Early Settlers Personal
History
- 1. Mrs. Nettie Johnson
2. Greenwood, Arkansas
3. Mrs. Johnson has never worked at any occupation other than her work in
the home.
4. She still takes care of her house work.
5. Mrs. Nettie was born February 21, 1863.
6. She was born in west Tennessee between the towns of Jackson and
Lexington in Henderson County.
7. Married A. F. (Frank) Johnson November 26, 1889 at Jackson, Tennessee.
8. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson came to Arkansas in the year of 1884.
9. She has been a resident of Arkansas since.
Prior to that time she made several trips the Arkansas to visit her
grandfather who lived in Forrest City, Arkansas on the St. Francis River.
10. Mrs. Johnson came to Arkansas on a train. The train crossed the
Mississippi River on a large ferry boat. The boat had rails laid up on the
deck The trains ran up on the boat and when they has crossed the river,
rails on the boat joined the rails on the dock so trains pulled off of the
boat. Mrs. Johnson could not tell very much about the crossing as she
stayed on the train. It did not take over 10 minutes for the train to load
on the boat or unload. Mrs. Johnson came to Ozark on the train and stayed
over night in Ozark. Mr. Johnson’s brother (Louis Johnson) met them at
Ozark. The crossed the Arkansas River on a ferry boat at the place now
known as Hoover's Ferry. They went from Ozark to Chismville in a wagon,
settled at Chismville and lived for four years.
11. Mr. Johnson’s brothers came to Arkansas before Mr. and Mrs. Johnson
came. They kept writing letters back to Mrs. Johnson in Tennessee wanting
him to come. After Mr. and Mrs. Johnson did come, his brothers moved on
west to Texas wanting Mr. and Mrs. Johnson to go with them. He liked
Arkansas and would not go.
12. Most of the homes at that time were log cabins. Some few were frame
buildings. All of the houses had rock fire places and chimneys. Most of
the people cooked on the fire places while some has cast iron stoves to
cook on.
13. In the early years of Mrs. Johnson’s life they made their candles at
home out of tallow. A few years later, (about 1879 or 1880) they bought
their first oil lamps.
14. The first electric lights that Mrs. Johnson ever saw were in the year
of 1889 in Fort Smith, Arkansas. Mrs. Johnson moved to Fort Smith,
Arkansas in 1889. Fort Smith was using electric lights before that time.
15. In the early days in Tennessee and in Arkansas, Mrs. Johnson used wood
for fuel. When she moved to Fort Smith they used coal and wood while in
Fort Smith (They still use coal for heat and wood for cooking.)
16. Mrs. Johnson used about the same foods in early days as the do now.
They raised most of the food. Raised wheat and took it to flour mills and
had it ground. There was three grades of flour from milling 1 grade was
almost as white as the flour we use today. The 2 grade was dark flour. And
the 3 grade was called brand. Raised their hogs for meat and lard. Most
people killed enough hogs to make plenty of meat and lard to do the family
for a year. In the fall of each year, the men hunted turkey, coon,
opossum, and used these for meat. These were plentiful. Fished, in the
spring and used the fish as food. Game and fish was not depended on for
food but used. After Mrs. Johnson came to Ark., there were several
deer.
17. In the early part of Mrs. Johnson’s life, the women spun the cloth for
everyday dresses. They bought calico and made their Sunday dresses. The
calico costs 5 and 10 cents a yard, the men wore jean suits. The women
spun this from wool and colored it. Most of it was colored brown.
18. Bundling was never practiced in Mrs. Johnson’s life time. Shivarees
has been practiced since she can remember. (Shivarees are still practiced
in the rural districts.)
19. The only prices Mrs. Johnson can remember is calico 5 and 10 cents a
yard. Now it is about 10 and 20 cents a yard. Flour $4.00 per barrel, and
at the present, the price of a barrel or flour would cost $6.00.
20. Mrs. Johnson has never shared food with any one. She said that she
would have had they needed to.
21. The early crops were oats, wheat, corn, and cotton. Mrs. Johnson’s
people have used horses and mules since she can remember. She has seen
oxen worked in the fields and to wagons. She has eaten tomatoes all her
life and did not know they were ever regarded as poison.
22. They first used turning plows. Dropped corn and cotton by hand. Later
made planters at the blacksmith’s shop. Then bought planters at the
hardware after they came to Arkansas. Saw the first cultivator several
years after she came to Arkansas. She could not remember when. She does
not remember the prices of any farm implement.
23. Mrs. Johnson lived in a farming community, and they did not have any
early industries.
24. Mrs. Johnson has used the following wild plants and fruits all of her
life. Sassafras tea, made from the roots, wild black berries, wild grapes,
poke salad. She has eaten pawpaws.
25. Mrs. Johnson has been to house raisings. In the early part of her life
when they built log houses and the neighbors would all come to help. The
men would build the house and the women would cook dinner. Each person
would take something for dinner. The women had quilting parties. In the
summer they had brush arbor meetings. The men would build the arbor by
cutting poles to make the frame then use the brush for the top. Mrs. Johnson never went to a
dance till after she was married. Then the people danced the square
dances. When she was a girl she went to play parties. Some of the games
they played were; Stealing Pardners, Hog and Hominy, ?rowzy, Peeping at
Susie, and Texas Grunt. Mrs. Johnson has been going to hog killings all of
her life.
26. Mrs. Johnson does not remember about the methods of combating fires in
the early days.
27.-32. Mrs. Johnson went to school in a community school at Bethel in
Henderson County, Tennessee. The school house was a log building and the
only teacher she can remember was Mrs. Fannie McClurkin, some times they
had a free school, but sometimes the school would run out of funds, then
they would pay, but Mrs. Johnson does not remember how much. They always
paid the teacher in money.
33. Mrs. Johnson studied the Blue Back Speller and McGuffey reader.
34. Mrs. Johnson read newspapers and books; she does not remember the
title of the books or newspapers. Other than the paper was printed at
Lexington, Tennessee, and the first part of the name was Lexington.
35. Mrs. Johnson saw the first telegraph station at Milan, Tenn., in
about 1875.
36. Mrs. Johnson drove a horse car for 9 years, from 1884 to 1893 in Fort
Smith, Arkansas. The early horse cars were built on the style of the
electric car. The horse ran on rails. Made so when the car reached the
end of the line, they would hitch the horse on the other end of the car.
The car had long seats on each side of the car. The first electric car was
used in Fort Smith, Arkansas, in about 1892 or 1893. At that time they had
two electric cars. One went to the Electric Park near Van Buren.
37. The first car Mrs. Johnson saw was in Fort Smith Arkansas. She does
not remember when.
38. The first train Mrs. Johnson ever saw was at Forrest City, Ark., in
about 1874 or 75.
39. The first airplane Mrs. Johnson ever saw was at in Greenwood,
Arkansas, in 1915.
40. When automotive busses began interurban operation, Mrs. Johnson lived
out in the country and does not know anything about it. She lived in rural
district since 1893.
41. Mrs. Johnson never went to a theater until 1884 and not many times in
her life. She does not remember about the people.
42. No important local celebration in her life.
43. Mrs. Johnson did not know any historical characters.
44-56Mrs. Johnson could not answer any of these questions.
57. Mrs. Johnson has 7 children, 35 grandchildren, and 31 great
grandchildren.
58. Mr. Clyde Johnson; Greenwood, Arkansas
Mr. Louis Johnson ; Greenwood, Arkansas
Mrs. Beaulah Lowe; Stigler, Okalahoma
Mr. Riley Johnson; Greenwood, Arkansas
Mrs. Donie Guinn.
Mr. Willie Johnson; Greenwood, Arkansas
Mr. Clarie Johnson; Greenwood, Arkansas
The names or Mrs. Johnson’s grandchildren are.
Frank Johnson; Greenwood, Arkansas
Mrs. Ruth Francis; Greenwood, Arkansas
Luther Henry; Los Angeles, California
Mrs. Mural Johnson; Greenwood, Arkansas
Kenneth Johnson; Greenwood, Arkansas
Evert Johnson; Greenwood, Arkansas
Some of the great Grandchildren’s names are:
Katherine Lee Johnson
Norma Gene Johnson
Jessie Francis Jr.
59. Mrs. Johnson has never written any books or sketches of any kind.
Transcribed by Courtnie Maxfield, Class of 2007
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