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Bastrop County, TX |
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Alice Moore Davidson
was born a slave about seventy-eight years ago. She doesn't remember dates, and isn't sure where she was
born. She is a mulatto. Her father was Tom Moore, a white man.
Tom Moore bought Alice's mother, Caroline Moore, when she was only three years old. When Caroline was
old enough to work, she became Moore's house girl. Alice was too young to do much work
during slavery, but she says she worked hard after freedom. When Alice's mother died,
Alice became the ward of her step-parents, Joe and Irene Walker, who were farmers at
Cottonwood, Bastrop County. On January 9, 1882, according to
the date in her Bible, she married Charlie Davidson, who was a farmer on Dr. William Sheppard's plantation at
Del Valle, Travis County. Alice lives on her farm at 2800 E. Second Street, Austin. Her
husband died in 1935. "I was Alice
Moore when I was a girl. I don't remember jes' how
old I am. De good folks has always told me dat
I was bawn about seventy-eight years ago. I don't
remember jes' where I was bawn. "Yo' want me to tell yo' de
truth? I do remember dat my father was Tom Moore, a
white man. Tom Moore bought Ma when she was a
little chile of about three years old. "Caroline Moore
was my Ma. I was jes' a small chile
when Ma died, Ma took sick one Sunday evenin', got a pain in her side, and died. De doctah said she had pneumonia. I was de only chile
Ma had. When she was livin', we was
always talkin' to each other. Ma would tell me dat she
didn't want me to die and leave me. We sure did love each other. She sure was a good mothaw
to me. She sure was. Ma was sorta small and slim,
but some heavier'n me. "After Ma died,
I would git spells ob
sadness, and I would go and climb a tree - any old tree - and staht to thinkin' and cryin', 'cause my Ma was gone,
and she had been so nice to me. I sure was lonesome for her. "I was too
little to do much work durin' slavery days. Yo' see, I had to work hard after slavery, 'cause I
was never with no kinfolks down here. I had no aunts, no uncles, and nobody down here. We never did know nothin' about Ma's folks, 'cause
she was too young to remember anything, when she was sold
to Tom Moore. "I never had
much schoolin' in my young days, or since. I went
to school jes' about one term, I think. This was after freedom. The
school was held in a log church at Cottonwood. The teacher's name
was Henry Curry, a colored man. Teacher was good at teachin',
and he was awful good to us. But, he sure made
us git our lessons, though. He sure did. I reckon he might be livin'
yet down in Bastrop County. Dat's all the schoolin' I had, and I done forgot all ob dat.
I can't read and write today. "I remembah now dat Tom Moore
married Mrs. Hornsby, a widow, and he went to live on his fahm at
Hornsby's Bend. I believe dat's right. She was a
Mrs. Hornsby. "I went to live
with my step-parents, Joe Walker and Irene Walker. Joe and my step-mothaw had a fahm down at Cottonwood. I was livin' wid dem
when I went to school. It was now when I had to staht workin' hard, but my
step-parents was good to me. I had to git up at the break of dahn,
and pick cotton. I remembah how de white cotton was so full ob
dew, and how much heavier de cotton weighed dis way. De dew on de cotton would git all ober us. I never was a good cotton picker, and I couldn't
pick much. "Dere was times when I would go along de Cottonwood Branch
and de Colorado River and pick up driftwood and pack it home in
my arms. I remembah we had a lahge
cedar bucket wid brass rings aroun' it, and
I had to go to the creek and pack water up to de house. One day, I was walkin'
home wid de bucket ob
water on my head when a limb knocked if off and busted it all to pieces. I
could balance dat bucket ob
water on my head. When dat bucket busted on de groun',
I stahted out cryin' 'cause dat bucket had belonged to Ma befo'
she died. I cried and cried. I was only ten years old, I reckin,
and I wasn't old enough to pack sich
a big bucket. "It was about
in de eighties when my step-parents moved to de Washington Plantation at Garfield. Dis was de
George Washing fahm on de Colorado River and his
folks had moved to Austin. George took care ob the place for his fathaw,
and dem white folks sure was good to us. I had to pick cotton here, too, but
I didn't do much good. I had to do a lot ob plowin' on the place. I done a lot ob
plowin' befo' I come
here, too. "It was while I
was livin' here dat I got
married. De Bible has a writin' in it dat say dat I married Charlie Davidson on January 9, 1882.
Charlie was workin' on the fahm
dat belonged to Dr. William Sheppard at Del Valle.
De folks jes' called him doctor, but he was a preacher. He is de one whut married us. Charlie was workin'
fo' him, and he was gittin' fifty cents a day fo'
his work. We got our house and milk free, though, and had to buy our meat. Charlie had to git
up early and milk four cows, and den he had to go to de field. "We had five
girls and four boys. Dey is all livin'
but one boy. I live here on my place wid some ob my chillun, but dey won't help me.
One daughter livin' here wid
me fell on de ice last winter, and crippled herself up. She
is still usin' a crutch. I don't git a pension ob any kind, and I sure has a tough time. My
husband died in 1935, and I have no way to make a livin'. I have no money to pay taxes wid. "I was too
small to know anything about slave uprisings in my days. I was too small to remembah much ob anything." |
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