Q: We’re interviewing Mr. Russell Bailey. I'm Jean Uzzle and were gonna talk about your school days and any other information that you want to give us is welcomed. Mr. Bailey, what part of Isle of Wight did you grow up in?
A: I grew up in what is now known as the Comet section of Isle of Wight County. It’s out near the Emanuel Baptist Church.
Q: How many sisters and brothers did you have?
A.: Two sisters and three other brothers, it was a total of six of us.
Q: So what school did they attend?
A: We all started out at Trinity Elementary School.
Q: Now what grades were taught at Trinity?
A: Best of my recollection especially when I was in there, it was one through seven. Now when it first began, I don’t know if it carried up to seven grades or not.
Q: Can you remember how many classrooms you had?
A: We had three classrooms.
Q: How many teachers?
A: Well, we had three teachers.
Q: Can you remember their names?
A: Yes I do. The principal was Mrs. Elsie Godwin. She always taught the higher grades. Then the elementary teacher was Mrs. Lawrence, I knew her as Mrs. Lawrence, and I believed she later married a Denson, but she was teaching first and second grade. And then Mrs., Mrs., she was a Wren, but she married; Mrs., what was her name, over in Riverview,
Q: Holloway.
A: Well, I know she married a Holloway.
Q: Reed.
A: She was a Reed then, right, I was trying to remember what she was then, was a Reed.
Q: They were the three teachers that were there?
A: As I remember.
Q: What grades did you attend there?
A: I started at first grade and went through the seventh grade.
Q: Do you remember what year that was?
A: Well, I do, I started in 1943, and I graduated from, I guess, elementary school they use to called it. It had to have been 1949 or 50 because I began attending the Isle of Wight Training School in 1950.
Q: Now on your way to Trinity, how did you get to school?
A: Well, I was thinking about that and I knew you would ask that question. I believe that the bus took us; I can’t remember walking to school as a little kid. I think the bus would pick us up and take us to Trinity and put us off and keep on to the Training School.
Q: When you were going to school then, did you have jobs; jobs to do in the morning and jobs to do when you got home?
A: I was raised on a little small farm, and every farm boy and girl always had their chores to do. We started off with getting in wood for the wood stoves and heaters, and it would graduate on up. The larger we grew the more responsibility we had, and, of course, most of the responsibility that I had was working in the field helping my Dad, what little that need to be done around there. Feeding up the animals, that was one of the major things that we did and, of course, again working in the fields and having to attend the crops and so forth.
Q: Did you have any chores to do when you got to school?
A: At school there were a couple of specific chores that I remember. All of the larger, some of the larger boys would have to come to school early, and they would have to make the fires especially when it was colder. Their responsibility was doing that. Then there were some things to do during the course of the day, like taking out the trash and dusting the erasers. We would always volunteer to go and pick up the coals out at the coal shed, and that gave us a chance to get out of schoolroom for a little while. That was the kinda things I remember.
Q: How did your school day began, once you were at school, how did your day begin at school?
A: Well, best to my recollection, we would start off by saying the pledge, and I don’t know if this was in order or not, but I believe we would sing a song, and we would always have to say the pledge of allegiance to the flag. Of course, then it kinda gets a little blurry. I don’t know exactly what classes we started from.
Q: After your little devotion period, it was the blessing?
A: Hmm, Hmm.
Q: Now what subjects did you have?
A: Well, arithmetic, I guess its called arithmetic. The other thing, of course, was reading, spelling. We would do some things like literature, and I think that dealt more with the geographical things and such.
Q: Were there any book that you had while you were in school that kinda stuck out in your mind, textbook that you had?
A: I guess reading was real good for me because I had a hunger to read a lot. I would like to read and even as I grew older and into adulthood I would continue on with reading; and I know we’re not talking about the present but I still love to read. I just can’t stand it ‘cause I get sleepy.
Q: Do you remember a name of a book that you had, special name of a book that you read?
A: Well, you know, some of the textbooks, I don’t want to say, Jack and Jill, but I know that they were somewhere in that, but there was a boy and a girl named Billy and Jane, I believe, and seems like they were always adventurous doing something. So I enjoyed reading that. I think that’s about all I can remember right now.
Q: But reading was a specialty for you?
A: Yes, that was pretty good for me.
Q: Did you have somewhere to keep your books, when you was in school?
A: We would keep the books in the desk. Every desk had a little opening.
Q: How long were your school days? Do you remember what time you got there and what time you left?
A: We would always start by 9:00, but more than likely we would get to school before nine, I’d say maybe 8:30. Of course, remember I told you the bus would put us off and continue on to what was known then high school, Isle of Wight Training School. We would get there maybe even quarter pass eight; that I’m thinking about it. Of course, it was always a little after three when the bus would pick us up. I can remember, since we are discussing that matter, when the school let out in the afternoon and, of course, kids love to play and would scatter all around the school yard, but somebody invariably would holler out, the bus is coming, the bus is coming and you would have to scoot around and grab up your books and everything and then you’d line up and get on the bus.
Q: So lining up was important when you was at school, nobody pushed and shoved their way through, did they?
A: Oh no, you pretty much get in line. Almost like a training concept.
Q: Now how long was your school year? When did it start and when did it end?
A: September, best of my recollection, and we would get out about the last, sometime in May, I think.
Q: Your lunchtime, what was lunchtime like? Where did you eat lunch and how long was your lunch?
A: Well, lunch for me in the elementary school and in those three room schools; we didn’t really have a cafeteria, so we would have to carry our lunch, and then, of course, we were allowed to go out and play. I’m trying to remember, I’m not really sure if there was a designated place we would eat lunch or not, maybe it was or maybe it wasn’t, I’m just not able to recollect right now. I do remember something about lunch, though, I remember that we always very conscious of what we would carry to school for lunch because, if you didn’t have what they call at that time, loaf bread, you were considered not really - to do. You know you were kinda low-class if you had to carry those biscuits. I can remember my Mom and all would say, “you need to carry this because you need something to eat,” and if I had to carry a biscuit and all, I would always, you know, kinda hide it and not let everybody see it because I felt that they would tease me and make little of it.
Q: Do you remember how long lunch period was?
A: Lunch period , seem to me was an hour.
Q: What about recess?
A: We had recess in the mornings and I believe we had a recess in the afternoon.
Q: Can you remember what you did at recess time ‘cause it was such a short period of time; like ten minutes?
A: I think you were suppose to take care of necessities. But we took every opportunity we had to just play, and I think that I was particularly pretty good at playing marbles, and whenever I could get a marble game going, I would always do that, you know, because I was good at it and, of course, some of the larger kids would always engage in ball games and things like that once the weather permitted on the lunch hour.
Q: Well they always said the first sign of spring when you’d see kids play marbles. They said that was the first sign of spring.
A: Right.
Q: How would you describe your classroom? Was there anything on the walls, or how was it?
A: Of course every classroom would have this blackboard; that’s a must. As I think about it, perhaps there were pictures; maybe animals. Anything that would entice the kids learning, you know, when you’re in very low grades maybe, it would be, maybe an animal with the spelling of that animal underneath it. I guess that all I can recollect right now. There was also a closet for some reason or another in those classrooms. There were closets and, I guess; they were for hanging your wraps, hanging your coats. There were closets, built-in closets.
Q: How was your classroom heated?
A: Ours was heated by a stove, a wood; actually it was a coal heater. A big pot belly heater and, that again, is where the larger boys would come in, in the morning and make a fire, start a fire and then they would keep that fire going by using coal.
Q: Step up from the wood. You all had graduated.
A: Yea, I remember the coal.
Q: Where were your restrooms?
A: Outside, they were outside. Of course the boys was on one side of the yard, and the girls on the other side. No danger of getting them mixed up.
Q: Do you remember where you got your water from?
A: I think there was a pump in the yard and the water would come from that pump. Someone would go out and prime the pump and the pump. And somehow or another, maybe records could either validate or discredit what I’m about to say, but to some degree in my era, that’s between 1943 and 50, the county got more involved in helping to maintain the traditionally black school. So that, the coals were always brought out there by a county truck and, you know, I’m trying to piece this together, perhaps some kinda maintenance person would come out and do the pump and all that. So I think the county had gotten involved a little more.
Q: Can you remember what your teacher’s desks look like?
A: Oh yea, the teacher’s desk, of course, was bigger than our little desks, but the other things- she would always have books on it and there would always be a space for an apple, and somebody would bring an apple or orange. More than likely, we shied away from that as much as possible.
Q: Can you describe the student’s desk?
A: The student desk had a slanted top to some degree. Some of them was flat surface just like this, but they always had a little crease for your pencils to go in. A chair, basically with some kinda platform built around it; somewhere to put your books, maybe underneath where you sat.
Q: You did tell me they had the blackboards, chalkboards, as they call them now, but they were called blackboards then?
A: Blackboards we called them.
Q: The school supplies at the time you were at Trinity, did your parents furnish your supplies or did the county give you supplies? That you can remember.
A: Best of my recollection, we had to supply the majority of our supplies. Maybe some teaching material, I’m sure was given by the county, but the paper, pencils and crayons, of course, when we were in the lower grades, we used that; all that was supplied by our parents.
Q: Your books?
A: Books, we would have to buy our books. Again, that was a thing that kinda separate, you know, the classes of children; as it relate to financial stability. I put it that way, you know, I’m trying to say it nice. If you didn’t have anything, you would always try to buy used books. You know some of the more fortunate children would always be able to buy brand new books, and, you know, sometimes the books that you used, if you were unfortunate and had to buy used books, they would have the back torn off them and some of the pages missing, but you had to use what you had. Then, of course if you had bigger brothers and sisters, they would pass the books on down to you.
Q: What about the lighting, did you have electricity, lamp light or natural light through the windows; ‘cause I know, most of our schools had a lot of windows in them?
A: They did have a lot of windows and I’m sure that was used. But funny, I can’t remember too much about that. I know that we used natural lighting, but there must have been some electricity. There had to have been during my era.
Q: So you did have a room for your coats and things when you got to school?
A: We did have a closet especially in that room was like the sixth and seventh grade and I know that we had one in that room.
Q: What about discipline and punishment when you were in school? What was that like?
A: Let me just start off by saying, the teacher had absolute authority, and that’s different from today’s concept. The teacher, again with absolute authority, she had to maintain discipline among the children, and that now that I think about it, it wasn’t bad because anytime that we were disciplined, I’m sure that we needed it. You know, we would get rowdy in class or loud, disobedient and then on top of that, the teacher had more than one class; so while she was attending to one class in the room, then the other children in the other class needed to be studying or doing something else. If you didn’t kinda toe the line, you would have to come up and hold your hand out and you get ten things in your hands with a ruler. You pretty much stayed in line.
Q: You think the kids were better then than now?
A: I know they were more obedient, I know that without a doubt. I think we really took a little bit too much authority away from the teacher, I think, I believe.
Q: Now what experience did you have during school that kinda stood out in your mind? Maybe something that happened, something that you really think about that you really enjoyed while you were in school, at that time?
A: Lets see, as it related to school events, so forth, I remember we would always have programs. Programs would be held at night and the kids would have to come out and we would have what you call school closing programs or other programs, Christmas programs, and everyone would have something to do. They would have to recite something or be in a play and would refer to those recitals as recitations; and they would call on you. Next, we would have a recitation by so and so, you know, Russell Bailey. I had some claim to singing, so they would always want to put me in something to sing, and I always wanted to do the recitation, because I didn’t like to sing, because I felt that I couldn’t. But my third cousin, who lived on the next farm to me, he would always have to do a recitation and I always wanted to do a recitation.
Q: I was just about to ask you, did they ask you to sing?
A: Yea they did, I would always have something to do pertaining to singing.
Q: Well you see, maybe that was your calling. Maybe when they said that, you wanted to do something else.
A: Right.
Q: Is there any other childhood memories that you had while growing up?
A: Well another thing in school, just before I tell you about that, another thing that I enjoyed was spelling bees. They were really good and even though I didn’t win many of them, all I can remember, they were good. Some kids would just be up there and I’d say, I know this next word is going to get them but they would always manage to spell, and those were kinda exciting times; we would get all anticipated and, you know, when the children were spelling. Your other question was, what other childhood memories that you had while growing up. I can remember today, at home, really starting, really early in the morning, especially in the summertime. I can remember, as we talked about before, where everybody had things to do. I can remember a sister who were seven years older than I was, and as a result of that, she always bossing me around and I can remember, you know, I would always go to my mama and tell her. One day mama, finally, got on her case about it and that was the best thing in the world for me. Put her in her place.
Q: Now after attending school and you went to jobs and changes, what can you recall that’s different now than then?
A: Well, of course, I have often said that, you know, I just want to say this and the only way to say this is just to say it. We were really poor as far as I’m concerned, but we didn’t even realize it because everybody was in the same condition that we were-- and so everybody was just happy. Then, there seemed to be more cohesiveness among, not only family, but neighbors and just people you came in contact. People lived next to you, you were always willing to do everything you that you could to assist and to help others; and if we happened to be next door when it came time to eat, you know, there wasn’t anything like your not going to eat, you know, it just you come on in here and sit down and they give you something to fill your stomachs, but that’s almost unheard of these days. Everybody is, more or less, separate and independent and on their own but, I think, that we lost something in that because, I believe, that you know as we help humankind and other people that’s just what were put here to do. Now, an example of that, if an older member of the community happen to find herself or his self without a family for some reason, it wasn’t strange for him to move on in with somebody else that wasn’t even his family and they would be called Uncle so and so, Aunt, whoever it was, just keep them on there.
Q: So we were our brother’s keeper?
A: We were indeed.
Q: Now we just all to ourselves?
A: Well, I think we lost something.
Q: I’m glad to hear you say that ‘cause it’s the second time I’ve heard that this morning.
A: Really.
Q: It is, the second time, we have lost a lot. That was great because everybody helped everybody else.
A: That’s right.
Q: They did.
A: Like I saying, you know, nobody had anything and where everybody was poor, we didn’t realize everybody was poor; we just felt that was the way that you lived.
Q: Is there any other thing you would like to tell me about your early years or your early school years at this time?
A: In spite of all those difficult times, pretty strenuous lifestyles that we lived, I believe that from a psychological point of view that we were really healthy kids and even, you know, even not only that, but from a physical point of view we were healthy because we worked out in the air and we didn’t eat a lot of chemicals, processed food and everything was more natural. I think your body just adapted to that in a better way. All of us old farm boys, we grew up real strong and healthy and I mean, you know, it was good. On top of that, mentally speaking, I think we were just better prepared. We knew how to respect people, respect life and were appreciative of it. So my opinion, it didn’t hurt us at all grown up in that environment. Matter of fact, I don’t think I would trade; I don’t think I would trade that experience for anything that I know right now.
Q: Now if you would like to leave some advice for the children of today, what would you say?
A: I would just say to learn to be a bit more appreciative of the things around you and especially people, and especially family. In the end, that is going to be the most important thing in your life. I just would advise the young people of today to really appreciate and respect their families, their parents, their elders and to try to live as wholesome and as healthy as they can.
Q: Thank you Mr. Bailey for your interview. I have thoroughly enjoyed listening to you, and your children and grandchildren will sometime come to the museum and listen to what their Grandpa had to say.
A: Okay, thank you.