Where we lived and when
Recalling the past with Mrs. Charlie Wiley Reed
Notes by
Norman E. Reed (dates unknown)
As told to
Norman E. Reed by his mother Mrs. C. W. Reed (Mrs. Charlie Wiley Reed)
WHERE WE LIVED AND WHEN
When your daddy and I were first married we lived with my
parents. My father said we could use as much of his land as we wanted to farm
because he had more than he could use.
Your daddy built a house when he was only 22 years old and
Major, the servant who had been a slave of my mothers huged (sp) the sills out
of logs from my daddy’s place for the foundation of this house. We moved in
November of 1909. We thought we were going there all of our days. It was
exactly what we wanted and we built it beautiful. It had all the conveniences.
When the little girls got bigger we found we were to (sp) far from school. We
sold this house for $6,500.00.
We rented Uncle Jack’s place, this was in 1914, it was close
to the school. Stayed there three years, My father died September 4, 1917 and
moved down there on December 1, 1917. We paid my mother $250.00 a year rent for
the farm until 1920 when she rented it to my brother Mack and we bought a 200
acres near Swansea for $10,000. There wasn’t any Federal Security then and you
couldn’t borrow money from a bank. It was during this time that everything went
down, the bottom fell out of all the prices, boreweevil ate the cotton up and
you couldn’t get any money for a thing.
We had a group of negroes on the place that had to be feed
(fed). They went off owing us four or five hundred dollars apiece. Your
insurance policy was the only you could get a bit of money out of. Your daddy
had a twenty year paid up insurance policy and he borrowed money on it to feed
those negroes. Of course he lost the policy. We finally had to sell the place
because he couldn’t borrow money from a bank and they wouldn’t lend money on
the place.
In 1925 we rented the Smith place. We had been living in
what was going to be a tenant house. The big house had burned down. Daddy
though it was caused by a double chimney or a light in the dining room. We
lived in the “cabin” as we called if for a year. Your daddy went to work for
the highway department. They transferred us to Columbia in November of 1929 and
we got a house on Marion Street. In June 1930 we moved to 2312 Park Street. In
August of that year we moved to Lancaster. In February of 1932 we moved to
North, SC for a little while until we could get back out on your grandmother
Reed’s farm. We rented it until January of 193
7 when we bought 275 acres on the Jerusalem Creek.
We sold that farm and moved to 2203 Academy Street on May
16, 1949.
Margaret, Zene and Rea finished school in Swansea. Floss,
Charles and Norman finished school in North, SC.
Margaret was born while we were living at my mother’s place
and she was married by Uncle Hydrick in Anderson, SC.
Zene was born in the house your daddy built and she was
married in Harlem, Georgia.
Floss was born at Uncle Jacks and she was married at your
grandmother Reed’s old place by Uncle Hydrick.
Millard and Mallard were born when we were on Marion Street
in Columbia, SC.
Norman was born when we were on Marion Street in Columbia
and he was married at main Street Methodist Church by Reverend Ferguson.
Charles was born while we were living at my old home place
in Orangeburg County. (My father L. W. Myers). He graduated from North High
School. Charles and Doris were married by Uncle Hydrick in the parsonage in
Cayce, SC. He and Mary were married in June of 1968.
Sent by N.E. Reed’s son, Don Reed to Tom Reed 12-2021.
Retyped into Word.
