[as told by Altha (Belle) Caldwell, tenth of 12 children born to Henry V and Martha Barnes]
In the 1920’s, the children were growing up. Some were adults and looking for a better life and education. They moved north to Cleveland, Ohio. They worked hard and saved their money to help the rest of the family move north. The move climaxed in 1923. The excitement as we prepared to move, will never be forgotten. However, my parents had other problems. Although we owned our farm, the Whites objected to Black people leaving the South. Their rationale was if Blacks left in large numbers, who would perform the grueling farm labor at near subsistence wages?
Late one night in December 1923, we slipped away, leaving behind all but the necessities, and headed to Atlanta, and the train that would take us north. On the way, we stopped by Aunt Fronnie’s house for farewells. Arriving in Atlanta, dad was unable to sell the horses, and we spent the night at Uncle Jim’s (father’s brother) house. The following day, sales were made, and we were on our way to Cleveland – mother, father, 3 sons and 2 daughters.
The children continued their education until mother and father decided city life was not for them. They missed the open spaces of the farm and growing flowers. The family and the younger children moved to a small township (Twinsburg, Ohio) for her garden and flowers. Sadly, mother passed away in 1928, and shortly after we moved to Cleveland with the rest of the family, dad passed away in 1933. All the children chose to remain in Cleveland together.
