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Heard was born into slavery in [[Elbert County, Georgia]], some three miles from the small settlement of Longstreet. Although his father, George W. Heard (b. circa 1813)<ref>1870 census, Elberton, Georgia:"George Heard; 57; male; mulatto; wheelwright;b. Georgia;(personal estate)$50; unable to read; unable to write; U.S. citizen" - www.familysearch.org</ref> was a slave he was also a skilled workman, first a blacksmith and later a wheelwright and carpenter. Of mixed race, George was the son of an unknown mother and, reputedly, a white man named Thomas Heard:<ref name="Autobio"/> (probably Thomas Jefferson Heard, son of [[Stephen Heard]]). William Heard's mother was Pathenia or Parthenia<ref>see death certificate of George Clarke Heard, 25 September 1920, Clarke, Georgia, U.S.A. [http://www.familysearch.org] </ref>Galloway (d. circa 1859).<ref name="Autobio">''From Slavery to the Bishopric in the A.M.E. Church, An Autobiography'' by William H. Heard</ref> She was a farm hand skilled in plowing, but as she was also valued by her owners as a "breeder" (a woman who regularly produced children), she was allowed to work close to her own cabin in order to nurse her children frequently.<ref name="Autobio"/> As they were slaves, Heard's parents could not enter into a legally-recognized marriage. Also, as they belonged to separate estates some three miles apart they could not live together; but his father was given permission by his owners to visit his family twice a week during the time his labor was not required (overnight, Wednesday-Thursday: Sunday).<ref name="Autobio"/>.
Heard, with his mother and three siblings Millie, Beverley and Cordelia<ref>A last brother, George Clark Heard, was born later:''From Slavery to the Bishopric in the A.M.E. Church, An Autobiography'' by William H. Heard</ref>, was sold twice as a child. When he was nine and already working as a servant in the household where his mother was a cook, both she and his elder sister died of typhoid fever. At age ten Heard was set to work as a plow boy on a farm. At fifteen, having been assaulted by a drunken "boss man" and becoming aware of the potential
Although literacy was forbidden to slaves prior to the Civil War, Heard attended Sunday School and trained his memory by learning large amounts of the Bible by rote.<ref name="Autobio"/> After emancipation, while living with his father, he paid a white schoolboy ten cents a lesson to teach him basic literacy.<ref name="Autobio"/> He also began working for a local farmer, on terms of five dollars a month and the opportunity, each night, of reciting back to him a lesson Heard had learned over lunch. This farmer was William H. Heard, from whom Heard then took his name (he had previously been known as "Henry").<ref name="Autobio"/> Heard then attempted a similar arrangement with another local farmer, but, dissatisfied with the education he was receiving, he returned and began working at his father's shop.<ref name="Autobio"/> By this time a school had been set up in Elberton which he could attend.<ref name="Autobio"/> By following every opportunity for educational advancement which offered itself, Heard in time achieved a teaching qualification and a place at university.<ref name="Autobio"/> He attended the [[University of South Carolina]] until 1877, when all black students were removed by the state government.
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