Tag Archives: Russell County

Thomas C. Whited

06 Monday Jul 2020

Posted by in Big Harts Creek, Chapmanville, Civil War, Huntington, Logan, Poetry

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From the Logan Banner we find this entry for Thomas C. Whited, who resided at Logan, West Virginia:

“Uncle Tom” Whited, United States commissioner, one of the county’s oldest citizens, and poet, came to Logan, or the present site of Logan, on October 11, 1877.

He was born on a Russell county, Virginia, farm in a one-room log cabin on November 25, 1854, the son of Robert and Anna Meadows Whited, who reared a family of ten children, nine boys and one girl.

“Uncle Tom” has only one brother living, the Rev. Charles S. Whited, a preacher in Raleigh county. His sister is dead.

His home was broken up by the Civil War, and Mr. Whited began the life of a vagabond, wandering about over the country seeking happiness, but never finding it until he came to Logan. He discovered the little frontier settlement as he was making his way on foot back to his Virginia home to take a job in a store.

“I just dropped in here, tired and sore-footed and decided to attend a teacher’s examination that was advertised for the town–mostly just to see what kind of a certificate I could get among strangers,” Mr. Whited said.

He received his certificate and taught his first term of school at the mouth of Mud Fork in 1877. Then followed terms at Chapmanville, Craneco, Logan and Hart’s Creek until 1883 when he was asked to take a position in the clerk’s office as deputy clerk.

Among the well-known citizens that “Uncle Tom” taught in his educational forays in Logan county were the Rev. J. Green McNeely; Ewell Deskins; Mrs. Ella Godby of Huntington, mother of Mrs. W.W. Beddow of Slagle; J.C. (Cush) Avis, and several of the Conley family.

From the position as deputy clerk, Mr. Whited rose in succession to circuit clerk, county superintendent of schools, city councilman, and United States Commissioner. He served a total of 18 years as circuit clerk of Logan county.

In 1930 Federal Judge George W. McClintic appointed “Uncle Tom” United States Commissioner which office he will hold for life unless removed by the judge on charges of misconduct.

“Uncle Tom” is a poet of no mean ability. His poetry is recognized throughout the county and some think his best work was a poem dedicated to the old elm tree in the court house square which was recently cut down.

He was instrumental in saving the tree when it was just a sprout and John W. Buskirk was about to dig it up to plant a locust orchard near the site of the present courthouse. “Uncle Tom” requested that the sprout be left to grow. It was not moved from the original spot where it sprouted until it was cut down in 1931, Mr. Whited said.

Mr. Whited married Miss Harriet Totten, daughter of the Rev. John A. Totten, pastor of the Southern Methodist Church in Logan, on March 4, 1887.

The couple reared a family of five children–two boys and three girls. All are still living. They are Mrs. W.B. Johnson, W.G. Whited, and Mrs. H.A. Callahan, all of Logan; Mrs. Hattie Rothrock, Charleston; and Thomas Harvey Whited whose residence is unknown.

Though 81 years old, “Uncle Tom” still manages the affairs of U.S. Commissioner and finds time to dash off a line or so of poetry now and then.

Source: Logan (WV) Banner, 17 April 1937.

Old Records Found in Bank Vault (1936)

27 Thursday Sep 2018

Posted by in Big Sandy Valley, Guyandotte River, Hamlin, Huntington, Logan

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Old Peter Dingess Deed LB 08.19.1936 7

320,000 Acres of Land Hereabouts Sold for Five Shillings According to Old Records Found in Old Vault

H.M. Booth, in cleaning out the vault of the old Guyan Valley Bank preparatory to moving his offices from Logan to Hamlin, uncovered a number of old documents that dated back to the time when “horse and buggy days” were a fact and not merely a political equation.

Many of these old papers, including deeds, receipts, account books and other papers of a semi-personal nature, are originals, while others are notarized copies of originals. They make interesting reading in these days of speed, radios, high prices and typewriters.

The old documents were all hand written, in clear, flowing script, the capital letters often decorated with fancy scrolls and shaded lines. Many of them were written with a quill pen.

Of particular interest is one deed, 12 ½ by 15 ½ inches, written on sheepskin. The ink has not faded, and although the skin is old and discolored, the deed is easily read. It was made in the days when Logan county was unheard of, and all this vicinity was part of Cabell county, Virginia. It seems strange, now, to think of a governor in Richmond, Virginia, parceling out land in Logan county.

The deed reads, in part: “James Barbour, Esq., Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia: To all whom these presents shall come, Greeting: Know ye, that by virtue of a Land office Treasury warrant, No. 6126, upon the 9th day of Sept. 1780, there is granted by the said Commonwealth unto Peter Dingess, a certain Tract or Parcel of Land, containing one hundred and twelve acres, by survey, bearing date the 31st day of March, 1813, situate in the County of Cabell, joining to his own deeded land, and bounded as followeth, to-wit:”

Then follows a detailed description of the boundaries of the land, in which prominent trees and landmarks play a common part. After the description of the land, which was written in pen and ink, came the regular printed form as follows:

“In witness whereof, the said James Barbour, Esq., Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia, hath hereunto set his Hand, and caused the Seal of the said Commonwealth to be affixed at Richmond, on the twenty-fifth day of October, in the Year of our Lord, One thousand eight hundred and fourteen, and of the Commonwealth the thirty-ninth.”

Down in the lower right hand corner of the paper can be plainly seen the signature of James Barbour, governor of Virginia at that time.

A notarized copy of another land deed was signed by Robert Brooke, Governor of Virginia in 1795, and was dated March 23 of that year. It deeded through the Land Office treasury warrants numbered from 472 to 530, inclusive, a parcel of land containing 480,000 acres, “by a survey made the 10th of September, 1794.” The land was described as being in the county of Wythe, on the Tug and Guyandotte rivers. This grant of land was known as the “Robert Morris Grant.”

Evidently, from the records, Robert Morris became involved in difficulties, for after a considerable amount of legal red tape, all duly recorded, there is a document showing where “Robert Morris and Mary, his wife, of Philadelphia, sell to William Crammond of Philadelphia as well for and in consideration of the sum of five shillings lawful money of Pennsylvania to them well and truly paid do grant bargain and sell, alien and enteoff release and confirm to the purchased 320,000 acres of land in the counties of Wythe and Russell, lying on both sides of Sandy Creek.”

Among the records of accounts paid found by Mr. Booth were numerous fees paid out for “boating freight from Huntington.” Six dollars and fifty cents is entered “for a suit of clothes,” and another entry shows where four dollars and a half were paid for two pair of shoes.

Source: Logan (WV) Banner, 19 August 1936

History of Logan County as Political Subdivision (1926)

02 Tuesday Jan 2018

Posted by in Giles County, Holden, Logan, Native American History, Tazewell County

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From the Logan Banner of Logan, WV, comes this item relating to county history dated October 22, 1926:

AS POLITICAL SUBDIVISION, LOGAN CO. IS DESCENDANT OF FIRST EIGHT SHIRES

Logan county was formed in 1824 from parts of Tazewell, Giles, Cabell and Kanawha. In 1895 Logan was bisected in two almost equal parts, from the southernmost of which Mingo was created. Logan’s area is 455.82 square miles; Mingo’s 423,50_ square miles.

Tracing this county’s ancestry back through Tazewell it will be found to have a long line of distinguished progenitors.

The county was named after John Logan, a famous Cayuga Indian but not a chief, who was changed from a staunch friend to an unrelenting foe of the whites after his family had been murdered at Yellow Creek, Ohio, not far from Wheeling.

Tazewell was formed from Wythe and Russell in 1799. It derived its name from a political strategem. Simon Cotterel, representative from Russell, introduced a bill to authorize the creation of a new county. A Mr. Tazewell, representing Norfolk County, opposed the measure. Cotterel induced him to suspend his opposition pending the rewriting of the bill. Then Cotterel erased the proposed name and substituted that of Tazewell. That silenced the objector, who then voted for the amended measure. According to G.W. Bickley’s history of Tazewell County, the Tazewell referred to was not Littletown Tazewell, who was governor of the state from 1834 to 1836.

At that time Tazewell county had an area of 3,000 square miles–two and a half times the size of Rhode Island and more than six times the six of Logan county.

Wythe county was formed from Montgomery in 1789, Russell from Washington in 1786, Washington and Montgomery from Fincastle in 1772, Botetourt from Augusta in 1769, Augusta from Orange in 1738, Orange from Spottsylvania in 1724, Spottsylvania from King and Queen, Essex, and King William in 1720, King William from King and Queen, and through a series of changes, descended from Charles River Shire, which was changed to York county, in 1643. Ten years before that “The General Assembly holden at James City the 21st of August, 1633, divided Virginia Colony into eight shires, named James City, Henrico, Warwick River, Warroskuyoak, Charles City, Elizabeth City, Accawmack and Charles River.”

 

Battle of Curry Farm (1864)

19 Wednesday Jul 2017

Posted by in Civil War, Hamlin

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This entry compiles information relating to the Battle or Skirmish at Curry Farm, which occurred as part of the War Between the States in May of 1864 at Hamlin in present-day Lincoln County, WV. It is a working entry and will be updated based on the discovery of new information.

On May 29, 1864, Confederates commanded by Captain John L. Chapman of Company B, 34th Battalion Virginia Cavalry, attacked a detachment of the 3rd West Virginia Cavalry, Company G, commanded by 1st Lt. John W. Harshbarger at Curry Farm near Hamlin in present-day Lincoln County. H.H. Hardesty’s History of Lincoln County, West Virginia, compiled in c.1883, provides the only known account of the battle: “The Federals had marched from Hurricane Bridge and were proceeding up Mud river when they were fired upon by the Confederates, who were concealed on the opposite side of the river. The Federal commander at once ordered a charge and the Confederates retreated without loss. The Federals had one killed, a man named Mathias Kayler from Raleigh county, and two wounded — one being Isaac Jackson, who was shot through the left arm; and another, a member of Company K” (98-99).

Prior to the battle, on May 10, 1864, Capt. John Chapman had been sent with a detachment of dismounted men from the area of Russell County, Virginia, into Cabell and Logan counties “to gather up absentees and deserters from the 34th Battalion” (Cole, 80). Capt. Chapman had been wounded in action at Brandy Station, Virginia, on August 14, 1863 and at Blountsville, Tennessee, on March 10, 1864 (Cole, 147).

Isaac Jackson, one of the two Union soldiers wounded at Curry Farm, was a private in Company G, 3rd WV Cavalry, formerly commanded by Captain John S. Witcher (who had been promoted to major in April 1864). Hardesty cites Mr. Jackson as “wounded in action at Currys Farm, May 29, 1864” (98). Following the battle, on July 6, 1864, 1st Lt. Harshbarger was promoted to captain of Company G. On December 7, 1864, an Adjutant General’s Report shows Company G, 3rd WV Cavalry, stationed near Winchester, VA. The muster roll shows 108 names, citing Private Isaac Jackson as “Wounded in skirmish, May 5, 1864. In hospital since this date.” (Note how this record provides a different date of his wounding from the date provided by Hardesty, who compiled his history about 1881.) http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~wvwayne/roster3G.htm

Curry Farm, according to Hardesty, was located 1/4 mile above Hamlin (Hardesty, 90, 98).

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The West Virginia Division of Culture and History has recently erected this historical marker on Curry Farm. 12 November 2017. Photo by Mom.

Capt. John Chapman left Cabell and Logan counties and rejoined the 34th Battalion Virginia Cavalry in the vicinity of Pound Gap, Virginia, by the end of June 1864 (Cole, 82).

Capt. John W. Harshbarger (1836-1909) is buried here: https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=35761174

Selected Sources:

Scott C. Cole, 34th Battalion Virginia Cavalry (Lynchburg, VA: H.E. Howard, Inc., 1993) 80, 82, 121, 147.

Michael Graham, The Coal River Valley in the Civil War (Charleston, SC: The History Press, 2014) 150-151.

Some modern writers have misunderstood the Battle of Curry Farm as occurring at the Curry farm located four miles north of Hamlin on Big Buffalo Creek, near Hamlin Chapel (later Curry Chapel). Hamlin Chapel is important for the role it played in the creation of Lincoln County in 1867. “The first meeting of the Board of Supervisors was held on the 11th day of March, 1867, in what was known as Hamlin chapel, an old church which stood on the Curry farm, about one-fourth of a mile above the present county seat. There were present: William C. Mahone, of Carroll District; John Scites, of Sheridan, and William A. Holstein, of Duval. W. C. Mahone was made president, and Benjamin F. Curry, clerk, the latter giving bond in the penalty of $2000, with James A. Holly and Jeremiah Witcher as his securities. It was then ordered that the Board of Supervisors have the White Hall,  a Southern Methodist church one-fourth of a mile below where the county seat now stands arranged for holding the courts until the proper buildings could be erected, George A. Holton and a majority of the trustees consenting thereto” (Hardesty, 90-91). Curry Chapel no longer stands but its former location can be found near the intersection of Route 1 and Route 3/11 above the mouth of Straight Fork of Big Buffalo Creek.

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Curry Chapel Cemetery, 18 July 2017. The battle did not occur here.

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Granville Curry grave, 18 July 2017. Photo by Mom. The battle did not occur here.

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Curry Chapel Cemetery, north of Hamlin. The battle did not occur here. Instead, it occurred just to the left of the [3] in the above map.

Thomas C. Whited

17 Saturday Oct 2015

Posted by in Civil War, Logan

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From “Virginia and Virginians, 1606-1888,” published by H.H. Hardesty, we find this entry for Thomas C. Whited, who resided at Logan Court House in Logan County, West Virginia:

Of Logan C.H., was born in Russell county, Va., Nov. 25, 1854, and resided there till 1870, when he sent several years traveling in the western part of the United States; in 1877 he located at Logan C.H., and was engaged in teaching; was appointed in 1880 a member of the board of examiners for that county; this position he held until 1885, when he was elected county superintendent of public schools, which position he filled with much credit, and resigned in 1886, having been elected clerk of Circuit Court. He was married March 4, 1880, to Celia Totten. They have been blessed with the following offspring, born in order here given: Effie, born Feb. 20, 1882; Willie G., born Aug. 17, 1884; Hattie P., born Nov. 16, 1886; Addie B., born April 25, 1889. Mrs. Thomas C. Whited was born at Logan C.H., W.Va., Sept. 22, 1861. Her father, Rev. John A. Totten, a minister of the M.E. Church, was born in Oakland, Md., was married to Juditha Bonnifield in Randolph county, W.Va., and died in Greenbrier county, W.Va., in the Confederate camp, in 1861. His widow lives at Logan C.H. The subject of this sketch is a son of Robert and Anna (Meadows) Whited. The father, born near Lynchburg, Va., March 7, 1819, is now residing in Chautauqua county, Kan., where he owns extensive and valuable property, and is one of the largest stock raisers in that State. His wife, and the mother of Thomas C. Whited, was born near Lynchburg, Va., in 1821, and died in Russell county, Va., April 3, 1869. The Whited or Whitehead family came originally from Ireland to Virginia, and were among the first settlers of that State. Its branches are scattered in almost every State of the Union, and particularly in the Western States. They have always been people of influence and position, and noted for honor, industry and energy.

Source: Dr. R.A. Brock, Virginia and Virginians, 1606-1888 (Richmond, VA: H.H. Hardesty, Publisher, 1888), p. 845-846.

Thomas Justice

10 Friday Jul 2015

Posted by in Civil War, Wyoming County

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From “Virginia and Virginians, 1606-1888,” published by H.H. Hardesty, we find this entry for Thomas Justice, who resided at North Spring, West Virginia:

Of North Spring, Wyoming county, W.Va., was born June 15, 1834, in Logan county, W.Va. (then Virginia); in this county, Aug. 20, 1854, he was united in marriage to Ingabo Bailey, who was born in Logan county, Jan. 29, 1832. Record of the children of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Justice: George W., born June 20, 1855, married; Delia J., March 15, 1857, married; Laura C., June 11, 1859, married; Almeda, Dec. 4, 1861, married; Lee, April 20, 1866, married; Minnie, May 1, 1868, married to Berry L. Cook; Scott, Dec. 9, 1870, living with his parents; James, Sept. 15, 1874, living with parents. Record of Thomas Justice’s parents: James Justice, Sr., was born in Pike county, Ky., Dec. 5, 1812, departed this life in Logan county, W.Va., Aug. 12, 1874; Jennie (Hatfield) Justice was born in Pike county, Ky., Jan. 10, 1813, departed this life in Logan county April 28, 1886. Record of the parents of Mrs. Thomas Justice: James Bailey was born in Russell county, Va., Dec. 1, 1806, died in Logan county Feb. 9, 1874; Delia (Gore) Bailey was born in Boone county, W.Va., Oct. 11, 1806, died in Logan county Jan. 28, 1888. Thomas Justice enlisted in 1861 as lieutenant in Co. D, Berkley’s Battalion, C.S.A., and served with honor and distinction until the close of the war. At the present time he resides with his wife and their youngest two children in his pleasant home not far from the mouth of Huff’s Creek; here he is engaged in farming and in managing his estate. His plantation is well cultivated; he also owns valuable coal and timber lands. As citizens he and his family are loved and respected. His son, Lee Justice, was married June 11, 1890, in Logan county, to America, daughter of James N. and Lucinda (Steel) Justice. Record of the family of James N. Justice: He was born in 1847 in Pike county, Ky.; at present lives in Logan county, W.Va.; his wife was born in Logan county in 18_6, and died in the same county in 1884. Their son Wayne was born in 1872; daughter Ellen was born in 1877, and died in 1879.

Source: Dr. R.A. Brock, Virginia and Virginians, 1606-1888 (Richmond, VA: H.H. Hardesty, Publisher, 1888), p. 833-834.

Uriah W. Elkins

10 Wednesday Jun 2015

Posted by in Man

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From “Virginia and Virginians, 1606-1888,” published by H.H. Hardesty, we find this entry for Uriah W. Elkins, who resided at Christian, West Virginia:

Was born in Russell county, Va., April 25, 1825; his father moved his family to Logan county, W.Va., while Uriah W. was a child and he has ever since resided there. In this county, Nov. 26, 1850, he was married to Mary Ann Canterbury, who was born there Jan. 20, 1833. Of this union the following are the issue: Lydia, born July 16, 1852, married, and died March 1?, 1882; Cordelia C., born March 11, 1855; Roxie, born March 12, 1857; Zilphia, born May 27, 1859; and Mahalia, born Jan. 25, 1862. They have all married. The mother of these daughters died April 2, 1862. June 7, 1866, Mr. Elkins and Martha C. Stafford were joined in wedlock; she was a native of Logan county, where they were married having been born Aug. 12, 1831. The following are records of the children of this second marriage: Cyrus, born March 8, 1867, Mary L., born July 11, 1868; Uriah B., born Dec. 5, 1869; John C., born July 20, 1871; Helen, born Dec. 18, 1872; and Rush, born Dec. 6, 1874. Except Mary L., who is married, these children all live at home with their father, their mother (his second wife) having departed this life Nov. 13, 1886. Mr. Elkins has three orphaned grandchildren, the offspring of his daughter Lydia. Their records are: Millard, born June 26, 1874; William E., born Sept. 18, 1879; and Walter B., born Feb. 11, 1882. Absalom Elkins, the father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Montgomery county, Va., Nov. 6, 1791; died in Logan county, W.Va., Nov. 20, 1880; his wife, who was Mary Robbins before marriage, was born in Russell county, Va., Aug. 15, 1798, and died in Logan county Nov. 10, 1880, survived by her husband only 10 days. Mr. Uriah W. Elkins owns a beautiful home situated on the Guyandotte River, consisting of a fine farm and valuable timber lands; here he resides with his interesting family. He is highly esteemed and honored by all who know him. Address: Christian, Logan county, W.Va.

Source: Dr. R.A. Brock, Virginia and Virginians, 1606-1888 (Richmond, VA: H.H. Hardesty, Publisher, 1888), p. 828.

Lorenzo D. Chambers

08 Friday May 2015

Posted by in Logan

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From “Virginia and Virginians, 1606-1888,” published by H.H. Hardesty, we find this entry for Hon. Lorenzo D. Chambers, who resided at Logan Court House, West Virginia:

Was born in Logan county, W.Va., Dec. 23, 1827. In Johnston county, Ky., May 2, 1855, he was married to Margaret L. Auxier, of that county; by this union the following children have been born: Samuel E., Huldah A., Augusta, James L., Geneva, Floyd B. (died in infancy), Louisa, Otis, Agnes, Galen, Charles, Cora, and Lorenzo D.; the six older are married; the youngest six live with their parents. Samuel Auxier, father of Mrs. Chambers, was born Aug. 3, 1791, in Russell county, Va., and died Dec. 13, 1884, in Johnston county, Ky. His wife, Agnes (Wells), was born in Washington county, Va., and is now living in Johnston county, Ky., at an advanced age. Mrs. Chambers’ grandfather moved from Russell county, Va., to Kentucky in 1796; he owned the site where Daniel Boone held his fort, and it is still owned by his descendants. In 1882, the subject of this sketch was appointed commissioner of schools and served six years; in 1883 he was elected to the House of Delegates, which position he filled honorably until the expiration of his term in 1885. He has held many other offices of trust. At the present time he is farming at his beautiful home on Guyandotte River. Besides extensive coal and timber lands, he owns a large dry goods store at Logan Court House, which town is his post office. The Chambers family is one of the oldest and best in Logan county; its members have always been noted for their intelligence, moral and social excellence and wealth.

Source: Dr. R.A. Brock, Virginia and Virginians, 1606-1888 (Richmond, VA: H.H. Hardesty, Publisher, 1888), p. 823-824.

In Search of Ed Haley 242

14 Friday Feb 2014

Posted by in Civil War, Ed Haley

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Benjamin R. Haley — Milt Haley’s father — was one of the most ardent Unionists in Wayne County (West) Virginia during the Civil War. He served in at least two companies of infantry (one in West Virginia and one in Kentucky), one company of militia, and two companies of Home Guards. He first enlisted in April of 1861 and remained on muster rolls as late as May 1865. He was twice captured and almost court martialed. He was also, based on his military records, a drinker and a fiddler.

Ben Haley was born around 1820 in Virginia. According to census records, he married Cynthia Dyer around 1843. They were the parents of the following children: Hannah Jane Haley, born about 1844; William A. Haley, born about 1846; John B. Haley; James Haley; Helen M. Haley, born about 1850; Charles Haley, born about 1852; and Margaret Haley, born about 1856. In 1850, the Haleys lived in Russell County, Virginia (as did, incidentally, Bill Duty and the Ferrells). Toward the latter years of the decade, Ben moved to Wayne County in the Big Sandy Valley, where he fathered Milt Haley by Nellie Muncy. What contact he had with Milt is unknown. In 1860, according to census records, Ben and his family lived with James Short in Wayne County, (West) Virginia. Haley had $300 worth of real estate and $250 worth of personal property. At some point, according to the Doris Miller Papers at Marshall University, he lived on the Sweetwater Branch of the East Fork of Twelve Pole Creek.

On April 2, 1861, 40-year-old Haley enlisted as a corporal in Captain Joseph M. Kirk’s Company of the 5th Virginia Foot Volunteers at Ceredo, (West) Virginia, for a period of three years. Ceredo was an abolitionist town established in 1857. On September 2, the 5th was reorganized as the 5th West Virginia Infantry at Camp Pierpont in Ceredo. It was mustered into U.S. service on October 18. On November 1, Haley was appointed 1st lieutenant of Company F (following the death of former lieutenant James Baisden). In December, the 5th was ordered to Parkersburg, while a principal part of the regiment was sent to New Creek, Virginia. Haley was apparently with the Parkersburg group as he left there for home in March of 1862 without permission and was listed in records as “Absent, sick at Ceredo.” He was still AWOL in April.

By late spring, Haley was back with the 5th where he soon found trouble with the U.S. Army. According to papers filed by the army, he was charged with “Conduct unbecoming an Officer and a gentleman; Conduct subversive of discipline; and Violating 77th Article of War.” More specifically, “on the 20th day of June, 1862, at New Creek, Va., the said Lieut. Benj. R. Haley, did drink at a saloon, with a number of enlisted men, of his own and other companies, and was then and there drunk and disorderly, being subversive of good order and discipline at said Post.” Furthermore, “Lieut. Benj. R. Haley, did, when put under arrest, allow a detachment of his company, to resist the demand for his sword, and thereby inciting mutiny. That, at the same time and place, when asked for his name and regiment, he told the Post Adjutant to find out as best he could.” More importantly, “the said Lieut. Benj. R. Haley, after having been placed in arrest and ordered to his quarters, did leave the same without permission and was afterward found in a Beer Saloon, playing the violin for some teamsters and enlisted men to dance.”

On July 16, 1862, Haley wrote a letter of resignation as second lieutenant while camped near Woodsville, Virginia. The 5th had recently been engaged at Luray, Virginia, from July 5-11 and at Sperryville, Virginia, on July 11. “I have the honor to tender my resignation as Second Lieut. Fifth Regt. Va. Inf. for the following reasons. Charges are herewith enclosed prepared by Major Burtnett agst myself, parts of which are true and I prefer that my resignation should be accepted than be tried by Court Martial. In the second place I feel my incompetency to discharge the duties of the Office which I hold.” Haley’s resignation was approved and finalized on July 30, 1862.

On August 7, 1862, Ben Haley and his son James enrolled as privates in William T. Caldwell’s Company of the 167th Virginia Militia in Wayne County. On November 29, Haley was captured in Wayne County and confined at Richmond on April 1, 1863. He was paroled on April 3 at City Point, Virginia, and reported to Camp Parole, Maryland, on April 6. He and his son James were back on muster rolls for the 167th on May 7. Captain Caldwell referenced Haley in a letter dated May 17 (“Your favor of the 14th inst has just been handed me by Mr. B.R. Haley…”) Ben’s son James was wounded later that fall, probably in an October 20 skirmish near the Logan-Wayne County line with Vincent “Clawhammer” Witchers’ troops.