Hints were all wasted, Black Hannah, article (...Times, 1903-12-13).jpg

AI Transcription:

Special to THE TIMES, NORTH TONAWANDA, Dec. 12.—While negroes have never settled here in any great numbers there was one “black mammy” who defied for many years all hints to move on. She came here when a middle-aged woman, and died in a little hut, built by her own hands, in what has since been called “Black Hannah’s” woods. Attempts were often made to learn something of the old negro woman’s early days, but up to the time of her death, nearly ten years ago, she would not give an inkling of her past history, for fear, it was thought, that she might be taken back into slavery, from which it is believed she escaped and sought refuge here.

“Black Hannah” was a Tartar. In her last years she would allow no one to approach within several rods of her hut. She supported herself by doing odd jobs for neighboring farmers and by cultivating a small clearing. She was undoubtedly a centenarian when she died. In spite of her life of a recluse she showed signs of refinement and previous surroundings that placed her above the average slave. She died as she had lived, however, and never divulged anything as to her life before coming here.

Definition of “Tartar”:
In 19th–early 20th century usage, calling someone a “Tartar” was an idiomatic expression meaning a person who is fierce, harsh, irritable, or difficult to deal with. It derived from the European stereotype of the Central Asian Tatar/Turkic peoples as warlike and formidable. In this article, it’s not meant literally (not her ethnicity), but rather to imply she was tough, unyielding, and forbidding toward others.