Susan Smith was held by Billy Carlisle, who lived near Campbellsville in Taylor County, Kentucky. She did not know her age or exactly how old she had been when the slaves were freed. As a slave, Susan had to raise and pick cotton, shear sheep, spin, thread looms, weave cloth, take the wool to the carding machine, mold candles, and go to the mill. She was especially interested in how food was stored for the winter. Some food, she said, was canned in tins and sealed with canning wax. Some fruit was made into preserves, some vegetables and apples were buried, and some fruits and vegetables were dried. Slaves attended the same church as whites, but there were no schools for slaves.
Several years after the Civil War, Susan came to Jeffersonville, where she worked in various homes. When she was unable to work, she was taken to the Clark County Poor Farm. She seemed embittered toward her former owners, recalling how hard she had to work and viewing them as taskmasters. The presence of white people still seemed to annoy her. She had the utmost regard for truth and would not tell anything unless she knew it was absolute fact; therefore, since she had no experience with play parties and square dances, she had nothing to report about them.