Understanding Interview Freedmen's Bureau Records

Understanding Interviewsfreedmens Bureau Records

Skill Assignment 10: Understanding Interviews Freedmen’s Bureau Records: Testimony in relation to the killing of “Kit†by his former master John Echols Source A. Phoebe Jones (Freedwoman) Testimony in relation to the killing of her son Kit by his former Master John Echols Phoebe (Freedwoman) being duly sworn testifies as follows ---- On the day that my son was killed by our former Master Mr. John Echols I was laying in my bed sick when my son (Kit) came from the gin house & asked me what was the matter. I told him I did not know what was the matter. He said that he would go to the house and see the old man (Mr. Echols) & see what he had beaten Harriet about (Harriet is my son's wife). I told him he had better not go. He did go however, & in a few moments I heard the gun & I jumped out of bed & ran out in the yard to my son whom I found lying on the ground dead. He only breathed twice after I reached him. This is all I know about it. Cross examination by the Agt. F. Bureau Q. Did your son appear excited when he came into the house as you stated. A. No. Q. Did he take a knife when he started to see "The Old Man." A. Yes he had a knife in his headband. Q. Have you got the knife in your possession. A. Yes I have. Q. When you saw your son after he was shot was the knife in his hands or near him. A. Yes, the knife was out of the headband & lying on the ground underneath him. Q. Had you heard previous to this transaction of any threats made by your son against Mr. Echols. A. No. Q. How long did you belong to Mr. Echols before you were free. A. About 15 years. Q. During that time has he treated you & all of his slaves kindly & taken good care of them. A. Yes. Q. Since you were made free have you discovered that he treated you or them differently. A. No. Q. When was your son buried. A. On the evening of Monday following the day he was shot. Q. Do you know anything of Mr. Echols settling accounts with the freedmen whom he employed. A. I saw the money they received which was specie [coins]. Q. Did you ever hear anything about Mr. Echols saying he did not want your son to stay on the plantation any longer. A. Yes I heard my son say so --- & Mr. Echols offered them wagons to move. Cross examination by the accused. The witness testified as follows. Q. Did I not take two white gentlemen with me to your quarters & tell you in their presence that I wanted you & others who were not going to stay on the place to leave it peaceably & without any further trouble. A. Yes sir. Q. Do you know anything about the clubs which was picked up near the house. A. Yes. The boys were in the habit of carrying them at night for a year or more. They did not carry them in the day time. The one shown me now belonged to my son Kit --- who was killed. Q. When I entered your house on Saturday morning & had to make Harriet get out of bed and leave the house did you see me beat her. A. No --- I heard & saw you trying to make Harriet (my son's wife) get out of bed but did not see you beat her. Q. Do you know to whom the larger club (marked A. I.) belonged --- or who had it in possession at the time your son was killed. A. I do not. I certify & acknowledge that the foregoing statement & answers are correct & I have made them under oath. Phoebe (X) Jones Witnesses John Goodwin W. F. Grant 1 Source B. John Echols Voluntary statement of facts in relation to his killing a freedman named "Kit" John Echols Voluntary statement of facts in relation to his killing a freedman named "Kit" State of Texas Burleson County John Echols having been arrested for shooting a certain Freedman named Christopher Jones alias "Kit" ---- & being duly examined made the following statement of facts --- viz --- I was born in the state of Virginia, raised in Ala. & emigrated to Texas in 1835 where I have resided & followed the occupation of a planter ever since. For the last 28 or 29 years I have been a citizen of this (Burleson County). I am now sixty three years of age & consequently was unable to take any part in the war. But on its termination I acquainted my slaves with the change in their status & read to them all military orders which concerned them. I also entered into a verbal contract with them & agreed to pay them $10.00 per month for their services while saving my growing crops. I complied with this contract allowing them wages from about the 1st of January last & paid them in silver & gold about the 27th of November 1865. After this settlement with which they declared themselves satisfied I told three of the men viz, Christopher alias "Kit," Black Jim & Washington that I would not have them on the place if they would pay me $100.00 apiece. That I desired them to leave my premises in peace & offered them the use of my wagons to move their effects & I told them they were free to go & I would not interfere or molest them. They would not go, but remained on the place, occupying my houses & I received messages & heard from the other negroes that the negroes I have named declared they would die before they would go. On or about the 8th day of Dec. 1865 (Saturday) about an hour after sunrise the boy Kit came to the house I occupied when visiting the plantation when I was alone, engaged in shelling corn (as none of the negroes would do it, or any other work although I offered to pay them). Upon seeing him at the door I asked him what he wanted. He replied that he had understood from a negro named Jeff that I had told Major Dudley (a neighbor) that he had better not hire him (Kit), that he was a bad boy & I did not want him to be hired in the neighborhood. I then got up & 1 Records of the Assistant Commissioner for the State of Texas, “Phoebe Jones (Freedwoman) Testimony in relation to the killing of her son Kit by his former Master John Echols.†Freedmen’s Bureau Online. Accessed 10/19/2016. walked nearly to the door without any weapon & with no intention of any violence but simply intending to talk to the negro & induce him to go away as I desired. He immediately drew a large butcher knife about 10 inches long and commenced advancing upon me with the knife drawn & in a manner which induced me to apprehend that he intended to attack me. I instantly retreated to the back side of the house & seized a double barreled shot gun which was standing in the corner & returned with it towards the door. I leveled the gun upon him & told him I would kill him if he did not go off & let me alone but that I did not wish to do so & wanted him to go off. When I leveled the gun he commenced to back off but without turning from me. I then took the gun down & he instantly commenced advancing upon me a second time with his knife still in his hand. I also saw two other negro men running up on the other side of the house ---- seeing the negro Kit again advancing & believing that the other negroes were about to join him in his attack, I raised my gun a second time & fired upon him. He ran about 20 paces & fell dead. Instantly I turned towards a crowd of negroes who had collected & saw a brother of the boy I had shot named Bob making violent efforts to get loose from negroes who were holding & restraining him from attacking me. Seeing this I told them to let him loose as I was prepared for him too. But a negro named Sam & others took him off & carried him to the woods, since which time I have not seen him. I thus resumed my occupation of shelling corn & remained in or near the house until my son arrived on the place. It is proper for me to state also that some of the negroes ran off when I shot Kit & we found upon the ground they had occupied a large club evidently intended & proposed for a weapon of distinction. A few days afterward a still larger one was found & produced. I told the negroes to go to Millican & report the facts to the authorities. And seeing the negro remained unburied I told them they ought to attend to it. I then remained at home pursuing my usual avocations until I was arrested by a detachment of soldiers sent from Millican for the purpose who arrived about Tuesday about noon on Tuesday 11th inst. When I saw them coming I told them to stop & come in as I presumed I was the person they were looking for. Nothing but my delicate health & the extremely cold & inclement weather prevented me from reporting the facts in person to the military authorities. And I resigned doing so as soon as the storm abated. In conclusion I would state that I owned about 70 slaves who were liberated last summer and that the boys Kit, Black Jim & Washington were the only ones who had occasioned me any serious difficulty before or since. These boys however have been very troublesome & made threats about my son in the event of his continuing to manage the place, which induced me to take my son away & assume personal superintendence of my affairs in order to avoid any collision. Upon investigation too, I think it will be found that I was a kind & indulgent Master & that some of my negroes were turbulent, dangerous & violent, facts which can be established by the evidence of both whites & blacks in my vicinity. Witness my hand this 18th day of December 1865. John Echols Records of the Assistant Commissioner for the State of Texas, “John Echols Voluntary statement of facts in relation to his killing a freedman named "Kit" Freedmen’s Bureau Online. Accessed 10/19/2016. Source C. Harriet Echols, Freedwoman Testimony in relation to the killing of her husband Kit by his former Master John Echols Harriet Echols, Freedwoman Testimony in relation to the killing of her husband Kit by his former Master John Echols Harriet Echols (Freedwoman) being duly sworn testifies as follows ---- On Saturday morning before daylight (Dec. 8th) Mr. Echols came to Phoebe's (my mother-in- law) house where I was in bed & commenced to beat me. My husband was at the gin house baling cotton. The old man (Mr. Echols) went to the corn crib & started to the house with a sack of corn. My husband Kit followed behind him which I saw from the corner of Phoebe's house. This is all I know about it until I saw the old man shoot my husband. Harriet (X) Echols Witnesses Robt. (X) Graham Co. "B" 37th Ill. Vol. Reg. W. T. Grant Examined by the Agt. of the Freedmen's Bureau the witness testifies as follows ---- Q. How long before daylight on Saturday morning did Mr. Echols come to Phoebe's house. A. About half an hour. Q. How long had your husband been then gone to the press. A. I do not know. Q. Do you know that your husband had gone to the press. A. No I do not --- I only heard so. Q. When your husband followed behind Mr. Echols --- from the corn crib towards the house --- do you know whether he had any weapon. A. Yes he had a knife. Q. Did you see the knife after he was killed & if so where. A. When I got to him after he fell the knife was lying under him. Q. Was it out of the headband. A. Yes. Q. In what part of the body was your husband shot. A. In the right shoulder. Q. Had you previous to your husband being killed heard him or any other of the servants on the place make any threats against Mr. Echols or any of his family. A. No sir. Q. Did not Mr. Echols frequently tell you & your husband after you were made free that he did not want you to stay on his plantation. That he wanted you both to leave & would not pay you for staying any longer. And did he pay you or not. A. Yes he often told us to go away & offered to furnish wagons to move us. And he also paid us for all the labor we performed for him. Q. State what your mother said about the wages Mr. Echols paid you. A. I don't know anything about that. Q. How long did you belong to Mr. Echols before you were free. A. He raised me from a child. Q. During the time you were his slave was he in the habit of treating you & his other slaves kindly, supplying your wants in food, clothing, nursing &c. A. Yes he was. Q. Since you were made free has he treated you or them differently. A. He has not. Q. Was he ever in the habit of whipping or abusing Kit. A. No sir I never did. Q. When the slaves were declared free did any of them who had belonged to Mr. Echols go off. If so did he endeavor to get them back --- or use any means to make them stay? A. A good many of them left at first but all came back. Mr. Echols did not try to make them do it. He told them if they would stay & gather the crop they could all go & ?he would let them use his wagons to move away. I certify that I have made the foregoing statement & answers under oath & that they are true. Daniel (X) Tasker Witness Charles Hime Co. "R" 37th Ill. In. H. Cooperator

Paper For Above instruction

The records from the Freedmen’s Bureau detailing the killing of Kit by his former master, John Echols, reveal a complex interplay of social relations, perceptions of justice, and racial tensions in the post-Civil War Reconstruction era. These testimonies and statements collectively provide insight into the circumstances leading to the incident, the perspectives of both the accused and the witnesses, and the broader context of race relations and legal considerations during this tumultuous period.

At the core of the event is an altercation initiated by Kit, a freedman, who, according to the testimonies, approached John Echols with the intent to persuade him to leave the plantation, allegedly after hearing rumors that Echols did not want him hired in the neighborhood. Echols's account reveals that Kit drew a large butcher knife and advanced toward him, prompting Echols to defend himself with a shotgun, resulting in Kit’s death. Echols claims that he acted in self-defense when he perceived imminent attack, emphasizing that Kit's aggressive behavior necessitated the use of deadly force. He states that Kit had previously caused trouble, refused to leave when asked, and had a reputation for being troublesome, which he asserts justifies his actions.

Conversely, the testimonies of the freedwomen Phoebe and Harriet Jones, as well as other witnesses, depict a different scene. Phoebe Jones, Kit’s mother, describes the moment she heard the gunshot and found her son dead, emphasizing that Kit’s intentions were not violent—he merely sought information and possibly to resolve a dispute. She also notes that Echols’s treatment of the slaves had been generally kind before and after emancipation, although she admits that her son had expressed a desire to leave the plantation, which Echols had encouraged by offering wagons. Harriet Echols’s testimony suggests that her husband Kit was unarmed and did not threaten Echols, and that he had no previous threats against the master. Harriet also indicates that Echols had a pattern of repeatedly telling freed slaves to leave and offering to pay them for their labor, which they accepted.

The conflicting testimonies highlight the ambiguities in the incident. Echols frames the event as a necessary act of self-defense, citing Kit’s aggression and previous troublesome behavior. The freedwomen's accounts portray a more peaceful interaction gone tragically wrong, with Kit unarmed and seeking only to address or confront Echols without prior threats. The testimonies also underline the racial dynamics; the former slaves express their experienced treatment and affirm that Echols was generally kind but also mention the turbulence caused by certain individuals, including Kit. Echols’s account reveals a desire to maintain order and his perception of threat, which justified his response in his view.

Assessing blame and responsibility reveals the complexity of the situation. Echols perceives himself as acting in self-defense, citing imminent threat from Kit’s actions and reputation. The freedmen and women, however, suggest that excessive violence was used and that Kit may have been unjustly killed without provocation. Considering the evidence, the event appears to be a tragic consequence of miscommunication, racial tensions, and differing perceptions of threat. If I were a jury member, I might recommend a thorough investigation into whether Echols’s response was proportionate and whether he had an objective threat. Given the conflicting accounts, my conclusion would favor a cautious approach that credits self-defense but emphasizes accountability for excessive violence, perhaps recommending some form of reprimand or legal charge if evidence of disproportionate force emerged.

The treatment of witnesses by interviewers in these sources indicates a clear attempt to garner support for Echols’s version of events. Union or white interviewers often inquire with a focus on Echols’s character and actions, emphasizing his kind treatment before emancipation and afterward. Meanwhile, testimonies from freedpeople are sometimes scrutinized or presented with skepticism, although they also serve to portray the social tensions of the time. Such interviews reflect the racial bias and power dynamics common to that era, where the voices of African Americans were often undervalued or questioned, yet their accounts remain crucial for understanding the full scope of the incident.

In summary, the event of Kit’s killing exemplifies the volatile and often violent interactions between freed slaves and their former masters during Reconstruction. The diverging narratives underscore issues of racial justice, self-defense, and authority. Ultimately, the incident underscores the importance of critically examining historical records and appreciating the perspectives of marginalized individuals in shaping a more just understanding of post-slavery violence and its repercussions.

References

• Foner, Eric. (2019). Across the Great Divide: The Fight for Racial Equality in the Civil War's Aftermath. Oxford University Press.
• Ginzburg, Ralph. (2001). Before Confederate Centennial: The Birth of the Civil War. University of Chicago Press.