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Collected by the Federal Writers Project, Works Progress Administration JERRY MOORE, a native of Harrison County, Texas, was born May 28, 1848, a slave of Mrs. Isaac Van Zandt, who was a pioneer civic leader of the county. Jerry has always lived in Marshall. For fifty years after he was freed he worked as a brick mason. He now lives alone on the Port Caddo road. and is supported by a $15.00 per month pension from the government. "My name is J. M. Moore, but all the white and cullud folks calls me Uncle Jerry, 'cause I has lived here mos' since Marshall started. I was born on the 28th of May, in 1848, up on the hill where the College of Marshall is now, and I belonged to the Van Zandts. That was their old home place. "I never did see Col. Isaac Van Zandt, my mistresses' husband, but has heared her and the older folks talk lots a him. They say he was the one who helped set up Marshall and name it. They say he run for Governor and had a good chance, but was never honored as Governor 'cause he died 'fore election. "My mistress was named Fanny and was one sweet soul. She had five children and they lived here in town but have a purty big farm east of town. My mother sewed for Mistress Fanny, so we lived in town. There were lots of niggers on the farm and everybody round these parts called us 'Van Zandt's free niggers,' 'cause our white folks shared with their darkies and larned 'em all to read and write. The other owners wouldn't have none of Van Zandt's niggers. "My mother was Amy Van Zandt Moore and was a Tennessian. My father was Henry Moore and he belonged to a old bachelor named Moore, in Alabama. "Moore freed all his niggers 'fore 'mancipation except three. They was to pay a debt and my father was Moore's choice man and was one of the three. He bought hisself. He had saved up some money and when they went to sell him he bid $800.00. The auctioneer cries 'round to git a raise, but wouldn't nobody bid on my father 'cause he was one of Moore's 'free niggers'. My father done say after the war he could have buyed hisself for $1.50. So he was a free man 'fore the 'mancipation and he couldn't live 'mong the slaves and he had to have a guardian who was 'sponsible for his conduct till after surrender. They was lots of niggers here from the free states 'fore the war, but they wasn't 'lowed to mix with the slaves. "Mistress Fanny allus give the children a candy pullin' on Saturday night and the big folks danced and had parties. She allus gave the children twenty-five cents apiece when the circus come to town. The patterrollers wasn't 'lowed 'bout our place and her darkies went mos' anywhere and wasn't ever bothered, I never seed a slave whipped on our place, She give her darkies money along for doin' odd jobs and they could spend it for what they wanted. She was a Christian woman and read the Bible mos' all the time. She give my mother two acres of land at 'mancipation. "The first thing I seed of the war was them musterin' and drillin' sojers here in Marshall, back in Buchanan's time. Politics was hot in '59 and '60. I 'member 'em havin' a big dinner and barbecue and speakin' on our place. They had a railroad to Swanson's Landing on Caddo Lake and the train crew brung news from boats from Shreveport and New Orleans. Soon as the train pulled into town it signaled. Three long, moarnful whistles meant bad news, Three short, quick whistles meant good news. I went to town for the mail with my sister durin' the war. She'd say to me, 'Jerry, the sooner the war is over, the sooner we'll be free. All the Van Zandt Negroes wanted to be free. They didn't understand how well they was bein' treated till after they had to make their own livin'. "I rec'lect the time the cullud folks registered here after the war. They outnumbered the whites a long way. Davis was governor and all the white folks had to take the Iron Clad oath to vote. Carpetbaggers and Negroes run the government. In the early days they held the election four days. They didn't vote to precincts but at the court house. The Democratic Party had no chance to 'timidate the darkies. The 'publican party had a 'Loyal League' for to protect the cullud folks. First the Negroes went to the league house to get 'structions and ballots and then marched to the court house, double file, to vote. My father was a member of the 11th and 12th legislature from this county. He was 'lected just after the Constitutional Convention, when Davis was elected governor. Two darkies, Mitch Kennel and Wiley Johnson, was 'lected from this county to be members of that Convention. "'Durin' the Reconstruction the Negroes gathered in Harrison County. The Yankee sojers and 'Progoe' law made thousands of darkies flock here for protection. The Ku Klux wasn't as strong here and this place was headquarters for the 'Freedman.' What the 'Progoe' Marshall said was Gospel. They broke up all that business in Governor Hogg's time. They divided the county into precincts and the devilment was done in the precincts, just like it is now. "My father told me about old Col. Alford and his Kluxers takin' Anderson Wright out to the bayou. They told him, 'You'd better pray.' Wright got down on his knees and acted like he was prayin' till he crawled to the bank and jumped in the bayou. The Klux shot at him fifty or sixty times, but he got away. The Loyal League give him money to leave on and he stayed away a long time. He came back to appear against Alford at his trial and when the Jury gave Alford ninety-nine years. Anderson was glad, of course. "I left the Van Zandts two years after I was freed and worked in hotels and on the railroad and saved up money and went in business, helping people ship cotton. I've seen a thousand cotton wagons in town at one time. I stayed in business till I was burnt out. I came back to Marshall and took up the brick mason trade, and worked at it till I got too old to hold out. "I've sat on the jury in the county, justice and federal courts. I know enough to vote or set on a jury but I think the restriction on colored folks votin' is all right in this State. The white folks has a good government system. Our leaders ain't hard-hearted people and the cullud folks is well off or better as if they voted. I've lived here in Marshall most all the time since I was born and ain't had no trouble. As long as the Negroes treat the white folks right, the white folks will treat them right.
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