The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1909-03-19
1O6 YEARS OLD.
Interesting Eistory of Old Negro
Who Was Killed by Sout0ern
Freight on Wednesday.

k1llSQ DN OOuVuefll llclSIlG LII NSW-
berry on Wednesday, was probably
the oldest person i'll Newberry coun-
ty. He was brought to this country
from Africa many years ago, and pur-
chased by General H. H. Kinard. He
remained in the Kinard family until
his death, and was buried yesterday
on the Kinard plantation, in the up
per part of THE county, where he liv-
ed. According to records which ap-
pear to be authentic, he was about
106 years old.
New was in Newberry on Christ
mas day, 1907, and in its issue Of De-
cember 81, 1907, The Herald and
News printed the following account
of his long and faithf':i life:.
"In Newberry on Christmas day
was negro, Ned Kinard, who. ac-
cori1ng to autheu,lc records, vii h,
los years old in January, 1900. He
d walled f)urteen miles to New
l1y from iis home on Mr.. H. H.
K4nard's plantation, in. the ni'l'e:
part of the county, and he walked
back after spending Christina: day
here.
"Ned was born in Africe, and
brought to this country by a slave
dealer, from whom he was purchased
by Mr.. Kinard' s father, Gen. H. Fl.
Kinard. He was owned by Gen. Kin
ard until slavery was abolished at
the close Of the war. When the sue
cess of Northern arms made him free
he remained on Gen. Kinard's plan
tation, where he has lived continu-
ously since, and where he will in all
probability be buried.
"Ned is ditcher. Digging bitches
has been his life work, and Is III lie
knows.
"In the days before the War Be-
tween the States many Of the bottom
lands in this county which are now
grown up in willows and swamp
growth were fertile corn fields. They
were made so by the excellent system
Irrigation which some Of the old PLAN
tiers, whose plantations were their
pride, had in use. Great bitches We're
dug and lands were drained; and in
these creek bottoms the finest corn
was made. Many farmers in this Sec
ton still keep lands which otherwise
would be Of no use except to hold the
world together, in cultivation by this
system, but there are thousands of
acres together, in cultivation by this
system. but there are thousand Of
acres Of swampy land in the South,
wherein formerly crops We're grown,
which have been reclaimed by the
willows.
General KilNard was one of the
wealthiest and most successful plan
ters in Newbery county in ante-bel-
lum days. His plantation was situat-
ed in the upper part of the county,
part of it extending over the line Into
Laurens county. Every acre OF his
land which could be put into culti-
vation yielded it's crop. The bottom
lands We're drained, and it was on
these lands that General Kinard's
heaviest and finest crops Of corn was
grown.
"When General KinaaA bought
Ned, after his arrival IN America
from his African home, he assigned
him to the work Of digging bitches.
One had only to look at Ned's buald
to know that his calling was that Of
a ditcher. Today, in his l05th year,
he reminds ONE very much of a square
brick pillow built to support heavy
structure. He is almost as broad as
he is tall. He appears now to be
very little, II any, over live 1eel LII
height; but his legs and arms are those
of a giant.
"When South Carolina seeded
from the Union, and the War Be-
tween the States was on, Ned was
taken from his work Of digging ditch
es on Gen. Kinard's plantation and
went with Gen. Kinard to Charleston,
where Gen. Kinard put him on the
work of assisting in building the
Notifications there. Of course, Ned's
duty was to throw up dirt. Consld-
erable rivalry developed among the
negroes on the Notifications as to
which could throw tie most dirt, and