(History of Knox County, Illinois by Albert Perry, Vol. I, pgs 764-766, submitted by Janine Crandell)

     I was born on the farm of Winder C. Dingle four miles north of Palmyra, county seat of Marion county, Missouri, and about fifteen miles southwest of Quincy, Illinois, on the 15th day of March, 1850. I was the slave of Mr. Dingle, he having purchased my mother about six months before I was born. My mother had been the property of his brother-in-law, Wm. Kelly. Kelly had mortgaged all of his property, including my mother, to a money lender and slave dealer by the name of Bill Thompson. Mr. Kelly lost his property as the result of a fast life and high living. At the request of Mr. Kelly, my mother was purchased by Mr. Dingle. My life on the farm was passed about like the average slave boy of that day. As soon as I was large enough to run about I was kept busy as errand boy. I was also soon large enough to look after the babies, both white and colored. Later I waited upon the table and drove the carriage for my mistress on her visits around the neighborhood. I also looked after the saddle horse. At eight years of age I was put to plowing corn and other field work in general. Mr. Dingle had but a few slaves, three men, Edmond, Bill and Jack. When I was about nine years old Jack was sold south. Soon after Ned, as he was called, was sold to a Dr. Geater in our neighborhood. In 1861 Bill died with lung trouble, leaving me the only male slave, except a brother four years old. I had three sisters on the place. There were two other girl slaves.
     Dr. Dingle had two daughters and four sons. The sons had to work on the farm the same as boys do in Illinois. He also hired slaves from other farmers. It was through the influence and assistance of one of these hired slaves that I ran away from my owner. The name of this slave was Ephraim Easley, the uncle of William Easley, the porter at the Galesburg Business Men's club of this city. Ephraim owned a horse which he sold to the soldiers for $90. He had married one of the slave girls. On Monday night, July 14, 1863, he took his wife, one of my sisters, the other slave girl and myself and our plow horses and left for the land of freedom. We left our horses in the woods near Quincy all night in the rain. We had ridden the horses (four of them) thus far and there turned them loose, hoping that they would find their way back to the farm, and we learned that they were recovered about a week later.
     We arrived in Galesburg Thursday night, July 17, 1863. We did not know where we were going to stop. The bus driver took us to the home of Mr. Henry Bailey, situated on East Ferris street on the lot now occupied by the Swedish Episcopal church. Mr. Bailey proved to be an old acquaintance of us all. He had recently come from Palmyra. I remained there a week. I worked for a Mr. Stowell on the Knoxville road for twenty-five cents a day hoeing corn. I spent my first free money for a hickory shirt, as I had but the one I wore on my back. Shirts were high in those days, the same could be bought now for twenty-five cents. I lived a week with Rev. Henderson, the colored Methodist minister and then with Dr. Chapman, who found me a home on a farm with Cyrus Metcalf, living north of Mr. Chas. A. Hinckley on Farnham street. I went there August 7, 1863, and remained until March 1, 1864, when Mr. Metcalf moved to Ontario township onto his brother Michael's farm where I remained for two years. All this time I worked for my board and clothes as I had been disabled the winter of 1863-4 with rheumatism. That winter was a very severe one, the roads were blocked and drifted in every direction and my rheumatism proved to be a very stubborn case for I was in bad shape for several years. Nevertheless, the two years spent in Ontario were exceedingly pleasant and happy ones. I had been given my first opportunity of attending the public schools. I was fourteen years old. January 1, 1865, I started to the Ontario school. It was a happy day for me. My mother used to tell me in slavery that in the north black children and white would go to the same school. I could not realize it until I had seen it. I nearly mastered three books the first three months. Three months of schooling a year were all boys got at that time, yet they seemed to get about as much out of it as they do now in nine months or a year. Clothes was not the question in our grandfathers' days. High heeled shoes and peg-leg pants were not known.
     Mr. Metcalf moved to Oneida in the spring of 1866 and I hired out to Wm. Stephenson for three months. The remainder of the summer I worked for Henry Leffingwell at Ontario. He was a brother of Dr. Leffingwell of St. Mary's school, Knoxville.
     About the middle of August, 1866, I met Mr. S. H. Ferris who lived in Galesburg. He owned a farm at Woodhull. I finally bound myself to him until I would be twenty-one years of age. I was to have board, clothing, three months' schooling each year, one dollar a month to buy collars, ties, take my girl to shows and buggy riding, and one hundred dollars at the end of my service. I had to figure some to make ends meet. When I became twenty-one I had overdrawn $2.35 of my monthly dues, so that was taken off of my hundred dollars. I took a horse instead of the money. A year later I sold the horse to a Mr. David Cutter for $75. I finally had to take two months' board for pay. That was living high—five years' work for two months' board. All together I obtained twenty-two months' schooling, against nine years' schooling that the average boy gets today. All of my four boys received that or more.
    I worked nine months for Mr. Ferris after I was twenty-one. The last of November, 1871, I went to work for Mr. Henry Hitchcock, superintendent of the "Burlington" at Galesburg. I worked for him five years, then went into the grocery store of Greene & Dore, June 12, 1876. I remained with that store through five changes of proprietors, covering a period of seventeen and one fourth years. From that house I took up employment with D. C. Raymond & Son, for whom I have worked over eighteen years, making over thirty-five years in the grocery business.
     In 1878, June 18th, I was married to Miss Emily Louisa Alexander, daughter of Mrs. Melissa Alexander, a widow, who came from Palmyra in the fall of 1864. They were the slaves of Walker Loutham of Palmyra. Her brothers, Ralph and John, came with them. Ralph Alexander was one of the first mail carriers in Galesburg, appointed by Hon. Clark E. Carr while he was postmaster. To our union six children were born, four sons and two daughters, Eugene, Estelle, Lewis, Jr., Eva, Clarence and Harold. At this writing all are living and in good health. The oldest is thirty-two, the youngest eighteen. We purchased our home at 186 West South street of Hon. T. J. Hale in 1881 and are living in the same house at the present time. I have always endeavored to lend my influence to every cause that seemed good to me, and to work as far as possible for the improvement of the moral tone of the city, and I am pleased to add that my wife has always been an active associate and worker in all efforts of this kind.

Lewis C. Carter.

The fact that Mr. Carter has spent thirty-five years in the grocery business in this city with but one change in location is a strong testimonial to his honesty, ability and courtesy as a salesman and the writer further states that during all those years he has been personally acquainted with Mr. Carter, has found him all that one could expect from a young man who has always displayed the steady perseverance, industry and upright character revealed in the foregoing autobiography. That it is not birth or education alone that makes a man is conclusively demonstrated by the story of Mr. Carter's life.

Editor.