Mabel Dennison Interview Clip
Title
Mabel Dennison Interview Clip
Description
Mabel Dennison talks about her book, including her grandparents, the Clotilde, and Africatown
Creator
Mabel Dennison
National African American Archives & Museum,
Museum of Mobile
Publisher
National African American Archives & Museum,
Museum of Mobile
Mobile Public Library, Local History & Genealogy
Date
1999
Language
English
Type
Oral history interview
Identifier
VOHP-MabelDennison-Book
Interviewer
Kern Jackson
Interviewee
Mabel Dennison
Location
811 St. Emanuel Street
Mobile, AL 36603
Mobile, AL 36603
Transcription
Jackson: Tell me this, what year was it that your grandmother came over on the Clotilda, and did your grandfather have anything to do with that?
Dennison: My grandmother was brought over on the Clotilda in 1859. Now the story goes, my grandfather, people word things differently and they give a different significance of whatever…
Jackson: His name was?
Dennison: His name was James Dennison. My grandfather was named James Dennison. Now he was a Native American, born in Charleston, South Carolina. And he was sent over there on the ship, somebody was asking me, somebody made reference to him as a flagman or something else or whatever. But see there are things I would like to find out, things I would like to know how he actually got on the ship in the first place, how he came to be put aboard the ship. As someone told me that he had submitted himself to, and that I don’t know, see when people are not alive, you can only go by the things that some one has passed down from what they have said to somebody else, and especially to family members, because so many people have some many different opinions how something happened or how something came about, and when you can hear it from somebody, we sometimes say “from the horse’s mouth,” you know, that’s the best. And that’s one of the reasons I’m part of the oral history you see. People are trying to get their oral histories down.
Jackson: But there was a unique relationship between your grandmother and your grandfather as a result of this Clotilde experience. And their experience with the Clotilde.
Dennison: Well, I don’t know where they first met. Where they first saw each other, what happened or whatever. My grandmother did tell my older sisters and brothers that they tried to marry, she and my grandfather.
Jackson: They who?
Dennison: I don’t know if it was the Meahers or whomever. Cause the Meahers were in charge of things, see: captain of the ship and the Meahers.
Jackson: So was James Dennison, was he enslaved?
Dennison: Uh, I hate to be talking about this so much cause it’s in the book, but my grandfather had a card which states that he was born a slave in Charleston, South Carolina.
Jackson: In Charleston.
Dennison: In Charleston, South Carolina was where he was born, and he was sent over on the ship. But he nor the crew knew what they were going for. It’s this Wright company had the, they had people in charge of being supplied to ships for seagoing purposes. Now they didn’t know either where they were going. And that’s why they were trying mutiny on the ship when the found out what was happening, cause they knew, evidently they knew that slavery had been outlawed already, and they probably didn’t want to have any part of it. But, I’m assuming that, you know, by putting things together. The reason mutiny was attempted. But you know how it came about. There was a bet it could be done and that sort of situation. And the crew was, I don’t know if my father—my grandfather—ever received any reward, any restitution, or anything of that nature. I believe on the ship-forced labor or whatever, I don’t know. There are many things I don’t understand. I would like to travel to see if I could find some things to see if I could get things a little more complete.
Jackson: Sure.
Dennison: Because when you’re telling stories, historical stories, and most people not around to ask questions about how things happened or what they did and how it was done. They’re not around to answer your questions, so you just got to take what you’ve got, what you can get hold of to relate to. I’m trying to get pictures of my grandmother and my grandfather for sure, for certain. And I don’t know when that’ll happen. Now I’ve also seen a printed, a sheet out of the newspaper. I first saw this out in Chickasabogue Park, a little church house that was out there. They had renovated this little church house, and there were artifacts and different things, paraphernalia, put in this little church house as a museum. And after I started visiting things gradually started to disappear, cause some things I saw I wasn’t interested then. I had certain things I was trying to find, trying to relate. But later on as you see some things and as other subjects come up, or rather other things come to mind you begin to want to go farther, but it’s too late. There’s just some things it’s too late to come by and get hold of. But I would like to travel and find somebody who knows more about the situation who had some more pieces that I can put into the puzzle where I can know more about it. And having to do so many things I hadn’t been able to travel, and actually no way of getting around somewhere to show me this or that and whatever. It appears that many things have been hidden over the years over a while or something. It’s been difficult…
Jackson: By whom?
Dennison: Um, by um the people who knew about the circumstances, whomever they may be, whether it was the families or the slave masters’ families or whomever. That’s what I’d like to find out for sure before I make any comments as to who did what. Uh my, uh grandfather was intended to be put together to be married, seemingly in Mount Vernon—when they were enslaved in Mount Vernon; they were up there for a while. Now when those people were brought in on the ship, they weren’t all placed at the same place, they weren’t all put at the same place. Some of them Plateau, some of them carried to Selma.
Jackson: Hale County…
Dennison: Hale County. And see that’s why. Those things were done for the purpose of not being able to get together and everything. I believe that we have been fortunate to be in the same vicinity and get as much history as we can. If only some of the people, more of the other descendents would cooperate and tell what they know about their ancestors, you see. For me to take what you have and someone else to take what you have and that kind of thing, but it’s just, well you know, men have work. Although some may be the same situation. But there some differences in every circumstance, and that’s why I’d like to see other people give some information or99999 about their ancestors. My grandfather’s book was titled “Biography” – “Biographical Memoir of James Dennison.” My grandmother is “A Memoir of Lottie Dennison.” The way my people would pronounce it they would say Lottie all the time. Now on some of her documents, on some of her, Lottie Dennison’s paperwork her name is spelled “L-O-T-T-I-E” and sometimes its spelled “L-O-T-T-A.” So I don’t know if it’s the way she pronounced it or what. I understand that many of those people changed their names because they didn’t want people to actually know who they were or where they were from or what. I don’t know much about that either, I just happened to hear that and read a little bit about that.
Dennison: My grandmother was brought over on the Clotilda in 1859. Now the story goes, my grandfather, people word things differently and they give a different significance of whatever…
Jackson: His name was?
Dennison: His name was James Dennison. My grandfather was named James Dennison. Now he was a Native American, born in Charleston, South Carolina. And he was sent over there on the ship, somebody was asking me, somebody made reference to him as a flagman or something else or whatever. But see there are things I would like to find out, things I would like to know how he actually got on the ship in the first place, how he came to be put aboard the ship. As someone told me that he had submitted himself to, and that I don’t know, see when people are not alive, you can only go by the things that some one has passed down from what they have said to somebody else, and especially to family members, because so many people have some many different opinions how something happened or how something came about, and when you can hear it from somebody, we sometimes say “from the horse’s mouth,” you know, that’s the best. And that’s one of the reasons I’m part of the oral history you see. People are trying to get their oral histories down.
Jackson: But there was a unique relationship between your grandmother and your grandfather as a result of this Clotilde experience. And their experience with the Clotilde.
Dennison: Well, I don’t know where they first met. Where they first saw each other, what happened or whatever. My grandmother did tell my older sisters and brothers that they tried to marry, she and my grandfather.
Jackson: They who?
Dennison: I don’t know if it was the Meahers or whomever. Cause the Meahers were in charge of things, see: captain of the ship and the Meahers.
Jackson: So was James Dennison, was he enslaved?
Dennison: Uh, I hate to be talking about this so much cause it’s in the book, but my grandfather had a card which states that he was born a slave in Charleston, South Carolina.
Jackson: In Charleston.
Dennison: In Charleston, South Carolina was where he was born, and he was sent over on the ship. But he nor the crew knew what they were going for. It’s this Wright company had the, they had people in charge of being supplied to ships for seagoing purposes. Now they didn’t know either where they were going. And that’s why they were trying mutiny on the ship when the found out what was happening, cause they knew, evidently they knew that slavery had been outlawed already, and they probably didn’t want to have any part of it. But, I’m assuming that, you know, by putting things together. The reason mutiny was attempted. But you know how it came about. There was a bet it could be done and that sort of situation. And the crew was, I don’t know if my father—my grandfather—ever received any reward, any restitution, or anything of that nature. I believe on the ship-forced labor or whatever, I don’t know. There are many things I don’t understand. I would like to travel to see if I could find some things to see if I could get things a little more complete.
Jackson: Sure.
Dennison: Because when you’re telling stories, historical stories, and most people not around to ask questions about how things happened or what they did and how it was done. They’re not around to answer your questions, so you just got to take what you’ve got, what you can get hold of to relate to. I’m trying to get pictures of my grandmother and my grandfather for sure, for certain. And I don’t know when that’ll happen. Now I’ve also seen a printed, a sheet out of the newspaper. I first saw this out in Chickasabogue Park, a little church house that was out there. They had renovated this little church house, and there were artifacts and different things, paraphernalia, put in this little church house as a museum. And after I started visiting things gradually started to disappear, cause some things I saw I wasn’t interested then. I had certain things I was trying to find, trying to relate. But later on as you see some things and as other subjects come up, or rather other things come to mind you begin to want to go farther, but it’s too late. There’s just some things it’s too late to come by and get hold of. But I would like to travel and find somebody who knows more about the situation who had some more pieces that I can put into the puzzle where I can know more about it. And having to do so many things I hadn’t been able to travel, and actually no way of getting around somewhere to show me this or that and whatever. It appears that many things have been hidden over the years over a while or something. It’s been difficult…
Jackson: By whom?
Dennison: Um, by um the people who knew about the circumstances, whomever they may be, whether it was the families or the slave masters’ families or whomever. That’s what I’d like to find out for sure before I make any comments as to who did what. Uh my, uh grandfather was intended to be put together to be married, seemingly in Mount Vernon—when they were enslaved in Mount Vernon; they were up there for a while. Now when those people were brought in on the ship, they weren’t all placed at the same place, they weren’t all put at the same place. Some of them Plateau, some of them carried to Selma.
Jackson: Hale County…
Dennison: Hale County. And see that’s why. Those things were done for the purpose of not being able to get together and everything. I believe that we have been fortunate to be in the same vicinity and get as much history as we can. If only some of the people, more of the other descendents would cooperate and tell what they know about their ancestors, you see. For me to take what you have and someone else to take what you have and that kind of thing, but it’s just, well you know, men have work. Although some may be the same situation. But there some differences in every circumstance, and that’s why I’d like to see other people give some information or99999 about their ancestors. My grandfather’s book was titled “Biography” – “Biographical Memoir of James Dennison.” My grandmother is “A Memoir of Lottie Dennison.” The way my people would pronounce it they would say Lottie all the time. Now on some of her documents, on some of her, Lottie Dennison’s paperwork her name is spelled “L-O-T-T-I-E” and sometimes its spelled “L-O-T-T-A.” So I don’t know if it’s the way she pronounced it or what. I understand that many of those people changed their names because they didn’t want people to actually know who they were or where they were from or what. I don’t know much about that either, I just happened to hear that and read a little bit about that.
Original Format
VHS
Duration
9 min 52 sec
Files
Citation
Mabel Dennison
, National African American Archives & Museum,, and Museum of Mobile, “Mabel Dennison Interview Clip,” Mobile Public Library Digital Collections, accessed December 21, 2024, https://digital.mobilepubliclibrary.org/items/show/2193.
Item Relations
| Item: A Memoir of Lottie Dennison | dcterms:relation | This Item |
| Item: Biographical Memoirs of James Dennison | dcterms:relation | This Item |