Al Brumfield Deed to Louisa Wiley (1903)

28 Friday Dec 2018

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Fourteen, Lincoln County Feud, Wewanta

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Al Brumfield, Ann Brumfield, Appalachia, Bruner Hollow, Edward W. Clark, Fine Malinda Nester, Fourteen Mile Creek, genealogy, history, Hollena Brumfield, Jefferson Lucas, John S. Nester, Lewis Adkins, Lincoln County, Louisa Wiley, notary public, Paris Brumfield, Sulphur Spring Fork, West Virginia

Deed Book 56, page 40, Lincoln County Clerk’s Office, Hamlin, WV. Al Brumfield was the son of Paris and Ann (Toney) Brumfield. Hollena Brumfield was the daughter of Henderson and Sallie (Adams) Dingess. Both were leading figures in the Lincoln County Feud.

Deed Book 56, page 40, Lincoln County Clerk’s Office, Hamlin, WV. Louisa (Nester) Wiley was the daughter of John S. and Fine M. (Dalton) Nester. Her father was a first cousin to Al Brumfield.

Deed Book 56, page 41, Lincoln County Clerk’s Office, Hamlin, WV. NOTE: Al Brumfield was literate; he signed this document with an “x” because he had gone blind by 1903.

Harts, WV (2018)

03 Sunday Jun 2018

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Big Harts Creek, Guyandotte River, Harts

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Aaron Adkins, Al Brumfield, Appalachia, Bill Fowler, C&O Railroad, Charley Brumfield, CSX Railroad, Guyandotte River, Harts, Harts Creek, Harts PreK-8 School, Isaac Adkins, Lincoln County, Paris Brumfield, photos, West Virginia

During the feud, this site hosted Bill Fowler’s store and saloon, as well as the Hart Post Office. During the 1890s, Al Brumfield’s saloon and store was situated here. 24 May 2018.

Looking up the Guyandotte River from Harts, WV. The mouth of Big Harts Creek is just to the right. 24 May 2018.

Looking up the CSX (former C&O) Railroad tracks from Harts, WV. This site is part of the old Isaac and Aaron Adkins farm. 24 May 2018.

Here’s a cramped view of the new Harts PreK-8 School, built on what was once the Paris Brumfield farm. Charley Brumfield’s family owned this property from the 1890s until several years ago. 24 May 2018.

Ward Brumfield, Notary Public (1923)

10 Sunday Dec 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Harts

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Al Brumfield, Appalachia, E.J. Elkins, genealogy, Hamlin, Harts, history, Hollena Brumfield, Lincoln County, notary public, W.H. Triplett, Ward Brumfield, West Virginia

Record Oaths and Certificates Book 1, page 139, Lincoln County Clerk’s Office, Hamlin, WV. Ward Brumfield was the son of Al and Hollena (Dingess) Brumfield of Harts, WV.

Harts Area Deed Index (1893-1909)

03 Sunday Dec 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Atenville, Big Ugly Creek, Harts, Little Harts Creek

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Al Brumfield, Alice Dingess, Appalachia, Big Branch, Bridge Branch, Browns Branch, Caroline Brumfield, Cass Gartin, Charles Adkins, Charley Brumfield, Daisy Brumfield, Dave Dingess, Dry Branch, Elias Vance, Enos "Jake" Adkins, genealogy, George W. Dillon, Georgia Brumfield, Hamlin, Harts, Harts Creek, Harts Creek District, Hendricks Brumfield, history, Hollena Brumfield, Hollena Ferguson, Ike Fry Branch, James Brumfield, justice of the peace, L.C. Denison, Lettie Adkins, Lincoln County, Little Harts Creek, Martha J. Dial, Olga Brumfield, Paris Brumfield, Rachel Spry, Rhoda Gartin, Shingle Branch, Sidney Brumfield, W.L. Ferguson, Walton Brumfield, Ward Brumfield, Wesley Ferguson, West Fork, West Virginia, William Adkins, William Workman

The following deed index is based on Deed Book 50 at the Lincoln County Clerk’s Office in Hamlin, WV, and relates to residents of the Harts Creek community. These notes are meant to serve as a reference to Deed Book 50. Researchers who desire the most accurate version of this material are urged to consult the actual record book.

James and Sidney J. Brumfield to Olga Brumfield land for $245 30 June 1909 p. 46-47

L.C. and Rhoda Gartin to William Adkins 32 acres Dry Branch 2 June 1893 Elias Vance, JP p. 58-59

Caroline and Charles Brumfield to William Workman 50 acres Forks of Ike Fry Branch for $180 28 July 1904 Isaac Fry, JP p. 100-101

Allen and Hollena Brumfield to William Workman 195 acres Brown’s Branch for $200 26 June 1900 Isaac Fry, JP p. 101-102

W.L. Ferguson, Trustee of George W. Dillon (bankrupt), to William Workman and Rachel Spry 7 acres Mouth of Bridge Branch 18 November 1907 p. 103-104

Charles and Caroline Brumfield to William Workman and Rachel Spry 10 acres at Mouth of Little Harts Creek for $175 16 September 1909

Calls of Land Allotted to Rachel Spry from the Paris Brumfield Estate (Lot 7) 80 acres below Little Hart p. 106

Allen and Hollena Brumfield to Sarah Mullins and Mary A. Vance 25 acres Bridge Branch for $12 24 December 1903 p. 108-109

Charles Brumfield to Caroline Brumfield Three Tracts on Ike Fry Branch 07 August 1894 p. 111-112

Hollena and Wesley Ferguson, Ward Brumfield, Hendrix and Georgia Brumfield, to Charlie Brumfield 100 acres Guyan River 20 March 1907 Charles Adkins, JP p. 113-114

David and Alice Dingess to Caroline Brumfield 50 acres on Lower Branch of Little Harts Creek for $200 02 January 1909 Charles Adkins, JP p. 114-115

Walton and Daisy Brumfield to L.C. Denison 156, 59, 72 acres on Big and Shingle Branches of Big Ugly Creek 18 July 1908 p. 292-294

Enos and Lettice M. Adkins to Martha J. Dial 93 acres East Fork of Big Harts Creek for $250 12 June 1893 Elias Vance, JP p. 308-309

Note: I copied all of these deeds.

Douglas Branch (2017)

26 Thursday Oct 2017

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Boone County, Cemeteries, Ferrellsburg, Giles County, Green Shoal, Lincoln County Feud, Women's History

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Adkins-Davis Family Cemetery, Al Brumfield, Albert Adkins, Appalachia, Boone County, Brandon Kirk, Douglas Branch, Elizabeth Jane Hager, Emery Mullins, Emma Jane Adkins, Ferrellsburg, genealogy, Giles County, Gilmer County, Green McCoy, Green Shoal, history, Jacob Douglas, Jake Adkins, Lettie Adkins, Lincoln County, Lincoln County Feud, Logan County, Milt Haley, Philip Hager, photos, Phyllis Kirk, Sallie Fry, Virginia, West Virginia

Douglas Branch, located in present-day Ferrellsburg, Lincoln County, WV, was named for Jacob Douglas, husband of Sallie Fry, who settled in the area by 1829-30 from Giles County, Virginia. Mr. Douglas, born about 1804, appears in the 1830 Logan County Census. In 1850, he lived in Boone County. He died in 1855 in Gilmer County.

Enos “Jake” and Leticia “Lettie” McKibbon (Toney) Adkins were early residents of Douglas Branch. Following the Haley-McCoy murders at the mouth of Green Shoal in 1889, Al Brumfield rode up this hollow and spent the night under a beech tree. In the early 1920s, my great-great-grandfather Emery Mullins just up this hollow and to the left.

Emma Jane (Hager) Adkins was the daughter of Philip and Elizabeth Jane (Dalton) Hager. On July 14, 1888, she married Albert G. Adkins, a son of Jake and Lettie Adkins. Adkins-Davis Family Cemetery, Douglas Branch, Lincoln County, WV. 21 October 2017. Photo by Mom.

Harts Creek Area Deed Index (1883-1910)

11 Friday Nov 2016

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Ferrellsburg, Fourteen, Gill, Green Shoal, Guyandotte River, Little Harts Creek, Ranger, Sand Creek, Wewanta

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Al Brumfield, Albert Adkins, Ann Davis, Ann Mullins, Appalachia, Arabell Gill, Arena Ferrell, Ben Walker, Big Branch, Big Sulphur Branch, Big Ugly Creek, Brooke Adkins, C.D. Haverty, C.E. Burns, Cain Lucas, Catherine Adkins, Charles V. Huffman, Charles W. Mullins, Clementine Dingess, Columbia Gas and Electric Company, Cove Creek, Cumberland Adkins, D.P. Lambert, David F. Smith, Durg Fry, Ed Dingess, Edmund Fowler, Elizabeth Mullins, Elizabeth Nelson, Emily Rakes, Emmazetta Adkins, Ene Adkins, Fisher B. Adkins, Flora Lucas, Floyd Rakes, Fourteen Mile Creek, Fowlers Branch, genealogy, George Alderson, George E. McComas, George R. McComas, Gilbert Hager, Giles Davis, Granville Wiley, Green Shoal, Guyandotte River, Hamlin, Harriet McComas, Hellen M. Burks, Henry Adkins, Henry C. Sias, Henry H. Sias, Herb Adkins, Hiram Lambert, history, Hollena Brumfield, I.N. Mullins, Isaac F. Nelson, Isaiah Mullins, J.B. Pullen, J.L. Caldwell, J.S. Payne, Jacob K. Adkins, Jake Adkins, Jefferson Lucas, John A. McComas, John Q. Adams, John S. Brumfield, John W. Nelson, Joseph Browning, Julia Alderson, Keenan Ferrell, Keenan Toney, L.H. Burks, Lace Marcum, Laura Fry, Leander Wiley, Levi Rakes, Lewis Adkins, Lewis C. Queen, Lincoln County, Little Harts Creek, Little Ugly Creek, Louisa Wiley, Major Adkins, Martha E. Brumfield, Martha Fry, Martha Sias, Mary A. Mullins, Mary E. Williamson, Mary F. Fry, Mary J. Mullins, Mary L. Nelson, Mary McComas, Matilda Wiley, Milton Nelson, Minerva J. Fowler, Nancy E. Lucas, Olive F. Adkins, Peter M. Mullins, Philip Hager, Pinkston Queen, Polly Spurlock, Richard Adkins, Rine Spurlock, Robert Fry, Robert L. Fry, Rosa A. Fry, Rosa Browning, Rufus Estep, Rufus Pack, Salena Estep, Sand Creek, Sarah B. Maynard, Sarah E. Adkins, Sarah M. Adkins, Sarah Mullins, Sherman Nelson, Solomon C. Mullins, Spencer Adkins, Spring Branch, Squire Sol Adams, Steer Fork, Sulphur Spring Fork, Susan Adkins, Susan Lucas, T.R. Shepherd, United Fuel Gas Company, Vietta Haverty, W.S. Enochs, Walt Stowers, West Fork, West Virginia, Wilford Fry, Yantus Walker

The following deed index is based on Deed Book 56 at the Lincoln County Clerk’s Office in Hamlin, WV, and relates to residents of the Harts Creek community. Most notations reflect Harts Creek citizens engaged in local land transactions; some reflect Harts Creek citizens engaged in land transactions outside of the community. These notes are meant to serve as a reference to Deed Book 56. Researchers who desire the most accurate version of this material are urged to consult the actual record book.

Enos A. Adkins to late Ann F. Davis 200 acres Green Shoal Creek (her interest in Enos’ future estate) 6 November 1883 p. 99-100

Fisher B. Adkins to Catherine and Herb Adkins 1 acre 1/2 interest in land where store of F.E. Adkins and J.W. Stowers is located, 1/2 interest in store and stock of merchandise, farm items conveyed by F.E. Adkins on 14 May 1909, one pair of bay horses 15 June 1909 K.E. Toney, NP 3 July 1909 p. 82-83

Lewis and Emezetta Adkins to Sarah M. Adkins 50 acres West Side Guyandotte River 8 August 1899 Jefferson Lucas, NP 24 February 1900 p. 147-148

Richard and Olive F. Adkins to Sarah M. Adkins 50 acres Below Mouth of Fourteen Mile Creek 18 June 1892 David F. Smith, JP p. 145-147

Richard Adkins and Spencer Adkins to D.P. Lambert 80 1/4 acres Fourteen Mile Creek (Laurel Hill District) 17 July 1897 Isaac Fry, JP p. 42-44

George A. and Julia Alderson, Floyd and Emily Rakes, and C.D. and Vietta T. Haverty to J.L. Caldwell 8 acres (mineral) Sand Creek 7 December 1894 Elias Vance, JP p. 19-22

Joseph and Rosey Browning to Lace Marcum and T.R. Shepherd 45 acres Ridge Between Little Harts Creek and Big Branch 30 March 1910 Charles Adkins, JP 1 April 1910 p. 252-253

Allen and Hollena Brumfield to Louisa Wiley 176 acres Sulpher Spring Fork of Fourteen Mile Creek 12 February 1903 Jefferson Lucas, NP p. 40-42

Martha E. and John S. Brumfield to Henry H. Sias and his heirs 87 1/2 acres East Fork of Fourteen Mile Creek 24 October 1907 Jefferson Lucas, NP p. 13-14

L.H. and Hellen M. Burks to Gilbert Hager 50 acres Little Ugly Creek 19 February 1906 p. 106-108 [includes survey map]

Clementine and Ed Dingess, Ann F. and G.D. Davis, Susan and Henry Adkins, Julia Y. and B.W. Walker, Brooke and A.G. Adkins, F.E. Adkins, C.E. Burns (special commissioner) to Catherine Adkins 33 acres West Side Guyandotte River (land conveyed to Enos Adkins by J.K. Adkins on 29 October 1892) 1 October 1908 Fisher B. Adkins, NP 12 October 1908 Sol Adams, JP 16 October 1908 p. 86-88

Clementine and Ed Dingess, Susan and Henry Adkins, F.E. and Catherine Adkins, Brooke and A.G. Adkins, Julia Y. and B.W. Walker, and C.E. Burns (special commissioner) to Ann F. Davis 225 acres 1 October 1908 Fisher B. Adkins, NP 12 October 1908 Sol Adams, JP 16 October 1908 p. 101-103

Salena Estep to Rufus Estep 360 acres Spring Branch of West Fork 25 April 1910 p. 320-321

Arena and Keenan S. Ferrell to J.W. Stowers one acre Fowler’s Branch (part of tract conveyed by John Q. Adams on 25 May 1896) 28 October 1908 K.E. Toney, JP 30 October 1908 p. 84-85

Anderson Fry to A. Gill 25 acres Big Ugly Creek 7 January 1907 D.F. Smith, JP p. 128-129

Robert Fry to Wilford Fry, Martha Fry, and Rosa A. Fry 110 acres Ketchum Branch Guyandotte River 3 January 1888 J.B. Pullen, Jr. p. 287-289

Robert L. and Mary F. Fry to Arabell Gill Big Sulpher Branch of Big Ugly Creek 16 January 1904 Philip Hager, Jr., NP 16 February 1904 p. 125-126

Philip Hager to Robert Lee Fry 50 acres Big Sulpher Spring Branch of Big Ugly Creek 10 February 1898 John A. McComas, NP p. 124-125

E.C. and Flora Lucas to W.S. Enochs 20 acres and 39 acres Fourteen Mile Creek at or Near the Mouth of Cove Creek (Laurel Hill District) 29 March 1907 Jefferson Lucas, NP p. 268-269

Jefferson and Nancy E. Lucas to Cumberland Adkins 295 acres Fourteen Mile Creek (Laurel Hill District) 11 April 1907 D.F. Smith, JP 12 April 1907 p. 234-236

George E. and Mary McComas to J.L. Caldwell 24 acres East Side Guyandotte River 23 July 1900 p. 31-33

George R. and Harriet McComas to J.L. Caldwell 75 acres East Side Guyandotte River 19 February 1902 James McComas, NP p. 28-30

I.N. and Elizabeth Mullins to J.L. Caldwell 43 1/2 acres and 95 acres East Side Guyandotte River 1 September 1894 J.S. Payne, JP 8 October 1894 p. 23-25

Peter M. and Mary A. Mullins, A.S. and Sarah E. Adkins, Solomon C. and Mary J. Mullins, Granville and Matilda Wiley, John W. and Mary L. Nelson, C.W. and Ann Mullins, Edmund and Minerva J. Fowler, Isaiah and Sarah Mullins to J.L. Caldwell 43 1/2 acres East Side Guyandotte River 24 November 1894 Hiram Lambert, JP 30 November 1895 and 29 November 1894 p. 25-29

Milton and Elizabeth Nelson to Sherman Nelson 94 acres Big Branch and Fourteen Mile Creek 15 March 1906 Jefferson Lucas, NP p. 17-18

Milton and Elizabeth Nelson to Sherman Nelson 213 acres Big Branch of Guyandotte River 29 March 1909 Jefferson Lucas, NP 4 June 1909 p. 15-16

L.C. and Pinkston Queen to Sarah B. Maynard 113 3/4 acres Wiley Branch of Twelve Pole Creek 18 December 1907 William Toppins, JP p. 250-251

Levi Rakes et al to J.L. Caldwell 47 acres East Side Guyandotte River 28 July 1900 Isaac Fry, JP 30 July 1900 p. 36-38

Henry C. and Martha Sias to Isaac F. Nelson 85 acres Steer Fork of Fourteen Mile Creek (Laurel Hill District) 17 February 1909 Rufus Pack, NP p. 266-267

Marine and Polly Spurlock to Laura Fry 15 acres Ketchum Branch Guyandotte River (Laurel Hill District) 6 November 1889 Elias Vance, JP p. 289-290

United Fuel Gas Company to Columbia Gas and Electric Company 87 acres of Charles V. Huffman (26 March 1908) and 258 acres of Susan Lucas (24 March 1908) 1 December 1909 p. 270-275

Louisa and Leander Wiley to Mary E. Williamson Part of 176 acres made to Louisa Wiley by Allen Brumfield (Laurel Hill District) 7 July 1905 Jefferson Lucas, NP 11 July 1905 p. 38-40

NOTE: I copied all of these deeds.

Harts Creek Area Deed Index (1884-1910)

25 Tuesday Oct 2016

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Big Harts Creek, Big Ugly Creek, Ferrellsburg, Fourteen, Green Shoal, Guyandotte River, Hamlin, Little Harts Creek, Ranger, Sand Creek, Timber

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A.B. Harrison, A.B. Staley, A.C. Barrett, A.E. Wagner, A.F. Morris, A.P. Sanders, Aaron Adkins, Al Brumfield, Alex Hollandsworth, Allen Adkins Branch, Ben Walker, Big Branch, Big Ugly Creek, Blackburn Lucas, Brad Toney, Burbus C. Toney, C.E. Burns, Cain Adkins, Cain Lucas, Charley Lucas, David Farley, David Workman, E.E. Adkins, East Fork, Elias Vance, Elizabeth Duty, Emma Duty, Floyd Fry, Floyd Rakes, Francis Fork, genealogy, Georgia E. Staley, Green Shoal Branch, Guyandotte River, Hamlin, history, J.H. Fry, J.H. McComas, J.M. Brammer, J.P. Douglas, J.W. Johnson, Jake Adkins, James A. Holley, James L. Chafin, James P. Ferrell, Jeff Duty, Jefferson Lucas, John D. Shelton, John Dingess, John F. Duty, John P. Lucas, John W Runyon, Laurel Fork, Lee Fry, Lewis Nelson, Lincoln County, Little Harts Creek, Lorenzo D. Hill, Lottie Lucas, Louary Brumfield, Louis R. Sweetland, Louisa Lucas, Mack H. Adkins, Maggie Farley, Malinda Nelson, Martha Jane Lucas, Marvel Elkins, Mary Alice Manns, Mile Branch, Morgan Phipps, Moses Lucas, Nancy A. Holley, Nancy Jane Adkins, Nancy Webb, Nettie Ferrell, Peter M. Toney, Philip Hager, Rufus Pack, Samuel B. Price, Sand Creek, Sarah Adkins, Sarah Headley, Smith Ferrell, Spencer Adkins, Sulphur Spring Fork, timber, W.C. Mullen, Wesley Nelson, West Fork, West Virginia, William A. Sias, William Manns, William R. Duty

The following deed index is based on Deed Book 52 at the Lincoln County Clerk’s Office in Hamlin, WV, and relates to residents of the Harts Creek community. Most notations reflect Harts Creek citizens engaged in local land transactions; some reflect Harts Creek citizens engaged in land transactions outside of the community. These notes are meant to serve as a reference to Deed Book 52. Researchers who desire the most accurate version of this material are urged to consult the actual record book.

Aaron and Nancy Jane Adkins to B.W. Walker 100 acres on Allen Adkins Branch of Guyandotte River 12 June 1885 Cain Adkins, JP p. 58-59 [NOTE: References logs, Mack H. Adkins]

Aaron Adkins, Jr. to B.W. Walker Ridge Between East Fork and Guyandotte River (Upper 1/3 of 200 acre survey) 12 October 1889 Elias Vance, JP p. 60 [references Samuel B. Price timber]

E.E. Adkins to Allen Brumfield, Jr. 185 5/8 acres 17 August 1897 p. 411-412

Enos Adkins et ux to Allen Brumfield, Jr. 2 Tracts 22 August 1895 p. 424-425

Enos Adkins et ux to Allen Brumfield 28 December 1894 Elias Vance, JP p. 413-414

Isaac Adkins et al to Allen Brumfield, Jr. 22 June 1892 p. 420-421

Sarah Adkins to B.W. Walker 100 acres Allen Adkins Branch 14 August 1889 p. 61-62

Spencer Adkins to John P. Lucas 221 1/2 acres Guyandotte River (Laurel Hill District) 14 March 1896 p. 273-274

Spencer Adkins et ux to Martha Jane Lucas 63 5/8 acres Big Branch (Laurel Hill District) 29 January 1908 p. 275-276

J.M. Brammer et ux to David Farley 44 1/2 acres Laurel Fork of Little Harts Creek 11 April 1910 A.E. Wagner, JP p. 300-301

Allen Brumfield to Hollena Brumfield 25 January 1904 p. 428-429

Allen Brumfield to Hollena Brumfield 70 acres 9 July 1904 p. 430-431

Louary Brumfield et al to A.C. Barrett et ux Lot No. 6 Hamlin 23 July 1903 p. 308-310

C.E. Burns to Nancy Webb 52 1/2 acres Frances Creek 10 August 1908 p. 10

James L. Chafin to L.C. Browning et ux Big Branch 19 January 1903 p. 314-315

John Conley et ux to Rosa N. Vannatter 66 acres Big Ugly Creek 19 October 1908 p. 117-118

B.C. Dial to Brad Toney 100 acres on East Side of Guyandotte River 23 October 1891 J.R. Wilson, NP p. 241-242

John Dingess to Hollena Brumfield 7 August 1891 p. 418-419

J.P. Douglas, trustee, to Hollena Ferguson p. 426-428

J.P. Douglas, trustee, to John D. Shelton 10 acres Sand Creek, Big Branch 6 June 1908 p. 38-39

Leo F. Drake et al to Lewis Thompson 100 acres Harts Creek 30 March 1905 p. 264-265

John F. Duty to Jefferson Duty 12 1/2 acres 28 July 1898 p. 114-115

William R. Duty to Emma Duty 80 acres 4 December 1897 p. 115-116

William R. Duty to Jefferson Duty 50 acres 4 December 1897 p. 113-114

Marvel Elkins to William A. Sias 100 acres Sulpher Spring Fork of Fourteen Mile Creek 7 February 1888 p. 27-28

Maggie Farley to Louis R. Sweetland 1/4 acre and 1 Lot Hamlin 15 August 1907 p. 365-367

Jonah Ferguson to Dollie Ferrell 30 acres Big Ugly 19 October 1907 P.M. Toney, NP p. 289-290

James P. Ferrell to Bradford Toney 7 June 1887 Philip Hager, NP p. 240-241

Smith and Nettie Ferrell to Elizabeth Duty 16 acres 21 November 1899 p. 116-117

Floyd Fry et ux to Bradford Toney 150 acre interest just above mouth of Green Shoal 28 June 1898 J.H. McComas, NP p. 243 [references B.C. Toney farm]

A.B. Harrison and J.H. Fry to A.B. Staley 86 acres Fourteen Mile Creek (Laurel Hill District) 8 April 1892 p. 81

Sarah Headley to E.C. Lucas et ux one acre Fourteen Mile Creek (Laurel Hill District) 2 March 1907 p. 313-314

L.D. Hill to Moses Lucas 100 acres Mile Branch 24 April 1903 p. 316-317

Alex Hollandsworth et ux to Lee Fry House and Lot, Hamlin 26 March 1908 p. 367-368

James A. Holley et ux to Allen Brumfield, Jr. Guyandotte River 6 June 1898 p. 415-418

Nancy A. Holley et ux to Maggie Farley 1/4 acre Hamlin 7 June 1907 p. 364-365

J.W. Johnson to Spencer Adkins and John P. Lucas right of way 11 July 1908 p. 277-278

B.B. Lucas to Lottie Lucas 75 acres Green Shoal branch 11 December 1906 M.C. Farley, NP p. 220-221

Charley and Louisa Lucas et vir to Morgan Phipps 7 acres Laurel Fork (Jefferson District) 13 September 1910 p. 371

John P. Lucas to A.B. Staley 65 acres West Side Guyandotte River 26 December 1899 Jefferson Lucas, JP p. 82-83

John P. Lucas to A.B. Staley 46 acres Fourteen Mile Creek (Laurel Hill District) 12 March 1907 Jefferson Lucas, JP p. 78-79

William Mans to Mary Alice Mans et al quit claim 12 May 1905 p. 11-12

A.F. Morris, special commissioner, to B.B. Lucas 75 acres on Green Shoal 7 December 1906 p. 218-219

W.C. Mullen et ux to A.P. Sanders 278 acres Lick Branch 17 October 1907 p. 369-370

Lewis and Malinda Nelson to A.E. Wagner 15 acres on West Side of Guyan River 4 December 1906 D.F. Smith, JP

Wesley Nelson to A.E. Wagner 23 acres 21 March 1906 p. 57-58

Floyd Rakes to Georgie E. Staley 50 acres on Fourteen Mile Creek (Laurel Hill District) 28 July 1892 p. 79-80

John W. Runyans to Canaan Adkins 66 2/3 acres (interest in 200 acres) West Fork and Guyandotte River 6 February 1889 p. 248

F.D. Stallings et ux to Abijah Workman 100 acre interest on Francis Creek 15 March 1899 p.7-8

Russell S. Stollings et ux to William D. Farley 35 acres Little Harts Creek and Francis Fork of Twelve Pole 24 March 1900 Isaac Fry, JP p. 298-299

Ralph and Anna Steel to William R. Duty 73 3/4 acres 14 August 1903 p. 112-113

B.C. Toney to Bradford Toney 20 acres and 80 acres Big Ugly 20 February 1884 -. 239-240

Moses B. Toney et al to Allen Brumfield 10 June 1892 p. 422-423

Wirt Toney et al to Bradford Toney 140 acres Guyandotte River 1 April 1887 p. 244-245

O.J. Wilkinson, Commissioner of School Lands, to J.H. Meek, trustee 25 acres Ranger School West Side Guyandotte River 20 December 1909 p. 207

F.B. Wilson to John D. Shelton 105 acres Sand Creek Jerry Lambert, NP 1 October 1908 p. 36-37

J.R. Wilson to J.A. Holley Timber on Bobbies Branch 15 November 1899 p. 155

Abijah Workman to Nancy Workman 30 acres Francis Creek 17 January 1900 Rufus Pack, NP p. 9

David Workman to Brad Toney 140 acres 20 October 1891 p. 237-238

NOTE: I copied all of these deeds.

Harts Creek Area Deed Index (1886-1909)

25 Tuesday Oct 2016

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Big Ugly Creek, Ferrellsburg, Fourteen, Green Shoal, Little Harts Creek

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A.F. Morris, Al Brumfield, Amanda McComas, Andrew Elkins, Arena Ferrell, Arnold Perry, Big Ugly Creek, Bird Brumfield, Cain Adkins, Charles Lucas, Charley Bowden Brumfield, Copley's Trace, Elias Vance, Elizabeth Lucas, Emma Vance, Fourteen Mile Creek, Fowler Branch, Fulton Branch, George L. Estabrook, George Vannatter, Gideon D. Vance, Hamlin, Harvey Farley, Hiram Moore, Isaac Gartin, J.B. Hainer, J.H. Hollandsworth, J.H. McComas, J.P. Phipps, J.W. Sarten, Jacob K. Adkins, Jefferson Lucas, John Farley, John Q. Adams, Kiahs Creek, Limestone Branch, Lincoln County, Lincoln County Coal Land Association, Little Harts Creek, Louis R. Sweetland, Lucinda Lucas, Malinda J. Vance, Mud River, O.J. Spurlock, S.M. Croft, Sabin W. Colton, Sampson Brumfield, Sarah Ann Brumfield, Sarah Jane Baisden, Short Bend Branch, Squire Toney, Swift Shoal Hollow, Telitha Spears, U.S. Phipps, West Virginia, Wilbur R. White, William Manns, Witcher's Camp Branch

The following deed index is based on Deed Book 51 at the Lincoln County Clerk’s Office in Hamlin, WV, and relates to residents of the Harts Creek community. Most notations reflect Harts Creek citizens engaged in local land transactions; some reflect Harts Creek citizens engaged in land transactions outside of the community. These notes are meant to serve as a reference to Deed Book 51. Researchers who desire the most accurate version of this material are urged to consult the actual record book.

John Q. Adams to Arena Ferrill 70 acres Mouth of Fowler Branch 2 May 1896 p. 163-164

J.K. Adkins et ux to Arrena Ferrell 119 acres East Side of Guyan River at mouth of Swift Shoal Hollow 28 June 1897 Allen Brumfield, NP p. 162-163

Charley B. Brumfield and wife to Louis R. Sweetland 100 acres Fulton Branch 19 August 1903 p. 387-388

Charley B. Brumfield et ux to Louis R. Sweetland 62 acres Mud River 14 December 1906 p. 394-395

Sabin W. Colton, Jr. and George L. Estabrook (trustees for the Lincoln County Coal Land Association) to B.C. Spurlock and E.W. Fry Nine Mile Creek 14 June 1904 p. 234

Sabin W. Colton et al (trustees for the Prentice Coal Land Association) to Blackburn Lucas 30 acres Spears Fork of Green Shoal Creek 1 July 1893 p. 181-182

S.M. Croft, trustee, to O.J. Spurlock 50 acres Big Ugly Creek 9 October 1908 p. 499-500

John Farley to Harvey Farley 35 acres Short Bend Branch, Fourteen Mile Creek 12 September 1902 p. 246-247

I.G. Gartin to William Mans 96 acres and 230 acres Rolin and Little Harts Creek 3 January 1899 Jefferson Lucas, JP p. 436-437

J.B. Hainer to Louis R. Sweetland 133 3/4 acres (mineral) Limestone Branch 25 September 1899 p. 296-297

J.H. Hollandsworth to Charley B. Brumfield 100 acres Mud River 12 February 1903 p. 318-319

Charles Lucas to Sarah Ann Brumfield 75 acres Greenshoal Creek 6 July 1895 Elias Vance, JP p. 189 [Note: Charles’ wife Lucinda was deceased]

Charles Lucas to W.B. Brumfield et al 50 acres Green Shoal 18 September 1886 Canaan Adkins, JP p. 187-188

Charles Lucas to Blackburn Lucas 80 acres Green Shoal Creek (Spears Branch) 18 September 1886 Canaan Adkins, JP p. 182-183

Elizabeth and B.B. Lucas and Sarah Jane Baisden to Louis R. Sweetland 15 acres and 30 acres on Limestone Branch 15 May 1909 A.F. Morris, NP p. 293-294

William Mans et ux to William Manns Little Harts Creek 3 January 1899 Jefferson Lucas, JP p. 438-440

J.H. and Amanda McComas to B.B. Lucas 57/100 acres Green Shoal Creek 30 August 1899 W.B. Brumfield, JP p. 184-185

Hiram Moore to S.S. Brumfield 122 1/2 acres Big Creek of Mud River 16 March 1900 p. 29-30

A.F. Morris, commissioner, to Louis R. Sweetland 92 acres Fourteen Mile Creek 12 June 1908 p. 405 [Note: This is the Andrew Elkins farm]

Arnold Perry to Emma Vance 41 acres Witcher’s Camp Branch 13 October 1900 Jackson Adkins, JP p. 273-274

J.P. and U.S. Phipps to Louis R. Sweetland 109 acres Limestone Branch 25 September 1899 p. 302-303

J.W. Sarten et ux to Emma Vance 4 acres Copleys Trace of Kiah’s Creek 18 March 1905 p. 270-271

Telitha Spears et al to Blackburn Lucas 28 acres Green Shoal 26 July 1886 Canaan Adkins, JP p. 185-186

Squire Toney et ux to George Vannatter et al 108 acres Big Ugly Creek 26 November 1899 p. 443

Gideon D. Vance to Emma Vance Witcher’s Camp Branch 16 May 1900 Isaac Fry, JP p. 274-275

Malinda J. Vance et al to Emma Vance 60 acres Copley Trace of Kiahs Creek 21 July 1904 W.B. Brumfield, JP p. 271-272

Wilbur R. White et ux to Charley B. Brumfield Mud River 20 August 1903 p. 392-393

NOTE: I copied all of these deeds.

Fourteen, WV (1898-1899)

16 Wednesday Dec 2015

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Fourteen

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A.M. Adkins & Bro. General Store, Al Brumfield, Appalachia, Fourteen, genealogy, general store, Hamlin, history, James Madison Dial, U.S. South

Polk’s West Virginia State Gazetteer and Business Directory (1899)

Harts Creek Area Justices of the Peace (1879-1910)

16 Wednesday Dec 2015

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Big Harts Creek, Sand Creek, Warren

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A. Gill, A.A. Low, A.B. Lowe, Aaron Adkins, Abijah Workman Jr., Abner Vance, Al Brumfield, Albert Adkins, Albert G. Abbott, Allen Tomblin, Amanda McComas, Anderson Fry, Andrew D. Robinson, Andrew Elkins, Andrew Jackson Browning, Archibald Harrison, B.F. Scearcy, Ballard Lambert, Ben Walker, Bird Brumfield, Blackburn Lucas, Blackie Lucas, Cain Adkins, Caroline Brumfield, Catherine Dingess, Charles Adkins, Charles Browning, Charles Brumfield, Charles Kinser, Charles Lucas, Charles W. Mullins, Clementine Dingess, Cumberland Adkins, Cynthia Ann Mullins, David F. Smith, David Farley, Ed Dingess, Elias Vance, Elisha Vance, Elizabeth Elkins, Elizabeth Lucas, Elizabeth Mullins, Elvira Baisden, Emily Dingess, Emily Rakes, Emma Vance, Ene Adkins, Enos "Jake" Adkins, Evaline Sartin, Ezekiel K. Johnson, Farabell Vance, Floyd Rakes, Francis Vance, genealogy, George Alderson, George F. Miller, George Fry, George Shepherd, Hamlin, Harmon Stroud, Harts Creek, Henry C. Sias, Henry Workman, Hiram Lambert, history, Hugh Evans, Isaac F. Nelson, Isaac Fry, Isaac Gartin, Isaac Workman, J.B. Pullen, J.H. McComas, J.L. Caldwell, J.M. Brammer, J.S. Payne, Jake Adkins, James H. Marcum, Jefferson Lucas, Jeremiah Lambert, John B. Pullen, John H Fry, John H. Adkins, John Henry Adkins, John M. Thompson, John McCloud, John Messer, John Mullins, John Vance, John W. Sartin, Joseph Browning, Julia Alderson, justice of the peace, Lace Marcum, Laura Fry, Lewis C. Queen, Lewis Nelson, Lincoln County, Logan County, Logan County Banner, Louisa A. Wiley, Malinda Adkins, Malinda J. Vance, Malinda Nelson, Margaret Browning, Marine Spurlock, Martha J. Fry, Martha Sias, Mary A. Mullins, Mary L. Nelson, Mary Slate, Melissa Adkins, Melvin Butcher, Miles B. Browning, Minerva McCloud, Minnis W. Perry, Mitchell Browning, Moses Toney, Nancy E. Lucas, Nancy Jane Adkins, Nancy M. Workman, Olive F. Adkins, Peter M. Mullins, Peter Mullins, Pinkston Queen, Polly C. Bryant, Polly Spurlock, Rebecca Bell, Richard Adkins, Robert Fry, Robert Mullins, Rosa A. Fry, Rosa Browning, Rufus Pack, Rush Slate, Salena Vance, Sampson Brumfield, Sarah A. Perry, Sarah Ann Brumfield, Sarah B. Maynard, Sarah E. Gore, Sarah E. Thompson, Sarah E. Vance, Sarah M. Adkins, Sol Adams, Sophia Kinser, Stephen Lambert, Susan Stroud, T.R. Shepherd, Telitha Spears, Thomas H. Harvey, Thomas J. Adkins, Van Donley Lambert, Victory Thompson, Weddington Mullins, West Virginia, Wilford Fry, William Bell, William Conley, William Dingess, William Manns, William Toppins, William Workman, Wog Dalton

Between 1879 and 1910, the following men served as justices of the peace in the Harts Creek community. The primary source for this material is “Commissioner’s Record of Destroyed Title Papers 2,” which is located at the Lincoln County Clerk’s Office in Hamlin, WV. Material is arranged based on the person’s name as given in the deed, the date of the deed, and the date of the deed’s acknowledgment by a JP. I have also found JPs listed in Deed Book 50, 51, 52, 54, 55, 56, and 60. Deed Book “S” at the Logan County Clerk’s Office as well as numerous records in the Logan County Circuit Clerk’s Office have also provided information. Many thanks to the county clerks and their employees who have always been so helpful to my research these past twenty-five years.

Stephen Lambert (Logan County) 1879, 1885-1886

State v. John Mullins (1879-1880)

NOTE: Moses Dalton stated that he was a “magistrate” in c.1885.

Deed: W.T. Butcher to Birl Farley 11 September 1885 11 September 1885

Deed: William and Emily Dingess to Polly C. Bryant 25 January 1886

Hall v. Baker 30 September 1886, 16 October 1886

NOTE: Stephen Lambert died, according to court docket files, on 21 October 1886 or 23 October 1886

A.B. Lowe was appointed justice in place of Stephen Lambert, deceased 8 November 1886

Andrew D. Robinson (Lincoln County) 1879

State v. John Mullins (1879-1880)

John McCloud (Logan County) 1881-1884, 1890-1892

Deed: Margaret Browning 01 October 1879 29 January 1881

Deed: A.A. Low to Stephen Lambert 1 June 1881 25 March 1882

Deed: Weddington Mullins 14 March 1881 18 July 1882

Deed: Charles Browning 1 June 1881 22 July 1882

Deed: Francis Vance 1 July 1882 10 March 1883

Deed: John Messer 15 September 1882 12 February 1884

Deed: Henry Workman v. Melvin Butcher 24 March 1884

Deed: Henry Workman v. Melvin Butcher 28 March 1884

Deed: Ezekiel K. Johnson 1 July 1882 30 December 1884

Workman v. Butcher 24 March 1884, 28 March 1884, 9 June 1884

Deed: Robert Mullins to Sarah E. Gore 25 November 1890 3 December 1890

Deed: Sophia Kinser 1 June 1881 12 November 1891

Deed: Farabell and John Vance to Salena Vance 11 October 1892

Jeremiah Lambert (Lincoln County) 1881-1884

Deed: John Henry Adkins 10 May 188? 3 June 1881

Deed: Archibald B. Harrison 1 July 1882 7 July 1882

Deed: John H. Fry 1 July 1882 16 August 1882

Deed: Sampson S. Brumfield 1 July 1882 17 August 1882

Deed: Minnis W. Perry 1 June 1881 13 April 1883

Deed: Enos Adkins 1 July 1882 3 June 1883

Deed: Sarah E. Thompson 23 March 1883 23 June 1883

Deed: Miles B. Browning 14 April 1881 10 August 1883

Deed: Elisha Vance 15 September 1882 10 August 1883

Deed: Moses B. Toney 21 August 1882 21 August 1883

Deed: Jeremiah and Ballard Lambert 1 July 1882 12 September 1883

Deed: Van D. Lambert 15 September 1882 30 January 1884

Deed: Albert G. Abbott 23 March 1883 14 February 1884

James H. Marcum (Lincoln County) 1881

Deed: Harmon and Susan Stroud to Louisa A. Wiley 18 November 1881

Canaan Adkins (Lincoln County) 1885-1888

Deed: Mitchell Browning and Charles Kinser 23 March 1883 5 March 1885

Deed: John and Chloe Ann Messer to Floyd Caldwell 16 March 1885 16 March 1885

Deed: Aaron and Nancy Jane Adkins to B.W. Walker 12 June 1885

Deed: John M.P. and Victory Thompson 1 July 1882 18 July 1885

Deed: Sarah E. Vance, Mary L. Nelson, and Peter M. Mullins 25 April 1883 8 August 1885

Deed: Aaron and Nancy Jane Adkins to B.W. Walker 12 June 1885 12 June 1885

Deed: Abner Vance 21 August 1882 6 October 1885

Deed: Telitha Spears to Blackburn Lucas 26 July 1886 26 July 1886

Deed: Charles Lucas to Blackburn Lucas 18 September 1886 18 September 1886

Deed: Charles Lucas to William Bird Brumfield 18 September 1886 18 September 1886

Deed: Sarah A. Perry 14 April 1881 14 February 1887

Deed: William and Jane Manns to Josephine Robinson 19 February 1887 19 February 1887

Deed: Andrew Jackson Browning 23 March 1883 17 June 1887

Deed: Elvira Baisden 1 July 1882 19 November 1887

Deed: Aaron and Nancy Jane Adkins 24 August 1887 24 August 1887/14 February 1888

Deed: Jeremiah Lambert to Van D. Lambert 30 April 1888

Deed: Floyd and Martha Caldwell to Melvin Kirk 7 July 1888 7 July 1888

A.B. Lowe (Logan County) 1886

A.B. Lowe was appointed justice in place of Stephen Lambert, deceased 8 November 1886

Hall v. Baker 18 November 1886

John B. Pullen (Lincoln County) 1888

Robert Fry to Wilford Fry, Martha J. Fry, and Rosa A. Fry 3 January 1888

Elias Vance (Lincoln County) 1889-1896

Aaron and Nancy J. Adkins to Malissia Adkins 14 August 1889 14 August 1889

Marine and Polly Spurlock to Laura Fry 6 November 1889

Polly C. Bryant to children 15 July 1891

Minerva McCloud 15 September 1882 7 November 1891

2 June 1893

Andrew and Elizabeth Elkins to Thomas J. Adkins 27 March 1894

George A. and Julia Alderson, Floyd and Emily Rakes, and C.D. and Vietta T. Haverty to J.L. Caldwell 7 December 1894

Enos Adkins et ux to Allen Brumfield 28 December 1894 14 May 1895

Charles Lucas to Sarah Brumfield 6 July 1895 6 July 1895

Samuel Workman to Melvin Kirk 29 September 1896 29 September 1896

On 26 August 1898, JP Vance was sentenced to serve two years in the state penitentiary for embezzlement.

David F. Smith (Lincoln County) 1892-1907

Richard and Olive F. Adkins to Sarah M. Adkins 18 June 1892

Peter Mullins to Jerry Lambert 12 January 1901

Lewis and Malinda Nelson to A.E. Wagner 4 December 1906

Anderson Fry to A. Gill 7 January 1907

Jefferson and Nancy E. Lucas to Cumberland Adkins 11 April 1907 12 April 1907

Hiram “Hi” Lambert (Lincoln County) 1893-1894

Deed: Farabel and John Vance to John H. Adkins 6 December 1893

Deed: Salena Vance 25 December 1893 25 December 1893

Deed: Peter M. and Mary A. Mullins et al to J.L. Caldwell 24 November 1894 29 November 1894

J.S. Payne (Lincoln County?) 1894

I.N. and Elizabeth Mullins to J.L. Caldwell 1 September 1894 7 September 1894

Sol Adams (Logan County) 1895-1897, 1899, 1907-1908

Between September and October of 1895, the Logan County Banner referenced him as Squire Sol.

Between February and September 1896, the Logan County Banner referenced him as Squire Sol.

Deed: Allen and Sarah Tomblin to William Conley 07 July 1894 09 April 1897

Cynthia Ann Mullins deposition 21 October 1899

Deed: Charles Washington Mullins to Jerry Lambert 18 June 1907

Deed: Clementine and Ed Dingess et al to Catherine Adkins 1 October 1908 16 October 1908

Deed: Clementine and Ed Dingess et al to Ann F. Davis 1 October 1908 16 October 1908

Isaac Fry (Lincoln County) 1897-1904

Richard and Spencer Adkins to D.P. Lambert 17 July 1897

Charles Adkins to Malinda Adkins 25 April 1898

Russell S. Stollings et ux to William D. Farley 24 March 1900

25 June 1900

Susan and Levi Rakes et al to J.L. Caldwell 28 July 1900 30 July 1900

28 July 1904

Jefferson Lucas (Lincoln County) 1899-1907

Isaac G. Gartin to William Manns 3 January 1899 3 January 1899

William Manns to William H. Manns 3 January 1899 3 January 1899

John P. Lucas to A.B. Staley 12 March 1907

William Bird Brumfield (Lincoln County) 1899-1904

J.H. and Amanda McComas to Blackburn Lucas 30 August 1899 30 August 1899

William and Rebecca Bell et al to Thomas H. Harvey and George F. Miller 12 January 1900

Malinda J. Vance to Emma Vance 21 July 1904 21 July 1904

George F. Frye (Lincoln County) 1901-1902

Farabell Vance to Salena Vance 7 May 1901

Enos Adkins to A.G. Adkins and F.E. Adkins 15 February 1902 15 February 1902

Rufus Pack (Lincoln County) 1903-1909

Isaac and Nancy M. Workman to Abijah Workman, Jr. 2 February 1903

Henry C. and Martha Sias to Isaac F. Nelson 17 February 1909

Charles Adkins (Lincoln County) 1905-1910

02 November 1905

Charles and Caroline Brumfield to J.M. Brammer and B.F. Scearcy 7 November 1906

Blackie Lucas to Elizabeth Lucas 15 July 1907

Asa and Rebecca Williamson to Hugh Evans 18 February 1908

William Workman to Joseph Browning 15 July 1908

Malinda Adkins to Isaiah Adkins 20 July 1908

02 January 1909

Joseph and Rosey Browning to Lace Marcum and T.R. Shepherd 1 April 1910

William Toppins (Wayne County) 1907

Deed: L.C. and Pinkston Queen to Sarah B. Maynard 18 December 1907

Hugh Evans (Lincoln County) 1908

Deed: John W. and Evaline Sartin to George Shepherd 29 July 1908

A.E. Wagner (Lincoln County) 1910

Deed: Anderson Fry to Rush and Mary Slate 14 January 1910

J.M. Brammer et ux to David Farley 11 April 1910 19 April 1910

Hart (1891-1892)

27 Thursday Aug 2015

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Harts, Lincoln County Feud

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Tags

Al Brumfield, Appalachia, geography, Green Shoal, Guyandotte River, Harts Creek, history, Lincoln County, map, photos, U.S. South, West Fork, West Virginia

Hart, noting “Brumfield’s Store,” in 1891-1892. Al Brumfield owned the store.

Harts, WV (1963)

15 Wednesday Apr 2015

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Guyandotte River, Harts

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Al Brumfield, Appalachia, flood, Guyandotte River, Harts, history, Lincoln County, U.S. South, Watson Adkins, West Virginia

Harts, Lincoln County, WV, 1963. Note: The Al Brumfield-Watson Adkins home is visible to the right.

Big Harts Creek Post Offices

20 Friday Feb 2015

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Big Harts Creek, Halcyon, Harts, Shively, Spottswood, Warren, Whirlwind

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Al Brumfield, Albert Dingess, Alice Adams, Alice Dingess, Andrew D. Robinson, Appalachia, Bill Fowler, Chapmanville District, Enzelo Post Office, Everett Dingess, Ferrellsburg, genealogy, George W. Adkins, Glen R. Dial, Halcyon Post Office, Harts, Harts Creek, Harts Creek District, Harts Post Office, Henry S. Godby, Herbert Adkins, history, Hollena Brumfield, Hollena Ferguson, Ina Adams, Isham Roberts, James Mullins, John S. Butcher, Lawrence Riddle, Lewis Dempsey, Lincoln County, Logan County, Nora St. Clair, Queens Ridge Post Office, Ross Fowler, Sallie Adkins, Sallie Farley, Shively Post Office, Sol Riddell, Spottswood Post Office, Thomas H. Buckley, Ulysses S. Richards, Warren Post Office, West Virginia, Whirlwind Post Office

Big Harts Creek, located in Harts Creek District of Lincoln County, West Virginia, and Chapmanville District of Logan County, West Virginia, has hosted seven post offices: Hearts Creek/Hart’s Creek/Hart/Harts (1870-present), Warren (1884-1894), Spottswood (1901-1908), Halcyon (1906-1923), Whirlwind (1910-1950s), Enzelo (1916-1922), and Shively (1926-?). Today, one post office exists at the mouth of Harts Creek in the town of Harts.

Enzelo Post Office (1916-1922) — located in the Logan County section of Harts Creek

Ulysses S. Richards: 22 March 1916 – 15 December 1922

Post office discontinued: 15 December 1922

Halcyon Post Office (1906-1923) — located near the mouth of Marsh Fork of West Fork of Harts Creek in Logan County

Albert Dingess: 3 May 1906 – 20 April 1921

Everet Dingess: 20 April 1921 (took possession), 11 May 1921 (acting postmaster), 21 September 1921 – 14 July 1923

Post office discontinued: 14 July 1923, mail to Ferrellsburg

Hearts Creek Post Office (1870-1872) — located at the mouth of Big Harts Creek in Lincoln County

Henry S. Godby: 3 November 1870 – 20 November 1872

Post office discontinued: 20 November 1872

Hart’s Creek Post Office (1877-1880) — located at the mouth of Big Harts Creek in Lincoln County

William T. Fowler: 2 March 1877 – 9 September 1879

Andrew D. Robinson: 9 September 1879 – 2 December 1880

Post office discontinued: 2 December 1880

Hart Post Office (1881-1910) — located at the mouth of Big Harts Creek in Lincoln County

Andrew D. Robinson: 6 July 1881 – 12 November 1883

Isham Roberts: 12 November 1883 – 3 June 1884

Thomas H. Buckley: 3 June 1884 – 1 July 1884

George W. Adkins: 1 July 1884 – 25 May 1885

William E. “Ross” Fowler: 25 May 1885 – 30 October 1891

Post office discontinued: 30 October 1891, mail to Fourteen

Allen Brumfield: 19 January 1900 – 6 September 1905

Hollena Brumfield: 6 September 1905 – 25 July 1907

Hollena Ferguson: 25 July 1907 – 30 July 1910

Post office discontinued: 30 July 1910, mail to Queens Ridge

Harts Post Office (1916-present) — located at the mouth of Big Harts Creek in Lincoln County

Lewis Dempsey: 5 April 1916 – 12 April 1921

Herbert Adkins: 12 April 1921, 30 April 1921 (assumed charge) – 31 December 1953 (retired)

Glen R. Dial: 31 December 1953 (assumed charge), 22 January 1954 (acting postmaster), 8 March 1955 (confirmed) – 29 July 1966 (removed)

Shively Post Office (1923-?) — located on Smokehouse Fork of Big Harts Creek in Logan County

A. Butcher: 1923-1924

Ina E. Adams: 4 December 1925 (acting postmaster), 18 January 1926 – 2 August 1935

John S. Butcher: 2 August 1935 (assumed charge), 18 September 1935 (acting postmaster), 25 October 1935 – 1 January 1949

Mrs. Sallie Farley Adkins: 1 January 1949 (assumed charge), 10 June 1949, 1 October 1949 (assumed charge) – 22 July 1958 (resigned)

Nora St. Clair: 22 July 1958 (assumed charge) –

Spottswood Post Office (1901-1908) — located near the mouth of Trace Fork in Logan County

Alice Adams: 9 October 1901 – 4 August 1905

Alice Adams Dingess: 4 August 1905 – 31 December 1908

Post office discontinued: 31 December 1908

Warren Post Office (1884-1894) — located near the mouth of Smokehouse Fork in Lincoln County (today Logan County)

Andrew D. Robinson: 17 June 1884 – 17 January 1894

Post office discontinued: 17 January 1894

Whirlwind Post Office (1910-1950s)

L.W. Riddle: 31 March 1910 – 25 May 1911

Sol Riddell: 25 May 1911 – 30 April 1914

James Mullins: 30 April 1914 –

NOTE: For more information regarding the Whirlwind PO, see other posts at this blog.

Source: U.S. Appointments of Postmasters, 1832-1971, maintained by the National Archives and Records Administration; Polk’s West Virginia State Gazetteer & Business Directory, 1923-1924 (Detroit, MI: R.L. Polk & Company, 1923).

Al Brumfield

17 Sunday Aug 2014

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Harts, Lincoln County Feud, Timber

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Tags

Al Brumfield, Blood in West Virginia, feud, feuds, Harts, history, life, Lincoln County, Lincoln County Feud, Paris Brumfield, photos, timbering, West Virginia

Allen “Al” Brumfield, son of Paris, resident of Harts, Lincoln County, WV, 1890s

In Search of Ed Haley 337

17 Thursday Jul 2014

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Big Harts Creek, Culture of Honor, Ed Haley, Lincoln County Feud

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Al Brumfield, banjo, Billy Adkins, blind, Bob Bryant, Brandon Kirk, Burl Farley, Charley Brumfield, Ed Haley, Fed Adkins, fiddlers, French Bryant, Green McCoy, Harve "Short Harve" Dingess, history, Hollene Brumfield, Hugh Dingess, John Hartford, Kentucky, Lincoln County Feud, Martin County, measles, Milt Haley, music, Nashville, Piney, Smokehouse Fork, Tom Holzen, West Fork, Wolf Creek, writing

Brandon and I also called Bob Bryant, a son of the infamous French Bryant, who lived with his son at the mouth of Piney Creek on West Fork. Billy Adkins had encouraged us to call Bob, saying that he would probably tell us what he knew of the Haley-McCoy murders. When we called Bob, his son said we were welcome to talk with his dad, although he warned us that his memory wasn’t very good.

Bob said he was born on Piney in 1911.

When I asked him about French Bryant he said he knew very little about him because his dad “was pretty old” when he was born. He said he did remember his father talking “some” about the Haley-McCoy affair.

“Milt and Green were pretty rough fellers who got in a lot of trouble all the time,” Bob said. “They were bad to drink. Milt Haley and Green McCoy was fiddlers — I think so. Maybe they was. Yeah, I almost know they was. One of them picked the banjo, I believe, but I don’t know for sure.”

Bob said Hugh Dingess, who was “kind of an outlaw,” organized a posse to fetch Milt and Green after they shot Al and Hollena Brumfield. They found them over around Wolf Creek in Martin County, Kentucky.

“Them Dingesses up there killed them,” Bob said. “It didn’t take much to get them to shoot you back then. People’d shoot you just to be a doing something.”

I asked Bob if he ever heard anything about who took part in what he kept calling “the shooting” and he said, “Hugh Dingess and four or five more.”

He paused, then said, “A few of them I wouldn’t want to tell you.”

We were just waiting for him to say his father’s name when he said, “Short Harve Dingess was pretty rough. Seems like he was in that bunch some way.”

Some of the others were: Al Brumfield, Charley Brumfield, Fed Adkins, and Burl Farley.

Bob never identified his father as a member of the mob but mentioned that his father was a friend to the Dingesses on Smokekouse.

He said he remembered seeing Ed play at the schoolhouse above the mouth of Piney when he was nineteen years old.

“He was a real fiddler,” Bob said.

In subsequent weeks, Brandon and I went through most of our information — processing it, sorting it, discussing it. We thought more about the story of Milt causing Ed’s blindness by dipping him in ice water and wondered how anyone would have ever equated those as cause-effect events. I got on the phone with Dr. Tom Holzen, a doctor-friend of mine in Nashville, who said Milt’s dipping of Ed in ice water, while a little crude, was actually the right kind of thing to do in that it would have lowered his fever. Based on that, Milt seems to have been a caring father trying to save Ed’s life or ease his suffering. Was it the act of a desperate man who had already lost other children to disease?

Interview with Ward Adkins (1997)

12 Saturday Jul 2014

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Culture of Honor, Fourteen, Lincoln County Feud, Shively, Timber, Wewanta

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Al Brumfield, Albert Neace, Blood in West Virginia, Brandon Kirk, Burl Farley, Cole and Crane Company, crime, distilling, Fourteen Mile Creek, Green McCoy, history, Kentucky, Lincoln County, Lincoln County Feud, Logan County, merchant, Milt Haley, Pigeon Creek, Sulphur Spring Fork, Ward Adkins, West Virginia, Will Headley, writing

Not long after talking with Mr. Dingess, Brandon went to see his good friend Ward Adkins, an elderly resident of nearby Fourteen Mile Creek. Ward said his grandfather Albert Neace used to help Al Brumfield make whisky, barrel it, and ship it downriver on flatboats. Making whiskey was Brumfield’s major source of income.

“You know dern well he didn’t make his fortune in a little old store up there at that day and time,” Ward said. “About all he sold was soap, salt, and soda — a little sugar.”

When Albert quit the business, Brumfield said, “You won’t tell nothing will you, Albert?” to which he replied, “No, you know better than that.”

Albert knew it wasn’t smart to cross Al because “the people who worked around” him “had a way of dealing” with his enemies.

“When they took a notion to kill somebody, they’d go out the day before and dig the grave,” Ward said. “Then they’d play up to whoever it was they aimed to kill…talk them into going squirrel hunting with them. They’d squirrel hunt around close to that grave. Kill them, roll them in it, and cover it up.”

Ward’s step-grandfather, Will Headley, had told him about witnessing Milt’s and Green’s murder.

“They stood them up beside of a house and shot them in public because they wanted to teach people a lesson,” Ward said.

Will’s uncle Burl Farley went with the Brumfields to fetch them in Kentucky. Ward knew a lot about Burl.

“He started out in timbering,” Ward said. “He worked for Cole & Crane Timber Company up on Browns Fork of Pigeon Creek. Uncle Burl was pretty well to do. He was dangerous mean. He was an Atheist. He felt you just did what you wanted to do on this earth and then died and that was the end of it so he didn’t have nothing to fear. Of course, I liked the old man. If he liked you, he was good to you. He ruled over his domain down there. What he said went. It was just strictly law. There wasn’t no bucking him. There wasn’t no law to fool with Uncle Burl.”

Interview with John Dingess 2 (1996)

11 Friday Jul 2014

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Big Harts Creek, Culture of Honor, Ed Haley, Lincoln County Feud, Warren

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Al Brumfield, Albert Dingess, Anthony Adams, Ben Adams, Bill Brumfield, Bill's Branch, Billy Adkins, blind, Blood in West Virginia, Boardtree Bottom, Brandon Kirk, Buck Fork, Burl Farley, Carolyn Johnnie Farley, Cecil Brumfield, Charley Brumfield, Charlie Dingess, crime, Ed Haley, Fed Adkins, fiddling, French Bryant, George Fry, Green McCoy, Green Shoal, Hamlin, Harts Creek, Harve "Short Harve" Dingess, Hell Up Coal Hollow, Henderson Dingess, history, Hugh Dingess, John Brumfield, John Dingess, Kentucky, life, Lincoln County Feud, Low Gap, Milt Haley, murder, Paris Brumfield, Polly Bryant, Smokehouse Fork, Sycamore Bottom, Tom Maggard, Trace Fork, Vilas Adams, West Fork, West Virginia, Will Adkins, Williamson, writing

Al rounded up a gang of men to accompany him on his ride to fetch the prisoners in Williamson. Albert and Charlie Dingess were ringleaders of the posse, which included “Short Harve” Dingess, Hugh Dingess, John Dingess, Burl Farley, French Bryant, John Brumfield, and Charley Brumfield. Perhaps the most notorious member of the gang was French Bryant – “a bad man” who “did a lot of dirty work for the Dingesses.” On the way back from Kentucky, he tied Milt and Green by the arms and “drove them like a pair of mules on a plow line.”

“French Bryant run and drove them like a pair of horses ahead of these guys on the horses,” John said. “That’s quite a ways to let them walk. Old French, he married a Dingess. I knew old French Bryant. When he died, he was a long time dying and they said that he hollered for two or three days, ‘Get the ropes off me!’ I guess that come back to him.”

When the gang reached the headwaters of Trace Fork — what John called “Adams territory” — they sent a rider out ahead in the darkness to make sure it was safe to travel through that vicinity.

Waiting on the Brumfield posse was a mob of about 100 men hiding behind trees at Sycamore Bottom, just below the mouth of Trace Fork. This mob was led by Ben and Anthony Adams and was primarily made up of family members or people who worked timber for the Adamses, like Tom Maggard (“Ben’s right hand man”).

As the Brumfield rider approached their location, they began to click their Winchester rifles — making them “crack like firewood.” Hearing this, the rider turned back up Trace Fork, where he met the Brumfields and Dingesses at Boardtree Bottom and warned them about the danger at the mouth of Trace. They detoured safely up Buck Fork, then stopped at Hugh Dingess’ on Smokehouse where they remained for two or three days, not really sure of what to do with their prisoners. They made a “fortress” at Hugh’s by gathering about 100 men around them, fully aware that Ben Adams might make another effort to recapture Milt and Green.

While at Hugh’s, they got drunk on some of the red whiskey and apple brandy made at nearby Henderson’s. They also held a “trial” to see if Milt and Green would admit their guilt. They took one of the men outside and made him listen through the cracks between the logs of the house as his partner confessed on the inside. About then, the guy outside got loose and ran toward Bill’s Branch but was grabbed by “Short Harve” Dingess as he tried to scurry over a fence.

After this confession, the Brumfields and Dingesses considered killing Milt and Green on the spot but “got scared the Adamses was gonna take them” and headed towards Green Shoal.

John didn’t know why they chose George Fry’s home but figured Mr. Fry was a trusted acquaintance. He said they “punished” them “quite a bit there” but also got one to play a fiddle.

“These people that killed them, they made them play their last tune,” John said. “One of them would play and one guy, I think, he never would play for them. I forgot which one, but they never could get one guy to do much. The other one’d do whatever they’d tell him to do. That’s just before they started shooting them. The tune that they played was ‘Hell Up Coal Hollow’. I don’t know what that tune is.”

After that, the mob “shot their brains out” and left them in the yard where the “chickens ate their brains.”

A neighbor took their bodies through Low Gap and buried them on West Fork.

John said there was a trial over Haley and McCoy’s murders, something we’d never heard before. Supposedly, about one hundred of the Brumfields and their friends rode horses to Hamlin and strutted into the courtroom where they sat down with guns on their laps. The judge threw the case out immediately because he knew they were fully prepared to “shoot up the place.”

This “quick trial,” of course, didn’t resolve the feud. Back on Harts Creek, Ben Adams often had to hide in the woods from the Dingesses. One time, Hugh and Charlie Dingess put kerosene-dowsed cornstalks on his porch and set them on fire, hoping to drive him out of his house where they could shoot him. When they realized he wasn’t home, they extinguished the fire because they didn’t want to harm his wife and children. Mrs. Adams didn’t live long after the feud. Ben eventually moved to Trace Fork where he lived the rest of his life. Charlie never spoke to him again.

John also said there seemed to have been a “curse” on the men who participated in the killing of Haley and McCoy. He said Albert Dingess’ “tongue dropped out,” Al Brumfield “was blind for years before he died,” and Charlie Dingess “died of lung cancer.” We had heard similar tales from Johnny Farley and Billy Adkins, who said mob members Burl Farley and Fed Adkins both had their faces eaten away by cancer. Vilas Adams told us about one of the vigilantes drowning (Will Adkins), while we also knew about the murders of Paris Brumfield, John Brumfield, Charley Brumfield, and Bill Brumfield.

Just before hanging up with John, Brandon asked if he remembered Ed Haley. John said he used to see him during his younger days on Harts Creek.

“When he was a baby, old Milt wanted to make him tough and he’d take him every morning to a cold spring and bath him,” he said. “I guess he got a cold and couldn’t open his eyes. Something grew over his eyes so Milt took a razor and cut it off. Milt said that he could take that off so he got to fooling with it with a razor and put him blind.”

John said Ed made peace with a lot of the men who’d participated in his father’s killing and was particularly good friends with Cecil Brumfield, a grandson of Paris.

Interview with John Dingess 1 (1996)

10 Thursday Jul 2014

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Big Harts Creek, Culture of Honor, Lincoln County Feud, Warren

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Al Brumfield, Ben Adams, Blood in West Virginia, Brandon Kirk, Chapman Dingess, Charlie Dingess, Cole Branch, Connecticut, crime, feud, Green McCoy, Harts Creek, Harvey "Long Harve" Dingess, Henderson Dingess, history, John Dingess, John Frock Adams, Joseph Adams, Kentucky, Lincoln County War, Milt Haley, Sallie Dingess, Smokehouse Fork, Thompson Branch, Tug River, Victoria Adams, West Virginia, World War II

That winter, Brandon made contact by telephone with John Dingess, a Connecticut resident who proved to be one of our best sources on the 1889 feud. John was born on the Smokehouse Fork of Harts Creek in 1918. A grandson to Henderson Dingess, he moved away from West Virginia after serving his country in World War II.

John said Henderson Dingess met his wife Sallie while boarding with her father Joseph Adams on Harts Creek. Henderson didn’t care much for his in-laws (he said they were “hoggish”), particularly his brother-in-law Ben Adams. Ben lived over the mountain from Henderson on main Harts Creek where he operated a small store. He and Henderson feuded “for years.” At some point, Henderson’s oldest son Charlie Dingess got into a racket with Ben over a yoke of cattle and “almost killed him in a fight” at Cole Branch.

The feud between Henderson’s family and Ben Adams reached a new level of tension when Ben refused to pay the sixteen-cents-per-log fee required by Al Brumfield to pass logs through his boom at the mouth of Harts Creek. Brumfield “was more of a businessman” than a feudist but “got into it” with Adams at his saloon near the boom. In the scrape, Ben pulled out his pistol and shot Al, who was spared from harm only because of a button on his clothes. Al subsequently fetched a gun and chased Ben up the creek — a very humiliating thing as there was probably a whole gang of people to witness his flight.

Ben soon gathered up a party of men with plans to force his timber out of Harts Creek under the cover of darkness. Before he could put his plan into action, though, the Dingesses caught wind of it and warned the Brumfields who promptly armed themselves with .38 Winchesters and .44 Winchesters and gathered in ambush on the hill at Panther Branch near the mouth of Harts.

Ben, anticipating trouble, put his wife, the former Victoria Dingess, at the front of his gang in the hopes that it might discourage her cousins from shooting at him as they came down the creek. It was a bad idea: the Brumfields and Dingesses shot “her dress full of holes.”

This was particularly horrible since she was probably pregnant at the time.

The next day, she came to her uncle Henderson’s to show him what his boys had done to her dress but he never punished them.

At that point, Ben was probably hell-bent on revenge and arranged for Milt Haley and Green McCoy, who John called two “professional gunmen,” to “bump Al off.”

John was sure of Ben’s role in the events of 1889.

“Ben Adams, my father’s uncle, he gave them a .38 Winchester apiece and a side of bacon to kill Al Brumfield,” he said.

Milt and Green caught Al one Sunday as he made his way back down Harts Creek after visiting with Henderson Dingess. He rode alone, while Hollena rode with her younger brother, Dave Dingess. As they neared Thompson Branch, Milt and Green fired down the hill at them from their position at the “Hot Rock.” Al was shot in the elbow, which knocked him from his horse and broke his arm, while Hollena was shot in the face. Al somehow managed to make it over a mountain back to Henderson Dingess’, while Hollena was left to crawl half a mile down to Chapman Dingess’ at Thompson Branch for help.

Upon learning of the ambush, Harvey Dingess (John’s father) hitched up a sled to one of his father’s yokes of cattle and fetched Hollena, who remained at Henderson’s until she recovered.

Immediately after the shootings, there was a lot of gossip about who’d been behind the whole affair. John said there was some talk that Long John Adams had been involved “but the Dingess and Brumfield people never believed it.” Everyone seemed to focus in on Milt and Green, who’d recently disappeared into Kentucky (where McCoy was from).

“They used to, if you committed a crime in West Virginia, would run away to Kentucky,” John said. “In the hill part of Kentucky there on the Tug River.”

Brumfield put up a $500 reward and it wasn’t long until a man rode up to Henderson Dingess’ claiming to have caught Milt and Green in Kentucky. He was sent to Brumfield’s home near the mouth of Harts where he found Al out back shoeing an ox steed. They talked for a while, then Brumfield told him, “You put them across the Tug River and when I identify them you’ll get your money.”

Al and Hollene Brumfield graves

05 Saturday Jul 2014

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Harts, Lincoln County Feud

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Al Brumfield, Appalachia, genealogy, Harts, history, Hollene Brumfield, Lincoln County, Lincoln County Feud, U.S. South, West Virginia

Al and Hollene Brumfield graves, Harts, Lincoln County, WV, 2004

Interview with Nellie Thompson of Wayne, WV (1996)

05 Saturday Jul 2014

Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk in Culture of Honor, Harts, Lincoln County Feud, Twelve Pole Creek, Wayne

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Al Brumfield, Andrew D. Robinson, Beech Fork, Ben Adams, Bob Dingess, Brandon Kirk, crime, diptheria, Goble Richardson, Green McCoy, Green Shoal, Guyandotte River, Harrison McCoy, Harts, Harts Creek, history, Lincoln County Feud, Lynza John McCoy, Milt Haley, Monroe Fry, music, Paris Brumfield, Ross Fowler, Sallie Dingess, Sherman McCoy, Spicie McCoy, Warren, Wayne, Wayne County, Wayne County News, West Fork, writing

A few weeks later, Brandon called Nellie Thompson in Wayne, West Virginia. Nellie reportedly had the picture of Milt Haley and Green McCoy.

“I don’t know if I have anything like that or not,” Nellie said, “but I do have an old letter from Green McCoy.”

What?

Almost hyperventilating, he asked her to read it over the telephone.

Nellie fetched it from somewhere in the house, said it was dated May 19, 1889, then read it to him and said he was welcome to see it.

The next day, she called Brandon back and said, “I think I’ve found that picture you were looking for. It’s a little tin picture with two men in it.”

Oh god.

A few days later, Brandon drove to see Nellie about the picture and letter. Before dropping in on her, he spent a little time at the local library where he located a story about Spicie McCoy.

“As I promised last week, today we will explore the life of a lady who claimed to have a cure for diphtheria,” the story, printed in the Wayne County News (1994), began. “Spicie (Adkins) McCoy Fry was so short that if you stretched out your arm she could have walked under it. Anyone who lived in the East Lynn area knew who Spicie Fry was because she had probably been in almost every church around to sing at a revival meeting, something she loved to do. Spicie was well educated. She saw that her children went to school. Once out of grade school, Spicie’s sons took advantage of correspondence courses in music, art, and any other subject they could get thru the mail order catalog. Spicie’s son Monroe Taylor Fry was a self-taught musician.”

After a short time, Brandon drove to Nellie’s home, where she produced a small tin picture of two men sitting together. One of the men was obviously Green McCoy based on the picture we had already seen of him. The other fellow, then, was Milt.

As Brandon stared at the tintype, Nellie handed him Green’s letter. It was penned in a surprisingly nice handwriting, addressed to his brother Harrison, and was apparently never mailed. At the time of his writing, it was spring and McCoy had just moved back to Harts — probably after a short stay with his family or in-laws in Wayne County. He may’ve been there with his older brother, John, who’d married a girl almost half his age from Wayne County earlier in February.

Dear Brother. after a long delay of time I take this opertunity of droping you a few lines to let you know that I am well hoping when these lines reaches you they may find you all the same. Harrison you must excuse me for not writing sooner. the cause of me not writing is this[:] the post master here is very careless. they let people brake open the letters and read them so I will write this time to let you know where I am and where Lynza is. I have moved back to the west fork of Harts Creek and Lynza is married and living in wayne co yet on beach fork. everybody is done planting corn very near in this country. every thing looks lively in this part. tell Father and mother that I[‘m] coming out this fall after crops are laid by if I live and Lynza will come with me. tell all howdy for me. you may look for us boath. if death nor sickness don’t tak[e] place we will come. Harrison I would rather you would not write anymore this summer. people brakes open the letters and reads them so I will not write a long letter. Brumfield and me lives in 2 miles of each other and has had no more trubble but every body says that he will kill me if I don’t kill him. I look to have trouble with him so I will close this time.

On the back of the letter was written the following: “My wife sends her best respects to you all and says she would like to see you all. my boy is beginning to walk. he is a spoiled boy to[o].”

Clutching carefully onto the tintype and letter, Brandon asked Nellie what she’d heard about Milt and Green’s death. She didn’t really know much, but her brother Goble Richardson said he’d always heard that pack-peddlers who boarded with Paris Brumfield never left his home alive. These men were supposedly killed, tied to rocks, and thrown to the bottom of the Guyan River where the fish ate their rotting corpses. Soon after the “disappearance” of these pack-peddlers, Paris would be seen riding the man’s horse, while his children would be playing with his merchandise.

When Brandon arrived home he studied over Green McCoy’s letter — all the cursive strokes, the occasional misspellings, trying to extract something from it beyond what it plainly read.

Strangely, the letter didn’t reveal to which Brumfield — Al or Paris — Green referred when he wrote, “every body says that he will kill me if I don’t kill him.” It seems likely, though, based on what Daisy Ross had said, that Green referenced Paris.

Still, it was Al Brumfield who was ambushed only three months later.

What started their trouble?

And who was the careless postmaster who allowed people to “brake open the letters and read them?”

At the time of the Haley-McCoy trouble, Harts had two post offices: Harts and Warren. The postmaster at Harts — where McCoy likely received his mail — was Ross Fowler, son to the Bill Fowler who was eventually driven away from Harts by the Brumfields. Ross, though, was close with the Brumfields and even ferried the 1889 posse across the river to Green Shoal with Milt and Green as prisoners (according to Bob Dingess) in October of 1889. A little later, he worked in Al Brumfield’s store. The postmaster at Warren was Andrew D. Robinson, a former justice of the peace and brother-in-law to Ben Adams and Sallie Dingess. Robinson seems to have been a man of good credit who stayed neutral in the trouble.

Brandon Ray Kirk

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

Tag Archives: Al Brumfield

Al Brumfield Deed to Louisa Wiley (1903)

Harts, WV (2018)

Ward Brumfield, Notary Public (1923)

Harts Area Deed Index (1893-1909)

Douglas Branch (2017)

Harts Creek Area Deed Index (1883-1910)

Harts Creek Area Deed Index (1884-1910)

Harts Creek Area Deed Index (1886-1909)

Fourteen, WV (1898-1899)

Harts Creek Area Justices of the Peace (1879-1910)

Hart (1891-1892)

Harts, WV (1963)

Big Harts Creek Post Offices

Al Brumfield

In Search of Ed Haley 337

Interview with Ward Adkins (1997)

Interview with John Dingess 2 (1996)

Interview with John Dingess 1 (1996)

Al and Hollene Brumfield graves

Interview with Nellie Thompson of Wayne, WV (1996)