L.S. Spears shares knowledge of history, civil rights, and farm life in St. Helena Parish

L.S. Spears
Photo Credit: Antoinette Harrell

A few years ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Spears and his wife Mrs. Arizola Ernest . They both had so much wisdom and knowledge to share. I could have sat and talked with them for hours.  I didn't want to  overstay my welcome. They are now in their nineties and doing well. Since COVID prevented me from visiting their home, I often wondered how they were doing. During the past two weeks, I've been documenting syrup making at the Womack Mill in St. Helena. 

I met his nephew, Byron Parks. Byron needed to process four loads of sugarcane into syrup. In our conversation, Byron mentioned that Mr. Spears was his uncle's wife and that she was doing well. "There is one thing to keep in mind in rural communities: you should always establish who your family is. That's one of the most frequently asked questions." 

I didn't get to the mill the next day, so I contacted Byron by phone about some photographs he sent me. He told me that Mr. Spears was at Womack Mill. The thought of seeing him made me want to get into my car and drive to the mill. We both enjoyed hearing each other's voices when Byron put him on the phone. The following day, I planned to meet with him. Eddie Ponds was invited to join me on this trip for a few interviews for The Drum Newspaper. 

Mr. Spears at Womack Mill
Photo Credit: Antoinette Harrell

 My eyes were delighted  to see Mr. Spears driving and getting around very well for a man who had just turned ninety-six. We noticed that he dressed as if he was going somewhere else other then the syrup mill the moment he stepped out of the truck. Very neat with his shoes matching his belt and you could smell his cologne. Eddie Ponds and I took out our cameras and started taking pictures and interviewing him. He was born in 1926 in St. Helena Parish to Carter Spears and Leona Rankins Spears.  According to the 1940 United States Federal Census, he had six siblings; Myrtis Spears, Hazel Spears, Reba Spears, Inez Spears, Arnell Spears, Fennel Spears,  and Carter Spears, Jr.  

His first words were that he was still bush hauling on his tractor around his house. Although Mr. Spear did other public work to support his family, he grew up on a farm. In addition to driving a truck, he also worked in construction. He talked about how hard it was back then in St. Helena Parish and the racism they encountered. "We used to sit around and sing gospel hymns in the evenings when people would come over to our house," said Mr. Spears. We had a good old time just talking and singing he said. Whenever the people were ready to go home, we would walk them half way home and talk. He laughed when he thought about them turning around and walking back with them. 

There were times when the old folks would pray so hard in the house that you thought God was just around the corner. In those days, times were hard, but they were good as well. He said things have changed now. During his season of making syrup, he would make two to three hundred cans. Our meat was kept in a smokehouse. There is no comparison between meat today and the meat we had in the past. 

The civil rights movement was one of the topics I asked him about. They protested for equal rights in schools, he said. As a civil rights leader in St. Helena, his mother-in-law Pearl and her sister Martha Thomas were very active. In fact, Andrew Young and other members of The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) attended Pearl's funeral. It was some hard time he said.