Monticello Florida

Slave Narrative of Patience Campbell

Patience Campbell, born around 1883 in Jackson County, Florida, describes her life as a slave, detailing her experiences under two different masters. Her mother’s owner, George Bullock, was kind, while her father’s owner, Edward Merritt, was cruel. Blind for 26 years, Patience recalls childhood tasks like cotton seed picking and learning to spin and weave. Following emancipation, she attended a Freedmen’s Bureau school and witnessed the establishment of African American communities. Patience’s narrative highlights the contrasts in slavery conditions and the resilience of newly freed individuals.

Slave Narrative of Matilda Brooks

Matilda Brooks, 79, born in South Carolina around 1857, was a slave on Governor Frank Pickens’ plantation, where conditions were relatively favorable. She described the governor as personally attentive to the slaves’ needs, providing comfortable quarters and medical care. Matilda’s family cultivated various crops and utilized traditional cooking methods. Following emancipation, her family moved to Monticello, Florida, where they became house servants and engaged in community life, including education and politics. Matilda still resides in Rooster-Town, a neighborhood associated with her family.

Slave Narrative of Douglas Parish

Douglas Parish, interviewed at age 86, recounts his life as a slave in Monticello, Florida, born in 1850 to Charles and Fannie Parish. His mother was a “breeder,” while his father worked in the cotton fields. Despite the harsh realities of slavery, Douglas describes a comparatively mild existence on the Parish plantation, where he enjoyed food security and limited punishment. Post-Civil War, many slaves, including Douglas’s family, chose to remain with the Parishes, facing new struggles in a transformed economy while seeking education through Freedmen’s Bureau efforts.