Miriam McFate Travel Journal - 1926

Sat, Nov 6, 1926

Got up 6:00. Boys worked on the Ford again this morning. Started at 9:30. This town has four cotton gins. The cotton acreage is larger and better quality south of Oscealo. Most all cotton fields of any size have at least one store house. Some have three or four. Lots of native lumber thro here. Have seen piles and piles of this piled up to dry.

About as many saw mills here as cotton gins. We can see timber in every direction. Negroes everywhere. We drove ten miles this morning where there was small houses about every 40 rods apart all the way. All house have fireplaces, with chimneys built on the outside. Most of these were painted red or green. They sure have lots of cotton plantations thro here. You can tell just about what houses belong to one owner, as they are built and painted alike. This sure is a great cotton country. This road is very level, all good pavement. Passed thro several little towns this morning just a few miles apart. About all there is to them was a small store and a cotton gin or a lumber mill.

Drove along the railroad from Oscealo to Terrell Ark. Thirty miles. After we left Stacey ARk. they have less cotton and more timber. Lots of land here to be cleared. Plenty of land thro here for sale. A sign board every few miles, stating the number of acres but never the dollars. Stopped in Terrell Ark to inquire about the roads. We leave US 61 here. Have traveled this one road along ways. Here we saw a sight will have to tell you about. It will give you an idea of how gay the Negroes dress. We saw a negro lady coming up the road. She wore a red straw hat, a pink waist, navy blue skirt, white hose and black shoes. I presume she is going to the store. She sure made us laugh.

Left Terrell at 12:00. Made our turn here for the west. We take US 15 now for a ways. Eat our dinner along the road side. Started again at 1:30. Land more rolling and more timber. The road winds around the edge of the timber. Timber on one side, cotton on the other. The roads are gravel, but quite narrow. Lots of logs along the road, cut ready to haul to the saw mills.

The house thro here are not so shacky. More white people living thro this section. Lots of cotton ready to pick, but they don’t seem excited about it. Some dropping on the ground. Roads here are awfully dusty. Stopped in Earle Ark 2:22. Now talk about your colored folks here is where we found them. This town was 100% black. Drove on three or four mile to the town of Smithdale.

All cotton between these places is sadly in need of pickers. It is dropping on the ground. Looks like it would be a big loss. Funny way they have of clearing land here. They first cut around the tree, then when it dies, they burn it down. If it burns its all well and good, and if it doesn’t it seems to be all the same. We have seen fields of corn and cotton planted right in amongst the stumps. Don’t think they ever grub any stumps in this state. Drove on to Widener Ark. We pulled into what they call a tourist camp, but it sure was more like a junk yard we thought. No grass. Nothing but a big shed with the words Tourist Camp printed in big letters clear across it. We drove in just the same and will stay for this night. It is 5:25.