Song of Jaybird reveals a lost past and forgotten story of Black laborers working in a turpentine camp. Delia Johns enters another lonely place, a virgin Long Leaf Forest not yet touched by the ax blade. The manager offered her a job as a cook when she displayed math skills. Her shed kitchen became a place where men ate, families worshiped, and laborers gathered as a community. The uncertainties of camp managers and the control of the Naval Store Owners meant hopelessness for workers and their families. When there is an opportunity to leave turpentine, Delia faces another disappointment when her husband, Henry, a skilled woodsman, questions his ability to leave the only work he knows.
Published by Floral City Heritage Council 2023
Available on Amazon and for purchase here.
Song of Jaybird reveals a lost past and forgotten story of Black laborers working in a turpentine camp. Delia Johns enters another lonely place, a virgin Long Leaf Forest not yet touched by the ax blade. The manager offered her a job as a cook when she displayed math skills. Her shed kitchen became a place where men ate, families worshiped, and laborers gathered as a community. The uncertainties of camp managers and the control of the Naval Store Owners meant hopelessness for workers and their families. When there is an opportunity to leave turpentine, Delia faces another disappointment when her husband, Henry, a skilled woodsman, questions his ability to leave the only work he knows.
Published by Floral City Heritage Council 2023
Available on Amazon and for purchase here.