Dorcas Griffeth
From:
North Carolina
N. C. District: No. 2 [320356]
Worker: T. Pat Matthews
No. Words: 624
Subject: DORCAS GRIFFETH
Person Interviewed: Dorcas Griffeth
Editor: Daisy Bailey Waitt
[TR: Date Stamp "JUN 26 1937"]
DORCAS GRIFFETH
602 E. South Street
You know me every time you sees me don't you? Who tole you I wus Dorcas
Griffith? I seed you up town de other day. Yes, yes, I is old. I is 80
years old. I remember all about dem Yankees. The first biscuit I ever et
dey give it to me. I wus big enough to nus de babies when de Yankees
came through. Dey carried biscuits on dere horses, I wus jist thinkin'
of my young missus de other day. I belonged to Doctor Clark in Chatham
County near Pittsboro. My father wus named Billy Dismith, and my mother
wus named Peggy Council. She belonged to the Councils. Father, belonged
to the Dismiths and I belonged to the Clarks. Missus wus named Winnie.
Dey had tolerable fine food for de white folks, but I did not get any of
it. De food dey give us wus mighty nigh nuthin'. Our clothes wus bad and
our sleepin' places wus not nuthin' at all. We had a hard time. We had a
hard time then and we are havin' a hard time now. We have a house to
live in now, and de chinches eat us up almos, and we have nuthin' to
live on now, jist a little from charity. I fares mighty bad. Dey gives
me a half peck of meal and a pound o' meat, a little oat meal, and
canned grape juice, a half pound o' coffee and no sugar or lard and no
flour. Dey gives us dat for a week's eatin'.
De Yankees called de niggers who wus plowin' de mules when dey came
through an' made 'em bring 'em to 'em an' dey carried de mules on wid
em. De niggers called de Yankees Blue Jackets.
I had two brothers, both older dan me. George de oldest and Jack. Let
me see I had four sisters 1, 2, 3, 4; one wus named Annie, one named
Rosa, Annie, and Francis and myself Dorcas. All de games I played wus de
wurk in de field wid a hoe. Dere wus no playgrounds like we has now. No,
no, if you got your work done you done enough. If I could see how to
write like you I could do a lot o' work but I can't see. I kin write. I
got a good education acording to readin', spellin, and writin'. I kin
say de 2nd chapter of Matthey by heart, the 27 chapter of Ezelial by
heart, or most of Ezekial by heart.
I learned it since I got free. I went to school in Raleigh to de
Washington School. Dey wouldn't let us have books when I wus a slave. I
wus afraid ter be caught wid a book. De patterollers scared us so bad in
slavery time and beat so many uv de slaves dat we lef' de plantation
jus' as soon as we wus free. Dat's de reason father lef' de plantation
so quick. I also remember de Ku Klux. I wus afraid o' dem, and I did not
think much of 'em. I saw slaves whupped till de blood run down dere
backs. Once dey whupped some on de plantation and den put salt on de
places and pepper on 'em. I didn't think nuthin in de world o' slavery.
I think de it wus wrong. I didn't think a thing o' slavery.
All my people are dead, and I am unable to work. I haven't been able to
work in six years. I thought Abraham Lincoln wus a good man. He had a
good name.
I don't know much about Mr. Roosevelt but I hopes he will help me,
cause I need it mighty bad.
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Sarah Gudger
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Sarah Anne Green
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