Walking Home To Dixie

The Scene

A small stockade on the outskirts of Atlanta where a young confederate soldier is talking to an unknown older man who had, until recently, fought against him on the other side. But now the war is over and both sides are beginning to learn what they already knew. Men are just men, no matter what beliefs they hold dear.

Facing an unknown future, Jim has recently learned about the death of his parents. Jim is only 19 years old at this point in his life.

Jim Griggs



“It was a sad day when we witnessed General Robert E Lee surrender the Army of Northern Virginia to General Ulysses S. Grant at the Appomattox Courthouse. General Lee conducted himself with the utmost honor while Grant didn’t even bother to change his muddy uniform. He seemed ill at ease as if he was almost ashamed to accept surrender from our wonderful military leader.”

“But he did so finally, and he also allowed food and medical aid for all of our boys in gray. Those officers who still had horses or mules to ride were given permission to take the animals home with them. These war weary animals would quickly be transformed from warrior’s mounts to pullers of plows, much as their masters, former warriors, turned to farmers themselves“.

“But my horse didn’t make it through the war, so we--Jupiter and I-- are now hoofin’ it after catching the train from Virginia to Atlanta. Lieutenant Jim Griggs is my name, from the Waycross Griggs'. Yep, if you lived around there you would know about my family, everybody does. This here is Jupiter--say hey to Mr. Granger, Jupiter--he’s free now but don’t know what to do about it.”

“My clothes were so worn out that now I have to go home wearing these Yankee clothes instead of the gray soldiering duds I left in. I’m gone try and sneak home in the dark, I reckon, else I’m libel to get shot by the neighbors. Nice talkin to ya anyways, I spose we gone ease on down this dirt road towards home now, but first let me help you move that old cannon out of the way”

Jupiter Griggs

Juniper Griggs falls in with another former slave boy while he and Jim walk steadfastly south towards home down a lonely dirt road meandering through the swamps of southeast Georgia.




“Master Jim, he say de wo-ah is ober. Say I’m free to do as I please now. He say I can go back wit him and mebbe work on de farm, but no more house work for me. I don’t know what to do now. I have to go back anyways cause my momma is spectin’ to see me wit master Jim. I tole her I would look after him and I did.”

“I’m glad to be offen dat train at last, glad to be out in de country too. All dem dead bodies and splosions done got to me till I couldn’t harly stan’ it no mo’! De berry fust battle Master Jim done lose his hoss. Not dat it bother me too much, I’se ridin’ shanks mare anyways. Sometimes I wonder how in de heck de Grigg’s eber got rich in de fust place.”

“But like I said, it’s good to be on a country dirt road headin’ back to Waycross with the wahm Gawjah sunshine beatin’ me in de face and de spring honeysuckles smellin’ to beat de band. I spose Momma is free now too. I wonder what she’ll do now dat de Grigg’s is nigh onto broke and dey slaves all gone. I‘ll sho be glad to see momma again”

Jasmine Griggs

Magnolia Hill is the site of the Griggs’ plantation near Waycross Georgia. Jasmine, Jupiter’s mother, is talking to another local black woman who also used to be a slave on a nearby plantation.

“Yes, I’m Jupiter’s Momma. No, I haven’t heard from him since Massa Lee surrendered up in Verginny somewheres. Him and Massa Jim oughtta be home fore too long, I reckon. But what dey gonna do when dey gits here is sumpin’ else. Lawd knows I can’t keep runnin’ dis place and Massa Jim caint neither. Lawd help dat pore boy.”

“I’se sorry to say it, but de Griggs’ was some of de dumbest white folks in all south Gawja. My ole man--Clybourne‘s his name--done handled all de books for de las’ 25 years and if it weren‘t for him, de Griggs’ would have starved to def a long time ago. But we all loved dem cause dey was as kind as dey was stupid. We Griggs slaves was better off dan any other black folks around’ heah cause of dem. Yep, I guess you could say we used dem and dey used us too.”

“It ain’t easy foolin’ the other Massas neither, not when it comes to makin’ it seem like de Griggs’ run a strick plantation. All de “yes Massa” and “no missy” goin’s on you never seed in all yo life! Heh, heh, heh, I still git’s a kick outta de way Massa and Missus always acted when other white folks came by. Dey really put on de airs like I tole em too. Of course, dey aplologize for it later on when everyone done lef to go home. I still cain’t bleeve we really got away wit it! “

Clybourne,Griggs

The plantation office, seldom visited by any of the Griggs family, is the scene here. Jupiter’s father is talking to the local black pastor who obtained his freedom many years ago.

“Yes it’s true, I was taught to read and write at a very early age and had a passion for mathematics in the bargain. when Mr. James L. Driggs bought me and Jasmine from a drunken fool of a farmer, I swore to always treat him as best I could. He inherited this big ole plantation and didn’t know nuthin’ at all bout runnin’ it, so I helped him make a go of it. I never regretted it for a moment.”

“I talked to each new slave before Mr. James bought him or her. I told them they would be treated well and would earn their freedom in a few years if they worked hard and didn’t cause any trouble. They did too, for the most part. Sure, we had a few who were too impatient, but they soon found out it was better here than anywhere else except up north. “

“Most of us had families and they too learned to love living on the plantation. We were slaves in name only as we knew there was a small amount of money going into our freedom fund every week. No, I didn’t steal from the Griggs at all. They gave all of us money in the form of pennies, nickels and dollars for all sorts of chores we freely performed. This respectable sum eventually came to be known as the Freedom Fund among us slaves.”

“Now we are free anyway and young Jim Griggs’ is now in danger of losing this plantation. Since we ain’t got nowhere else to go, we all voted to use the Freedom Fund to pay the back taxes on the place. But in young Jim’s name, of course. I will explain all of this to Mr. Jim when he and Jupiter arrives home in a few days. Instead of slaves we are now sharecroppers on the plantation. Not much different than we have ever been.”

Jim Griggs

Back on the road and closer to home now, Jim tells his own plans to Jupiter as they walk towards a new south.

“I shore will be glad to see your momma, Jupiter.” Seems like I ain’t et one of her biscuits in a coon’s age. I know it jest killed her when Momma and Daddy died off from the flu epidemic last winter. No, I cain’t help it if I still cry a little, I wish I coulda tole them goodbye one last time. I don’t know nuthin’ bout runnin’ the plantation as you well know, so I hope Clybourne will stay on for a bit till I get the hang of things. What’s to run? Well, I plan on growin’ more cotton, if nuthin’ else. People’s gotta have clothes jest the same as they did before the woah. Mebbe a crop of tobacco too, we’ll see. “

“No, I hope y’all do stay on in the big house Jupiter, I ain’t got nobody else I know to live with me. I’ll treat you right like Daddy always did, you know that. Yeah, me too, y’all are all the family I got now except a few folks over in Alabamy, and they ain’t as smart as us Georgia Griggs’. Why is that so funny, Jupiter? Oh yeah, I get it, you got kin in Alabamy too!”

“Anyhow, I got things all planned out for when we get home. I’m gonna spark Lois Lipton as her ole man jest got clipped dead right before the war ended and he had a good hardware business goin’ on. I know, the competition will be tough, but the ole Griggs charm will undoubtedly win the day for me. Dang Jupiter, I wish you’d quit fallin’ down on the ground and laughin’ like that, or we ain’t never goin’ to get home. Sometimes I think you might’ve been born in Alabamy yourself.”

“I’m not too worried though, Aunt Jasmine and Uncle Clybourne will have everything figured out when we get there. It shore will be good to git home. Here, have a handful of these boiled peanuts to tide you over for a while. Member that time when we caught that skunk and put it Uncle Clybourne‘s desk drawer……?”

Soldiers fell and so did peace,

Across these fruitful lands.

For love of gold sweet blood was shed,

By factor's harsh demands.

My brother fell at ole Bull Run,

My father died at sea,

My Mother waits at home forlorn,

For those she'll never see.

I'm walkin' home to Dixie,

I hope my mother's there,

I've passed so many like her,

Their faces dark despair.

My last days will be peaceful,

I swear this will be true.

No war for me forever,

I hope the same for you.

So Jim and Jupiter finally made it back home to Magnolia Hills where Jim did indeed marry the widow Lipton and became a very successful hardware salesman. Jupiter, Clybourne, and Jasmine continued to make Magnolia Hills one of the best cotton and tobacco producing plantations in the area. Their children, and children’s children still live in the area to this day, along with those of Jim and Lois Griggs.

Jim Griggs--twenty five years later.

“The old place still seems like home, even though I haven’t lived out here in over two decades now. Did you ever figure we would make it home again when the war was still goin’on, Jupiter? Naw, me neither, I thought we was goners during that last big battle before the surrender. Anyway, I never thanked you for goin’ to the war with me as my aide. I always planned to free you, Uncle Clybourne, and Aunt Jasmine after the war, whether we won or not.

“What’s that? Ya’ll been free since before the war started? Then why did you stay down here if that’s so? Oh, I see what you mean now. What, Daddy never told you where we came from? Well, when Daddy inherited the plantation he was livin’ over in Alabama so he decided to move on over here and…….”