Austin History Center

Listen as the accounts of 7 former slaves are brought to life through the voices of talented local actors. These recordings make up just a portion of the full stories recalled by James Grumbles, Marry Anne Patterson, Rosina Hoard, Sallie Johnson, Sallie Wroe, Sam Mason, and William Owens. Today their full recollections and those of 63 other former slaves from Austin and Travis County can be found at the Austin History Center. The stories were collected by Alfred E. Menn in 1937 as part of the Federal Writers’ Project of the Works Progress Administration. Today the clippings are featured as part of the current exhibit at the AHC, “Divided City: The Civil War and Reconstruction in Austin”. Full transcripts of the entire 70 interviews and photographs of many of the interviewees can be found at the AHC.