Irene Coates Narrative (3 of 4) Viola Muse Transcription, encoding and edition Kimberly Council and Amelia Dixon

This document was produced as part of the Viola Muse Digital Edition (violamuse.unfdhi.org), based at the University of North Florida.

 USA Florida Jacksonville Jacksonville Historical Society Viola Muse Collection (1959-18) Folder 15, item 3 Narrative based on the Irene Coates Interview Notes

Handwritten on one side of a single sheet of paper, with damage around edges, light staining

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

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Jacksonville, Florida

Slavery

Viola B. Muse

Irene Coates, an ex-slave of 2015 Windle Street, was born at Richmond, Virginia, 1859.

She was 6six years of age when "Freedom" came to the Negroes of the South. Irene was reared in the home of Jimmie and Lue Bedell, a Whitewhite couple then living in Savannah, GaGeorgia.

When the Bedell's first child was born, Irene became his nurse, and later when the family moved to Jacksonville, they brought Irene with them.

Jimmie Bedell and his family came to Jacksonville in a boat, and landed at the foot of Bridge Street, which later became Broad Street.

The Bedells found a lodging place on Bridge and Adams Street at the home of a man named Nat Patterson.

Now Nat Patterson's home occupied the block from Bridge to Clay and from

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Adams to Ward Street. The house on this ground faced Bridge Street and in the yard running back to Clay Street were orange trees and grape vinesgrapevines.

There were no fine houses in Jacksonville at that time, the California style houses, with the planks running vertically being the only kind built.

Down Bridge Street on the corner of Forsythe, where Oak &and Peter's Shoe Store now stands in this year 1936, stood an old grittsgrits mill, which was operated by a wheel turned by water power. Irene Coates saw grittsgrits ground many times at that old mill.

Where the Broad Street Viaduct runs across the railroad tracks now was, in Irene's early life, a wooden foot bridge. Before the land was filled in and the McCoy Creek was confined to its present narrow boundaries, the creek occupied all the section where the railroad tracks are south of Bay Street. It continued taking in Bay Street and ran between Bridge and Jefferson Streets on t covering the spot where the colored

Because the text on this page does not continue on the next, it appears that at least two pages may be missing (pages 1 and 2 occupy the front and back of one sheet, and the following two the front and back of another, suggesting that in between there is a full sheet absent).

The oldOld City CemetaryCemetery, then called Burbridge Cemetery on Myrtle AveAvenue, at Church St.Street was the only burryingburying ground at that time &and was considered very far out in the woods.

It is remarkable to note that a lot on that cemetarycemetery ground still remains fenced in &and has tomb stonestombstones standing that were erected over 50fifty years ago.

Although Irene Coates was just 6six yrsyears of age when the Negro was emancipated, she remembers some occurances which happened on and around the plantation where she was held a slave.

Two events, marked by what she considers key note causes which led to respect of the slave by his master and Emancipation of the Negro by Abraham Lincoln. follow in the order by which they are mentioned.

The first event tells of a young, strong, robust Negro slave woman who knew her work and did it well. "She could grab up two bags of guana and tote them at one time" said Irene Coates, and she was never found sherkingshirking work. The over-seeroverseer on the plantatation was very hard on the slaves and prac

ticed striking slaves them across the shoulders &and back to urge them on to work faster. The slave woman in question remarked that "if ever dat over-seeroverseer whips me dat will be the day me or him one dies." He heard her remarks and, upon passing her later, struck her while she was bending, hoeing the ground. She raised up with hoe in hands, struck him, and knocked him from his horse. As he fell, she cut his head off with the hoe, chopped his body over and over, and then turned and killed his horse. Without stopping, she walked calmly to her master and reported the incident. She said, "masterMaster, I've killed the over-seeroverseer &and his horse." The master, horrified, said, "You mean you've killed the over-seeroverseer?" "Yes, sir" were her remarks. The master, without meditation, said, "You see that house over there," pointing to one on his plantation. "Take your belongings and move in there. You are free from this

day, and if the 'old missus' asks you to do anything for her, you do it, if you want to."

Irene claims that the master had the highest respect for the slave-woman's 'gall', and she was ever after awarded respect by her master.

The other event occurred in Virginia and was relayed to Irene by her mother. It is said that President Lincoln’s wife was visiting in Richmond, Virginia, and a mistress of a plantation, had a negro slave woman whipped in the presence of Mrs. Lincoln. The whipping was unmercifully the slave, and her physical appearance plainly showed that she was an expectant mother. Mrs. Lincoln’s face turned red she became very angry and disgusted &and replied that she intended telling the President of the outrage. Irene Coates stated that the Negroes in Richmond al

ways believed that that whipping of the slave in Mrs. Lincoln's presence urged the President in Emancipating of the slaves. Negroes.