Lavinia Heyward
From:
South Carolina
Project #1655
Stiles M. Scruggs
Columbia S.C.
LAVINIA HEYWARD'S STORY
OF SLAVERY AND RECONSTRUCTION.
Lavinia Heyward, a Negro woman 67 years old, living at 515 Marion
Street, Columbia, S.C., is a daughter of ex-slaves. Her parents were
Peter Jones and Rachel Bryant Jones. They married in Columbia, soon
after they were freed, in 1865. Lavinia reviews her mother's experiences
with a famous South Carolina family, before and after bondage, and takes
a glance at Columbia's progress in the past half century.
"Sho' I's been here 67 years, and I's seen a stragglin' town of 10,000
grow from poverty to de present great city and riches. Shucks, I 'spects
if you was to set me down at Broad River bridge and tell me to go home,
I might git lost tryin' to find my way to where I has lived for many
years. Durin' my time I's sho' seen dis city sad and glad, and I's happy
to say dat it seem to be feelin' a right smart lak itself now.
"My mammy, and her daddy and mammy, was bought from de Bryants at
Beaufort by de Rhett family, when my mammy was a little pickaninny. She
not able to tell nothin' 'bout her 'speriences with de Bryants, but she
sho' recall a lot of things after she jine de Rhetts. She live with them
'til she was just turnin' twelve years old, then she come to Columbia as
a slave of Master John T. Rhett. He move here, as a refugee, in 1862.
Master Rhett was not healthy 'nough to go to war but some of his folks
go.
"One of Master Rhett's brothers, who was too old to go to war, march
'way to fight Yankees at Honey Hill. De Yankee fleet send an army in
boats to cut de Charleston and Savannah Railroad, and de Confederates
meet them at Honey Hill, half way 'tween Beaufort and Savannah. In a
bloody battle dere de Confederates won. Master Rhett, of Beaufort was
wounded dere, and his brother, John, leave Columbia and go dere to see
him while he was in bed, battlin' for life.
"My mammy never work in de field at Beaufort, nor after she come to
Columbia. She was kep' on duty in de big house and learned to sew and
make garments, quilts, and things. She also learn to read, write, and
cipher, and she could sing many of de church songs them days. She play
with de white chillun dat come to see de Rhetts in Beaufort and in
Columbia. She tell me 'bout things in Beaufort, where de Rhetts live
then.
"She say de Rhetts has been buckra since de time when Colonel William
Rhett go out in his battle ships to chase and kill pirates, in de days
when Carolina was ruled by de King of England. She say they own many big
plantations in Beaufort County and raise big crops of rice and sea
island cotton. She say de sea island cotton was so costly that it was
handpicked by slaves and placed in hundred pounds sacks. Then it was
shipped to France and de growers reap a rich harvest.
"Mammy tell us chillun dat de Rhetts sho' was de 'big folks' of South
Carolina, and I reckons dat's so, 'cause de books, swords, guns,
windlasses and things lak dat, in a room at de John T. Rhett home, show
what they has been doin' for several hundred years.
"Oh yes, you wants to know where 'bouts John T. Rhett live in Columbia?
He live at de house now number 1420 Washington Street, right 'cross de
street from where de parsonage of the Washington Street Methodist Church
now stands. I go dere with Mammy, often, and play 'round de yard. Mammy
always work dere as long as she able to serve a-tall. She take sick and
die in 1883.
"Master John T. Rhett was mayor of de city three times, in 1882, 1884
and in 1886. I knows well, 'cause he see to it dat us chillun go to
school, 'long 'bout then, and not a one of us has been unable to read,
write, and cipher since. He see dat we gits chances to become useful
citizens, and his very name is sweet to me since he died.
"You ask if I knows R. Goodwin Rhett of Charleston? I sho' does; I has
talked with him and he ask me many questions. He was born in Columbia
but move to Charleston many years ago and, lak the buckra dat he is, he
climb to de top as de mayor of Charleston, big banker, and president of
de Chamber of Commerce of de United States. So you see, my mammy was
lucky in livin' with such a fine family.
"You asks if my man (husband) has come down from de Heyward family of de
Combahee River slaves? No. He come from de North and he say dere was
Heywards up dere, both white and black. He got that name in de North. He
has been a carpenter, hired by de month, at de State Hospital for many
years, and we bought dis two-story home by de sweat of our brow. We
lives, and has always lived, as my mammy tell us to. And we git 'long
pretty well by trustin' in God and doin' our best."
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Lucretia Heyward
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Zack Herndon
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