01 Sunday May 2022
Posted in Big Harts Creek
Tags
Appalachia, Big Harts Creek, genealogy, history, James Butcher, James Lawson, Josephus Workman, Logan County, Shannon Butcher, Smokehouse Fork, surveyor, Virginia, West Virginia, William A. Dingess
28 Thursday Apr 2022
Tags
A.A. Hamilton, A.A. Vance, A.J. Browning, A.J. Dalton, Adrian Murphy, Albert Dingess, Albert Gore, Allen Mounts, America Justice, American Surety Company of NY, Anthony Adams, Appalachia, Art Chambers, B.J. Hiner, Bert Bush, Bettie Stollings, Burl Adams, C.A. Vickers, C.P. Donovan, C.W. Gore, Cecil Mounts, Charles H. Miller, Charley Conley, Charley Stollings, Clark Smith, Clay Workman, Cush Avis, D.V. Wickline, David C. Dingess, David Dingess, deputy sheriff, Don Chafin, Dump Farley, E.R. Hatfield, Ed Chapman, Ed Eggers, Elias Thompson, Elizabeth Ellis, Everett Dingess, F.A. Sharp, F.D. Stollings, Frank Hurst, Frank Justice, Frank P. Hurst, Fred Midelburg, G.F. Gore, G.W. Lax, Garland Adams, genealogy, George Butcher, George Chafin, George E. Thompson, George Justice, George Robinette, Georgia Dingess, Green Ellis, Guy F. Gore, H.H. Farley, Harrison Lowe, Harry S. Gay, history, J.B. Toney, J.E. Barlow, J.E. McCoy, J.H. Ford, J.L. Bess, J.L. Chambers, J.M. Moore, J.O. Hill, J.S. Miller, J.W. Chambers, James Ellis, James Toney, Joe Adams, Joe Blair, Joe Hall, Joe Scaggs, John Barker, John Chafin, John D. Browning, John D. Neece, John F. Dingess, John Harrison, John L. Butcher, John T. Gore, Joseph A. Ellis, K.F. Mounts, Katie Mounts, L.D. Perry, L.E. Steele, L.G. Burns, L.H. Thompson, Lewis Butcher, Lewis Chafin, Lewis Farley, Lillie Mounts, Logan County, Martha J. Stowe, Mary Chafin, Mat Jackson, Matilda Stollings, Millard Elkins, Milton Stowers, Monroe Bush, Moses Williamson, Nim Conley, Noah Steele, O.M. Conley, P.J. Riley, Paul Hardy, Pete Gore, R.H. Ellis, R.J. Conley, Riley Damron, Robert Bland, sheriff, Sidney B. Lawson, Simp Thompson, Sol Adams, T.B. Stowe, Taylor Walsh, Tennis Hatfield, Tom Butcher, U.B. Buskirk, Van Mullins, Vincent Dingess, W.E. White, W.F. Farley, W.H. Bias, W.I. Campbell, W.L. Honaker, W.W. Conley, Wash Farley, West Virginia, William Farley, William Gore, William Hatfield, William White, Willis Gore
The following list of Don Chafin’s deputies prior to the Battle of Blair Mountain is based on Record of Bonds C and Record of Bonds D in the Logan County Clerk’s Office in Logan, WV:
Don Chafin was elected sheriff on November 5, 1912 and appeared on December 28, 1912 with his bondsman U.B. Buskirk for $40,000 (Book C, p. 215)
Name, Date of Appointment, Surety, Surety Amount, Book, Page
Garland A. Adams…28 January 1913…J.W. Chambers…$5000…C…236
Joe Adams…14 October 1913…G.F. Gore, A. Dingess, David C. Dingess, Anthony Adams, Sol Adams, Sr., and Sol Adams, Jr….$5000…C…297
John Barker…5 February 1913…F.P. Hurst…$5000…C…241
J.E. Barlow…26 April 1913…S.B. Lawson…$5000…C…268
J.L. Bess…22 July 1916…Fidelity and Deposit Company of Maryland…$5000…D…22
Joe Blair…28 December 1912…J.W. Chambers and Allen Mounts…$5000…C…224
John D. Browning…1 July 1914…Fidelity and Deposit Company…$5000…C…345
Bert Bush…6 January 1913…Monroe Bush…$5000…C…230
John L. Butcher…28 December 1912…Lewis Butcher, J.W. Chambers, Albert Gore…$5000…C…221
George Chafin…12 July 1915…James Toney…$5000…C…402
George Chafin…3 January 1917…J.B. Toney…$5000…D…74
J.A. Chafin…20 June 1913…J.W. Chambers and A.A. Vance…$5000…C…275
John Chafins…31 January 1913…H.H. Farley and A.J. Browning…$5000…C…240
Art Chambers…25 July 1914…Cush Avis, J.L. Chambers…$5000…C…349
Charley Conley…18 June 1914…George Butcher, Ed Chapman, William White…$5000…C…342
Nim Conley…18 July 1913…Ed Chapman and W.W. Conley…$5000…C…281
R.J. Conley…25 March 1913…Albert Gore…$5000…C…252
A.J. Dalton…26 December 1913…Fidelity and Deposit Company of MD…$5000…C…315
Riley Damron…5 July 1913…Millard Elkins and J.E. McCoy…$5000…C…278
David Dingess…3 April 1913…J.W. Chambers and George Justice…$5000…C…254
Everett Dingess…10 November 1913…John F. Dingess and Burl Adams…$5000…C…304
Vincent Dingess…7 July 1913…Georgia Dingess, William Gore, and Albert Gore…C…$5000…279
Ed Eggers…21 April 1913…Paul Hardy…$5000…C…264
Green Ellis…1 January 1917…Don Chafin…$5000…D…78
Joseph A. Ellis…30 January 1913…O.M. Conley…$5000…C…239
R.H. Ellis…undated…Elizabeth Ellis…$5000…C…233
H.H. Farley…29 January 1913…L.E. Steele…$5000…C…237
W.F. Farley…28 December 1912…Robert Bland…$5000…C…223
William Farley…13 January 1914…Wash Farley, A. Dingess, Lewis Farley, G.B. Farley…$5000…C…319
J.H. Ford…16 May 1914…P.J. Riley…$5000…C…336
Harry S. Gay, Jr….15 October 1913…S.B. Lawson…$5000…C…299
Albert Gore…28 December 1912…J.W. Chambers, G.F. Gore, Millard Elkins…$5000…C…222
C.W. Gore…2 January 1917…Fidelity and Deposit Company of Maryland…$5000…D…76
John T. Gore…11 July 1916…G.F. Gore and Lewis Farley…$5000…D…18
Pete Gore…5 December 1916…Fidelity and Deposit Company of Maryland…$5000…D…63
William Gore…31 December 1914…W.E. White, James Ellis…$5000…C…377
Joe Hall…23 April 1913…C.P. Donovan, Paul Hardy…$5000…C…267
A.A. Hamilton…14 June 1913…A.A. Hamilton…$5000…C…273
Paul Hardy…20 February 1913…W.F. Farley…$5000…C…244
John Harrison…19 April 1913…J.S. Miller, M. Elkins, W.E. White, and James Ellis…$5000…C…262
E.R. Hatfield…6 January 1914…$5000…H.H. Farley…C…316
Tennis Hatfield…14 June 1915…James Ellis and Lewis Chafin…$5000…C…396
William Hatfield…28 December 1912…J.S. Miller and George Justice…$5000…C…229
J.O. Hill…17 April 1913…Katie Mounts…$5000…C…261
B.J. Hiner…23 April 1913…C.P. Donovan and Paul Hardy…$5000…C…266
W.L. Honaker…8 August 1916…Fidelity and Deposit Company of Maryland…$5000…D…23
Mat Jackson…13 October 1913…Albert Gore, Van Mullins, G.F. Gore, and David C. Dingess…$5000…C…296
Frank Justice…8 July 1914…America Justice…$5000…C…346
S.B. Lawson…12 April 1913…J.W. Chambers…$5000…C…256
G.W. Lax…21 April 1913…Paul Hardy…$5000…C…263
Harrison Lowe…5 March 1914…no surety [blank]…$5000…C…326
F. Middleburg…16 May 1914…D.V. Wickline…$5000…C…337
Charles H. Miller…25 November 1914…Don Chafin, W.E. White…C…368
J.M. Moore…14 May 1915…American Surety Company of NY…$5000…C…391
Allen Mounts…226
Cecil Mounts…11 June 1913…Allen Mounts…$5000…C…272
Cecil Mounts…2 January 1917…Lillie Mounts…$5000…D…79
K.F. Mounts…28 December 1912…Allen Mounts…$5000…C…225
K.F. Mounts…6 January 1917…Katie Mounts…$5000…D…72
Adrian Murphy…6 February 1917…W.H. Bias and W.E. White…$5000…D…77
John D. Neece…21 March 1914…W.E. White, R.H. Ellis, and J.S. Miller…$5000…C…330
George Robinett…17 July 1913…George Justice…$5000…C…284
Joe Scaggs…231
F.A. Sharp…28 December 1912…W.F. Farley and L.G. Burns…$5000…C…217
Clark Smith…22 December 1913…Mary Chafin…$5000…C…313
L.E. Steele…29 January 1913…H.H. Farley…$5000…C…238
Noah Steele…6 September 1913…L.E. Steele, Jr….$5000…C…290
Charley Stollings…21 July 1913…Matilda Stollings, Tom Butcher, Bettie Stollings, W.I. Campbell, and Milton Stowers…$5000…C…283
T.B. Stowe…13 January 1913…Martha J. Stowe…$5000…C…234
Elias Thompson…16 April 1913…W.I. Campbell and K.F. Mounts…$5000…C…258
George E. Thompson…17 April 1913…A.F. Gore and Willis Gore…$5000…C…260
Simp Thompson…3 October 1916…Fidelity and Deposit Company of Maryland…$5000…D…36
C.A. Vickers…12 January 1914…L.D. Perry and F.D. Stollings…$5000…C…318
Taylor Walsh…28 July 1914…W.E. White, Albert Gore…$5000…C…350
Moses Williamson…29 April 1913…L.H. Thompson…$5000…C…270
Clay Workman…28 December 1912…S.B. Lawson…$5000…C…228
Frank P. Hurst was elected sheriff on November 7, 1916 and appeared on November 28, 1916 with his bondsmen J. Cary Alderson, S.B. Robertson, and R.L. Shrewsbury for $100,000 (Book D, p. 54); deputies appointed after November 1916 may be Hurst–and not Chafin–deputies (a few names are duplicated for this reason, I think)
21 Thursday Apr 2022
Tags
Appalachia, Hatfield-McCoy Feud, history, justice of the peace, Kentucky, Logan County, Pike County, Sam McCoy, Tolbert Hatfield, Wall Hatfield, West Virginia
Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk | Filed under Hatfield-McCoy Feud
21 Thursday Apr 2022
Posted in Hatfield-McCoy Feud, Matewan
Tags
A.W. Ferrell, Asa McCoy, David Mounts, Ephraim Hatfield, genealogy, Hatfield-McCoy Feud, history, John Ferrell, Joseph Simpkins, justice of the peace, Logan County, Magnolia District, Michael A. Ferrell, Mingo County, Samuel F. Varney, Wall Hatfield, West Virginia, William Tiller
The following list of justices of the peace for Magnolia District in present-day Mingo County, West Virginia, is based on historical documents available at the Logan County Courthouse in Logan. Several things to consider: (1) The list will be expanded over time based on new research; (2) the targeted area for this research is the Hatfield-McCoy feud region; (3) some justices included in this list may have in fact been located outside of the feud region; (4) dates for justices are primarily derived from deeds and county court/commissioner records; and (5) Mingo County was formed from Logan County in 1895.
John Ferrell (1838)
April 26, 1838
David Mounts (1838-1840)
April 26, 1838
January 31, 1840
March 23, 1840
August 22, 1840
Samuel F. Varney (1861)
March 14, 1861
Ephraim Hatfield (1861)
March 14, 1861
William Tiller (1867)
October 1867
Valentine “Wall” Hatfield (1870-1885)
February 11, 1873
April 8-9, 1873
August 12-16, 1873
February 10-12, 1874
October 13-14, 1874
December 8-12, 1874
December 29, 1874
August 10, 1875
October 12-16, 1875
August 8-9, 1876
elected October 10, 1876
July 1, 1878
October 1879
July 1880
December 10, 1880
December 14, 1880
appointed June 13, 1881
January 28, 1882
July 22, 1885
Asa McCoy (1873-1876)
February 11-12, 1873
August 12-16, 1873
December 9-12, 1873
June 16, 1874
October 22, 1874
December 9, 1874
February 11, 1875
June 9, 1875
June 13-17, 1876
August 8-9, 1876
Ephraim Hatfield (1876-1878)
elected October 10, 1876
February 11, 1878
A.W. Ferrell (1880)
April 1880
referenced on February 8, 1881 as a former justice
Joseph Simpkins (1882)
appointed to fill unexpired term, October 17, 1882
Michael A. Ferrell (1888)
elected November 6, 1888
20 Wednesday Apr 2022
Tags
37th Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment, Appalachia, civil war, Confederate Army, Edward Siber, history, Isaac Morgan, James R. Perry, John DeJarnett, L.D. Chambers, Logan, Logan County, Thomas Buchanan, Union Army, West Virginia
From Law Orders Book A 1873-1878 in the Logan County (West Virginia) Circuit Clerk’s office comes this entry regarding the destruction of the Logan County Courthouse in 1862:
On the 14th day of June 1878, came the following persons viz: John Dejarnett, Thomas Buchanan (except as to Investigation of the Regiment), Dr. Hinchman, who being duly sworn in open Court depose and say: That they know the fact that the Court House of Logan County West Virginia after being temporarily occupied by the 34th Ohio Regt of Federal troops commanded by Col. Seiber, was set fire to and burned up, in the month of Nov. 1862. The said Court House had not been occupied at any time by the Confederate troops, but was used alone for the administration of Justice and for the custody and preservation of the Records of the Several Courts of the said County of Logan. The building was Constructed of bricks and wood, and was a substantial, durable and convenient Exterior, and was worth at the least at the time of its destruction not less than four thousand dollars and belonged exclusively to the said County of Logan, which County has ever since been within the jurisdiction of West Virginia. The destruction of said building was a wanton and inexcusable act of the said Regt. and in no manner contributed to the prosecution of the war in behalf of the Federal Government.
At a County Court continued and held for the County of Logan State of West Virginia on the 14th day of June 1878. Present Isaac Morgan, President, and James R. Perry and L.D. Chambers, Justices, the Court with the view of obtaining Compensation for the destruction of said Court House from the Government of the United States, caused the gentlemen above named to be examined on Oath in open Court, and ordered the substance of the facts above stated by them to be spread upon the Records of this Court, and the Court further caused to be certified that the above named citizens of said County of Logan and that their Statements are entitled to full faith and credit and further that they are in no wise interested in this application except in common with other citizens of the County and Tax payers thereof.
Source: Law Orders Book A 1873-1878, p. 713-714. Note: The entry contains a few errors, such as the date of the courthouse’s destruction, the spelling of Col. Edward Siber’s name, and the correct name of the unit (37th Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment).
17 Thursday Feb 2022
Tags
23 Tuesday Nov 2021
Tags
Appalachia, architecture, history, Joe Rimkus, Logan, Logan County, radio station, West Virginia, WVOW
Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk | Filed under Logan
31 Sunday Oct 2021
Posted in Big Harts Creek, Queens Ridge
Tags
Appalachia, Belle Dora Adams, Big Harts Creek, Carl Mullins, Cecil McCloud, Charley Adams, Garnet Martin, Garnet Mullins, genealogy, history, Hoover Fork, Howard Adams, Ireland Mullins, Lincoln County, Logan County, Lucy McCloud, New Orleans, Paralee Browning, Queens Ridge, Troy Town, West Virginia
An unnamed correspondent from Queens Ridge serving Upper Hart in Logan County, West Virginia, offered the following items, which the Logan Banner printed on May 13, 1927:
Mrs. Paralee Browning and Garnet Mullins of Lower Hoover were the evening guests of Cecil McCloud Sunday.
Ireland and Carl Mullins went up Hoover late Sunday enroute to Troy Town.
Mrs. Belle Dora Adams is going to have a son-in-law some one said. Gee, the girls will have to quiet fliring with Charley.
Lucy McCloud was visiting her aunt Mrs. Garnet Martin here Saturday.
Howard Adams made a business trip to New Orleans. Many tears were shed on account of his long absence.
30 Saturday Oct 2021
Posted in Logan
30 Saturday Oct 2021
Posted in Big Harts Creek, Logan, Twelve Pole Creek, Whirlwind
Tags
Bernie Adams, Big Harts Creek, Bulwark, Bulwark School, Daniel McCloud, farming, genealogy, history, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan County, Lora Martin, Lucy McCloud, singing school, Twelve Pole Creek, West Virginia, Whirlwind, Wilburn Mullins
An unnamed correspondent from Whirlwind on Big Harts Creek in Logan County, West Virginia, offered the following items, which the Logan Banner printed on May 10, 1927:
Mrs. Alla Mullins was the guest of Daniel McCloud Monday.
Daniel McCloud made a business trip to Twelve Pole Monday.
All the farmers are getting very busy in this vicinity.
Wilburn Mullins was calling on friends at Daniel McCloud’s Sunday.
Lucy McCloud visited her aunt Lora Martin Sunday.
Bernie Adams has just returned from a business trip to Logan.
Daniel McCloud is teaching a singing school at the Bulwark school house. All report a nice time.
Daily Acts: Florence and her straw hat; Lucy and her pink dress; Lenville carrying milk; Roy making whistles.
30 Saturday Oct 2021
Tags
Appalachia, Aracoma, Highland Avenue, history, Kanada Street, Lee Street, Logan, Logan County, Oak Hill Addition, Pine Street, West Virginia
Posted by Brandon Ray Kirk | Filed under Logan
30 Saturday Oct 2021
Posted in Big Sandy Valley, Hatfield-McCoy Feud, Logan, Matewan, Women's History
Tags
Appalachia, attorney, attorney general, Big Sandy River, Bill Smith, Cap Hatfield, Catlettsburg, Devil Anse Hatfield, feuds, genealogy, Georgia, Hatfield-McCoy Feud, history, Howard B. Lee, Huntington, Jim Comstock, Joe Glenn, Kentucky, Logan, Logan County, logging, Mate Creek, Matewan, Mingo County, Nancy E. Hatfield, Ohio, Ohio River, Portsmouth, Tennessee, timbering, Tug Fork, University Law School, Wayne County, West Virginia, Wyoming County
Howard B. Lee, former Attorney General of West Virginia, provided this account of Nancy Hatfield (widow of Cap) in the early 1970s:
“Mrs. Hatfield, we have talked much about an era that is gone. Feuds are ended, railroads and paved highways have come, the huge coal industry has developed, churches and schools are everywhere, and people are educated. Now, I would like to know something about you.”
This is the brief life-story of the remarkable and unforgettable Nancy Elizabeth Hatfield, as she related it to me.
She was Nancy Elizabeth Smith, called “Nan” by her family and friends, born in Wayne County, West Virginia, September 10, 1866. (She died August 24, 1942). In her early years, she lived “close enough to the Ohio River,” she said, “to see the big boats that brought people and goods up from below.” She attended a country school three months out of the year, and acquired the rudiments of a common school education, plus a yearning for wider knowledge.
While she was still a young girl her parents moved by push-boat up the Big Sandy and Tug rivers into what is now Mingo County, then Logan County. They settled in the wilderness on Mate Creek, near the site of the present town of Matewan.
“Why they made that move,” said Nancy Elizabeth, “I have never understood.”
In her new environment, in the summer of 1880, when she was 14 years old, Nancy Elizabeth married Joseph M. Glenn, an enterprising young adventurer from Georgia, who had established a store in the mountains, and floated rafts of black walnut logs, and other timber, down the Tug and Big Sandy rivers to the lumber mills of Catlettsburg, Ky., and Portsmouth, Ohio.
Two years after their marriage Glenn was waylaid and murdered by a former business associate, named Bill Smith–no relation to Nancy Elizabeth. Smith escaped into the wilderness and was never apprehended. The 16-year-old widow was left with a three-weeks old infant son, who grew into manhood and for years, that son, the late Joseph M. Glenn, was a leading lawyer in the city of Logan.
On October 11, 1883, a year after her husband’s death, at the age of 17, Nancy Elizabeth married the 19-year-old Cap Hatfield, second son of Devil Anse.
“He was the best looking young man in the settlement,” she proudly told me.
But at that time Cap had little to recommend him, except his good looks. He was born Feb. 6, 1864, during the Civil War, and grew up in a wild and lawless wilderness, where people were torn and divided by political and sectional hatreds and family feuds–a rugged, mountain land, without roads, schools, or churches.
When he married, Cap could neither read nor write, but he possessed the qualities necessary for survival in that turbulent time and place–he was “quick on the draw, and a dead shot.”
“When we were married, Cap was not a very good risk as a husband,” said Nancy Elizabeth. “The feud had been going on for a year, and he was already its most deadly killer. Kentucky had set a price on his head. But we were young, he was handsome, and I was deeply in love with him. Besides, he was the best shot on the border, and I was confident that he could take care of himself–and he did.”
Nancy Elizabeth taught her handsome husband to read and write, and imparted to him the meager learning she had acquired in the country school in Wayne County. But, more important, the she instilled into him her own hunger for knowledge.
Cap had a brilliant mind, and he set about to improve it. He and Nancy Elizabeth bought and read many books on history and biography, and they also subscribed for and read a number of the leading magazines of their day. In time they built up a small library or good books, which they read and studied along with their children.
At the urging of Nancy Elizabeth, Cap decided to study law, and enrolled at the University Law School at Huntington, Tennessee. But six months later, a renewal of the feud brought him back to the mountains. He never returned to law school, but continued his legal studies at home, and was admitted to the bar in Wyoming and Mingo counties. However, he never practiced the profession.
Nancy Elizabeth and Cap raised seven of their nine children, and Nancy’ss eyes grew moist as she talked of the sacrifices she and Cap had made that their children might obtain the education fate had denied to their parents. But her face glowed with a mother’s pride as she said:
“All our children are reasonably well educated. Three are college graduates, and the others attended college from one to three years. But, above everything else, they are all good and useful citizens.”
As I left the home of the remarkable and unforgettable Nancy Hatfield, I knew that I had been in the presence of a queenly woman–a real “Mountain Queen.”
Source: West Virginia Women (Richwood, WV: Jim Comstock, 1974), p. 153-154.
09 Thursday Sep 2021
Posted in Logan
09 Thursday Sep 2021
Posted in African American History, Huntington, Women's History
Tags
African-Americans, Cora, Cora School, Douglas High School, education, genealogy, history, Huntington, Logan County, West Virginia, West Virginia State College, West Virginia Teachers Association
In April of 1929, the Logan Banner profiled numerous prominent African-American residents of Logan County, West Virginia.
Matilda Wade
Teacher, Cora School
Miss Wade is a graduate of Douglas High School, Huntington, and West Virginia State College; she has done summer work at the same institution. This is Miss Wade’s first term as a teacher, but her adeptness and aggressive methods have the knack and precision of those of longer experience. Miss Wade has a pleasing manner in her school work which brings willing and immediate reaction from her pupils. Her ideals in education are high. With her disposition to apply herself, and the active and energetic methods she employs, she is bound to reach a high place in her profession. Miss Wade is a member of the West Virginia Teachers’ Association. She possesses another splendid quality in her ability to make friends among the patrons of her community.
09 Thursday Sep 2021
Posted in Big Harts Creek, Whirlwind
Tags
Appalachia, Bernie Adams, Big Harts Creek, Burl Mullins, Daniel McCloud, Dixie Adams, education, genealogy, history, Hoover Fork, Howard Adams, Jackson McCloud, James Carter, Logan Banner, Logan County, Lucy McCloud, Monaville, Shade Smith, West Virginia, Whirlwind, whooping cough, Will Adams
An unnamed correspondent from Whirlwind on Big Harts Creek in Logan County, West Virginia, offered the following items, which the Logan Banner printed on April 12, 1927:
Sunday school is progressing nicely at Trace.
A large crowd attended the last days of Howard Adams’ school Friday. All reported a fine time.
James Carter of Monaville was visiting home folks of Hoover Sunday.
Wonder if Daniel McCloud got all the news Sunday evening.
Howard Adams went up Hoover whistling “Hard Times.” His mustache caught on fire.
Wonder what Burl Mullins was interested in Saturday evening that he forgot to shave.
There are several sick children in our town with whooping cough at present.
Jackson McCloud is making his home at Daniel McCloud’s.
We are all listening for the wedding bells to ring on Hoover. Look out Burl, you will be sure to hear them.
Shade Smith of Whirlwind was calling on friends at Daniel McCloud’s Sunday.
Burnie Adams is very ill with whooping cough at this writing.
Wonder why Will Adams was stepping so high Saturday? He must have been afraid of getting his sox muddy.
Wonder why Lucy McCloud looks so down hearted these days? Cheer up Lucy, you have made a bad mistake.
The funniest thing we heard last week was Mrs. Dixie Adams making Howard change beds.
Daily happenings: Daniel losing his cane; Earl and his potatoes; Lucy lost her ___; May got disappointed; Alice and her job; Uncle Jack chewing his tobacco; Tilda going to see __; Charlie and his black eye; Clyde going to the store.
26 Saturday Jun 2021
Posted in Huntington, Logan
Tags
Appalachia, Ben F. Donley, Cabell County, Claypool Chapel, Crump and Reardin, Dan Westfall, Giles County, Guyandotte, history, Huntington, J.S. Thornburg, Kanawha County, Kenova, Logan, Logan Banner, Logan County, Orville, Pittsburgh, Tazewell County, W.T. Workman, West Virginia
From the Logan Banner of Logan, WV, comes this bit of history about Methodists in Logan County, WV. The story is dated April 26, 1927:
PLANS FOR SUNDAY’S DEDICATION OF FIRST M.E. CHURCH PROMPT REVIEW OF 100 YEARS OF METHODISM HERE
Methodists from all parts of Logan county and even more distant points are expected to attend the dedication next Sunday of the new First M.E. Church in this city. As previously announced, an impressive program for the day has been arranged. Dr. Daniel Westfall, of Pittsburgh, Rev. J.E. Bird, of Huntington, and Rev. J.S. Thornburg, of Kenova, will be here to assist the pastor, Rev. Ben F. Donley.
It is more than a century ago that Methodism took root in Logan county. There are authentic records telling of the activities of the followers of the Wesleys as far back as 1825, the year the county was carved out of Tazewell, Giles, Cabell and Kanawha. Students of local church history are convinced that Methodist ministers labored in this field prior to that date. Their first goings and comings antedate the West Virginia Conference, which was established by the General Conference while assembled in Pittsburgh in 1848.
For the following review of the history of Methodism in Logan, the Banner is indebted to an adherent of the church who has just been delving into the subject:
First Church Prepares for Dedication
Methodism had its beginning in what is now Logan county in the year 1825 of which we have record, but we feel sure that even before that there were Methodist preachers in the confines of the county.
The History of Methodism in Logan county beings even before we have a West Virginia Conference. It was established by the General Conference while assembled in Pittsburgh in 1848.
Methodism, like all other denominations in Logan county and elsewhere, has been intermittent, not always able to have ministers enough to supply all its work; but wherever possible having local men to exhort the people, and some of these men became great ministers of the church.
Logan County’s Methodism has fared somewhat like that. It has been intermittent in its work. They have had many ministers and many times they have been without a minister. Because of this a large portion of the history has been lost, so far as records are concerned, but in the heart and mind of Methodist people there remains the story of Methodism in Logan county which has been given to them by their ancestors.
At Guyandotte in 1804
We know from the general church history that Bishop Asbury preached in this section of the country before the year 1825 and the minister who was preaching in Guyandotte at the mouth of our river came into the county and preached as early as 1804.
The local church has within the jurisdiction property that was deeded to the church as early as the year 1844 and at this time is defending in the Circuit Court of Mingo county title to property that was deeded to the church in 1882.
The First Methodist Church has been using the old church building or 21 years. It was started by the Reverend J.W. Bedford, who is now living at Parsons, W.Va., and who is still active in serving a church. He began traveling this field in 1872. His circuit included these places as some of the appointments: Claypoool Chapel, Logan, Orville, Starr Chapel, and others that made a circuit of over a hundred miles in length. He walked most of the time and won for himself the name “Walking Joe,” which holds to this day.
The Rev. J.S. Thornburg, a brother of the Rev. Thornburg of this city, was the first preacher in the new church built in 1904. This building has served its people well, but now the needs of the present congregation are so great that they cannot be served in the old building.
In 1924 the Rev. Ben F. Donley was appointed pastor of the local congregation. Upon arrival he found a very much discouraged people, but that willingness that has characterized the Christian people from the beginning–a willingness to arise and work.
Without much ado, or even any shouting from the housetops as to what they were going to do, they set themselves to the task of doing what seemed the impossible.
Planning for Future
The church board made a survey of the community and of the church to find out its needs and to see if it were possible for them to supply them. The first one that arose was the need of a new church building, Sketches were drawn of a building that would care for the church for a number of years, but upon consideration it was decided that the coat was prohibitive. It was then decided to build a part now and complete the plans in the near future. This included departmental rooms and a modern parsonage.
Contract was let to the firm of Crump and Reardin, of Huntington, and ground was broken on November 23, 1926. The corner stone was laid January 13, this year by W.T. Workman, the Most Worshipful Grand Master of the A.F. & A.M., of West Virginia.
The new edifice to be presented for dedication on Sunday, May 1, is of English architecture, a very beautiful structure.
26 Saturday Jun 2021
Posted in Battle of Blair Mountain, Matewan, Williamson
Tags
Appalachia, Battle of Blair Mountain, Democratic Party, Don Chafin, Ed Chambers, Ephraim Morgan, history, Logan Banner, Logan County, Matewan, Mingo County, Mingo Republican, politics, sheriff, Sid Hatfield, United Mine Workers of America, West Virginia, Williamson
From the Logan Banner of Logan, WV, comes this item about Don Chafin, sheriff of Logan County during the Armed March. The story is dated November 6, 1925.
Don Chafin Renowned as Sheriff of Logan
His Prowess During Threatened Invasion of Union Miners is Recalled in Mingo Republican
Bids Friends Goodbye
Don Chafin, former sheriff of Logan county, paid what might be his farewell visit to Williamson for a long time on Tuesday. While here he expressed to many his appreciation of their concern for him in his present plight.
Chafin was the most famous sheriff in the United States during his regime in Logan county, where he ruled with an iron hand. He was the main prop in the Democratic machine there and a prominent figure in the life of the county.
Sheriff Chafin won his greatest fame during the threatened invasion of Logan county by the armed march of 5,000 or more miners bent on destroying the Logan court house and finally reaching Williamson to release from the local jail a number of union men charged with violations of Gov. Morgan’s martial law.
Sid Hatfield and Ed Chambers, two well known union men of Matewan, had just been killed on the court house steps at Welch and the passions of the miners were thoroughly aroused. The armed march was once halted but was resumed after a midnight battle between the officers and miners on the county road near Sharples.
The invasion then began with forts and vigor. The defenders of Logan under the leadership of Sheriff Chafin were intrenched along a wide front and several clashes took place. The fame of the the doughty sheriff caused many from the outside to rally to his banner.
Mr. Chafin has numerous relatives and friends here to whom the parting was one of real regret. They are steadfast in their belief in his innocence, claiming that he is the victim of a frameup. Chafin was profuse in his expressions of gratitude over the loyalty of his friends on this side of the Logan line.
11 Friday Jun 2021
Posted in Civil War, Hatfield-McCoy Feud
Tags
Appalachia, Cap Hatfield, civil war, Devil Anse Hatfield, Hatfield-McCoy Feud, history, Howard B. Lee, Island Creek, Kentucky, Logan, Logan County, Nancy E. Hatfield, Pikeville, Randolph McCoy, Tennis Hatfield, West Virginia
Howard B. Lee, former Attorney General of West Virginia, provided this account of Nancy Hatfield (widow of Cap) in the early 1970s:
“Mrs. Hatfield, your husband and his father bore the same given names: ‘William Anderson’. How did they get the nicknames of ‘Cap’ and ‘Devil Anse’?”
“It is very simple,” she replied. “Early in life Devil Anse’s name was shortened to ‘Anse.’ During and after the Civil War he was called ‘Captain Anse’. The son, because he had the same name as his father, was called ‘Little Cap’. As the boy grew larger, the word ‘Little’ was dropped. Also, because of their fierceness in feud combats, the McCoys called the father ‘Devil Anse’ and the son ‘Bad Cap’. The newspapers took up the names and they stuck. Devil Anse liked and cultivated the title; but eventually the word ‘Bad’ was dropped from Cap’s nickname.
“Was I afraid? For years, day and night, I lived in fear. Afraid for my own safety, and for the safety of my loved ones. Constant fear is a terrible emotion. It takes a heavy toll, mentally and physically.
“I now think that my most anxious moments, as well as my greatest thrill, came years after the feud was over. In 1922, Tennis Hatfield and another deputy sheriff went over to Pikeville, Kentucky, to return a prisoner wanted in Logan County. While there, Tennis visited the aged Randolph McCoy1, surviving leader of his clan during the feud. (Tennis was born long after the feud was over.) The old man was delighted to see Devil Anse’s youngest son’, and Tennis spent the night with him.
“The next morning, Randolph told Tennis that he was going home with him. ‘I want to see Cap,’ he said, ‘and tell him how glad I am that I didn’t kill him. I am sorry Devil Anse is gone. I would like to see him, too.’ Tennis was worried. He didn’t know how Cap would receive his old enemy. So he left Randolph in Logan while he acme up to our place to consult Cap.
“Cap listened to Tennis’ story, and said: ‘Does he come in peace?’ ‘Yes,’ said Tennis. ‘He comes in peace.’ ‘Does he come unarmed?’ ‘Yes, he comes unarmed.’ ‘Then I shall be happy to greet him in the same way. Bring him up for supper and he shall spend the night with us.
“My anxious moments were just before these two strong-willed men met. I knew how they had hated each other, that each had tried to kill the other, more than once, that each had killed relatives and friends of the other, and I was afraid of what they might do when they stood face to face.
“My thrill came when I saw them clasp hands, and heard each one tell the other how happy he was to see him. They talked far into the night, and bother were up early the next morning, eager to continue their talks. Tennis came about one o’clock to drive Randolph back to his Kentucky home. Cap watched them until they passed out of sight up the creek, and then remarked, ‘You know, I always did like that cantankerous old cuss.’
“Cap and Randolph never saw each other again.”
1Should be Jim McCoy, son of Randolph.
Source: West Virginia Women (Richwood, WV: Jim Comstock, 1974), p. 152-153
12 Wednesday May 2021
Tags
Albert G. McCoy, Appalachia, Asa McCoy, genealogy, history, Logan County, Mingo County, Nellie McCoy, Selkirk McCoy, Sulphur Creek, West Virginia
The following land information is derived from Land Book 1880-1886 and Land Book 1887-1892 at the Logan County Clerk’s Office in Logan, WV:
Albert G. McCoy (of Logan County)1
[On April 15, 1880, Asa and Nellie McCoy deeded 75 acres to A.G. McCoy for $200. References the first hollow below the forks of Sulphur Creek. A.W. Ferrell was a justice of the peace. Deed Book __, page 189-190.]
[On April 15, 1880, Asa and Nellie McCoy deeded 50 acres to Albert G. McCoy for $50. References the first hollow on the right hand side of Sulphur. Deed Book __, page __.]
1881: Magnolia District
75 acres Sulphur Creek Sandy River $1.75 per acre no building $131.25 total
[transferred from Asa McCoy]
1882: Magnolia District
Pages missing.
1883: Magnolia District
Pages are mostly blank
1884-1885 Magnolia District
75 acres Sulphur Creek Sandy River $2 per acre no building $150 total
50 acres Sulphur Creek Sandy River $2 per acre $20 building $100 total
1886-1887: Magnolia District
125 acres Sulphur Creek Sandy River $2 per acre $20 building $250 total
***
1Son of Asa McCoy, brother of Selkirk McCoy.
12 Wednesday May 2021
Posted in Big Sandy Valley
Tags
Appalachia, Big Sandy River, genealogy, history, John Ferrell, Logan County, Magnolia District, Mingo County, Sally McCoy, Sarah Ann McCoy, West Virginia
The following land information is derived from Land Book 1873-1874 and Land Book 1880-1886 at the Logan County Clerk’s Office in Logan, WV:
Sally McCoy (of Logan County)
No property listed in 1865-1872.
[Note: Her name is given as Sally McCoy in 1873-1874, then as Sarah Ann McCoy in 1875-1876.]
1873-1874: Magnolia District
200 acres John Ferrell Farm and Vance &c $2.50 per acre no building $500 total
[Transferred from E. Rutherford.]
1875-1876: Magnolia District
200 acres Sandy River $2.50 per acre $25 building $500 total
1877: Magnolia District
No records for this year for Magnolia District
1878: Magnolia District
200 acres Sandy River $2.50 per acre $25 building $500 total
[Note: Her name is listed as Sary Ann McCoy of Logan County.]
1879: Magnolia District
No records for this year for Magnolia District
1880: Magnolia District
200 acres Sandy River $2.50 per acre $25 building $500 total
1881: Magnolia District
200 acres Sandy River $3 per acre $30 building $350 total
1882: Magnolia District
Missing pages.
1883: Magnolia District
Pages are mostly blank.
1884: Magnolia District
200 acres Sandy River $3.50 per acre $30 building $790 total
1885: Magnolia District
200 acres Sandy River $3.50 per acre $30 building $700 total
1886-1887: Magnolia District
200 acres Sandy River $3.50 per acre no building $700 total
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