The House of David

About the Book

THE HOUSE OF DAVID This is the history of my family, African-Americans who were slaves until the end of the Civil War because they lived in Kentucky, a state that had not seceded from the Union, so the Emancipation Proclamation did not affect them. Their achievements are admirable by any standards, but when you consider that they began as slaves, their achievements are phenomenal. They are also interesting and entertaining. For example, there was a twelve-year-old slave girl in Arkansas who was used to settle a gambling debt owed to a Kentucky man. Fortunately the Kentucky man’s family were very nice and had lots of money. They would not let a family member take a child away from her family, so they bought her whole family––her mother and three brothers. She slept in the big house with the son of the man who won her. She bore him two daughters. She did not have to work hard. She did light cooking and laundered the family’s finest clothing. When the war was over and she was free, she took her daughters and left. She opened a hand laundry specializing in men’s fancy shirts––those with ruffles or pleats down the front. She never had anything to do with another man. Though she could neither read nor write, she sent both of her daughters to college. One later became a school principal. Another slave worked for his master for pay after he was freed. His former master gave him a letter of recommendation that enabled him to buy land. He became quite successful as a minister, a farmer, and especially as a breeder of horses and other equine animals. Once a year, his former master would pay him a very formal visit, and he would return the visit, which was equally formal. They treated each other as equals. This book is primarily for my family, because I want them to be aware of their marvelous background and hope that they will keep up the good work. A secondary purpose is the hope that people of other races will read it and realize that their ideas about black people are wrong. I know that such wrong ideas are prevalent because I have been a college professor, associating with intelligent, educated people all during my career. Because I appear to be white, people tell me what they really think about blacks. Their ideas would be ludicrous if they were not so appalling.

About the Author

Since the fruit usually doesn’t fall far from the tree, I was a high achiever, too. I started school at 4, and because I did well on a high school entrance examination, high school at eleven. I started college at fifteen and finished with honors at nineteen. At twenty, I had a master’s degree and was teaching at a big ten university. I taught English for twenty years, but switched to reading education for my doctorate because I realized that many of my students had serious reading problems. I ended my professional career as a reading teacher. I still do volunteer tutoring in English and reading because I enjoy it. I was married to Leroy Cooley for almost 44 years. I have two great children, Howard David Cooley and Janis Cooley Miner. I am the grandmother of Phillip Henry Miner, Jade Wilder Cooley, and Jasmine Wilder Cooley, all of whom I am proud of.