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Archie Oeorgo (Teo)
180 Sampson St., i1
Atlanta, Georgia.
By 4111an Jenkins
November 17, 1932
InInSs *AT 90MKOODY WILL 00NO ALONOTO TALK TO
*Yeah, 1911 tell you all about mrself, I got plenty oh time. I jes
set rizht hero all day long and hopes tat somebody %ill Goma along to
talk to.
"Iira from Lithonia; I was born there on a farm. My dad and mother
had five children, me and four sisters.
°Yeah, I °ailed 'gm Dad alA Sather, but I was de only one oh de
ehildren 'at *ailed Ion 'at the rest celled tem Mama and Papa.
wity dad ho died about nip* years beak; my mother died when I sue
small. 1 have a sister in Cincinnati and one in Deeatur. The rest is
dead. Day said 'at my mother died wit T.B.'s She 'pus el& jos *bout
one year. 114 dad he jam got sick and died. Be wudn' siak long and I
don't know what be died aid, but ho didn' die wit no T. B.'s. One ob rig
sisters died aid pneumonia and 40 other /n she got shot. She went in a
room where another man and woman sous fightln! and got shot sesidentally.
ay other two sisters is married and is gittin' along right well.
no worked de farm in Lithonia on halms. The man furnished all do
seed, food, mule, tools, and everithing; and we got half uv ever4thing
we made. Yeah, we had plenty to eat and I guess I had a right good time
when 1 'Ns er growint up. I able did went a bicyclo though but I never
did git none. I had tat mule to rids though and 'at me better 'n a
bicycle but I didn* know it then. Yeah, my dad eould er bought one if
smin he *ad wanted to 'cause we most always had sole money left over
NOpes'At jowebody :All Come Along TO Talk TO 2
attar seddlie-up tirz. bsal we had a good drop we'd have about five or
six hundred dollars left after all de bills me paid.
WI never went to school mnoh, jes about two yearn. I can't write
none to do no good and 1 can rood Jae a little bit. Uy sisters went to
sOhool a whole lot more 'an I did. I done most ob de work. I don't re-
mambor muoh about 'at sohool. we jos had two Umbers and I don't 'es
know how any went but de wus a good many. New, we didn't have no play-
grounds nor uothins. It wus les a sountry school.
"We played marbles moat all do tin. when I ous a little boy. 3ome-
times we played baseball though.
*When, I gum a pretty good size boy, I used to work here in Atlanta
in de -winter ttme. I wus a pretty bad un than. I got looked up for
shootin. crap or eye-ballint most me Soddy night. Awe, eye -bollix'',
iat's when you aint goblin', you is lee watOhine de game. Dey looks
you up though Jos de same. My boes-mman he always got as out. Yeah, day
had 'at kangOroo mart in 'at jail. If 'en you paid 'am a quarter though
you wouldn' git no licks: Yeah, I slows give 'am 'et quarter.
"I went to north Carolina to work at Big4toOk -,.uarry when I me
about twenty-four years old. I made five -twenty er day up there drillin'
rook. Awe, I worked in 'at rock quarry at Lithonia sous and 'at'. where
1 learned to drill rock. Dey jos paid me a dollar and er half er day for
workin' there though. Ave, 1 jos made or dollar and or quarter athen I
wua drivino teams in Atlanta.
"1 didn' stay in north Carolina long, jes 'bout six months. I
Hopes 'At ;Amebody ,411 Gomel Along to Talk to 3
went to seat Virj.nin to work in de eoal mines. I nods eijat dollars and
one penny er day or drivint er nule in de lL mines. Later on, I made tea
sr twelve dollars or day loading coal. tAt ma bard work but de more you
worked de more money you made. Awe, I could load about four er five ears
er day. Doy wus ears day use in de aim's, dey holds four er five tons.
*New, we tad plenty ob work to do evert day in de week. I never did
git laid -off none, not one day. I'd work about three er four months
though and den I'd jos stay off er week or two. Nat, I wouldnt it tired
Sr working, jos tired or goint to work evert day. New, when i'ã go book
dey would always put me book to work.
*I still shot craps most ob de time when 1 wudne at work and I made
money when I gambled. Jametimes I'd win two or three hundred dollars.
New, dey don' look you up for goblin! Ap there. They don' pay no atten-
tion to you. New, I wouldnt lose near as =oh as I'd win. New, I didn't'
save none ob my money. I wus a fancy dresser in 'em days and I spent
most ob my money on women.
*New, I never did it married. I wouldn' marry no woman pig -in -the
seek. Day might be sr 'possum in tat seek. I had to try 'em before I
married 'en and Whan I tried gem, well, I jes never did merry tem. I
would er married one though but she wanted to git married too quick and we
fell out.
"Day got me in de army in 1918. I wus sent to Camp Lee. New, I
didni do no fighting. I jes stayed at de camp. New, I wudnt seared, I
Lopes titt .3omebody ill Come .'long to Talk to 4
wanted to o tv AiLar.; 0.14 fiztt. Jame uv tam wus (scared though but .4ost
uv 'em wanted to fight. New, day wudut nothin* but colored men in my
company. ois fad some white officers though. When dor war wus over doy
sent me down bore to Comp Gordon. Den day let me out.
"I stayed around here far a while and don I wont to Tom Creak, Va.
I cot a job loadin* coal at de V. I. C. mins. I worked there *bout four
years and tatts where I got my legs cut off.
*One Tuesday moruin' I went to work and day wudnt no empty cars on
de tracks to load de coal in. I walked up to where de cars wus, and whim
de engine started to pushin* down to where we sus er gpnna load tea I went
to swing on one to ride down there and lax foot slipped and I fell under do
Saw. De wheels run over me end cut off both my legs up gbove my knees.
I wus in de hOspital for seven months. 4ben I got out day sent 20 to de
poor farm. Itily cousin, 1;thel 3rown, cams 'air and got me and carried is
bask to limit Virginia to live wid her.
'Mae, deity didn* pay me nothint for gittins my legs cut off. Dioy
aint never giVe Mb One cent. Doy give me some artificial legs but I
aint never been able to use *am. You se* when you it both yot legs out
off above yo• knees you can't git about on no artificial legs and crutches.
You see when I gits to standint up on 'em legs and erutebes I can throw
my lags out in front of me but, wid my legs like tat, how is I coma git
my crutches off the ground then and bow is I gonna git milege back under
me again. You 0110t do it so you jes falls down. If I had jes one knee
joint I could it about on tem legs all right.
Hopes tat Jomebody 4ill Game Along to Talk to 5
"I stayed wid my cousin for to or three years and den I went to Lynch,
Kentutky, and lived wid another one ob my cousins, Doll Hawk, for 'bout
two years. Den I went back to 'Nest Virsinia to live wid Allie Hawk. He
is another cousin ob mine.
"I jot ale a truck mld sold produce in Aeet Virginia. I made five er
eix dollars or day. I :lade my own livine fer a while but then it got 30
I couldnt sell enough to pay the boy I had drivin, 'et truck so I had to
quit. tAt boy wrecked 'at truck a while after 'at when he had it borrowed
and I never did it if fixed up no BIOTO tAt truck never wus no good much
nohow.
"De American Le7ion man got the government to pay 'Ale forty dollars or
month. Den I could pay some board and de folks didut mind me beint arount
80 AUGh.
"Mien Roosevelt got in office be cut my check down to thirty dollars.
I show till be glad when de Republicans it bac* in, so I'll It my ten
dollars er month back again. Year, Itc or Republicar.. I voted for :louver
and Landon. New, I won'tvote next year if its still tfioon litre. I jee
votes when Its in Aest Virginia. dont vote down here.
"I think din PA has joa :Inde rr lot er lazy NJ:Aerie. ;he. had my
lege I didn° want de government to give me no job nor nothint; I could
always git one for myself, 7E4,111, maybe jobs is 'rkardtir to zr,it nomrden day
sus twenty yeare ago. I never thou ht obout I like tat. You is right,
it wus about eight or nine years ago '..hen I had to stop sellint produce
"Cause I oculdnt sell none hardly. aill said he had been evertwhere for
Iopwips tat Jomebody All Gomel Along to Talk to 6
or lob and oouldn' find none. zuess be is havin' a hard time Or payin,
de rent and de bills. i pays ram four dollars or seek though for my
stayin' here and haste, :411111 wife, she *aorta and makes six dollars or
week, but !All he stays out or or job 'bout half de time sad when hille
got one he don' make nothin' 4uch.
wYee I 3its tired settin' here all de time. I don' think about
nothin' muoh. You see, I done got used to it now. I can git down do
steps and go down to de ourr but it's more trouble 'an it's wotth. I
has stomeen trouble and it keeps me (Iselin' bad pretty astir all do time
now. I has had it ter years. I's been &lain' to 3o out to /forty Light
Eospital and see if I can't git ecimethine Oft for it but I jes keeps
puttin' it off.
"New, I don' never go to church; I used to eo sometimes before I
lost my le gA but not ver;;,- mich.
"I's goinl book to 6est Virginia, if I gits to twain' better. I
believe I like it better up there. Amoy is easier to it up there.
I gueset itil **Mu" risht here-nben you comes book *long.
I'll talk old you may ttico.
Archie Booms to be abo..r fifty years old and would weigh about one
hundred and seventy-five pounds, if he had his logo. Both Legs were cut
off high above is knees. Eis clothes were old and tattered; he had a
worn-out piece of leather under him, which was Wood around his hips and
leg -nubs.
He moves hisasolf along by raising his body from e sitting position
witn his hands, then throwing his body forward, than lowering his body
Hopes tat „ILLiebody Goise Along to Talk to
to a 6itting position sasin. Js uses two wooden"trlwelan, he (mils then
(they ftra .,ado ike plastsrers' trosels), to protect hands and to
increase his reach tout four taohes.
The house where Archie iive ass four roo46 a%4 is in ;:;ood repair.
Archio'L, cousia, is cousin's wife, and Archie live in two mons on the
left side of the house. Another couple occupy the other two rooms. L11
the turniture in the left side of the "house is new and a na. rug is on
the floor. largo consols radio stands in the trout rooLl. Archie
sleeps in the 'citation on a cot. They cook their :.50aels on an oil stove.
There is no bath the house; a flush toilet is in the beak yard.
There is no 6ink i:. the kitchen; a spi6ot is on the back ?Gran. Both
rooms wore, vory clean and neat, 4ulte a contrast to Archie.
1:p1114,8 re4e I still sitting in that doorway waitin, dud hoping
"'At soaeuody co z)e alone, to talk to".