• About

Brandon Ray Kirk

~ This site is dedicated to the collection, preservation, and promotion of history and culture in my section of Appalachia.

Brandon Ray Kirk

Monthly Archives: September 2017

Narrows, VA (2017)

25 Monday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Civil War, Giles County, Native American History

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Abraham Wood, Appalachia, Blacksburg, Brandon Kirk, Confederate Army, George Crook, Giles County, history, John McCausland, MacArthur Inn, Monroe County, Montgomery County, Mountain Lake, Narrows, Native Americans, New River, Norfolk and Western Railroad, North Carolina, Phyllis Kirk, Stonewall Jackson, Tazewell County, The Crooked Road, Thomas Batts, Union Army, Virginia, West Virginia, William B. Giles, Wood's River

IMG_7883

Plenty of my ancestors once lived in Giles County, VA. 10 August 2017.

IMG_7887

Here we are near Narrows, VA. 10 August 2017. Photo by Mom.

IMG_7890

Entering Narrows, VA. 10 August 2017. The New River is visible on the right.

IMG_7891

I enjoyed this little section of old buildings in Narrows, VA. 10 August 2017.

IMG_7893

Narrows, VA. 10 August 2017. For more info, follow this link: http://townofnarrows.org/history/

IMG_7894

Confederate victory here in Narrows, VA. 10 August 2017. Photo by Mom.

IMG_7934

The MacArthur Inn in Narrows, VA. 10 August 2017. For more info, follow this link: http://www.macarthur-inn.com/

IMG_7897

Bluegrass music every Thursday at MacArthur Inn in Narrows, VA. 10 August 2017. Photo by Mom. For more info, follow this link: https://www.myswva.org/tcr

Mrs. Henry Clay Ragland’s Obituary (1914)

25 Monday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Civil War, Huntington, Logan, Matewan, Women's History

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

5th Virginia Cavalry, Appalachia, Aracoma Baptist Church, B.B. Goings, Blaine Creek, Christian Church, G.B. Hamilton, genealogy, Henry Clay Ragland, history, Huntington, John A. Sheppard, Kentucky, Lawrence County, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan County, Lou Ragland, Matewan, Mingo County, Robert W. Buskirk, Urias Buskirk, Urias Hotel, West Virginia, Williamson

From the Logan Banner of Logan, WV, we find the following story dated April 17, 1914:

“GRANDMA” RAGLAND PASSES TO THE BEYOND

MATE OF MAJOR HENRY CLAY RAGLAND, EDITOR OF THE LOGAN BANNER FOR MANY YEARS, PLACED BESIDE HIM EASTER SUNDAY

Mrs. Lou Ragland, mother of the Buskirk family, of this region died last Friday a.m. at the home of her son, Robert W. Buskirk, in the Urias Hotel at Matewan, Mingo county. She had married Henry Clay Ragland, for a long time editor of the Logan Banner, after the death of her first husband, Urias Buskirk. By her first marriage she raised a most interesting family of sons and daughters who are still residing in this section. Mrs. Buskirk was a most remarkable woman in many respects. She had always lived an exemplary and Christian life and assumed her responsibilities after the death of her first husband with efficiency and diligence. She was true to friend and family and was a good and faithful mother and a loving wife. Through her long life she has retained the confidence and respect of all who knew her. We grieve with her relatives and friends at her death. She was near the ninety-two milestone when she died and had been sick only for a few days.

“Grandma” Ragland’s exact age was 91 yrs. 11 mo. 20 days; born on Blain creek, Lawrence county, Ky., May 1st, 1823. For 30 years a member of the Christian church.

On May 1st also (1911) Major Ragland died. He was born on May 7th, 1844; belonged to Co. B 5th Va. Cavalry; member of the Aracoma Baptist church.

Mrs. Ragland’s last request, to rest one night in her old bedroom–the present residence of Rev. Bradshaw–was complied with. This parsonage now becomes the property of the Baptist church, according to the terms of Major Ragland’s deed, at her death.

Her age indicates her wonderful physical endurance, and while she knew she must die soon, retained her usual discretion and fortitude. She made plans with her kindred as to where her last resting place should be and desired that none of her children and friends be troubled about her demise. Up to the last she kept her mind intact and conversed with those near to her.

The mother of the Buskirks has gone, we hope, to a happier sphere. Mother is the dearest friend on earth. We grieve at the bier of the departed with the bereaved, and shed a tear with them in their desolation as we think of our own dear mother. Our sympathies go out to the bereaved ones in the loss of their one best comforter, but we hope and continue to hope that we may meet again in the unknown hereafter.

***

On April 17, 1914, the Logan Banner offered a small additional item: “Among those in attendance at the funeral of ‘Grandma’ Ragland last Sunday were: B.B. Goings, Williamson; Jno. A. Sheppard, Huntington; G.B. Hamilton, Matewan; in addition to the sons of the deceased.”

Stone Branch Gas Well (1911)

22 Friday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Stone Branch

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Appalachia, Big Creek, Dingess Run, gas, history, James Stowers, Logan County, Logan Democrat, Parrot, Pelham Oil & Gas Company, Stone Branch, Virginia, West Virginia

Stone Branch Gas Well LD 04.06.1911.JPG

Logan (WV) Democrat, 6 April 1911.

Old Dan Tucker (1926)

22 Friday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Logan, Music

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Appalachia, history, Logan, Logan Banner, music, Old Dan Tucker, Paul Bunyan, Walter Barnes, West Virginia

From the Logan Banner of Logan, WV, dated 2 November 1926, we find this story:

Remember the old song about “Old Dan Tucker”? And did you ever dance to the rollicking tune?

In the November number of the West Virginia Review there appears a sketch entitled “The Epic of Old Dan Tucker” written by Walter Barnes.

“Have the Review readers heard of the tales of Old Dan’s escapades, sung to the accompaniment of a rasping fiddle?” asks Barnes; and then he adds:

“A wonderful old man! He was a graceless rascal, no doubt. But a picturesque character, full of sap, scented with the soil, flinging himself into one amazing and amusing feat after another, ‘the talk of the country,’ and ‘the life of the party.’ The rhymes insist that he was a ‘fine old man’: well, he wasn’t fine and he didn’t act like an old man–he was rather what we call a regular fellow.

“Who was he? When and where did he live? I have no idea. Perhaps he lived in West Virginia in frontier and pioneer days. Tucker is probably a composite like Paul Bunyan. There may have been a real person by that name.”

Here are a few of the nine stanzas that Mr. Barnes has assembled:

OLD DAN TUCKER

Old Dan Tucker was a fine old man,

He washed his face in a frying pan,

He combed his hair with a wagon wheel,

And died with the tooth-ache in his heel.

Chorus:

Get out of the way for Old Dan Tucker.

He’s too late to get his supper.

Old Dan Tucker, he got drunk,

He fell in the fire and kicked out a chunk,

But he got ashes in his shoe,

And laws-a-massy how the fire flew!

Old Dan Tucker is a lovely man,

He swallowed a barrel of whiskey down,

The hoops flew off, the barrel did bust,

Away went Dan in a thunder gust.

Old Dan Tucker is a fine old man,

He tried to ride a Darby ram,

He rode him east, he rode him west,

He rode him into a hornet’s nest.

Old Dan Tucker went out one day

All alone in a one-hoss sleigh;

The sleigh was broke, and the hoss was blind,

And he had no hair on his tail behind.

Source: Logan (WV) Banner, 2 November 1926.

Arena (Elkins) Headley

22 Friday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Fourteen, Wewanta, Women's History

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Appalachia, Arena Elkins, Arena Headley, Emarine Elkins, Emily Sias, Fourteen, Fourteen Mile Creek, genealogy, history, Jesse Headley, Lincoln County, Marion Elkins, photos, West Virginia, Wewanta

Arena Elkins Headley copyright

Arena (Elkins) Headley, daughter of Joseph Marion and Nancy Emarine (Elkins) Elkins and wife of Jesse F. Headley. Arena is a sister to my great-great-grandmother, Emily (Elkins) Sias. She was born in 1898 and died in 1987.

Old-Timey Children’s Games in Appalachia (1900)

22 Friday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Huntington

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

A.J. Miser, Appalachia, bull pen, Cabell County, circuit clerk, duck-legs, history, Huntington, Huntington Advertiser, J.L. Thornburg, marbles, R.W. McWilliams, spelling bee, West Virginia

From the Huntington Advertiser of Huntington, WV, we find the following story dated 13 January 1900:

WHEN WE WERE BOYS

THREE CITIZENS TELL OF GAMES WITH WHICH THEY WHILED AWAY THEIR HOURS

“When I was a boy,” said J.L. Thornburg, “great attention was paid to spelling. A long string of youngsters would stand up, and the good spellers would turn the others down. The one who stood at the head of the class received, as a badge of honor, a silver dollar with a hole in it, through which was slipped a ribbon to wear about his neck. I stood next to the top when, for some misdemeanor, I was sent to the foot of the class, and sentenced to carry a stick of wood with me for an entire day. The spelling lesson that day had several breakers in it, but I was not distressed, as I could go no lower in the class. Finally a particularly hard orthographic nut was given to the wearer of the silver dollar. He failed, and one after another, the scholars missed the terrible word as it came down the line. I happened to know the word, spelled it, and with my badge of ignominy, the stick of wood, on my shoulder, went to the top of the class. That evening I wore the silver dollar home.”

“When I was a boy,” said Squire A.J. Miser, “there was a time in the year when all the boys, at the same time, would be seized with the desire to play marbles. Nobody could account for this simultaneous seizure. It appeared and disappeared like an epidemic. There was another epidemic that appeared much like marbles, ravaged the country and was gone for another twelve month. This was stilt-walking, and it was desperately contagious. Perhaps the most malignant form was ‘duck-legs.’ These were short stilts, the handles being sawed off so that they reached the boy’s knees, and from there to the foot-rests were strapped to the legs with rope or leather. It was no easy matter to take off one’s duck-legs when properly strapped on and cross-gartered, and many a time have I gone without dinner rather than take off my wooden pins, my mother having an old-fashioned prejudice running in favor of natural legs at meal time. On some occasion I escaped this maternal surveillance and succeeding in sleeping in my duck legs, to the great disturbance of the circulation off the blood. Heigh-ho! I haven’t seen a pair of duck-legs for forty years or more.”

“When I was a boy,” said Circuit Clerk R.W. McWilliams, a number of out door games, common at that time have long since passed away. One of these was bull pen. It was played by eight boys. Four stood, one at each corner of a rectangular square, and four in the center of the pen. The four on the corners passed the ball rapidly from one to the other, and when it was ‘warm’ the holder threw it at one of the victims in the center. When one in the pen picked up the ball the boys on the corners scattered, for the boys in the pen could then throw at the corner lads. It was a rough game and boys were often struck hard. This was in the early days of India rubber. The rubber shoes were made in South America in a crude way. An old rubber shoe was cut up into strings to make this ball; the strings were wound, covered with yarn and then covered with leather. There was a good deal of bounce in such a ball, and when it kissed a boy there was plenty of sting in it. Another game of that time was fox and hounds. One boy, as the fox, carried a horn. He was given about a hundred yards’ start of the hounds, who were to catch him. I have known such a race to last nearly all day.”

Generosity of Island Creek Coal Company (1926)

19 Tuesday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Coal

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Appalachia, Christmas, coal, history, Holden, Island Creek Coal Company, Logan County, West Virginia

Island Creek Coal Company Generosity LB 12.31.1926.JPG

Logan (WV) Banner, 31 December 1926.

Chapmanville News 06.29.1926

19 Tuesday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Chapmanville, Logan

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Appalachia, Bob Hale, Brookie Rowsey, Chapmanville, Dr. Ferrell, genealogy, history, Horace Mullins, James Wagner, Leonard T. Hicks, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan County, Martha Whitman, Mt. Gay, Nelson Bentley, Virginia Coberly, West Virginia

An unknown correspondent from Chapmanville in Logan County, West Virginia, offered the following items, which the Logan Banner printed on June 29, 1926:

Nelson Bentley passed Mrs. Brookie Rowsey’s and failed to stop. What’s wrong, Brookie?

Mr. and Mrs. ___ Whitman are visiting Mrs. Martha Whitman this week.

Mrs. Horace Mullins and little son of Logan spent the weekend here.

Mr. and Mrs. Bob Hale of Logan spent the week with Mr. Hale’s mother, Mrs. Wagner.

Mrs. James Wagner, who has been very ill, is much improved.

Leonard T. Hicks of Mt. Gay was calling on his wife here last Sunday.

Miss Virginia Coberly of Logan was a visitor here Sunday.

Daily happenings: Mildred looking for Virgil; Fannie meeting all trains; Minnie and his dinner bucket; Thelma and her mulberries; Grace and her knickers; Gladys calling on Minnis; Dr. Ferrell going to see Miss Queen; Harold and his pony; Nute and his gas station; Fat and his ice cream cone; Diana hoeing corn; Gillia carrying water; Brookie watching for Bentley; Goldie calling on Mildred.

Funkstown, MD (2015)

19 Tuesday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Civil War, Fourteen

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

11th Georgia Regiment, 34th Battalion Virginia Cavalry, Andrew Lewis Sias, Battle of Funkstown, Battle of Gettysburg, Brandon Kirk, Chaney House, Chester, civil war, Confederate Army, Funkstown, General Hospital, Georgia, H.D. McDaniel, Hagerstown, Hammond General Hospital, history, J.E.B. Stuart, Jerusalem, John Buford, Keller Home, Maryland, Pennsylvania, photos, Phyllis Kirk, Point Lookout, Potomac River, Robert E. Lee, Seminary Hospital

IMG_1209

My great-great-great-grandfather Andrew Lewis Sias participated with the 34th Battalion Virginia Cavalry (Co. D) under Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart at Gettysburg and was thereafter captured (according to one military record) on July 8, 1863 in Funkstown, MD. He was held at Seminary Hospital in Hagerstown, MD, then admitted to General Hospital in Chester, PA, on September 17, 1863. He was thereafter sent to Hammond General Hospital at Point Lookout, MD, on October 4, 1863. 9 April 2015. Photo by Mom.

IMG_1206

The Battle of Funkstown, a Confederate victory, occurred shortly after the Battle of Gettysburg. My ancestor missed this battle, having already been captured. 9 April 2015.

IMG_0906

Originally named Jerusalem in 1767, the town was incorporated as Funkstown in 1840. 9 April 2015.

IMG_0911

Major H.D. McDaniel of the 11th Georgia Regiment was treated here at the Keller Home after the Battle of Funkstown (July 10, 1863). Mr. McDaniel survived the battle and later became governor of Georgia. 9 April 2015.

IMG_0914

Part of the Keller Home. 9 April 2015.

IMG_0924

Dozens of beautifully-designed old residences are yet visible in Funkstown. 9 April 2015.

IMG_0925

Funkstown’s population was 904 in 2010. 9 April 2015.

IMG_0941

Most of my favorite old structures in Funkstown were located on this street. 9 April 2015.

Chapmanville News 06.03.1921

19 Tuesday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Boone County, Chapmanville, Huntington, Logan

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Boone County, C.B. Hainor, Chapmanville, Cora McKinney, Decoration Day, E.P. Stowers, Emma Stowers, Erie Blevins, Floyd Barker, genealogy, Henlawson, history, Hughey, Huntington, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan County, Lottie Hainor, Lula Blevins, Manila, Nellie Barker, Robert Hainor, St. Albans, Thermal Hainor, W.G. Willis, West Virginia, Wilsondale

An unknown correspondent from Chapmanville in Logan County, West Virginia, offered the following items, which the Logan Banner printed on June 3, 1921:

Mr. and Mrs. Robert Hainor attended the decoration exercises at Manila Sunday.

W.G. Willis made a business trip to Logan Saturday.

E.P. Stowers and Miss Emma Stowers returned Wednesday from a business trip to Huntington.

Uncle Floyd Barker, of St. Albans, is visiting relatives here this week and attending decoration.

Mrs. Lottie Hainor and daughter Thermal left Sunday afternoon for a visit with relatives at Henlawson.

Mrs. Cora McKinney spent Sunday with friends here.

Miss Erie Blevins, who is staying at Hughey, spent Sunday with her parents at this place.

Miss Nellie Barker was called to Wilsondale Sunday on account of the illness of her sister.

We are glad to say that Miss Lula Blevins, who has been staying at Hughey, has returned to her home here.

Mrs. C.B. Hainor visited friends at Manila Sunday.

An exciting incident occurred on last Saturday evening that might have caused serious loss to the firm of Stowers and Garrett and besmirched the glorious record they have been making the past few weeks as peddlers. As they were returning home, Mr. Garrett noticed a large fowl in a wheat field, he proceeded to capture it and confine it in his chicken coop. Thinking he had captured some rare bird of the tropical jungles, he drove with all speed to the home of Mr. Stowers where some of the family promptly pronounced it to be a turkey but Messrs. Stowers and Garret had their own opinion on the matter and had already decided they had captured a parrot. They had christened him “___m” and were already beginning to teach him to talk. However he didn’t show much aptitude as a pupil, but stood with dull expressionless eyes and his long crooked bill of a mouth wide open. After much deliberation they were finally convinced that they had not captured a “Poll Parrot” but a vulture or more commonly speaking, a buzzard. When they were convinced of this they opened the coop and Mr. Buzzard flew away to his rightful dominion, while their golden dream of selling a parrot to some enterprising Loganite vanished away on the soaring wings of the “Buzzard.”

Welcome to Burke’s Garden, VA (2015)

16 Saturday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Native American History, Tazewell County

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Andrew Lewis, Appalachia, Brandon Kirk, Burke's Fort, Burkes Garden, farming, French and Indian War, Garden Mountain, history, James Burke, James Patton, Mary Thompson, Native Americans, North Caorlina, photos, Tazewell County, Thomas Ingles, Virginia

_IGP1625.JPG

Burke’s Garden, Tazewell County, VA. October 2015. Photo by Mom.

IMG_7056.JPG

Burke’s Garden, Tazewell County, VA. October 2015.

IMG_7076.JPG

Burke’s Garden, Tazewell County, VA. October 2015. James Patton, referenced on this historical marker, is my direct ancestor through his daughter, Mary (Patton) Thompson.

IMG_7086.JPG

Burke’s Garden, Tazewell County, VA. October 2015.

Stone Mountain Coal Company Headhouse is Burned in Matewan, WV (1921)

16 Saturday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Big Sandy Valley, Coal, Matewan

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Appalachia, Blackberry City, coal, crime, deputy sheriff, fire marshal, history, John Hall, Kentucky, Logan Banner, M.C. Kindleberger, Matewan, Mingo County, P.J. Smith, Stone Mountain Coal Company, Tom Davis, Tug Fork, War Eagle, West Virginia, West Virginia Federationist, Williamson

From the Logan Banner of Logan, WV, we find the following story dated 27 May 1921:

The headhouse of the Stone Mountain Coal Company at Matewan, in the heart of the Tug river battle zone, on the West Virginia-Kentucky border, was burned early today, reports received by Major Tom Davis, acting adjutant general on Governor Morgan’s staff, stated.

P.J. Smith, superintendent of the company in Williamson said until he makes an investigation, he could not estimate the amount of damage. The minimum loss, he added, would not probably be less than $25,000.

M.C. Kindleberger, deputy state fire marshal, here to investigate the recent firing of the headhouse at War Eagle, departed for Matewan immediately. Two automobiles containing members of the state constabulary accompanied him. He said he would report to Major Davis.

The Stone Mountain mine has been abandoned by the miners recently, said Superintendent Smith.

Although Chief Deputy Sheriff John Hall gave out the statement that he had made a personal inspection of the fighting area as far east as Blackberry City, and everything was quiet, and that sniping had ceased, the emergency defense organization composed of former service men and other citizens was said by Captain Brockus, of the state police, to be growing. Seventy-two rifles were issued late Saturday night and more have been ordered. In all, said Captain Brockus, several hundred men are under arms prepared for another outbreak. An organization today issued an order temporarily discontinuing the publication of the West Virginia Federationist, a labor paper.

An incident connected with the recent shooting along the Tug river is the reluctance of taxi-cab drivers to take their passengers east of Williamson. Their invariable call at the railroad station to prospective fares is discontinuing.

Source: “Headhouse in Mingo is Burned,” Logan (WV) Banner, 27 May 1921.

To see a coal company headhouse photograph, follow this link: http://wvhistoryonview.org/catalog/wvulibraries:14752

Frank Hutchison of Logan County, WV (1927)

14 Thursday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Logan, Music

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Appalachia, Frank Hutchison, guitar, history, Logan Banner, Logan County, music, Omar, Omar Theatre, Peach Creek, Peach Creek Theatre, photos, Stirrat, Stirrat Theatre, West Virginia

Frank Hutchinson LB 03.25.1927.JPG

Logan (WV) Banner, 25 March 1927

Chapmanville News 05.27.1921

14 Thursday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Banco, Chapmanville, Ferrellsburg, Huntington

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

A.H. Curry, Appalachia, Arnold Saunders, Banco, Chapmanville, Charles Hainor, Cleophas Saunders, Emma Stowers, Erie Blevins, Ferrellsburg, genealogy, George Seagraves, ginseng, Glenna Beckett, Hewlette Curry, history, Homer McDonald, Howard Barker, Hughey, Huntington, Ida Blevins, Jeffrey, Jesse Mullins, Jessie Adkins, Lace Browning, Lacy Ball, Logan Banner, Logan County, Nellie Barker, Opal Bryant, Peach Creek, Ross Stowers, Ruth Beckett, Saunders and Barker, Sid Croft, Thermal Hainor, Walton Garrett, West Virginia, Willard Curry

An unknown correspondent from Chapmanville in Logan County, West Virginia, offered the following items, which the Logan Banner printed on May 27, 1921:

Mr. Cleophas Saunders and Sid Croft motored over from Jeffrey Monday to attend to business matters here.

Mrs. George Seagraves was calling on Miss Emma Stowers Tuesday evening.

Mr. and Mrs. Hewlette Curry of Huntington are spending the week with Mr. Curry’s parents here.

Arnold Saunders, the popular young clerk in the store of Saunders and Barker, was called to his home the first of the week on account of the death of a friend.

Miss Jessie Adkins of Ferrellsburg is staying with her sister, Mrs. Lace Browning, of this place.

Mr. and Mrs. Hewlette Curry were the guests of Mrs. Willard Curry Friday evening.

Mr. and Mrs. George Seagraves were calling on Mrs. A.H. Curry Sunday.

Mr. and Mrs. Walton Garrett visited relatives at Banco Sunday.

Miss Erie Blevins left Monday for an extended visit with her sister, Mrs. Homer McDonald at Hughey.

Miss Ross Stowers is spending the week with her sister at Peach Creek.

Lacy Ball of Jeffrey was calling on Miss Nellie Barker Sunday.

Jesse Mullins and family were motoring Sunday.

Miss Ida Blevins was calling on Miss Thermal Hainor Sunday afternoon.

Charles Hainor and  Howard Barker were out ginseng digging Friday. They made a tour of about twelve miles through the hills and only dug six bunches each. Better luck next time, boys.

Misses Glenna and Ruth Beckett were calling on Miss Opal Bryant Sunday.

Note: This entry was dated May 18, 1921.

Henry Clay Ragland Home in Logan, WV (1914)

13 Wednesday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Civil War, Logan

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Appalachia, Aracoma Baptist Church, Aracoma Cemetery, Camp Straton, civil war, Confederate Army, Henry Clay Ragland, history, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan County, Logan Wildcats, photos, West Virginia

Ragland Home LB 04.24.1914 2

THE OLD HISTORIC AND SAINTED RAGLAND HOME IN LOGAN: Now parsonage of the Aracoma Baptist Church, where the remains of the late “Grandma” Ragland lay in state, in the exact position of her late husband, the last night in this city, before they were finally laid to rest in Aracoma cemetery, beside those of the beloved “Major” Henry Clay Ragland. The Major is shown at the left, grasping the “Logan Wild Cats” Battle Flag, said to be the only flag of the Confederacy that was never captured. Photo taken Oct. 22, 1906, at the annual Reunion of Camp Straton Confederate Veterans, composed of surviving members of the “Logan Wild Cats” and others of this section. Mr. Ragland was Commandant. Privates numbered 106. Logan Banner, 24 April 1914.

Corpse Found in River at Chapmanville, WV (1927)

13 Wednesday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Chapmanville, Guyandotte River, Huntington, Logan

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Appalachia, B.C. Harris, Branchland, Carlos Hatfield, Chapmanville, Chauncey, E.M. Jeffrey, genealogy, Guyandotte, Guyandotte River, Henlawson, history, Huntington, Island Creek, J.D. Parsley, J.F. May, Lincoln County, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan County, Mud Fork, Omar, West Virginia, Williamson

From the Logan Banner of Logan, WV, we find the following story dated 29 March 1927:

All doubt as to the body of the woman found a mile above Chapmanville last Friday being that of Mrs. J.D. Parsley of Omar was removed that evening. Identification was positive on account of her wedding ring and her shoes.

So badly decomposed was the body, the flesh of the face having wasted away, that identification would have been impossible except for the ring or bits of clothing. In fact, its condition was such that it was recovered with sand at the place where found, after the identification was completed and after Undertaker B.C. Harris reached the scene, it being decided to await instructions from Mr. Parsley. The body had been in water more than three months, for it was on December 21 that she was drowned in the flooded waters of Main Island Creek near her home between Omar and Chauncey. From that point to the point where the  body was found is 22 miles, according to estimates of some deputy sheriffs who are familiar with Logan county distances.

Friday evening Mr. Parsley was located in Huntington, whither he had moved a few weeks ago to engage in the real estate business.

Mr. Parsley came to Chapmanville on the Saturday morning train, bringing a casket with him. Sunday the body was brought on a railway motor to Henlawson and then was taken by way of Charleston to Wayne county for burial. This was done because of the certainty the railway company would not transport the body from Chapmanville to  Huntington or to any other point on a passenger train.

Mr. Parsley, it is said, recognized a scar on his wife’s body–a scar left by a surgical operation.

The finder of the body was a Scarberry boy who lives near the place where it was found. It was lying near the shore, partly covered by silt, with the head wedged under a log or between two logs, according to reports heard here.

From the day of Mrs. Parsley’s tragic death till the body was found scandal-mongers busied themselves circulating reports that she had not drowned but had gone away of her own accord. As late as last Wednesday a Banner reporter was told that she was living in Guyandotte.

Concerning the drowning of Mrs. Parsley The Banner on Friday December 24 published the following account:

In the swollen waters of Main Island Creek Mrs. J.D. Parsley was drowned near her home between Omar and Chauncey at about 5:30 Tuesday evening.

Stepping into a necessary outbuilding that stood on the creek bank behind her home, the building suddenly toppled over and crashed into the swirling tide. Her screams were heard by several persons, among them Carlos Hatfield, a neighbor, who rushed to the rescue. When he reached the bank he saw Mrs. Parsley struggling in the water close to the shore and at the same time being carried swiftly forward by the stream. Just behind her was the building from which she had extricated herself. He waded into the waters and was almost within reach when the building turned over on her and shoved her beneath it out of sight. Before she reappeared on the surface she was too far down stream and too far out in the swift current for Hatfield to reach her.

Reports received here indicate that a son of E.M. Jeffrey of Omar was attracted to the scene and got a glimpse of either Mrs. Parsley or the building, or probably both, and followed along the bank until he saw the building crash into the bridge at Chauncey. The impact shattered the frail structure into pieces that were soon carried from view.

During the night and Wednesday forenoon searchers scanned the banks of the creek in what proved to be a futile effort to find the body.

Mrs. Parsley was nearing her 40th birthday. Her maiden name was Clay, according to her neighbors, and it is said her parents live at Branchland. She leaves no children, though Parsley is the father of several children by a previous marriage.

The Parsleys moved to the present home last August, when he leased a garage from Oscar Napier. This is located near the home of Dr. J.F. May and also close to the garage of Carlos Hatfield, previously mentioned as having tried to rescue the drowning woman. Before moving to the Omar-Chauncey neighborhood, Parsley had a grocery store at Mud Fork. At one time he was in the merchandise business at Williamson.

When the drowning occurred Parsley was at work in his garage. Word came to him that a woman had drowned, but it was half an hour or more before he realized that the victim was his own wife.

Source: “Body Found at Chapmanville is Identified as that of Mrs. Parsley Drowned at Omar on December 21,” Logan Banner, 29 March 1927.

***

Mrs. Parsley’s death record is found here: http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_view2.aspx?FilmNumber=1953328&ImageNumber=3233

 

Old Yard and Dispatcher’s Office of the C&O Railroad in Logan, WV (1914)

12 Tuesday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Logan

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Appalachia, C&O Railroad, history, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan County, photos, West Virginia

Old Yard and Dispatcher's Office LB 05.22.1914 2.JPG

Old Yard and Dispatcher’s Office, Logan (WV) Banner, 22 May 1914.

Chapmanville News 05.20.1921

12 Tuesday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Chapmanville, Huntington, Logan, Women's History

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Appalachia, Arda Jeffrey, Beecher Barker, Beecher Curry, C.B. Hainor, Chapmanville, Charlie Garrett, Dr. Stanley, Dyke Garrett, Eliza Garrett, Ella Garrett, Erie Blevins, genealogy, George H. Seagraves, Henry McKinney, Herbert McKinney, history, Huntington, Ida Garrett, J.D. Ball, James Bryant, John Hunter, Kate Barker, Kentucky, Kyle Hill, Lacy Ball, Lacy Browning, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan County, Myrtle McKinney, Nora Stollings, Ohio, Opie Pridemore, P.D. Blevins, Robert Hainor, Rosa Stowers, Russell, Stollie Hainor, tonsilitis, W.G. Willis, Wallace Garrett, Warren, West Virginia, Wilsondale

An unknown correspondent from Chapmanville in Logan County, West Virginia, offered the following items, which the Logan Banner printed on May 20, 1921:

Mrs. George H. Seagraves has returned from a visit with her husband’s relatives in Warren, Ohio. She is preparing for house keeping at Wilsondale.

Miss Rosa Stowers is convalescing from a severe attack of tonsilitis.

Miss Ida Garrett, who is working in Huntington, is spending the week with her parents here.

Most of the boys and some of the men were highly elated over the recent rains which caused a rise in the creek and gave them an excuse to “lay off” the spring work and go fishing.

Miss Kate Barker of Logan spent Saturday and Sunday with relatives here.

Dr. Stanley, veterinarian, of Logan made a professional visit to W.G. Willis’ Saturday.

P.D. Blevins of Logan spent Sunday with his mother here.

Mr. and Mrs. James Bryant of Russell, Kentucky, are visiting relatives here this week.

Lacy Browning, who is working at Logan, spent Sunday with his wife.

The wedding bells were ringing Sunday for two of our young folks. The bride was Miss Arda Jeffrey and the groom Mr. Herbert McKinney. The ceremony was performed at the home of the bride of Rev. W.D. Garrett.

Beecher Curry was calling on Miss Erie Blevins Sunday. It is our opinion that “Uncle Dyke” will be called upon to don his surplice again soon.

C.B. Hainor and family were visiting at J.D. Ball’s Sunday afternoon.

Lacy Ball of Jeffry was seen on our streets Sunday. He seemed to be all smiles. The reason: He was manipulating the “brand new” Ford, and had one of our best looking girls by his side.

Miss Erie Blevins was a charming hostess to a small party of her friends on Saturday night from eight to eleven o’clock. Chocolate fudge was served. Among the invited guests were Misses Eliza and Ella Garrett, Ida Garrett, Nora Stollings and Myrtle McKinney, Messrs. Stollie Hainor, Kyle Hill, Charlie Garrett, Beecher Barker and Henry McKinney. Everyone reported a nice time.

On last Sunday morning at ten o’clock some of the folks of the community under the leadership of Wallace Garrett and Robert Hainor met at the school house for the purpose of organizing a Sunday School. The first meeting of the school will be at 10:30 the 15th. Everybody welcome.

Kyle Hill of Logan was visiting Stollie Hainor Sunday.

Mrs. John Hunter was visiting her daughter Mrs. Opie Pridemore Sunday.

Best wishes for the Banner.

Admiral S. Fry Letter (1880)

11 Monday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Green Shoal, Huntington, Lincoln County Feud, Music, Women's History

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Admiral S. Fry, Anderson County, Appalachia, Burbus Toney, Charleston, Cincinnati, Franklin County, Garnett, genealogy, George Fry, Green Shoal, history, Huntington, J.S. Caldwell, Kansas, Lincoln County, music, Ohio, Ottawa, Rhoda Fry, Tolbert S. Godby, West Virginia

A.S. Fry Letter 1A.S. Fry Letter 2A.S. Fry Letter 3

A.S. Fry Letter 4

I descend from three of A.S. Fry’s siblings: Christian Fry, Emily (Fry) Lucas, and Druzilla (Fry) Abbott. A.S. Fry’s son, George Fry, is a central character in my book, “Blood in West Virginia: Brumfield v. McCoy.”

Food in the Logan Coal Fields (1921)

11 Monday Sep 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Barboursville, Coal, Holden, Huntington, Logan

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Appalachia, Barboursville, coal, history, Holden, Huntington, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan County, Omar, West Virginia

From the Logan Banner of Logan, WV, we find this story about food conditions in the Logan coal fields, dated 9 December 1921:

Seasonal fruits and fresh vegetables brighten the menu of the Logan field miner and his family just as they do the average householder in the larger cities. Visitors have noted with surprise that this is true–that even the most isolated mining communities, cut off from civilization by rugged mountains and difficult creek beds, have their fresh strawberries in season and make quite as much of an event of the canning period as do their northern neighbors.

But what the average visitor cannot know, unless he delves with unusual energy, is the cost in money and time which it means to have such products brought to the miner’s table from the produce centers of the country.

In the first place, many of the mines in the field live five, ten, fifteen and even twenty miles from the town of Logan. The roads in many cases are almost impassible. In others, there are no roads at all. It is common occurrence to use the creek bed as a thoroughfare. A rather hazardous feat, it appears to the visitors on his first trip, but he soon grows accustomed to this. At first he is inclined to cling tight to his seat as the motor truck plows through the shallow water over well rounded stones. The drivers think nothing of fording innumerable creeks. They have lost all solicitude for their tires. In fact, many of them aver that the tires last quite as long as they do on hard-paved roads and point to examples in the form of weather-beaten casing to prove that the usual 10,000 mile guarantee is not at all impossible of achievement in this difficult territory.

Sloshing along through creeks, alternating with mud roads which would bring a rattle to the finest car built they consider the trips to the mines with foodstuffs a mere routine. That it is more than routine, however, is graphically revealed by the wrecks along the roadside–broken-down trucks and motor cars, buggies and wagons.

The road to Holden, four miles from Logan, is a mud road most of the way, featured by innumerable sharp turns. That leading to the mine town of Omar covers nine miles of the most diversified transportation. In that nine miles one single creek must be forded eleven times, and often instead of crossing directly, motor trucks are forced to plow through the water for a considerable distance.

Some sixth sense apparently tells the driver where the “water road” lies, for to the casual observer one part of the creek is as good as another. All he can see is water and, beneath, a solid bed of white boulders. Time has worn them smooth. Sliding down the mud road into the creek bed the driver unerringly picks out the right route. It is as if he carried a sextant, for never, however many times he makes the trip, does he deviate in his course a yard.

Yet despite these difficulties in transportation it is comparatively cheap to get to any mine property in the Logan field. For a dollar, any of the buses operating from Logan, meeting all trains, will carry one to Omar, nine miles of difficult driving, while others take passengers 15 and 20 miles up the creeks for a slightly higher charge. For foodstuffs the cost is proportionately low. Drivers charge 25 to 42 cents per 100 pounds for first class freight to a point within 20 miles of Logan–and take every chance in the world of a breakdown. It is this low haulage charge which enables so many independent and company stores at the mines to meet the prices of retailers in large cities, and it is the dependability of this method of motor transportation which enables them to carry fresh fruits and vegetables in season to tickle the palates of the miners and their numerous progeny. Anyone who imagines that sow-belly and beans constitute the main diet of the miner has never seen the adequate stocks of merchandise kept by mining community establishments.

If there were not enough difficulties in the path of transportation of foods to the mines, the trip from the outside to Logan would provide enough more. Logan is unfortunate in that there are no through freight rates to it. Huntington, the State’s natural distributing point by reason of railroad facilities, does not figure in the traffic to Logan. Merchandise destined for this field must be reshipped at Barboursville, a junction point near Huntington, and this adds a freight charge of from 30 to 40 cents per 100 pounds. Adding this to the cost of haulage by truck to the mines, the differential in favor of the consumers in large cities mounts up. Yet, with all these barriers, prices in the mine towns are low–the result of keen competition and of quantity buying.

Source: “Camps Have the Best of Food: Despite Shipping Obstacles Miners Have Same Food as Their City Neighbors,” Logan (WV) Banner, 9 December 1921.

← Older posts

Feud Poll 1

If you had lived in the Harts Creek community during the 1880s, to which faction of feudists might you have given your loyalty?

Categories

  • Adkins Mill
  • African American History
  • American Revolutionary War
  • Ashland
  • Atenville
  • Banco
  • Barboursville
  • Battle of Blair Mountain
  • Beech Creek
  • Big Creek
  • Big Harts Creek
  • Big Sandy Valley
  • Big Ugly Creek
  • Boone County
  • Breeden
  • Calhoun County
  • Cemeteries
  • Chapmanville
  • Civil War
  • Clay County
  • Clothier
  • Coal
  • Cove Gap
  • Crawley Creek
  • Culture of Honor
  • Dingess
  • Dollie
  • Dunlow
  • East Lynn
  • Ed Haley
  • Eden Park
  • Enslow
  • Estep
  • Ferrellsburg
  • Fourteen
  • French-Eversole Feud
  • Gilbert
  • Giles County
  • Gill
  • Green Shoal
  • Guyandotte River
  • Halcyon
  • Hamlin
  • Harts
  • Hatfield-McCoy Feud
  • Holden
  • Hungarian-American History
  • Huntington
  • Inez
  • Irish-Americans
  • Italian American History
  • Jamboree
  • Jewish History
  • John Hartford
  • Kermit
  • Kiahsville
  • Kitchen
  • Leet
  • Lincoln County Feud
  • Little Harts Creek
  • Logan
  • Man
  • Matewan
  • Meador
  • Midkiff
  • Monroe County
  • Montgomery County
  • Music
  • Native American History
  • Peach Creek
  • Pearl Adkins Diary
  • Pecks Mill
  • Peter Creek
  • Pikeville
  • Pilgrim
  • Poetry
  • Queens Ridge
  • Ranger
  • Rector
  • Roane County
  • Rowan County Feud
  • Salt Rock
  • Sand Creek
  • Shively
  • Spears
  • Sports
  • Spottswood
  • Spurlockville
  • Stiltner
  • Stone Branch
  • Tazewell County
  • Timber
  • Tom Dula
  • Toney
  • Turner-Howard Feud
  • Twelve Pole Creek
  • Uncategorized
  • Warren
  • Wayne
  • West Hamlin
  • Wewanta
  • Wharncliffe
  • Whirlwind
  • Williamson
  • Women's History
  • World War I
  • Wyoming County
  • Yantus

Feud Poll 2

Do you think Milt Haley and Green McCoy committed the ambush on Al and Hollene Brumfield in 1889?

Blogroll

  • Ancestry.com
  • Ashland (KY) Daily Independent News Article
  • Author FB page
  • Beckley (WV) Register-Herald News Article
  • Big Sandy News (KY) News Article
  • Blood in West Virginia FB
  • Blood in West Virginia order
  • Chapters TV Program
  • Facebook
  • Ghosts of Guyan
  • Herald-Dispatch News Article 1
  • Herald-Dispatch News Article 2
  • In Search of Ed Haley
  • Instagram
  • Lincoln (WV) Journal News Article
  • Lincoln (WV) Journal Thumbs Up
  • Lincoln County
  • Lincoln County Feud
  • Lincoln County Feud Lecture
  • LinkedIn
  • Logan (WV) Banner News Article
  • Lunch With Books
  • Our Overmountain Men: The Revolutionary War in Western Virginia (1775-1783)
  • Pinterest
  • Scarborough Society's Art and Lecture Series
  • Smithsonian Article
  • Spirit of Jefferson News Article
  • The Friendly Neighbor Radio Show 1
  • The Friendly Neighbor Radio Show 2
  • The Friendly Neighbor Radio Show 3
  • The Friendly Neighbor Radio Show 4
  • The New Yorker
  • The State Journal's 55 Good Things About WV
  • tumblr.
  • Twitter
  • Website
  • Weirton (WV) Daily Times Article
  • Wheeling (WV) Intelligencer News Article 1
  • Wheeling (WV) Intelligencer News Article 2
  • WOWK TV
  • Writers Can Read Open Mic Night

Feud Poll 3

Who do you think organized the ambush of Al and Hollene Brumfield in 1889?

Recent Posts

  • Sheriff Joe D. Hatfield, Son of Devil Anse (1962)
  • The C&O Shops at Peach Creek, WV (1974)
  • Map: Southwestern West Virginia (1918-1919)

Ed Haley Poll 1

What do you think caused Ed Haley to lose his sight when he was three years old?

Top Posts & Pages

  • Sheriff Joe D. Hatfield, Son of Devil Anse (1962)
  • Anse Hatfield Letter to Perry Cline (1886)
  • Anthony Lawson founds Lawsonville
  • Jack Dempsey’s Broadway Restaurant Location in New York City (2019)
  • Levisa Hatfield (1927-1929)

Copyright

© Brandon Ray Kirk and brandonraykirk.wordpress.com, 1987-2021. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Brandon Ray Kirk and brandonraykirk.wordpress.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Archives

  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • February 2022
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 2,747 other subscribers

Tags

Appalachia Ashland Big Creek Big Ugly Creek Blood in West Virginia Brandon Kirk Cabell County cemeteries Chapmanville Charleston civil war coal Confederate Army crime culture Ed Haley Ella Haley Ferrellsburg feud fiddler fiddling genealogy Green McCoy Guyandotte River Harts Harts Creek Hatfield-McCoy Feud history Huntington John Hartford Kentucky Lawrence Haley life Lincoln County Lincoln County Feud Logan Logan Banner Logan County Milt Haley Mingo County music Ohio photos timbering U.S. South Virginia Wayne County West Virginia Whirlwind writing

Blogs I Follow

  • OtterTales
  • Our Appalachia: A Blog Created by Students of Southern West Virginia CTC
  • Piedmont Trails
  • Truman Capote
  • Appalachian Diaspora

BLOOD IN WEST VIRGINIA is now available for order at Amazon!

Blog at WordPress.com.

OtterTales

Writings from my travels and experiences. High and fine literature is wine, and mine is only water; but everybody likes water. Mark Twain

Our Appalachia: A Blog Created by Students of Southern West Virginia CTC

This site is dedicated to the collection, preservation, and promotion of history and culture in Appalachia.

Piedmont Trails

Genealogy and History in North Carolina and Beyond

Truman Capote

A site about one of the most beautiful, interesting, tallented, outrageous and colorful personalities of the 20th Century

Appalachian Diaspora

  • Follow Following
    • Brandon Ray Kirk
    • Join 749 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Brandon Ray Kirk
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...