I was born in the little town of Lucama,
which is nine miles south of Wilson.
My daddy was a merchant at that time in his life,
a big merchandising center
for farmers to come in and buy everything from shoes to fertilizer.
So I stayed there until I finished the first grade
and after that we moved a little further south to Selma.
Later on my father became a lawyer
there in Selma
and held court in Smithfield, which is the county seat of Johnston County.
I helped him in his office. I learned how to type
at school - public school.
Then he became a judge for ten years,
what they call recorder's court. I guess now they call it district court judge.
I went to court every time I got a chance.
I'd go with him to court, especially in the summertime,
and I was treated like a member of the bar of Johnston County [Laughs]
and he gave me a seat up where they were.
But anyway, to make a long story short,
I admired him, what he stood for, what he was,
and so I decided I was going to be a lawyer too.