Kay Cauthron and Jack Mays interview with Kato Lambert

The John Burrison Georgia Folklore Archive recordings contains unedited versions of all interviews. Some material may contain descriptions of violence, offensive language, or negative stereotypes reflecting the culture or language of a particular period or place. There are instances of racist language and description, particularly in regards to African Americans. These items are presented as part of the historical record. This project is a repository for the stories, accounts, and memories of those who chose to share their experiences for educational purposes. The viewpoints expressed in this project do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of the Atlanta History Center or any of its officers, agents, employees, or volunteers. The Atlanta History Center makes no warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of any information contained in the interviews and expressly disclaims any liability therefore. If you believe you are the copyright holder of any of the content published in this collection and do not want it publicly available, please contact the Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center at 404-814-4040 or reference@atlantahistorycenter.com. At the beginning of this interview, Kato Lambert recalls laboring as a sharecropper when he was a child at the plantation of Lydia Stone Crews, or Miss Lydia, in Race Pond, Georgia. Specifically, he describes the cruelty other laborers faced, including whippings and forced starvation. Next, he talks about playing poker across the southeast, which his father disapproved of, and then continues describing his work at Race Pond, where he extracted tree gum. At 6:06, they discuss accusations that Crews used her influence to bribe Eugene Talmadge to pardon her husband and other men, and sometimes recruited ex-convicts as laborers. At 10:43, Lambert explains how to properly chip a tree and how to make tree gum with acid. At 13:30, Lambert recalls running away from Folkston, Georgia, at twelve years old and working as a railroad worker for his second employer, Mr. Martin. He also shares details about growing up in Folkston, his imprisonment in Charlton County, Georgia, and a close encounter with the police when smuggling whiskey. At 18:40, Lambert states that he has three sons and two grandsons, and that one of his sons served and died in the Vietnam War. Then, he recalls fights that broke out between timber plantation workers and techniques for outrunning police dogs. At 25:20, Lambert discusses John Roddenberry, a sadistic warden at the prison in Charlton County where Lambert was an inmate. Between 25:48 and 35:20, Lambert speaks about Mr. Hopkins, another warden who ran the prisons commissary and starved Black inmates who did not work. Lambert then shares practical jokes that inmates played on each other, the deaths of his first two wives due to illnesses, and details about his current extramarital affair. At 44:05, he repeats a story he heard about a man working a Hoodoo spell on a pregnant woman and recalls traveling across the U.S. with one of his employers, the Smith brothers. At the close of the interview, he discusses Cape Canaveral, Florida, specifically beach houses and bobcats. Then, he references Mrs. Crewss sister who was known as the Ox Woman. Kato Lambert (1889-?) was born in Folkston, Georgia, where he lived most of his life. Between 1918-1923, he traveled across the United States before returning to Folkston. He married three times, including to Agness Cummings in 1923, and had three sons. Additional biographical information has not been determined. No transcript exists for this recording. Professor John Burrison founded the Atlanta Folklore Archive Project in 1967 at Georgia State University. He trained undergraduates and graduate students enrolled in his folklore curriculum to conduct oral history interviews. Students interviewed men, women, and children of various demographics in Georgia and across the southeast on crafts, storytelling, music, religion, rural life, and traditions. As archivists, we acknowledge our role as stewards of information, which places us inaposition to choose how individuals and organizations are represented and described in our archives. We are not neutral, andbias isreflected in our descriptions, whichmay not convey the racist or offensive aspects of collection materialsaccurately.Archivists make mistakes and might use poor judgment.We often re-use language used by the former owners and creators, which provides context but also includes bias and prejudices of the time it was created.Additionally,our work to use reparative languagewhereLibrary of Congress subject termsareinaccurate and obsolete isongoing. Kenan Research Center welcomes feedback and questions regarding our archival descriptions. If you encounter harmful, offensive, or insensitive terminology or description please let us know by emailingreference@atlantahistorycenter.com. Your comments are essential to our work to create inclusive and thoughtful description.