d
a Mr. Joe Green of Franklin County. He was a big southern planter.

The war was begun and there were stories of fights and freedom. The
news went from plantation to plantation and while the slaves acted
natural and some even more polite than usual, they prayed for freedom.
Then one day I heard something that sounded like thunder and missus and
marster began to walk around and act queer. The grown slaves were
whispering to each other. Sometimes they gathered in little gangs in the
grove. Next day I heard it again, boom, boom, boom. I went and asked
missus 'is it going to rain?' She said, 'Mary go to the ice house and
bring me some pickles and preserves.' I went and got them. She ate a
little and gave me some. Then she said, 'You run along and play.' In a
day or two everybody on the plantation seemed to be disturbed and
marster and missus were crying. Marster ordered all the slaves to come
to the great house at nine o'clock. Nobody was working and slaves were
walking over the grove in every direction. At nine o'clock all the
slaves gathered at the great house and marster and missus came out on
the porch and stood side by side. You could hear a pin drap everything
was so quiet. Then marster said, 'Good morning,' and missus said, 'Good
morning, children'. They were both crying. Then marster said, 'Men,
women and children, you are free. You are no longer my slaves. The
Yankees will soon be here.'

Marster and missus then went into the house got two large arm chairs
put them on the porch facing the avenue and sat down side by side and
remained there watching.

In about an hour there was one of the blackest clouds coming up the
avenue from the main road. It was the Yankee soldiers, they finally
filled the mile long avenue reaching from marster's house to the main
Louisburg road and spread out over the mile square grove. The mounted
men dismounted. The footmen stacked their shining guns and began to
build fires and cook. They called the slaves, saying, 'Your are free.'
Slaves were whooping and laughing and acting like they were crazy.
Yankee soldiers were shaking hands with the Negroes and calling them
Sam, Dinah, Sarah and asking them questions. They busted the door to the
smoke house and got all the hams. They went to the ice-house and got
several barrels of brandy, and such a time. The Negroes and Yankees were
cooking and eating together. The Yankees told them to come on and join
them, they were free. Marster and missus