Willis Williams Interview Notes Viola Muse Transcription, encoding, and edition Joshua Smith Edition Laura Heffernan Edition Tru Leverette Edition Clayton McCarl

This document was produced as part of the Viola Muse Digital Edition, based at the University of North Florida.

https://violamuse.unfdhi.org/items/show/80 USA Florida Jacksonville Jacksonville Historical Society Viola Muse Collection (1959-18) Folder 13, item 1 Notes from Muse's interview with Willis Williams

Handwritten, five pages

Document transcribed and encoded following the criteria of the Viola Muse Digital Edition (violamuse.unfdhi.org), based at the University of North Florida.

Mr. Willis Williams

(JaxJacksonville)

1025 EversonEaversonSee Eaverson.

Tallahasee, FlaFlorida —, SeptSeptember 15, 1836.

In city.

Base ballBaseball.

Ransom Williams, father.

Wilhemina (Fitsgiles)See Fitzgiles. Williams, mother.

GrandparentsGrandparents' 1stfirst names unknown.

Grandmother (mothersmother's side), Rachel Fitsgiles. —

Mother was slave—. masterMaster, Thomas Heyward.

Master owned plantation in country &and home in city.

Willis &and his parents were in city.

(Re-married after war.) Mother &and father.

Fireplace &and iron pots &and covered skillets (spiders).See spider.

vegetablesVegetables (all kind), corn &and flour bread — twice a day.

Master was merchant &and had all kind of food. Mother was cook.

Coffee made from ground ^parched corn.

Made candles out of tallow.

Had moulds, poured tallow in. (String put in first.)

Father did carpentry.

Man, name Pierce, cured cow hides &and Willis skinned cow once &and carried it &and sold it to Pierce. Looked after young children during war, 3three brothers &and 1one sisterssister.

spunSpun thread &and wove cloth on spinning wheel &and weavers.

Hand picked cotton seed.

Bags same as today for bales.

Home madeHomemade soap, Lyelye, and greecegrease drippings.

Put ashes from oak wood in barrel, pour water on, &and let it drip.

Mother used tubs made from barrels with holes cut for fingers.

Shoes were hand madehandmade from cow hidecowhide.

Beds made from goose &and chicken feathers.

Women wore hoop skirts — &and wore narrow ones.

Saw millSawmill at Ellaville, FlaFlorida.

Drew &and Buckie, owners., about 1869 or — 701870.

No springs —, just matress (&and feather bed, (Florida moss).

Buggy with one seat &and spring wagon back.

Remembers "shin–plastersshinplasters"See shinplaster. (money —).

Paper money less than dollar—.

__________

Remembers ^McCook's CalvarycalvarySee calvary. coming into Tallahassee after Warwar.

Troops, 99th Infantry, colored came after war to maintain order.

Treated alright. Orchestra was with it.

One man, Singleton, was with them. White people who owned him in–vited the orchestra to come in &and play for them.

Negroes jubilant, but not boasting, when news of freedom.

CalveryCalvarySee calvary. split up &and went over city notifying Negroes of freedom.

__________

Master didn't go to war. Son Charlie went &and other son too young. Never came back.

Took master's store for commisarycommissary, consficatedconfiscated goods.

Yankees wore blue &and brass buttons. Rebels wore gray — caps.

Doctor brought pills.

Balsam apples, herbs —, home remedies.

Few officers (northern) remained in Tallahassee after war,.

Number of 99th regimentRegiment remained after being mustered out.

Father got job at railroad, old F.C.&P.We do not resolve the abbreviation, as Muse herself does so below. workedWorked there for years after war. (Florida Central &and Peninsular).

Several negroesNegroes came down from northNorth and settled. One became Justicejustice of Peacepeace.

School system was poor —. heldHeld in churches —. anyoneAnyone who could read &and write was employed as teacher. Many Few Negroes —. mostlyMostly women from northNorth (white) — were sent in. (9Nine yrsyears old at close of war.)

__________

Bush meeting under (bush harbors).See bush harbors. In the original, Muse places bush harbors here within parentheses, which we omit on the assumption that the term is the object of the preposition under, as is the case in Willis Williams Narrative (1 of 2).

Most colored people were madmadeThe original reads mad, which we have emended to made. The former is a possible reading, but does not seem supported by how Muse relates this information on page 7 of Willis Williams Narrative (1 of 2). to go to Episcopal church and sit up in gallery before war.

__________

Frame churches after war. built for negroesNegroes. White people built them, both white &and colored preachers.

Regular preacher was colored.

Church every Sunday. morningMorning, afternoon, &and evening service. No Sunday school.

Shouting &and screaming, as today.

Number of friends who believed in conjure bags, — few now &and during slaveryslavery is added below the line, under during..

Sulphur bags — wore around neck.

__________

Salt &and charcoal bags (conjure bags).

Used ox to plow with.

Very high for food stuffs.

Kerosine, 25￠ cents a gallon. Northern butter, 75 lb. pound.After 75 we read the abbrevation lb, and so understand this passage to mean 75 cents per pound. coffeeCoffee very high. Tin plates were used. — goardsGourds for water.

All were well fed,. Raised chickens, ducks, other fowl. Had plenty.

__________

1879 —, Citycity of JaxJacksonville extended to Clay St.Street.

Ran in mail service, 1875–1879.

Ran up river to River Junction &and Patlatka — F.C.&P.Florida Central and Peninsular — (now Seaboard).

Benj.Benjamin F. Cox, first he remembers as mail clerk. Ran from Tall.Tallahassee to JaxJacksonville.

T.T. Fortune, mail clerk here.

__________

R.R.Railroad Stationstation, foot of Hogan St.Street.

Gas house—, corcorner Main &and State Street.

Gas lights — were used here.

White men lit lamps—, rode on horse.

Later gasoline lamps.

Then carbon stick electric lamps.

__________

City CemeteryCemeteryWe have understood City Cemetery here as a reference to the location now known as Old City Cemetery. was Burch's CemeteryCemetery,Burch's Cemetery appears to be a reference to Burch's Brick Yard, whichi Muse appears to note as a correction after this phrase. She perhaps wrote Burch's Cemetery due to the similarity to Burbridge Cemetery. Elsewhere, Irene Coates indicates that Burbridge Cemetery was the previous name of Old City Cemetery (see, for instance, Irene Coates Narrative (3 of 4). was Burch's brick yard.

One colored clerk in post office in JaxJacksonville.

First colored clerk —, Camp Hughes —, sent to prison for stealing mail.

Second colored, Willis Myers —.

Willis Williams took his place.

Wired for him to come from Tall.Tallahassee to take his place. Came to stay.