem damned Yankees,' an' wid dat
he buckles on his sword an' he ain't been seen since.
De Yankees takes all de meat outen de smokehouse an' goes 'roun' ter de
slave cabins an' takes de meat what de white folkses has put dar. Dat
wus de fust hams dat has eber been in de nigger house. Anyhow de Yankees
takes all de hams, but dey gibes us de shoulders.
Atter de war we moved ter Raleigh, on Davie Street an' I went ter school
a little at Saint Paul's. Frank wus wurkin' at de City Market on
Fayetteville Street an' I'd go seberal blocks out of my way mornin' an'
night on my way ter school ter look at him. You see I has been in love
with him fer a long time den.
Atter awhile Frank becomes a butcher an' he am makin' pretty good. I is
thirteen so he comes ter see me an' fer a year we cou'ts. We wus settin'
in de kitchen at de house on Davie Street when he axes me ter have him
an' I has him.
I knows dat he tol' me dat he warn't worthy but dat he loved me an' dat
he'd do anything he could ter please me, an' dat he'd always be good ter
me.
When I wus fourteen I got married an' when I wus fifteen my oldes'
daughter, Eleanor, wus borned. I had three atter her, an' Frank wus
proud of dem as could be. We wus happy. We libed together fifty-four
years an' we wus always happy, havin' a mighty little bit of argument. I
hopes young lady, dat you'll be as lucky as I wus wid Frank.
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Isabell Henderson
Previous:
Alonzo Haywood
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