In 1865–a little over five generations ago–slavery was formally ended. It was what the old folks called ‘the break’. Of course the effects of slavery are still felt today, five 30-year generations is not that long ago, especially when we consider chattel slavery was followed by virulent Jim Crow until the passing of the 1964 Civil Rights Legislation and the 1965 Voting Rights Legislation.

Most of us are seldom taught what the slavery period was really like, nor, for that matter, do we understand what seemed to be a great abyss when emancipation arrived and suddenly our ancestors had no where to go, no or relatively little property, and no assistance in navigating our newly arrived freedom. The majority of us were agrarian workers with few skills suited to urban life.

In the 1930s there was an effort to document the lives and views of former slaves. One of those revealing WPA accounts was by Fountain Hughes. Listen to what he had to say.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aadp1xqfAP0