| Summary: | Folder contains 6 pages of an African-American life history compiled during the Works Progress Administration (WPA) in the late-1930s..' )
( - >. ~ ,
Coun\y
S. Barnard
Atab.a
A NEa 0 COOK'S PAY
.y naIHI h o.a L.. Johnaon a"d I U.... In t.b. wHollo" baok
b.hlnd Mr. c Pippin'. bou.e ~n O.ark, Alabam•• I .ork tor Mr••
Laura Barn.. on Butaula Str••t a. a oook and .ort ot a ..ld.
Tber. ar••ix ot u. that 11..... In a tour rooa tra•• hou••
back In tb. wHollo". Ther. ar. t.o b.cI. In ay rooll and .y .on-b.'.
about tltte.n--and ay n.pb•• 11..... In tbat rooll.
W. P83. ' ••00 a montb tor r.nt. Wb.n •• had hydrant .ater
•• bad te pay '5.50 a montb, but •• baa a ••11 dug no••0 •• don't
ue. no hydrant .at.r &nyllor••
W. ain't got. but one tireplao. in the hou•• , but. •• don't
get .0 a.ful oold In the .lnt.r-tlll.. W. ain't got no batbtub or
toll.t. W. has a baok-bou.e out in the yard .bloh •• u••••b.n
•• n••d. t.o. Eleotrloity? I gu••••• don't need any oau•••• all
go to b.d .arly, but •• haa laap. and u•• k.ro••n••
On. of tb••oll.n .ho 11..... th.r••a.h•• , and t.o ot the lien
th.y .ork. out. .oll8tla.a, ao w. all glt. up kinder .arly. I
g.n.rally glt. up about flv.-thirty, but don't oook no br.akfa.t.
tb.r. at the hous., and go•• on up to Mi •• Laura'. to oook th.ir
breakta.t. I 1. the firat on. up th.r. and go•• ah.ad and ..k••
oott.. and cook. .gg. and thing. .0 two of the childr.n can S.t
ott to .chool. Th.n I .a.b•• all tbe dl.h•• th.y l.tt tb. ni&bt.
bator. and t.b. on.. th.y us.d tor br.akfut and ohan. up tb.
dinina roo. and kitch.n. And th.n I so•• up and b.lp. ollan up
the r •• t ot tb. hou•• , and mak•• up b••, and ....p. the tront
..
•
•
• •
• • (A N.gro Cook'. DII¥) -. -
poroh and eld..alk and t.h. roo•••
Kia. Laura l18\1&lly order. what. abe wanta •• t.o oook tor
d1nner and I puu U on and iO.. on wUh ay work. 'l'her. ~ b. a
t.w thina••h. want••• t.o w..h out, whioh I do... Then I ••ry••
t.h. dinn.r and ol.ana up and 1.aY•• tor hom. about on. o'olook.
Sometime. I eat. up t.here and .ometime. I oarri•• ay plat..
hom.. When I doe. thi••h. alwlI¥. tixe. it up tor .e and .he
SiY" m. plenty tor my••lt, but t.here ain't much lett OY.r tor
anytody at hom.. White tolk. ain't .. sen.rou. about thelr tood .. th
t.h.y ue.d t.o te.
I u.ually SU. hom. about two o'olock and don't eYer hay. to
10 tack and. tix dinner, .. t.hey alWll¥...... what. h l.tt at night.
I have to ••••p t.he tack yard atout once a ••ek. 'l'h.y turni.h••
• e a blue unitorm t.o u.e wh.n I'. t.her., but I ha. to k••p it
olean, and I u•• a little .hite cap .h.n I ••ry•• their ••ale.
Mi.e Laura i. kind.r old, but abe kn01J1J how to g.t alona
.ith colored tolk.. Sh. pay. m. '2.50 a •••k. I I.t. ott about
two daye durina the onth. I don't .ant any acr. daye ott 'oal18.
I got no plac. to go except. hom••
I ... born in Wayoro•• , a.orsia, and ay tolk. ne .
Smith. I don't r.m••b.r exact.ly .hat. month or y.ar I born,
but I'm about ~l y.ar. old.
My ..mma and papa had elxt.e.n ohlltren. IIy daddy ... a
turp.nt.ine nisger .0 h••tay.d in the .ood••o.t. ot the t.i..,
but. cam. bomB about .y.ry Saturday.
W. liy.d do.n in Wayoro.. tor a.hile and I ••nt. t.o .chool
a lit.tl.. I don't know tor how long, ut. reckon it .a. about t.h.
third or tourt.h grade--anywll¥ I can read and writ.e eo... W.
I •
•.. , (A N.aro Cook'. Day) - a -
alway. had .nough corn and ayrup t.o .at and k.pt a ...11 iarden,
but w. n.y.r ha4 .uch ••at. I lik•• hOi ..at the b••t.
W. y.d away trOD th.r. wh.n I w.. ttl. and w.nt. up n.lII"
Caailla, a.oraia, wh.r. w. tarmed. Th. hou•• wa. Ju.t a oabin
out in the ti.ld. and w. tar••d "on haly• .---that i., th. whit.
man turni.h.d the land and mul•• and tertili••r and w. did all the
work. W. plant.d ootton and oorn.
w. play.d around the houa. and work.d in the ti.ld. and I
h.lp.d out with nur.iug the youna ohildr.n and workiug around the
houa.. W. didn't hay. m&qJ oloth••, but w. didn't n••d a&n¥--it
hardly n.r got .0 awtully oold down t.h.r. and w. had lightwood
•
to burn duriug the wint.r .onth.. W. all had good ti••• in hoa-killing
ti•• in the tall, atter the ootton w.. piok.d and the
oorn wa. tn, 'oau•• th.r. w•• alway. lot. ot chitlin'. and hoS
••at to eat.
I got ..rri.d wh.n I wa. about tw.lye or thirt.en--I don't
r ••••ber exaotly--but I ha4 "oourt.d" .0Il1O betore that. lie and
my hU.band got u. a little tar. and .tay.d th.r. tor a t .. y.ar••
We w.re t.nant tar••r. and at th••nd ot tile year we nenr had
anythins .xo.pt .o.e DOre debt••
If. and IlIf tirot hu.band dldn't han an,v ohildren. But. h.
di.d atter about a y.ar or .0, .0 I y.d to Oaark and sot
.arri.d asain. I hadn't worked in the tiel40 all my lite but ...
•ort ot a hou.e nigger, and could oook and olean up, and I Ira'ually
got to wh.r. I wa. a pr.tty so04 ..id. Oour.e I'. a little
.low, aocount ot beina kind.r tat, bUt. I ke.p. ey.ryt.h1na ol.an.
110 .'., I ain't lot no huoband rilht now. ..U, I ha. lOt.
• . (A Nesro Cook'. Day) - . -
one, but we aln't 11Tlng tosetber llke we wa. marrle4. He llT••
ln th.. • boue. w1th •• and the r ••t ot tb.~, but b. don't .l••p
w1tb .e. I'. qu1t bl., 'oau•• b.'. runnlng around wlth anotber
n1ss.r sal and I don't 11k. that. H. tr1.d to kl1l .e tb. otblr
n1abt--that 1., h. did a lot ot ou••1n' and raarln' aroun4--but b.
d1dn't .ean 1t. I told tbe law about 1t and th.y .a1d th.y would
take car. ot hl., but th.y d1dn't do nothlng. H. aln't soln' to
k111 ~,¥. Eut I a1n't solng to ••t no d1Toroe, 'oaua. the
lawy.r told ., *hat lt would co.t and 1t aln't worth It. Mayb. b.
wl11 d1. betor. long and I won'~ haT' to. I aln't aot no other
t.llow now an don't want one. What'. the u•• ot •• k••plng a
worthl,•• nlsa.r tor a huaband when I don't haT' to?
Vot.? No.ir I don't .ot. and don't car. nothlng about any
.uoh do1ng., oau., that'. the wh1t. tolk.' bu.ln.... rut they all
doe. a heap Of talking about lt .om.t1.,. and set. real mad and hot,
e.p.clally wh.n they haTe a .peechlng at the Court Hou•••
Th, la.? I SU,•• we 1. all pretiy aood, oauae the law
don't eTer bother ua or co.e 'round. Ye. "'., I 11ke. to dr1nk
11oker, but I don't set h. ut I llke. sln tbe be.t.
I hardly eTer 1••1ok, but .088tl.e. I baa a oold. Wben I
teel. k1nder puqy Kl •• Laura .he dootor••e up. She'. a pretty
sood dootor, but I don't llke oa.tor 011 and abe ute. lot. ot It.
We all .~. rlabt .ell, but .o..tl.e. they .ell ua to ao to the
dootor down at the Court Hou.e wber. they al.e. ua tree treat.ent
tor tblna"
I belona to the Xethodl.t Churob--Jolned whan I ... about
t.elTe year. old--and llke. to 80 to ohuroh e.ery 8un~. I 11ke.
|
|---|
