Rhonda Rogers VanDyke

August 12, 2020October 4, 2020

Amanda Elizabeth Samuels

In this third person narrative, the interviewer describes how the “old master” and “young master” treated Amanda Elizabeth Samuels (called “Lizzie”). While the interviewer concludes that Lizzie’s life was relatively better with the “old master,” the interviewer explains that the first enslaver was motivated by profit, not kindness. The teacher may need to point out to students that the enslaver did not treat enslaved people “just like his own children,” because he enslaved and sold them, while his own children were free.

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Excerpt:

Her [Lizzie’s] mother, a slave hand, worked on the farm until her young master, Robert McMurry was married. She was then sold to Rev. Carter Plaster and taken to Logan County, Kentucky.

The child, Lizzie was given to young Robert. She lived in the house to help the young mistress who was not so kind to her. Lizzie was forced to eat chicken heads, fish heads, pigs’ tails, and parsnips. The child disliked this very much and was very unhappy with her young mistress because in Robert’s father’s home all slave children were treated just like his own children. They had plenty of good substantial food and were protected in every way.

The old master felt they were the hands of the next generation and if they were strong and healthy, they would bring in a larger amount of money when sold.

Lizzie’s hardships did not last long as they were set free soon after young Robert’s marriage. He took her in a wagon to Keysburg, Kentucky to be with her mother.

Interviewee Formerly enslaved person	Birth Year (Age)	Interviewer WPA Volunteer	Enslaver’s Name
Amanda Elizabeth Samuels	Unknown (80-85)	Anna Pritchett	Robert McMurry,Rev. Carter Plaster

Interview Location	Residence State	Birth Location
Marion County, IN	IN	TN

Themes & Keywords	Additional Tags:
Emancipation, Economics	Third Person, Sold, Union Troops

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August 12, 2020September 29, 2020

Alex Smith and Elizabeth Smith

In this third person narrative, the interviewer briefly notes Alex Smith’s recollections of the Civil War, before comparing how their respective enslavers treated Alex and Elizabeth Smith. The excerpt ends with the interviewer briefly describing Elizabeth Smith’s life after emancipation.

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Excerpt:

…Although only a child of five, Mr. [Alex] Smith remembers the Civil War, especially the marching of thousands of soldiers, and the horse-drawn artillery wagons. The Stubblefields freed their slaves the first winter after the war.

On the Peter Stubblefield plantation, the slaves [including Elizabeth Smith] were treated very well and had plenty to eat, while on the Robert Stubblefield plantation Mr. [Alex] Smith went hungry many times, and said, “Often, I would see a dog with a bit of bread, and I would have been willing to take it from him if I had not been afraid the dog would bite me.”…

The day the mistress and master came and told the slaves they were free to go anyplace they desired, Mrs. Smith’s mother told her later that she was glad to be free but she had no place to go or any money to go with. Many of the slaves would not leave and she never witnessed such crying as went on. Later Mrs. Smith was paid for working. She worked in the fields for “vittles” [food] and clothes. A few years later she nursed children for twenty-five cents a week and “vittles,” but after a time she received fifty cents a week, board, and two dresses…

Interviewee Formerly enslaved person	Birth Year (Age)	Interviewer WPA Volunteer	Enslaver’s Name
Alex Smith and Elizabeth Smith	Unknown (83), Unknown (83)	Henrietta Karwowski	Robert Stubblefield, Peter Stubblefield

Interview Location	Residence State	Birth Location
South Bend, IN	IN	KY

Themes & Keywords	Additional Tags:
Emancipation, Hunger, Civil War, Economics	Third Person, Witnessed Extreme Cruelty, Union Troops

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August 12, 2020October 4, 2020

Albert Todd

In this first person narrative, Albert Todd describes the cruelty he witnessed and experienced as an enslaved person, including how his enslaver fed him only once a day and punished him for stealing food. Albert Todd also recounts how he remained a slave for years after he was technically free.

*Historically-used terms that are offensive, marginalizing and/or disparaging have been removed from the transcripts and replaced with [redacted]. See more information.

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Excerpt:

…Our missus was good to us, but one white man neighbor got a new set of [redacted] every year. He would say if they didn’t die, there wasn’t any good work left in them after they worked for him for a year. He always cut off one of their ears so if they ran away he’d know them.

My clothes were a long shirt, made out of a meal sack. That’s all I wore in those days. I was a slave for three years after the others were freed because I didn’t know anything about being free. A Mrs.Gibbs got a hold of me and made me her slave. She was a cruel old woman and she didn’t have any mercy on me. She gave me one sausage and one biscuit in the morning and nothing else all day. One day she was gone and I stole some biscuits. She comes back and says, ’Did you take them biscuits?’ She tells me if I tell the truth she won’t punish me, but she knocks me down and beats me till I don’t know anything. But after a while, her house burned and she burned up in it. But before that, I was going to run away…

Interviewee Formerly enslaved person	Birth Year (Age)	Interviewer WPA Volunteer	Enslaver’s Name
Albert Todd	Unknown (Unknown)	Unknown	Capt. Hudson

Interview Location	Residence State	Birth Location
San Antonio, TX	TX	Russellville, KY

Themes & Keywords	Additional Tags:
Hunger, Violence	First Person, Dialect, Witnessed Extreme Cruelty, Sold, Logan County

Todd_A_1

August 11, 2020October 4, 2020

Adah Isabelle Suggs

In this third person narrative, the interviewer describes two escape attempts by Harriet and her young daughter Adah. The excerpt begins with the interviewer explaining Harriet’s motivations for escaping, describes a failed escape attempt, and then recounts Harriet and Adah successfully escaping to Ohio. Teachers might note the interviewer’s word choice of “mildly punished” to describe Harriet’s imprisonment in an upstairs room.

*The term “negroes” was replaced, but not removed, from the excerpt below. The replacement word is denoted in italics. This historically-used term was replaced due to its offensive, marginalizing, and/or disparaging nature. See more information.

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Excerpt:

A custom prevailed throughout the southern states that the firstborn of each slave maiden [woman] should be the son or daughter of her master and the girls were forced into maternity at puberty. The mothers naturally resisted this terrible practice and Harriott was determined to prevent her child [Adah] from being victimized.

One planned escape was thwarted; when the girl [Adah] was about twelve years of age the mother [Harriet] tried to take her to a place of safety but they were overtaken on the road to the ferry where they hoped to be put across the Ohio River. They were carried back to the plantation and the mother [Harriet] was mildly punished and imprisoned in an upstairs room.

The little girl knew her mother was imprisoned and often climbed up to a window where the two could talk together.

[On their second escape attempt, Adah] … brought a large knife from Mrs. McClain’s pantry and by the aid of that tool the lock was pried from the prison door and the mother made her way into the open world about midnight…

Under the cover of night, the two fugitives [Adah and Harriet] traveled the three miles to Henderson, there they secreted themselves under the house of Mrs. Margaret Bentley until darkness fell over the world to cover their retreat. Imagine the frightened Harriet and Adah stealthily creeping through the woods in constant fear of being recaptured. Federal soldiers put them across the river [into Ohio, a free state] … The husband of Harriott, Milton McClain, and her son Jerome were volunteers in a negro regiment [in the Union Army]…the enlistment of slaves made enlisted enslaved people free as well as their wives and children, so, by that statute [law], Harriott McClain and her daughter should have been given their freedom.

Interviewee Formerly enslaved person	Birth Year (Age)	Interviewer WPA Volunteer	Enslaver’s Name
Adah Isabelle Suggs	1862 (Unknown)	Lauana Creel	Jackson McClain, Louisa McClain

Interview Location	Residence State	Birth Location
Evansville, IN	IN	Henderson, KY

Themes & Keywords	Additional Tags:
Resistance, Escape, Failed escape, Family	Third person, Union Troops, Slave Patrollers, Henderson County

Suggs_A_1

Author: Rhonda Rogers VanDyke

Amanda Elizabeth Samuels

Alex Smith and Elizabeth Smith

Albert Todd

Adah Isabelle Suggs

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