File							District #6
Copied							Clark County
1/15/41							Racial Group.
BM

			ISAAC RODGERS

		     Ex-slave, age unknown.

	" I wuz bawn en raised ter er young man in Nawth Cah'lina.

Yes-sir, Almance County wuz where I come from, jes' three miles

from Gra'am."

	"Funny thing is; me en my young miss, en her cousin Cunnel

Willum Johnson who's en Washin'ton now, wuz all bawn de same night;

en my grandmother wuz midwife fer all three of us.  She says I 

wuz de runt of em all, en she cud a put me en er quart cup when I 

was bawned."

	"My father, Josh Rodgers, my mother Margarette, en my grand

mother en grandfather, en a whole passel of us folks wuz raised

with Squire Billy Rodgers en Miss Polly Rodgers.  She cum right

fum Holland, pure Dutch, en er wuker en manager, if de ebber wuz

one.  She'd get out en de fiel' en cut wheat en swing dat cradle

jes' lak er man."

	"Dey wuz two girls, my sisters, Julia en Maria, en dey he'p

ten' Miss Trella en Miss Louise, de young misses."

	"Squire he had er big plantation: fact is he had two of em.

He wuz good, en de slaves fum Jedge Rucker's plantation uster come

over en wuk fer squire.  Jedge Rucker, he had so many slaves he 

nebber knowed how many he did have, en too, he did'en feed em as good

as Old Marse done.  But dem two nebber los' no frien'ship bout it,

en dey had dey stillhouse togedder.  Us had de mos' peaches en apples

			

Works Progress Administration (WPA) Ex-Slave Narratives

Isaac Rodgers, Ex-Slave Narrative