Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2020/Summer II/Section 01/Jim Allen

Jim Allen
Jim Allen was a former slave of Bob Allen’s in Russell County, Alabama. After his emancipation at age thirteen, he was hired by Bob McDaniel in West Point, Mississippi and after this, there are no further records of his life. Allen was interviewed by Mrs. Ed Joiner of the Federal Writers’ Project for their Slave Narratives segment on July 22, 1937.

Early Life and Family
Allen was born in Russell County, Alabama in 1850. He is the son of Darkis and John Robertson. Allen had four siblings, Harriett, John, Vice, and George, and was married twice. Allen and his siblings were born into slavery and began working on John Bussey’s plantation. Early on, his mother and baby brother George were traded to Lee King in exchange for an unpaid whiskey debt; Allen was traded to Bob Allen for the same reason. The fate of his father and other siblings is unknown. Allen worked on Bob Allen’s plantation up until he was emancipated and forced off of the property by the Yankees at age thirteen.

Life as a Slave
Allen began his experience as a slave under the ownership of John Bussey. He was just a child at the time but recalls being traded to Bob Allen, a wealthy store owner, in exchange for an unpaid whiskey debt. Allen was treated as a pet slave, constantly given treats, an abundance of food, and even slept in the same quarters as the Allens. In addition to this, all of the slaves on Allen’s plantation were given “two pairs of shoes, and all of the snuff and tobacco...wanted every month”. There were even social gatherings on the weekends where the slaves could relax, sing songs, and play. Unlike Allen, the common slave was “neither allowed nor able to play, not least because they were often the only children on the farm” However, Allen’s experience as a slave was an anomaly in comparison to others, especially the slaves of poor white owners. It was not uncommon for a slave to live their entire childhood without having a pair of shoes on their feet, or proper winter clothes. In addition to this, enslaved women and children were often sexually abused, and the work hours were long and grueling. Allen’s positive experience as a slave goes so far as to Allen believing that his owners passionately loved and cared for him. Allen’s childhood slavery experience skewed his view of the institution, emancipation, and the Era of Reconstruction.

Life After Slavery
Allen’s emancipation and adjustment to life outside of slavery predated the Reconstruction Era, and he felt confused and helpless when left to his own devices. Allen even wishes that he had been able to stay on Bob Allen’s plantation. Allen was relocated to West Point, Mississippi, and began working for Bob McDaniel near Tombigbee River. This is his last known job and the exact line of work is unknown. Not much is known of Allen’s adult life, but he was a devout Christian and spoke of actively trying to live in harmony with both “black and white, old and young, and to give justice to all”. Allen did not move again, and his exact date, cause, and place of death remain unknown.

Reconstruction in The South (1865-77)
After Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation and declaration of freedom for the slaves, they were released and allowed to create real lives for themselves. However, with this freedom came fear. The men, women, and children, had been granted their freedom but were not immediately given the means they needed to survive on their own. According to Jennie Webb, a former slave, the slaves were all promised 40 acres and a mule upon being freed, and that never happened. Being left without any property made it extremely difficult to start a life and these struggles ignited the call for Reconstruction.

The Era of Reconstruction in America was fueled by the desire to peacefully and fairly, incorporate the newly freed men and women in society at the political, social, and economic levels. Reconstruction and reform efforts were spearheaded by the Republican Party at the time. The intent of Reconstruction was well-meaning, but its efficacy is what many still question today. Some notable outcomes of the Era of Reconstruction include African Americans serving in Congress, Legislature, and local level offices, African Americans being able to form their own community centers, and the creation of a public school system. However, Reconstruction was not an easy task; many former slaveholders in the South violently rejected the idea of giving African Americans the same rights as their own. The Radical Republicans were often physically and verbally attacked by the Democrats in an attempt to suppress the party and their movement. The Democrats would have race riots where they would mercilessly kill African Americans in an effort to put an end to Reconstruction. Another area where Reconstruction failed the freedmen and women is in providing them substantive ways to have a career outside sharecropping, earning low wages, and plantation work.

African Americans in The Great Depression
The Great Depression was caused by the stock market crash of 1929 and lasted until 1939 and is known as “the worst economic downturn in the industrialized world”. During this time, the national income decreased by 50% and unemployment rose to 25%, meaning that out of those who were willing and able to work, 25% were not hired. As a country alone, these numbers are frightening. However, when compared to the same statistics for African Americans during The Great Depression, these numbers seem low. African Americans have come to be labeled the “last hired, first fired” workforce. In fact, African Americans were facing an economic downturn of their own even before the stock market crashed in 1929 and that just made matters worse. On average, the employment rate for the African American labor force was at least double, if not triple that of the White unemployment rate at any given time during The Depression. When the economy began to decline, the agriculture industry in the South took a major hit which led to the migration of African Americans North in search of jobs. The combination of the influx of African Americans in cities, an increasing amount of unemployed Whites, and the ingrained racism in employers, African American unemployment rates skyrocketed. To make matters worse, the African Americans who were employed would be terrorized or murdered in order to “create vacancies”. The president at the time, Herbert Hoover, despite being a Republican, did little to aid the suffering and impoverished. His predecessor, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, made even less of an effort to protect African Americans from injustice and discrimination. The New Deal programs were not effective in preventing discrimination and were even discriminatory themselves, but they did eventually provide some forms of economic relief for African Americans during this time.