BLACK HISTORY MONTH
Black history is American history; these are some of the stories of early San Angelo residents who were born into slavery and shared their recollections during the 1930s as part of the Works Progress Administration’s (WPA) Slave Narrative Project, which collected the memories of more than 2,300 such individuals.
These interviews reveal that the reality of slavery was never far from the minds of the children, grandchildren — and now even — the great-great grandchildren of these San Angelo residents.
Sancho Mazique
Among the most prominent Black citizens of early San Angelo was Sancho Mazique. He was very well known around town, and was interviewed by the local newspapers several times through the years.
Mazique was born into slavery in Columbia, South Carolina in 1849, and he first came to San Angelo on foot, marching to Fort Concho with the 10th Cavalry’s Company E from Austin in 1876. He had been a Freeman for only 11 years.
He was owned by a widow named Green. Just before the Slave Holders Rebellion, she gave them as a wedding present to Dr. Edward Fleming in Spartanburg, South Carolina.
A Buffalo Soldier
After the war, Mazique worked as a carpenter before enlisting in the Army on Feb. 23, 1875.
He trained at Jefferson Barracks near St. Louis, Missouri. After training he transferred by train to Austin, Texas, and then marched on foot to Fort Concho.
He worked in the carpentry shop while stationed here. This exempted him from excursions to the field. He also played in the band under the direction of bandmaster Lt. Robert Smither.
Mazique received an honorable discharge from the Army in February 1880. After doing carpentry jobs in the area for a time, he drifted to Mexico, and ended up in El Paso, where he got a job in a nice hotel.
“That was the start of my success,” he told interviewers, “I learned to be a skilled chef and superintendent of kitchens in some of the largest hotels in Texas.”
His last job was working at the landmark St. Angelus Hotel in downtown San Angelo at the corner of Beauregard and Irving.
The newspaper honored him by telling his story on his 89th birthday in 1938. They noted that he most liked to “fish and pray.” On his 100th birthday in 1949, his memory for names and details was very sharp. He was the last living soldier to have served at Fort Concho.
He died in San Angelo in 1951 at the age of 101. He is buried at Fairmount Cemetery.
His story can be read in Volume 16: Part 4, beginning on Page 1.
Jack Bess
Jack Bess was born into slavery near Goliad in 1854, owned by a rancher named Steve Bess. He recalled working with livestock from a very young age right through the Slave Holders’ Rebellion (The Civil War). He told interviewers that he stayed on at the ranch for three years after emancipation, then came to Ben Ficklin when it was still the county seat.
He did ranch work all of his life. When interviewed, he lived with his daughter’s family. He died in 1938. He is buried in Fairmount Cemetery.
His story is found in Volume 16: Part 1, pages 72-74.
Will Daily
Will Daily was born near St. Louis in 1858, and was a slave of the John Daily family. He told interviewers that he first served as the chore boy around the house, carrying breakfast to the field, and working with horses.
His duties led him to develop a fondness for horses, and eventually turned that into a career as a race horse rider and trainer.
He said he remained at the family’s home several years after freedom, and in Missouri even longer. He came to San Angelo in 1922 and took up hotel work. Daily worked there until a few years before he was interviewed.
Daily died Aug. 15, 1940. He is buried in Fairmount Cemetery.
His story is found in Volume 16: Part 1, pages 269-272.
John Ellis
John Ellis was born into slavery June 26, 1852, in Johnson County, Texas near Cleburne. He was a slave of the Ellis family. He worked for the family for monthly wages for one year after gaining his freedom, .
He worked as a laborer for many years around Cleburne, coming to San Angelo in 1928. John was very active for an 85-year old.
His remembrances is located at Part 2: Pages 21-24.
Alice Houston
Alice Houston was a pioneer nurse and midwife in San Angelo. She was born Oct. 22, 1859, in the home of Judge Jim Watkins, on a small plantation in Hays County, near San Marcos. There she served as a house girl to Mrs. Lillie Watkins for many years after the end of the Rebellion. At Mrs. Watkins’s death, she came with her husband Jim Houston to San Angelo. She was still working when interviewed in 1937. Mrs. Houston died in 1950. She is buried in Fairmount Cemetery.
Her story is located in Volume 16: Part 2, pages 159-162
Lou Willams
At 108 years of age, Mrs. Lou Williams was the oldest citizen of San Angelo in 1937.
She was born in slavery in southern Maryland in 1829. Abram and Kitty William bought here entire family. Williams. Williams trained to serve as a nursemaid for the couple’s children beginning at the age of five. She served them through the end of the Rebellion and Emancipation.
She then went to Louisiana where she worked as a cook for several years before coming to San Angelo. Interviewers noted that she is a familiar figure about town, seen walking everywhere with her crutch.
Williams died on Oct. 5, 1940. She is buried in Fairmount Cemetery.
Williams gave lots of detail in her interview. She spoke at length about her life before freedom. It is located in Volume 16, Part 4: Pages 166-175
Steve Williams
Steve Williams was born a slave of the Bennett family in 1855. The Bennetts were residents of Goliad County, and owners of a small number of slaves. The Bennett’s drove Williams and the other slaves away in a hurry when U.S. soldiers threatened them for not having set their slaves free earlier. (It was not uncommon for slave owners to not tell their slaves about emancipation, and to force them to continue to work for them without wages.)
Steve worked around his old home for food and clothes for a few years. Then he drifted about the country as a farm hand, finally landing in San Angelo. Here he worked for a while as a cook at a barbecue stand. In 1937, he lived alone in a small cabin in his niece’s backyard.
Steve tells his story on pages 179-181 of Volume 16, Part 4.
Jenny Proctor
Jenny Proctor was born in Alabama in 1850, and began her duties about the house when a very young girl. As soon as she was considered old enough to do field labor, she was driven with the other slaves from early morning until late at night. The driver was cruel and administered severe beatings at the slightest provocations. Jenny remained with her owners after the close of the Rebellion, not from choice but because they had been kept in such dense ignorance they had no knowledge of how to make their own living. After the death of her master several years later, she and her husband, John Proctor, came to Texas in a mule train covered wagon and settled in Leon County near the old town of Buffalo. There they worked as sharecroppers until the death of her husband. She then came to San Angelo with her son, who she made her home with for many years.
Her story can be found in Volume 16: Part 3, pages 208-217
These narratives can be found online at the Library of Congress.
