Slave Narrative Slave Narrative

By Boateng Jamal-JonesBy Boateng Jamal-Jones

My name My name is is

Boateng Boateng Jamal-Jamal-Jones. Jones. This is This is

my my story...story...

Captivity•I was born May 16, 1824 on green cash plantation in

Louisiana

•My mother and I were separated at birth and I was bought by a slave trader who then sold me to James plantation

•I'm not sure how old I was when I arrived but I'm pretty sure I was about two years old

•I was then raised by a woman named Lisa

•She raised me until my plantation master John James, started to put me to work by cleaning the stables for his horses

Plantation

Captivity•I must admit he was a nice master, but when he was mad he

turned into a totally different person

•Every once and a while I would take a break and look outside and observe everyone

•A man I watched once was picking cotton and I watched him slowly lose strength and eventually collapse from exhaustion

•The spring time there was extremely hot and unbearable

•Immediately I saw master James walk out, and remember thinking to myself how nice it was that master James was going to help the poor man

Slave Whipping

Captivity•To my surprise master James walked over and started whipping the

poor man and from that moment I realized how the relationship of a slave and his master really was

•I was about  10 when my master started to make me work the fields

• I would plant the cotton, work on the cotton, pick the cotton, and then do it all again

•I did that every day, and I made sure to finish my work early so that I could do extra work to help Lisa

•She raised me as if she was my mother, but she always told me that she wasn't me real mama

•She told me "Boy, I love yous as if I was your real mama, but I isn't

Working on Cotton

Captivity•Your real mama is out there doing the same thing wes is doing."

•She was getting older and couldn't finish her required amount, so I would help her out by doing a little extra.

•If I didn't, she would be whipped till the sun goes down.

•I worked from before the sun comes up till after the sun goes down.

• I would get one meal a day, a fish and a biscuit, but I only ate half the biscuit, I gave the other half to Lisa.

•One day, another slave was brought to the plantation.

•He didn't look a slave when he arrived.

Captivity•He was all nervous and scared looking. He got whipped because

he didn't move.

•I started talking to him and he said he got kidnapped and was sold as a slave.

• I thought that slaves was born as slaves, but black people can be stolen and sold.

•We became close friends over the years until he made a break for it. I never saw him and I don't know if he escaped or not.

•He probably ended up dead or was caught by another slave owner.

•I missed him, but never really thought about him because I had many other slaves to talk to.

Captivity•We were always singin to keep our minds off the work.

•We sang songs like swing low sweet chariot and free at last. I sung real good by the time I was 16.

•But 16 was a real bad year for me.

•Lisa had collapsed sometime in August, but before I could help her up, she got a real bad whippin.

•She was nearly half dead and needed to recover, but the master said a slave that can't work is good for nothin.

•He shot her and told me dump her body in the river. I cried a lot cause she was like a mama to me.

•Instead of dumping her in the river, I made a dug a grave with my hands and put her on top of the big ol hill.

Slaves Singing

Captivity•I got whipped for taking so long, but it was worth it.

•After Lisa's death nothing was the same.

•I was depressed and sad, I could not finish my work anymore and stopped eating.

• I was whipped often but I said nothing and never cried.

•One day I new batch of slaves came in to the plantation, I was 23 at the time.

•In this batch one person caught my eye, a white woman came out of the slave car.

•I thought she was one of the relatives of my master, but this changed when I saw her getting pushed around like a slave.

•She was put into the same cabin as me

Captivity•Her name was Ellen and after a few days we began to

talk and soon fell in love.

•The master would not allow marriage on the plantation and Ellen was the first thing in my life that made me happy after Lisa

• So we began to contemplate a plan to escape

•I took advantage of her fair complexion and suggested that we pose as a young planter and his slave

• We soon began to create a plan to escape and have a family in the North.

Escape

Escape•I would disguise her as a man and cover her face with bandages to hide her face because

it was odd for a woman master to travel with a male slave.

• Also I would tell her to put her right arm in a sling so no one would ask her to sign anything.

• I had to take this precaution because the master forbid us to become literate.

•As Christmas approached I figured that I would ask the master for a few days leave.

•This would give us a few days head start before we aroused suspicion.

•Ellen and I went to the Louisiana train Station and bought tickets with money we had been able to keep.

• I got on the negro train and Ellen on to the regular cabin.

•I was relieved that we had made it this far, until I saw our master looking thought the cabin windows.

• I immediately turned my face when saw him looking through my window and I saw Ellen do the same

Escape•When we arrived in West Virginia, we made our way to a hotel and the

staff allowed us to stay for a low price due to Ellen face bandages.

•After staying in the hotel for a few days, we got tickets for Philadelphia.

•We came across trouble because the ticket keeper asked for our signature.

•To our luck a friendly passenger who was on our previous train signed for us.

• At last, after a long train ride we reached Philadelphia we were stopped again and asked for a signature.

•But to our luck again we were let go again.

•We were finally free and could finally have a happy family

Escape•After we got to Philadelphia, we took up jobs.

•Ellen became a seamstress and I took up a job as a laborer.

•Also we learned how to read and write.

•We lived like this for 2 years, until slave hunters came after us.

•We fled to England and stayed there for 20 years.

•We started a family there and had 5 children. We enjoyed our family for several years until we realized that we had to help others not as fortunate.

•So we came back to America and started a school so we could help others become literate

Bibliography

•http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USASnorthup.htm

•http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/The-Great-Escape-From-Slavery-of-Ellen-and-William-Craft.html?c=y&story=fullstory&device=ipad