Interview: Stevens, Bessie
Item
Identifier
Mss-0282, Tape 80
Title
Interview: Stevens, Bessie
Type
Sound
Format
.mp3
Language
English
Source
Black Heritage in the Upper Piedmont of South Carolina Collection
Rights
Interviews may only be reproduced with permission from Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives. All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives.
Date
1990-07-06
Description
Bessie Stevens was born on March 18, 1905 in Pickens County, SC, the daughter of John and Martha Whitman. She worked for the Clemson Laundry Service for 21 years, retiring in 1970. Mrs. Stevens died on February 13, 1999.
Side 1
2:30-5:32--Stevens states that her mother was a housekeeper for the family; her father worked on the local railroad as well as at the Physical Plant ay Clemson College.
6:06--Slavery--Some of her family members experienced slavery. She explains, however, that stories were not passed down or overheard because children were expected to clear out of the house when older people visited.
6:50--Her family is buried at Abel Baptist Cemetery.
7:21--Funerals--There wasn't the same amount of music in the old days at services. There weren't any musicians. A local white undertaker (Duckett) worked for both races. Adams Mortuary was a local black establishment.
8:48--Marriages--Stevens' marriage was a simple affair, performed before the minister at his house.
10:02---Stevens briefly points out family photos of her sisters' c. 1930.
11:09--Employment opportunities for black women usually involved some sort of domestic work, while men worked on farms (Clemson College Dairy or local sharecropping).
12:30--Her family did its shopping at the Smith Store in Calhoun, SC. Clothes were homemade, though the cloth was store-bought.
13:10--Stevens had on daughter and one stepdaughter. Her daughter moved to Ohio in 1955.
14:27--One of Mrs. Stevens' sister's was a teacher and pianist in the lower part of SC.
15:36--Education--Stevens attended the Calhoun School. It was a one-room schoolhouse with one teacher. There were eight grades
17:51--During the summers, her mother would let her were pick cotton at the Cochran farms.
18:05--Reading material at the home included the Bible and schoolbooks.18:58--Curriculum at her school covered reading, writing, arithmetic, and geography.
18:58--Curriculum at her school covered reading, writing, arithmetic, and geography.
19:44--Community organizations were usually church related.
20:20--Her family all attended Abel Baptist. She can recall Reverend's Watson and Galloway. She did not attend camp meetings or singing conventions.
23:22--Stevens doesn't recall her parents ever voting, though she herself has.
24:45--White/black relationships--her family never had any troubles or difficulties with white people.
27:36--She can remember occasionally traveling to both Anderson and Greenville, SC. Wagon and train services were commonly utilized.
29:30--Celebrations/holidays--aspects of Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving holidays are recalled.
31:09--Audio ends.
Side 2
00:22--Discussions of holidays continue, as Mrs. Stevens discusses New Year's Day.
1:49--She can recall the flu epidemic that occulted during the time of World War I. There was much sickness, though she can recall no specific deaths.
2:06--Stevens had a sister that died in an accident. A bridge either collapsed or was washed away while she was trying to cross it in a car.
4:40--Stevens's father was a Freemason; there was a Masonic hall at Abel.
7:05--Stevens worked with the Clemson Laundry Service for 21 years. She describes the operation (washing, ironing, etc.). She retired in 1970.
11:34--Audio ends.
Side 1
2:30-5:32--Stevens states that her mother was a housekeeper for the family; her father worked on the local railroad as well as at the Physical Plant ay Clemson College.
6:06--Slavery--Some of her family members experienced slavery. She explains, however, that stories were not passed down or overheard because children were expected to clear out of the house when older people visited.
6:50--Her family is buried at Abel Baptist Cemetery.
7:21--Funerals--There wasn't the same amount of music in the old days at services. There weren't any musicians. A local white undertaker (Duckett) worked for both races. Adams Mortuary was a local black establishment.
8:48--Marriages--Stevens' marriage was a simple affair, performed before the minister at his house.
10:02---Stevens briefly points out family photos of her sisters' c. 1930.
11:09--Employment opportunities for black women usually involved some sort of domestic work, while men worked on farms (Clemson College Dairy or local sharecropping).
12:30--Her family did its shopping at the Smith Store in Calhoun, SC. Clothes were homemade, though the cloth was store-bought.
13:10--Stevens had on daughter and one stepdaughter. Her daughter moved to Ohio in 1955.
14:27--One of Mrs. Stevens' sister's was a teacher and pianist in the lower part of SC.
15:36--Education--Stevens attended the Calhoun School. It was a one-room schoolhouse with one teacher. There were eight grades
17:51--During the summers, her mother would let her were pick cotton at the Cochran farms.
18:05--Reading material at the home included the Bible and schoolbooks.18:58--Curriculum at her school covered reading, writing, arithmetic, and geography.
18:58--Curriculum at her school covered reading, writing, arithmetic, and geography.
19:44--Community organizations were usually church related.
20:20--Her family all attended Abel Baptist. She can recall Reverend's Watson and Galloway. She did not attend camp meetings or singing conventions.
23:22--Stevens doesn't recall her parents ever voting, though she herself has.
24:45--White/black relationships--her family never had any troubles or difficulties with white people.
27:36--She can remember occasionally traveling to both Anderson and Greenville, SC. Wagon and train services were commonly utilized.
29:30--Celebrations/holidays--aspects of Christmas, Easter, and Thanksgiving holidays are recalled.
31:09--Audio ends.
Side 2
00:22--Discussions of holidays continue, as Mrs. Stevens discusses New Year's Day.
1:49--She can recall the flu epidemic that occulted during the time of World War I. There was much sickness, though she can recall no specific deaths.
2:06--Stevens had a sister that died in an accident. A bridge either collapsed or was washed away while she was trying to cross it in a car.
4:40--Stevens's father was a Freemason; there was a Masonic hall at Abel.
7:05--Stevens worked with the Clemson Laundry Service for 21 years. She describes the operation (washing, ironing, etc.). She retired in 1970.
11:34--Audio ends.
Subject
African Americans -- History. -- South Carolina -- Pickens County
Interviewer
Deas-Moore, Vennie
Interviewee
Stevens, Bessie
Spatial Coverage
Clemson, Pickens County, South Carolina, United States, 34.68403, -82.81232, SC, 7169764, [34.68403, -82.81232] [id:7169764]
Publisher
Clemson University Libraries Special Collections and Archives Repository
