Aunt Caroline Dye facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Aunt Caroline Dye
Born	Caroline Tracy 1810 or 1843 Spartanburg, South Carolina
Died	September 26, 1918 Newport, Arkansas
Nationality	American
Other names	Aunt Caroline, Auntie
Occupation	Hoodoo woman, rental property entrepreneur, soothsayer, rootworker, healer, landowner
Spouse(s)	Martin Dye
Children	1

Caroline Dye (born around 1810 or 1843, died 1918), also known as Aunt Caroline, was a famous African American Hoodoo woman. She was also a successful businesswoman, owning rental properties. People knew her as a soothsayer (someone who could see the future), a rootworker (a healer using natural remedies), and a conjuror. She lived in Newport, Arkansas.

Early Life

Aunt Caroline Dye was born Caroline Tracy in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Her gravestone says she was 108 when she died, which would mean she was born in 1810. However, other records suggest she was born later, around 1843-1853. Like many people born into slavery, we don't know her parents' names. She and her 12 brothers and sisters were enslaved by the Tracy family.

Caroline showed special abilities from a young age. When she was about 10, she was helping set the table for Thanksgiving dinner. She insisted there weren't enough plates because "Mister Charley," her owner's brother, would be coming. Everyone thought Charley had died in the Civil War years earlier. But Charley did show up! This made people wonder if Caroline had a special gift.

After her owner, William Tracy, died, his wife Nancy moved to Independence County, Arkansas. She brought Caroline and the other enslaved people with her. Caroline was a teenager then. Later, she had a daughter named Hannah. Caroline remained enslaved until 1863, when the Emancipation Proclamation freed her.

Becoming Well-Known

After becoming free in 1863, Caroline moved to Franklin County, Arkansas. She later settled in Newport, Arkansas, where she became famous for her ability to see the future. She didn't charge for her services, but people always gave her money. With these donations and a pension from her husband, she bought land. She built rental homes near the business area of Newport.

Aunt Caroline didn't call herself a "fortune teller." Instead, many of her clients saw her as a prophet. She didn't use tarot cards or crystal balls. She also didn't read palms. Sometimes, she used a regular deck of playing cards to help her focus. Other times, she simply looked at a person and knew what they needed to hear. People of all backgrounds – Black, White, and Indigenous – believed in her. Her house was always full, especially on weekends. She even cooked and sold soul food to the many visitors arriving by train.

News of her abilities spread quickly across the Mid-South. People traveled hundreds of miles to get her advice. She helped them find lost relatives, pets, jewelry, and other items. Once, a man asked her to find his lost hogs. She told him, "Your hogs were stolen. Go down the road to the fifth house from you, go back to the barn and you'll find yo' hogs in a stable. Unlatch the door and leave it open and yo' hogs will come home. Don't go today because the people who live there are home. But tomorrow they'll be gone for the day. So you go tomorrow."

Even important people in Newport, who might have made fun of her in public, secretly asked for her help. They sought her advice before making big business decisions. Aunt Caroline often proved skeptics wrong. One story tells of a man who didn't believe she could find his lost mules. Aunt Caroline told him exactly where they were, even describing where to find the key to the barn.

The Hoodoo Woman

Aunt Caroline was also respected as a Hoodoo woman, rootworker, and healer. Hoodoo is a spiritual practice that connects to God and uses natural ingredients. People believed she could use the Bible, mojo bags (small bags with charms), and plants to heal illnesses.

There are many stories of her healing people. One woman said Aunt Caroline healed her cousin, Lou T., who had been poisoned. Aunt Caroline used special ingredients and gave specific instructions. Lou had to face the east and pray, "Lawd, heah am Ah. Take all mah troubles an' heal me, In de name of de Father, Son, and Holy Ghost."

Like most Hoodoo spiritualists, Aunt Caroline believed in God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Her healing work often included teachings from Black Baptist churches. In Hoodoo, God is seen as the main conjuror, and important Bible figures like Moses are believed to be Hoodoo practitioners. The Christian Bible itself is seen as a powerful tool for blessings and healing.

Aunt Caroline followed traditional Hoodoo practices, which have roots in Central Africa. She did not practice West African Voodoo or Louisiana Voodoo. She also did not believe in cursing people. She refused to give predictions about love or wars.

Personal Life

Records show that Caroline Tracy, then 20, married Martin Dye, 22, on June 11, 1867, in Jacksonport, Arkansas. In 1870, Caroline and Martin Dye lived in Newport with Martin's two daughters from a previous marriage. Caroline was from South Carolina, and Martin was from Tennessee. By 1910, Caroline was a widow. Martin likely died around 1907, as she filed a pension claim then.

Death and Legacy

Aunt Caroline Dye passed away on September 26, 1918, in Newport, Arkansas. Her gravestone says she was 108 years old. She had become quite wealthy from her farmland and rental properties. This was very unusual for a Black woman in the South with no formal education.

Before she died, Caroline made a will. She left most of her land and money to Irene Atkin, a child she adopted, and Mac Griffin, a nephew. She put her friend, C. M. Erwin, in charge of her rental properties and Irene's money. She believed her nephew might not manage the money well. Caroline's daughter, Hannah, is not mentioned in any records after childhood, so she likely died young.

After Aunt Caroline died, large amounts of cash were found in her home. There were also rumors that she had hidden gold in secret places around Newport. People searched for decades, but no gold was ever found.

Aunt Caroline Dye is still remembered today through African American stories and blues music. Several blues artists sang about her. The Memphis Jug Band performed "Aunt Caroline Dyer Blues." The song describes her as a fortune-telling woman who could make a mojo bag to help someone. She was also called a "two-headed woman" who could heal the sick and break spells. Johnny Temple also wrote his 1937 song "Hoodoo Woman" about Aunt Caroline.

Images for kids

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  Aunt Caroline Dye