Red River

Israel is a former slave who has made his home in The Bottom, raising his family there with his wife, Lucy. Israel does not care for his eldest son, David, who is not his biological heir, giving preference to Noby and creating lasting tension between the boys that causes a rift later in life. Israel has a bad temper that sometimes gets the better of him. As a slave, he once fought back against an overseer, who thereafter went out of his way to torture Israel. Eventually, “the constant beatings accomplished exactly what the overseer had intended. They leeched the fight out of him. They caused Israel to defer to white men. They made him always afraid” (115). As a result, Israel is less likely to stand up to the white men than his friends are. Nevertheless, he participate in the taking of the courthouses. Like his Noby, he has a gift for survival, and he is the only character who was at the courthouse when the massacre began who also survives. However, he is broken in spirit and physically disabled as a result.  

McCully becomes one of the leaders of the group of black men who defend the courthouse. He is a gifted speaker and rallies the men and the community around a sense of hope for the future. He believes in Reconstruction and the need to actively defend the rights of the community, by force if necessary. He tells Sam: “this here the only way to get” true freedom, because the white men won’t give them power voluntarily (30). The funeral hat that is eventually passed down through the Tademy family starts off as McCully’s voting hat. McCully is shot in the neck and killed during the massacre while attempting to extinguish the fire that the white men set on the courthouse roof.

The son of Israel and Lucy, Noby is a young boy when the Colfax Massacre takes place. He plays a small part in the events when he spies on a meeting of white men in the woods while they are planning to attack the courthouse. Later, he and his brother, David, buy land together. When Noby falls into debt, David refuses to help, as only Noby’s name was on the deed, and Noby realizes the extent of David’s resentment over Israel’s demonstrated preference for Noby. Their falling out lasts until Noby’s death. Noby is instrumental in establishing the black Freemasons society in The Bottom. Noby shares his father’s temper and one day attacks a white man who was insulting him. As a result, he must flee Louisiana and lives the rest of his days in Oklahoma. In The Bottom, Noby becomes something of a legend among his relatives and the community. 

Noby’s half-brother, David is the elder Smith boy. Israel adopts him but still shows resentment toward David, likely because it is obvious that David’s father was a white man. As a result, David grows to resent Noby. This resentment causes David to turn his back on Noby when he falls into debt for the land that the brothers were supposed to share. After Noby’s exile, their mother, Lucy, refuses to continue to stay with David, blaming him for his brother’s situation. Although David comes to Noby’s funeral, Polly tells him: “you paid your respects, but now you not welcome” (364).

Polly is Sam’s wife and the adoptive mother of Green and Jackson. Polly is the longest-living character in the book, at over 100 years old in the Prologue, and she acts as witness to the events of the novel. Steadfast and firm, Polly is a source of strength and support in Sam’s life as well as for her sons. In many ways, she represents the resilience of the black community of Colfax, saying, “[W]e got the strength to outlast whatever trials is put before us: we proved it” (3). She is good friends with Israel’s wife, Lucy, who is the less bold of the two. Although Polly never reveals details of her past, even to Sam, it is implied that she has survived hardships, and she tells Lucy at one point: “[Y]ou be surprised what a person got in them to do when the time come” (53). Unlike her husband, there is a practicality to Polly’s outlook, and even cynicism at certain points. Her philosophy can be summed up as such: “[O]ne thing always sure. Life go on with you or without you, no matter how much you seen” (218). 

Jackson is the second-oldest son of Sam Tademy. Whereas his brother Green shares the same dreamer qualities as his father, Jackson is quieter and more practical. Throughout his youth, he was always content to follow Green. After Green’s death, Jackson believes Sam blames him for the loss of his oldest son. At the same time, he feels pressured to take Green’s place in helping Sam with the school. His guilt over Green’s death leads him to help Sam with many projects. Shortly before his death, Sam pushes Jackson to think of the school, saying that, compared to Green the dreamer, Jackson is “the stronger one. You a man won’t stop until you arrive at a purpose” (264). After Sam’s death, Jackson does make the school a reality. After the White League burns it down, Jackson keeps hope alive with his library and eventually rebuilds and expands the school, pushed along by Noby. Jackson works all his life to help the black community in many ways and eventually passes on his legacy to his grandson Ted. 

Nathan-Green is Jackson’s second-oldest son. When he was born, “Jackson conferred upon his son the honor of Green’s name to give him strength. But Nathan-Green Tademy seems not up to the challenge. He is who he is” (334). Jackson grapples with the disappointment he sees in Nathan-Green, who fails to carry on Tademy traditions, like having their sons shout out their name. Instead, Nathan-Green is quiet, retiring, and content to be at home with his wife, Lenora. When Jackson rebuilds the school, Nathan-Green becomes one of the teachers, despite a lack of passion; his elder brother Andrew becomes the principal.