Rebecca Gordon

By Amanda Ellis

Age at emancipation: n/a

Year of interview: 1940

Place of interview: McDonoghville

State of interview: Louisiana

Place of enslavement: unknown

Address of interviewee: Milton Street, Mcdonoghville, New Orleans.

‘Occupation’: infant/too young for work

‘Occupation ’of mother: unknown

‘Occupation ’of father: unknown

Size of slaveholding unit: unknown

Name of enslaver (there may be more than one): unknown

Name of plantation/farm: unknown

Crop produced on slaveholding unit: unknown

Name of interviewer: Flossie McElwee

Race of interviewer: white

Is this included in Rawick’s supplement series?: no

Is there evidence of editing: no

ebecca Gordon was interviewed in 1940 by Flossie McElwee as part of the WPA Federal Writer’s Project. Rebecca’s testimony was recored in two parts, one of more personal detail and one discussing the use of home made medicinal cures. The WPA interviews give a first hand account of life under enslavement in the United States, with this selection of interviews focusing on Louisiana testimonies. However, Rebeca Gordon’s interview does not give an account of her personal experience as an enslaved person as she was born after emancipation. An 1880 census record found with ancestry tools in the search for Rebecca, shows she was born in January 1879, listing her as a two year old coloured/mulatto child.i Rebecca’s father is listed as Isaac Gordon born in Maryland around 1850. Rebecca’s description of her father and his life as an enslaved person indicates the brutal treatment he faced at the hands of his enslavers. Isaac shared his past experiences with Rebecca and her recollection of these stories give a window into life on plantations and slave rebellion. There are numerous advertisements from the state of Maryland, and similarly across many states in the U.S, posted by enslavers seeking to recapture runaways.ii It was not possible to locate any advertisements or information to corroborate Isaac’s escape description, but his act of rebellion and desire to break free from enslavement does not stand alone in the years of slavery.

Rebecca discusses her turbulent marriage in her interview and with ancestry tools it was possible to find further details of the marriage. In 1895 Rebecca married Paul Longpre and the details of their life are listed in a 1910 U.S census. The census showed they had been married for fourteen years at the time it was taken, and Rebecca had given birth to fourteen children with only two surviving at the time, Emma and Ruth.iv In the interview Rebecca’s description of her marriage includes severe violence between the pair and years of turbulence. The imagery is vivid and shocking and paints the marriage between Rebecca and Paul in a negative light. It is not possible to know why this disturbing description of violence was included in the editing of the interview. This may have been a genuine description of married life, however the example of martial violence between two black Americans could also have been edited to suit audience opinion. The white reader of these testimonies may have favoured details of such poor behaviour coming from those who were now emancipated, fitting in with ideas of social and racial superiority. Rebecca was married again some years later but there is no indication of that in the testimony, it is not possible to know if this is selected editing or not. Paul Longpre’s health is described as being poor by Rebecca with him having died from ‘the fits’. In 1920 Paul is on a census whilst being held at East Louisiana Hospital for the insane aged 44. Rebecca’s description of his ill health as being more physical than mental is an indication to the lack of awareness of the effects of poor mental health during this period. The use of inhabitable, unsanitary temporarily insane asylums to house a wide variety of people in New Orleans is further example of this. The categorising of people under the umbrella of insanity, for some only being beggars, shows that lack of knowledge and understanding about mental health at this time; Rebecca’s own descriptions of her husbands state also offers an insight into the perspectives taken at this time.v Paul Longpre died age 46 in December 1921, leaving Rebecca a widow for the first time.

Rebecca was married again in 1922 to William Rand and the 1930 census shows she did have more children with her first husband Paul also, Ernest, Mamie and Paul are all listed as step children.vii The year of William’s death is unknown and Rebecca is listed once again as widowed by 1940.viiiWith the help of an ancestry search it was possible to locate and communicate with living ancestors of Rebecca Gordon (Longpre). With the help of Rebecca’s second great grandson it was possible to piece together many of the family records and link together the family tree. The family kindly gave permission to use photographs of Rebecca’s son. Rebecca’s son Paul Lonpgre was born in 1917 from her first marriage. He joined the U.S Army in October 1940, with Rebecca being listed on his military draft card. Despite the treatment that Pauls’ ancestors had suffered, he still felt compelled to fight for the country his family had grown in, he served his country with an honourable and commendable attitude. Paul was survived by his own children and many grandchildren, and he was a well loved member of the New Orleans community; he continued to reside in Louisiana until his death in 2014. The communication with living relatives, sharing information about the WPA interviews (the family actually never knew about these) has made the testimony of Rebecca more alive and made her narrative more important to her living family.