Carter J Jackson
From:
Texas
CARTER J. JACKSON, 85, was born in Montgomery, Alabama, a slave of
Parson Dick Rogers. In 1863 the Rogers family brought Carter to
Texas and he worked for them as a slave until four years after
emancipation. Carter was with his master's son, Dick, when he was
killed at Pittsburg, Pa. Carter married and moved to Tatum in 1871.
"If you's wants to know 'bout slavery time, it was Hell. I's born in
Montgomery, over yonder in Alabama. My pappy named Charles and come from
Florida and mammy named Charlotte and her from Tennessee. They was sold
to Parson Rogers and brung to Alabama by him. I had seven brothers call
Frank and Benjamin and Richardson and Anderson and Miles, Emanuel and
Gill, and three sisters call Milanda, Evaline and Sallie, but I don't
know if any of 'em are livin' now.
"Parson Rogers come to Texas in '63 and brung 'bout 42 slaves and my
first work was to tote water in the field. Parson lived in a good, big
frame house, and the niggers lived in log houses what had dirt floors
and chimneys, and our bunks had rope slats and grass mattress. I sho'
wish I could have cotch myself sleepin' on a feather bed them days. I
wouldn't woke up till Kingdom Come.
"We et vegetables and meat and ash cake. You could knock you mammy in
the head, eatin' that ash cake bread. I ain't been fit since. We had
hominy cooked in the fireplace in big pots that ain't bad to talk 'bout.
Deer was thick them days and we sot up sharp stobs inside the pea field
and them young bucks jumps over the fence and stabs themselves. That the
only way to cotch them, 'cause they so wild you couldn't git a fair shot
with a rifle.
"Massa Rogers had a 300 acre plantation and 200 in cultivation and he
had a overseer and Steve O'Neal was the nigger driver. The horn to git
up blowed 'bout four o'clock and if we didn't fall out right now, the
overseer was in after us. He tied us up every which way and whip us, and
at night he walk the quarters to keep us from runnin' 'round. On Sunday
mornin' the overseer come 'round to each nigger cabin with a big sack of
shorts and give us 'nough to make bread for one day.
"I used to steal some chickens, 'cause we didn't have 'nough to eat, and
I don' think I done wrong, 'cause the place was full of 'em. We sho'
earned what we et. I'd go up to the big house to make fires and lots of
times I seed the mantel board lined with greenbacks, 'tween mantel and
wall and I's snitched many a $50.00 bill, but it 'federate money.
"Me and four of her chillen standin' by when mammy's sold for $500.00.
Cryin' didn't stop 'em from sellin' our mammy 'way from us.
"I 'member the war was tough and I went 'long with young massa Dick when
he went to the war, to wait on him. I's standin' clost by when he was
kilt under a big tree in Pittsburg, and 'fore he die he ask Wes Tatum,
one the neighbor boys from home, to take care of me and return me to
Massa George.
"I worked on for Massa Rogers four year after that, jus' like in slavery
time, and one day he call us and say we can go or stay. So I goes with
my pappy and lives with him till 1871. Then I marries and works on the
railroad when it's builded from Longview to Big Sandy, 'bout 1872. I
works there sev'ral years and I raises seven chillen. After I quits the
railroad I works wherever I can, on farms or in town.
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James Jackson
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Wash Ingram
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