| Callie Williams was four years old when the Civil War ended. In this first person excerpt, the interviewer documents Callie Williams’ description of the life of enslaved people that was passed on to Callie Williams by her mother. In this excerpt, Callie Williams describes the role of song in the life of enslaved people. |
Excerpt:
…Most of the time the slaves would be too tired to do anything but go to bed at night, but sometimes they would sit around and sing after supper and they would sing and pray on Sunday. One of the songs that was used most was ’Yon Comes Old Master Jesus.’ If I remember, it went something like this:
‘I really believe Christ is coming again
He’s coming in the morning
He’s coming in the morning
He’s coming with a rainbow on his shoulder
He’s coming again by and by’
They tried to make them stop singing and praying during the [Civil] war because all they’d ask for was to be set free, but the slaves would get in the cabins and turn a big wash pot upside down and sing into that, and the noise couldn’t get out….
| Interviewee Formerly enslaved person | Birth Year (Age) | Interviewer WPA Volunteer | Enslaver’s Name |
| Callie Williams | Approx. 1861 (Unknown) | Mary A. Poole | Hiram McLemore |
| Interview Location | Residence State | Birth Location |
| Mobile, AL | AL | Unknown |
| Themes & Keywords | Additional Tags: |
| Religion, Songs | Third Person, Dialect, Slave Patrollers, Hired Out |
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