Texas Community History Oral History Project

Transcript of an interview with with William and Ely Sledge and their reminiscences and experiences concerning their father's farm near Pilot Point, Texas, 1900-1980. They discuss comments about their African-American ancestors; their descriptions of various pieces of old farm equipment strewn about the homestead; sorghum mill and syrup- making; hog butchering and meat preservation; water well; description of farm buildings; segregated education; home remedies; garden area; canning; rural social life and entertainment; trading among neighbors; cash crops (peanuts, cotton); harvesting; description of the interior of the family farmhouse and its contents; listening to boxing contests (Joe Louis and "Jersey Joe" Walcott) on the family radio; store-bought and mail order catalog items; "Juneteenth" celebrations; description of personal documents and papers, 1878-1931