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History of Chang Gangs | ||
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Chain Gang Camp #1 - visited 10/18/1916 Foreman was T. H. Teague. For the guards there was a tent with a fly. Convicts occupied a 3-room empty tenant house. Convicts sleep on 6 pallets made of mattresses spread on the floor of one of the rooms. Blankets were provided and were only fairly clean. Cooking was done in one of the rooms in the house over an open fire. Nearest physician is summoned to the camp if a prisoner takes sick. Records kept by the foreman are up to requirement. Law requiring separation of races is obeyed. Convicts who behave are given 1/12th off their sentence, instead of 1/10th as required by law. On the day of the visit there were 13 convicts with two being 'Trustees'. Convicts are required to bathe on the day of commitment and once a week thereafter while on the chain gang with three convicts to a tub of water. Menu on the day of the visit: for breakfast - bacon, cornbread, molasses for dinner - bacon, cornbread, molasses for supper - bacon, cornbread, molasses, peas Fresh beef is given once a month; fresh pork is given intermittently in the winter months. Wheat bread was given once a week. Sewerage from the camp is buried. "Trustees' needing discipline are shackled. Chain men were strapped for discipline and this was inflicted by the foreman himself. Chain Gang Camp #2 - visited 10/18/1916 Foreman was J. G. Miller For the guards there was a tent with no fly. Convicts one tent with no fly. Convicts sleep on pallets made of mattresses spread on boards raised off the ground by logs. Blankets were used as bedding and were fairly clean. Cooking was done in an open fire outdoors. Nearest physician is summoned to the camp if a prisoner takes sick. Sick convicts are kept at camp or sent to jail. Records kept by the foreman are inadequate. Law requiring separation of races is obeyed. Convicts who behave are given 1/10th off their sentence, as required by law. On the day of the visit there were 11 convicts with three being 'Trustees'. Convicts are required to bathe on the day of commitment and once a week thereafter while on the chain gang with a clean tub of water for each convict. Menu on the day of the visit: for breakfast - bacon, cornbread, molasses for dinner - peas, bacon, cornbread, molasses for supper - bacon, cornbread, molasses, Fresh meat was given twice a month. Wheat bread was given with two meals each week. Sewerage from the camp is buried. "Trustees' or Chain men were whipped or double shackled for discipline and this was inflicted by the foreman or guard of the camp. Chain Gang Camp #3 - visited 10/18/1916 Foreman was W. J. Miller. For the guards there was a tent with a fly. Convicts occupied one tent with fly. Convicts sleep on 6 cots and one double bed. Straw ticks and blankets are used as bedding and were in poor condition. Cooking was done out of doors. Nearest physician is summoned to the camp if a prisoner takes sick. Sick prisoners sent to the county jail. Few records kept by the foreman. Law requiring separation of races is obeyed. Convicts who behave are given 1/10th off their sentence, as required by law. On the day of the visit there were 10 convicts with nine being 'Trustees'. Convicts are required to bathe on the day of commitment and once a week thereafter while on the chain gang. Menu on the day of the visit: for breakfast - bacon, cornbread, molasses for dinner - bacon, cornbread, molasses for supper - bacon, cornbread, molasses Fresh meat is rarely given. Wheat bread was given seldom. Sewerage from the camp is thrown on the ground surface. "Trustees' needing discipline were shackled. Chain men were strapped for discipline. Recommendations:
Provide covered kitchens, preferably screened wooden cars for all chain gangs. Employ a physician to examine the prisoner before placing on the chain gang and give immunizations as required for smallpox etc. Send all tubercular convicts to the State TB Hospital at the Penitentiary. Records of prisoners must be kept properly. Fresh meat twice a week; wheat bread once a day. Use kerosene oil as a fly repellent in the sewerage buckets and dump the sewerage in a pit at least 150 yards from the camp and cover at least once a day with dirt. Abolish whipping as discipline. Give the convicts in Camp #1 1/10th off their sentence for good behavior. Stop the practice of bathing more than one convict to a tub of water. Observer 6/8/1917, page 6 Lafayette visited the United States at the urgent
invitation of this government in 1824 and made a tour through the states,
being everywhere received with the highest honors. His escort, from the
North Carolina Line to the city of Columbia SC and from Columbia SC to
Augusta GA, by appointment of the Governor consisted of a troop of
Lexington men, one hundred and twenty five in number. Each man was mounted
on a white horse and all were handsomely uniformed and beautifully
caparisoned. This Troop was commanded by its captain, Adam Mayer who was
the father of Dr. Orlando Benedict Mayer who died in 1891 and grandfather
of Dr. O. B. Mayer who died in
1918. Observer 6/18/1918, page 8
Miss Mary E. McCoy, 80 years old one of the oldest residents of Columbia SC died at the hospital on 2/13/1919, survived by nieces and nephews. She taught school in Newberry for several years. Her mother was remembered as strewing flowers in the path of Lafayette when he visited in Columbia in 1824. She was a member of the Lutheran Church at Eau Claire section of Columbia. Observer 2/18/1919, p1 May 11, 1917 An Act was passed providing for the building in 1918 of a new jail for Newberry County. In view of this fact we will not point out the deficiencies in the old jail plant. More effort should be made at the Newberry County jail to separate Juvenile prisoners, sick prisoners and insane persons from the remainder of the prisoners. For this purpose, one of the two rooms at the head of the stairs leading to the prisoner quarters on the second and third floors might be set aside for the juvenile prisoners and the other for sick and insane persons. Doubtless the new jail will better provide for these needs. The garden and grounds of the jail were in good order when inspected. The prisoners' quarters, with exception of the two bath tubs and bedding were as good as could be expected. RECOMMENDATIONS Have the floor sprinkled before sweeping. Have the two bath tubs used by the colored prisoners kept clean. Have the blankets used by the prisoners washed once a month. Require prisoners to bathe within 12 hours of commitment to jail and regularly once a week thereafter while in jail. When prisoners are infected with vermin they should be required to anoint their bodies with insecticide when brought to jail and as often as needed thereafter. Give the prisoners three meals a day instead of two. Pay the jail physician a salary instead of a fee. Require him to make a physical exam of each prisoner within 24 hours of commitment and vaccinate against small pox when needed. The physician should visit prisoners once a week, inspect the food and quarters and treat sick prisoners. Observer 10/30/1917, page 3 Survivors include his wife; two stepsons, Lowell Moon of Alabama and Jerry Moon of Dallas; a step-daughter, Miss Linda Moon of Dallas; two brothers, J. R. Dudley of Fort Worth and Robert Dudley of Dallas; a sister, Mrs. Lee Lowrey of Celina, Collin County; his mother, Mrs. J. R. Dudley of Celina and four grandchildren. |
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