Braxton County, WV Biographies

From: History of Braxton County and Central West Virginia by John Davison Sutton 1919
Transcribed for Genealogy Trails by Marji Turner

History of Braxton County and Central West Virginia by John Davis Sutton, 1919

BIOGRAPHY

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pg 374
James H Facemire was the son of Aaron Facemire, and the eldest of twelve children. Born in Kanawah county in 1831, moving to what is now Braxton county the following year, he grew up on the beautiful Elk and its tributaries. It was here that he learned the art of hunting and trapping. He married Caroline Stonestreet, by whom he had nine children. His family was of German descent.
Mr. Facemire has been a man of keen observation and great memory, and it is interesting to hear him talk of the past, and especially his exploits in the wilds of the forest. He remembers many of the older settlers of the county. He also remembers having seen the old war gun that red-headed Jesse Carpenter took from the Indians when he made his escape from captivity; with this gun, he killed an Indian by shooting across the Ohio river. The gun had been furnished by the French to aid the Indians in their war against the Americans.
He relates that ke killed two bears, over three hundred deer, and gives an account of one night's coon hunt on Skyles creek of the Big Birch river, in which he treed and killed nine coons, and the following night, killed five more. He gave part of the coons to some person as pay for carrying the others on a horse to his home on Two Lick run of the Little Birch.
He estimates that the number of bee trees that he has cut would run into the thousands; sometimes he cut as many as three in one day, often obtaining large quantities of honey. He said that at one time, he salted down sic hundred pounds of venison and severnty-five pounds of coon bacon. He killed wild cats, black foxes, hawks, owls, skunks, rattlesnakes, and was a terror to everything that was harmful and destructive to domestic animals or dangerous to man.
Squirrel hunting and fishing were tow of his most delightful sports. I have seen him bring down squirrels from the tallest twig on the loftiest hickory tree with his riffle offhand. His greatest day's hunt for squirrels was one hundred, around James A Ross' corn field, and the next day he killed forty-seven on Mr. Linger's farm. On Bug ridge, he killed fifty-six in one day. To be a successful hunter and trapper, one has to study the nature and habits of animals. A great day's catch of fish occurred one day while the old woodsman was waiting for his grist a the old Gillespie mill. He and Mr. Knight went to the shoal above the mill and saw a great school of fish. The river was very low, and they drove the fish to a little pool, build a rock dam below, and caught eighteen or twenty large fish, some measuring three feet long.
He was a man of great strength and endurance. His greatest weight was never over 148 pounds, but if he had been trained as pugulists are now trained, he great nerve, natural skill and generalship in battle would have made him one of the greatest middle weight pugulists of the world. He was never beaten in a fisticuff, though he met in single combat some of the best heavy-weights of the country. He would have been killed by Bill Meeks if the knife blade had not broken off in his skull, the point of which he has carried there for half a century or more; but he never fought a man unfairly, no matter how large or powerful his enemy.
We remember several coon hunts with this old veteran of the forest. It was the custom in those days to roast corn grown in the field from which you scared the coons and in the dry fall season when water was scarce, it was considered not unusual to burst the rind of a luscious melon while the dogs were out looking up the game.
James Facemire was a hard working man and a good neighbor. He had for a companion a noble woman, who never turned a hungry man way from their cabin. When we see his once fleet and active frame tottering on broken limb, leaning on his staff, with gun and traps, wending his way to the forest in his ever persistent pursuit of the wild game, we can image the blazing fires of energy that once animated the woodsman's unquenchable desire for sport, and realize the fleeting years that overtake us all.


Pg 379
Benjamin Franklin Fisher, son of William and Elizabeth Fisher, was born August 17, 1831, and died August 2, 1902. He was a prominent man in his county and represented Braxton county in the legislature sessions of 1881, 1882 and 1885. He inherited the large and valuable farm upon which he was reared, and by economy and good management he added other lands to his possessions. He married for his first wife, Margaret Sutton, daughter of Felix and Susan Skidmore Sutton.. She was born November 4, 1834, and died April 24, 1885; was noted for her kindness and benevolence. They had a family of nine children: William, who died in infancy, Felix R., John L., George B., Jake, and William. The girls were Susan, who married John Lloyd, Anna, who married A. L. Morrison and May, who married A. W. Berry; she died in 1901.
Mr. Fisher married for his second wife, Mrs. Susan Hopkins of Pendleton county, a woman of noble character, who is still living at an advanced age. He and his first wife are buried in the Fisher cemetery where rest three generations of the family.
Mr. Fisher's sons are prosperous farmers and stock dealers. Jake, who studied law in the offices of Flick and Westenhaver, Martinsburg, West Va., was educated at Washington & Lee University. He represented Braxton county in the legislature sessions of 1899, 1901, and as senator sessions 1905, 1907 and 1911. He was elected Judge of the 9th Judicial Circuit in 1912, and resides in Sutton, W. Va.


Pg 378-79
William Fisher, born February 14, 1786, died March 11, 1853; Elizabeth Fisher, his wife, was born July 9, 1792, and died in 1861. Their children were William, born April 16, 1821, and died in Hardy county; Susannah Martha, born September 18, 1823, who was married twice, her first husband being Dr. Robert Newby, and her second husband Rev. Michael Lancaster; Jemima, born July 13, 1828, married Jonathan Koiner of Augusta county, Virginia; George B., born May 17, 1830, died young; Benjamin Franklin, born August 17,1831, died August 2, 1902; Adam Fisher, born August 31, 1834, and died May 29, 1837.
William Fisher moved from Hardy county, Virginia, to Braxton county, then Nicholas conty, about 1832, and settled on the head of Granny's creek. He was a farmer and stockman.


Pg 376
Fox Family
The earliest information on this family is that sometime before the Revolution, Samuel Fox came from England and settled in what is now Nelson county, Virginia, near Avon of that county. This is in the northern part of the county and near the main line of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad. Samuel Fox had seven children, namely, Samuel, Richard, Joseph, William, Jackson, Bartlett and Luey.
Of these children, Samuel, Richard and Joseph lived and died in Nelson county, Virginia, and Lucy married a Mr. Quick and moved to some point in what is now West Virginia. William and Jackson Fox moved to what is now Summers county, West Virginia. William Fox had several sons, one of whom was David Fox. David Fox had several sons, two of whom, B. F. Fox and John L Fox, moved to Braxton county. John L. Fox is dead. B. F. Fox lives near Frametown in this county. William Fox had a daughter, Ruth, who married Mary Lively who was born in Albemarle county, Virginia, about 1780. He married Mary Lively who was born in Albemarle county, Virginia, about the year 1800. Bartlett Fox was born in 1861 and his wife died November 5, 1878.
Bartlett Fox moved to what is known as the Lively place in Nicholas county, about the year 1835; he next moved to what is now the J. B. McLaughlin place near the mouth of the Birch river in 1840; he next moved to what is now the John L. Ballengee farm near the mouth of Strange Creek and next to the farm now owned by Troy Nottingham.
Bartlett Fox had eight children, namely, Samul, M. D., L. F., George W., Tiburtis, Henry, William, Jane and Mary. M. D. L. Fox lived on what is known as the David Evans farm on Leatherwood run; George W. Fox lived the greater portion of his life in the edge of Nicholas county and died on Carpenters Fork of the Little Birch near where John Brown now lives; Tiburtis Fox enlisted in the Confederate army in the begiining of the war between the states and was captured and died in prison in 1861; Henry and William Fox both died prior to the war; Jane Fox married Maxwell H. Frame, and Mary married John S. Nottingham.
Samuel Fox was born on the …. day of ………… 1817, and died the 1st day of October, 1892. He was twice married. His first wife was Susan Boggs, daughter of Benjamin L. Boggs, who died on the 18th of August, 1855, aged 23 years, 4 months and 20 days. There were two children born to this marriage, Camden Fox, on the 14th of December, 1854, and Rebecca Fox, a year or two prior to that date. She married G. R. Mollohan and now lives in California. Samuel Fox's second wife was Mary Dean who is still living. They were marrieda bout 1856.


Pg 377
Fred L. Fox, son of Camden and Caroline [McMorrow] Fox, was born at the mouth of the Big Birch river, Oct. 24, 1876. Samuel Fox and Dr. Job McMorrow were his grandfathers, both being prominent men in the lower end of the county. Mr. Fox was educated in Braxton county schools, taking a law course in the West Virginia University with a degree of L. L. B. in 1899. he began practice of law in Sutton in 1899, and was associated with Alex Dulin from 1901 to 1904, and with W. E. Haymond since 1904 in the law firm of Haymond & Fox. He was Chairman of the Democratic Committee in campaigns of 1902, 1908, and 1910; elected to State Senate in 1912, and re-elected in 1916; was Democratic leader in the State Senate in the sessions of 1915 and 1917.
Mr. Fox was married in 1900 to Anna Lee Frame of Sutton, daughter of James T. and Rebecca Byrne Frame, and their children are: Gordon Byrne, John Holt, George McMorrow, Agnes, Jane, Rebecca Ellen and Anna Jean.


Pg 377
Elmore Frame was born March 13, 1819, and died April 17, 1896. His wife Marcella Frances A. [Ray] Frame, was born May 4, 1829, and died March 28, 1909. They were married October 10, 1849, and names of their children are as follows: W. L., Jasper, Willis, Martha Y. T., David and Elmore W. Mr. Frame joined the M. E. church in 1839, and his wife joined a short time later. He was many years a class leader in this church, and was a Justice of the Peace for sixteen years.


Pg 377
David Frame, son of above mentioned parents, was born July 12, 1865, in Harrison county, and was married to May M. Mowrey, Aug 28, 1887. Names of their children are: Eddyth A., Harry E., Flora I., Ira Ray, Ella Ruth, David W., Jr., and Ruby L. Mr. Frame resides near Gassaway, and is engaged in farming. Mr. Frame was for several years a magistrate in Otter district, and is now Deputy Game and Fish Warden.


Pg 378
The Friend Family
The first account given of this most numerous and hardy pioneer family, is in Kerchival's History. He says that Israel Friend came from Maryland to the Valley of Virginia in 1730, in the company with fifteen others, and it was supposed that they came through the gap at Harpers Ferry. From there, the friends worked their way up the Potomac river and we find them scattered along through the South Branch valley and Randolph county, also as far west as Braxton and Nicholas counties.
A lonely Indian warrior, the only one of a northern tribe who escaped with his life in a battle with another tribe of Indians some where on the upper branches of the Potomac, was ferried across the Potomac by a man named Friend who lived on the Maryland side of the river, and to whom the Indian related the incidents of the battle, including an account of the massacre of his comrades. Therefore it is fair to presume that the early settlers of the Friends came to the Potomac Valley from Maryland. The Friends are of German descent.

Pg 378
Jacob Friend settled in Pendleton county before the Revolutionary war. He married Elizabeth Skidmore, sister of Andrew Skidmore. They had nine children, six boys and three girls. Three of his sons were drafted, and went to Norfolk in the war of 1812. Others of his children settled on the Elk river, near the mouth of Otter. The names of his children were: Andrew P., Jacob, Isreal, Thomas, Jonas, Jonathan, Margaret, Elizabeth and Catherine.


Pg 378
Joseph Friend married the daughter of Joseph and Rachael Skidmore and a sister of Captain John Skidmore. They had a son, Joseph, whose daughter married Wm. Arthur. Joseph Friend had valuable land in what is now Webster county, where he resided for many years and died there. Joseph Friend, the progenitor of the Friend family, was a soldier in the Revolutionary war, and was Captain of Scouts.


Pg 379
D. J. Fury, son of Wm. O'Dell and Rebecca Fury, was born at West Milford, May 25, 1878. He was married August 10, 1906, to Nealie Esta Bailey. He has one daughter, Ruth Marie Fury. The family are members of the Baptist Church. Mrs. Fury is a railroad telegraph operator. The author has been the recipient of the friendship and hospitality of this family, and holds them in highest esteem.

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Pg 384
Ira H. Greathouse, a son of Asa and Lydia Queen Greathouse, was born in Harrison county, April 27, 1860. On December 6, 1888, he was married to Mrs. Mary L. Morrison, and to this union were born five children, four of whom are now living. They are Charlie T., deceased, Asa Carl, Maggie, Mabel and Genevieve. Mr. Greathouse is a successful farmer, and a member of the M. E. Church, South. He was formerly a merchant in this county, and a lumberman, and was for one term a member of the County Court.


Pg 381
John Gibson, progenitor of the Gillespie family, came from Bath county about 1830, and settled in Hackers Valley for a short time, and then moved to upper Flatwoods where he lived several years prior to his death. He is buried on what is called the Wyatt farm where he lived, and his wife is buried at the old Morrison cemetery

[Transcriber note: It is unclear if the two listings are for the same John Gibson as each is subtitled. However, there are numerous typeset errors in this book.]

Pg 381
John Gibson came from Bath county, Va. His children were Wm., John, Adam and Tramel; Betsy married Paul Shaver, Becky married Lewis Perrine. The Wyatt and Gillespie familes settled on adjoining lands in upper Flatwoods

Pg 381-82
Rev. J. Y. Gillespie was born May 15, 1842, at Flatwoods. His parents, John Gillespie, was born in Bath county, Va., and mother, Ribera Morrison, in Greenbrier county, VA. He was married Jan. 20, 1875, to Miss Sarah J. Skidmore, and his children are Samuel L., Cora, Pat. C., Harry, Lena and Conde.
He was first married to Miss Naomi J. Hyer in 1868, and their only child, Naomi, died at about five years of age. Naomi was the fifth generation from Andrew Skidmore, but never saw her great, great grandfather.
Rev. J. Y. Gillespie was for several years a traveling minister in the Methodist Protestant church. He is a man of exemplary character, and served as a soldier in the Union army during the Civil war. He now resides at Hyer, this county.


Pg 381
Morgan Gibson, son of Jacob and Eva (Lough) Gibson, was born in Braxton county, Dec. 18, 1827. He lived at home and worked with his father until he was eighteen years of age when his parents moved west, but he remained in Braxton county. He began lumbering, and about the time of his marriage added farming to his duties, and followed both until the war ruined both, leaving him with nothing except his family. After the war closed, he again returned to farming and grazing. He had one brother Nicholas G. Gibson who was a surgeon in the Confederate army during the entire war. He also had five brothers in the Federal army, William C., Jacob S., Irving, James M., and George W. All went from Illinois, enlisting early in the conflict, and served until its close.
Morgan Gibson married Elizabeth Jane Given, Feb. 1, 1849, and the following children were born: Arthur (died in infancy), Phebe E., Rebecca Jane, Millard Fillmore, Ruann (deceased), Viola Victoria, Luther H. and Eva M.


Pg 380
Benjamin Skidmore Gillespie, son of William S. and Mary Ann Skidmore Gillespie, was born in Sutton, September 19, 1869. He attended the best schools of the county, and after graduating from the schools at Sutton, he learned the printer's trade, working in the office of the Braxton Central and the Braxton Democrat, and by diligence he rose to the position of Assistant Editor and Manager. By his efforts very largely, the Democrat has attained its present high standard as a county journal. As a writer, Mr. Gillespie has no superior in central West Virginia. Congenial and affable in character, he is universally liked.
In 1912, he was elected Magistrate, and served four years, refusing a second election, to become again the assistant editor of the Democrat. May 22, 1907, he married Miss Lillian, daughter of Edward and Kitty Taylor Snopps. To this union have been born four children, two sons and two daughters. Their home is in North Sutton.


Pg 382
Jeremiah H. Gillespie, son of Adam and Nancy Morrison Gillespie, was born in Nicholas county, Virginia, October 13, 1835. Married Almira J. Posey. Their children were Benjamin F., deceased; James m. Allie (twins), John D. Delbert, Minnie, Lydia G. and Martha L.
His second wife was Elizabeth Post, widow of James Freil. They are living at an advanced age, members of the M. E. Church
Adam Gillespie, born in Bath county, Virginia, married Nancy Morrison. Their children were Mariah, Griffin, Jeremiah H., Cynthia, Mary, James P., William S., George W., John and Julia.

Pg 382
Given - We find the name of John Given mentioned as Captain of a company from Bottount, Augusta, or a company in the Revolutionary war. He served in Col. John Boyer's Regiment, Campbell's Brigade under Lafayette, and was with Colonel Boberton when Tarleton plundered Charlottville. We see another Captain Given mentioned as Captain and later a Colonel in the militia from Augusta in the war of 1812. His name was Alexander R. Given.
In an early day in the settlement of Braxton county, Wm. Given came from Bath county and settled on the Big Burch. His father was Irish, and was a soldier in the Revolutionary war. His wife was a Miss Bratton. Whether he was the Captain John Given spoken of or not, we have no authentic account. John Given was the only Revolutionary soldier of whom we have a record.
James F. Given was the son of Wm. Given, his mother being a Miss Frame. He was born Sept. 20, 1818, and grew to manhood on his father's farm. He married Ruth Duffield who bore him thirteen children. For several years he worked on the farm and in the blacksmith shop. He was a man of sterling character, and a strong believer in the principles of Jefferson. In 1852-53, he represented Nicholas and Braxton counties in the Virginia Legislature, and was considered one of the strong men of that body. In 1866, he represented Braxton county in the W. Va. Legislature, and for many years, he was connected with the educational institutions of the county as president of the school board. He was one of the strong leaders and wise councilors of his party. Perhaps no man ever lived in the county who had more sincere friends than James F. Given or one in whom the people had greater confidence. He lived to be a good old age, and left many descendants.


Pg 383
David Given lived on Scotts Mountain about the year 1840. He married a Miss Lamastus of Nicholas county. Their family of seven children is as follows: Malinda married Joseph Duffield; Kashia married Tunis Davis; Charity married ………… Roberts; Becky Jane married Benjamin Roberts; Alemarinda went west and married ………… Roberts; Agnes married Frank Scott; and one son, Washington, went West


Pg 383
James Frame Given was born at Glendon on Oct. 18, 1864. His parents, James F. Given and Ruth Duffield, were born near Herold, this county. William Given was his grandfather, and a Miss Frame, his grandmother.
Mr. Given was married to Amanda B. Keener on March 28, 1895, and their children are Eunice, Hugh, Ethel and Bruce. Mr. Given is a devout member of the M. E. Church, South, and is a very industrious farmer near Frametown.


Pg 383
William Given, a son of Robert and Jane (Given) Given, was born Jan. 18, 1838, in Braxton county. He married Elizabeth a., daughter of Adam and Granville (Rose) Given, Oct. 6, 1864, and the following children were born: Robert A., Granville J., Ruina A., Benton H., Oscar L., Adam A., Jennie C., Blemie L. William Given died June, 1917.


Pg 383
George Goad was a Virginian, born in Carroll county, April 15, 1850, and a son of Andrew and Ellen J. (Ayers) Goad. His father entered the Confederate army in 1862, and served until the close of the war, when he returned to his farming in Carroll county. George Goad worked with his father until he was twenty-four years of age, and then began for himself. He commenced dealing in horses, locating in Braxton county in 1875, and lumbering, drifted and rafted timber and logs to Charleston. He added to his other business the conduct of a store of a store of general merchandise which he established at the mouth of Strange creek. He was married June 20, 1879, to Sarah A. Frame, and the following children were born: Nimmie (deceased), Nettie, and Norman who is a physician at Strange Creek at this time. George Goad represented this county in the State Legislature during the sessions of 1889, 1891, and 1893. He also served the people of this county as Sheriff. He died at his home at Strange Creek in July, 1917.

pg 379-80
John Andrew Grose was born on the Grose home farm, one mile south of Summersville, Nicholas county, April 17, 1865. His father was John McDowell Grose, son of Samuel Grose, whose wife was an Oliver. Samuel's father, Jacob Samuel Grose, setting in Nicholas county, on Line Creek, soon after the Mexican war, in which he was a soldier, moving from Virginia.
John Andrew's mother wa Melvina Hamilton Grose, daughter of John McKee Hamilton and Rebecca Robinson Hamilton, whose mother was a daughter of James Robinson and Betsy Lemasters, the latter a daughter of Benjamin Lemasters.
His mother died when he was eight years old and his father when he was fourteen years old. A very excellent stepmother, who, before marriage to his father, was the widow of Thomas McVey, she being a daughter of Jacob Koontz, remained with him and his younger brothers, William Rush Grose and David Oliver Grose, until the fall of 1881, when they "broke up" housekeeping. At this time he entered the Nicholas Chronicle office, where he began learning the printer's trade and the newspaper business, having attended the district schools previous to this.
He came to Sutton in September 1885, when he purchased an interest in the Braxton Democrat, then a 7-column folio, with 650 circulation.

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Pg 385
John Hacker was born in the Valley of Virginia, and came to the Buckhannon settlement in 1768 or 1769. He located permanently in 1773 on Hacker's creek which was named for him. He held the office of Justice of the Peace, and bore a prominent part in the Indian wars of his neighborhood. It is said that he had served with General Clark's Vincennes Campaign. He died in 1821.

Pg 386-7
Col. John Haymond, the son of Mayor William Haymond, was born near Rockville, now in Montgomery county, Maryland, December 7, 1765, and came with his father to near Morgantown in 1773. He married Mary, the daughter of Colonel Benjamin Wilson, July 3, 1787, who then lived in Tygart's Valley near Beverly. The wedding party from Clarksburg on their way to the bride's home camped out all night under a cliff of rocks a short distance from Philippi on the Valley river. It was said that the bride and groom were the handsomest couple on the frontier.
John Haymond was clerk of the Board of Trustees of the Randolph Academy, Deputy Surveyor, Sheriff, Member of the Legislature from Harrison county, Member of the State Senate, an officer of Militia, took a prominent part in the Indian wars and was in many expeditions against them. In a skirmish with the Indians on Middle Island Creek, now in Doddridge county, a ball passed through a handkerchief which he had tied around his head.
He was a member of the Virginia Senate at the time of the passage of the celebrated resolutions of 1798, and in all phases of the parliamentary contest in that memorable struggle, his name is found as voting against them.
About the year 1807 he moved onto a large tract of land on the Little Kanawha river, in what is now Braxton county near Bulltown, built a mill and established a salt works. He built canoes and floated down the river to the Ohio and thence up to Pittsburgh, purchased kettles in which to boil salt water and returned with them by the same route, a long tedious and laborious journey.
He conducted a manufacture of salt for many years and died September 5, 1838. His descendants live in Braxton county.

Pg 387-8
John Haymond, a house carpenter and joiner, came from England to the Colonies, some time prior to 1740. He located in the Colony of Maryland. He had three sons, William, John and Calder, all of whom served in the Revolutionary war.
William, after the war, located near Clarksburg. John Haymond, called and known as Col. John the Indian fighter, was a son of William, and settled at Bulltown, on the Little Kanawha river. He reared a large family. William P. Haymond, whose name, by reason of his being a land surveryor and Commissioner of Delinquent and Forfeited Lands, is connected with more of our land titles than any other name, was a son of Col. John haymond. Wm. P. was the owner and proprietor of the mills at the Falls of the Little Kanwha, from an early day, until the time of his death, in 1869.
Thomas Haymond, a son of Col. John, was the father of Luther D. Haymond, who was Prosecuting Attorney of the county when the Civil war began. Luther D. Haymond joined the Confederate army, and was a Captain of a company from this county. After the war, he located in Virginia, and practiced law there, until the time of his death, in 1886.
Eugenus Haymond was a son of Thomas; and John Q. Haymond, who now lives near Falls Mills, and who was a Federal soldier, and Sarah J. Squires, wife of E. H. Squires, living at Flatwoods, are children of Thomas, and the only children of his large family now living.
All of the Haymonds in this county are descendants of Col. John, and many of his descendants are to be found in other counties of this state, and other states of the Union, especially westwardly.
W. E. Haymond, an attorney-at-law, was the son of Eugenus and Mary J. Berry Haymond, daughter of Benjamin Berry. He was reared on a farm, not far from Falls Mills. He attended the public schools of the neighborhood in the winter season, and labored on the farm in summer, and after acquiring a good common school education, he taught school for a few terms. Afterwards he read law in Weston, Lewis county, and was admitted to the Bar, in Sutton, in 1879. He was elected Prosecuting Attorney for Braxton county in 1884, and served in that capacity for eight years
Mr. Haymond married his first wife, Emma C. Hawkins, of Buckhannon. To this union were born two children, Gertrude and Nora. For his second wife he married Ethel Rhoades, of Lewis county.
Mr. Haymond was a candidate for Congress on the Democratic ticket in 1900. The District being Republican, he was unable to reduce the large majority that confronted him.
He has enjoyed a large and lucrative law practice, being chief council for E. D. Fulton, of New York vs. Geo. J. Gould, The Little Kanawha Syndicate and others, in which about 50,000 acres of coal land was involved, in Braxton and Gilmer counties. For his services in this suit he was paid $35,000.
Mr. Haymond has done more, perhaps, then any other citizen of his town, to promote such interests as would build up the town and community. It was through his influence that the Coal & Coke Railroad was extended from Gassaway to Sutton. It is through his efforts that the Government is locating an extract plant at Sutton, which will add greatly to this section of country.

Pg 388
Elijah Heater, son of Solomon and Betsey E. (Wilson) Heater, was born in this county in 1834. He enlisted in the Confederate Army in 1861, in Gilmer county, and served through the war. Among the battles in which he was engaged were: Laurel Hill, Droop Mountain, Bulltown, Beverly and Buchannon. At Droop Mountain, he was taken prisoner, and sent to Fort Delaware where he remained eighteen months at which time he was released and sent to Clarksburg.
March 1, 1874, Elijah Heater married Victoria Wyatt who was born in Randolph county, a daughter of Jacob and Kittie A. (Johnson) Wyatt. Their children were Al. B., Hayes P., Early S., Sarah I., and boy unknown.

Pg 388-9
John Heater was born July 5, 1818, and died at his home near Heater station, Dec 15, 1894. On Oct. 17, 1847, he was united in marriage with Elizabeth A. Berry, daughter of William and Caroline Berry, by which union they were blessed with seven children, three sons and four daughters; the eldest, William Wirt, died Dec. 4, 1882; Mardora J., wife of T. Cunningham, J. B. Heater, Leo A., wife of N. G. Singleton, Charles B. Heater, Sophrona Heater, wife of J. H. Long; and Rebecca, wife of Jacob Huffman died ………….

Pg 347
E. W. Hefner began in the merchandise business in 1890.
1902 --- Elected Clerk County Court of Braxton county, and in 1908 re-elected
1915 --- Entered the real estate business, and continued same to present time
1897 --- Married Mary Sue Hopkins, daughter of William Hopkins, of Pendleton county.
Children --- Charles, Samuel, Ernest Lyle, Virginia Lee, Mary Louise.
Son of Samuel C. Hefner and Sarah E. Hefner

Pg 386
Henry S. Hefner was born June 24, 1859, at Sutton. His father, Samuel C. Hefner, was born in Greenbrier county, W. Va., and his mother, Sarah E. Shaver, at Flatwoods. Mr. Hefner was married Sept. 1, 1886, to Sarah A. Stout, and their children are Ersie D., Effie L., and Sarah Rachel. He now resides at Barboursville, W. Va., and is engaged in farming and the real estate business.
Mr. Hefner's father served four years in the Confederate army, having enlisted in 1861, and was lieutenant at the close of the war. He soon afterwards moved to Glenville, living there seven years, then moved to the farm on Salt Lick near Burnsville where he spent the remainder of his life. His mother spent the latter part of her life at his home in Barboursville.

Pg 392
William S. Hefner, son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Propst) Hefner, was born in Pendleton county, Nov. 20, 1817. He was twice married, Rachel McWallace being the former wife and Elizabeth (Morgan) Talbert, the latter. His former wife was mother of the following family: Hannah M. E., Rachel Evaline, Lyda C., Benjamin L., Samuel, Mott, Matthew W., William C., Edna, John B., and Rachel Me.

Pg 384
Homer A Holt, one of the most distinguished lawyers of West Virginia, was born in Lewis county, Virginia. When quite a young attorney, he came to Braxton county to practice his profession. He married Mary Ann Bryne, daughter of John B. Byrne, on Jan. 27, 1857.
Judge Holt continued his residence in Sutton until 1874, when he was elected Judge of the Circuit Court embracing the county of Greenbrier. He then removed to Lewisburg, where he continued to reside until his death, which occurred at his home in Lewisburg in 1897.
Judge Holt was the son of Mathew Holt, a Methodist preacher. His children were John Homer Holt, of Huntington, Robert Byrne Holt and Mrs. Charles S. Dice, of Lewisburg. He was Judge of the Circuit court for 16 years, and in 18 …… he was elected a member of the Supreme Court of West Virginia, a position which he filled with ability. Mrs. Holt, wife of Judge Holt, died at Lewisburg, Feb. 3rd, 1914, in her 79th year.

Pg 384-5
John H Holt, son of Homer A. Holt and Mary Ann Byrne Holt, was born in Sutton, Braxton county. Virginia, August 10th, 1860. He attended the local schools, and subsequently took a course of two years at Randolph Macon College, Virginia, and studied law one year with his father, after which he took a summer course at the University of Virginia, under Dr. John B. M……. This was followed by a law course at George Town University, District of Columbia, where he was graduated with the degree of L. L. B. Mr. Holt then took the post graduate course of law at Yale, graduating with the degree of Master of Laws. He located at Wheeling and formed a partnership with M. T. Frame, and there spent three years. In 1890 he removed to Huntington, West Virginia, forming a law partnership with C. W. Campbell. On the retirement of his father from the Supreme Court of Appeals, he was nominated, in 1896, by the Democratic Convention, to succeed him, but was defeated, running 2,000 votes ahead of his ticket. In 1900 he was the standard bearer of his party for Governor, but was again defeated, running ahead of his ticket.
In 1886, at Wheeling, Mr. Holt was united in marriage with Effie Ewing. They have four children, Homer, Dorcas, Helen, and Klea.
As an attorney, and profound jurist, Mr. Hold has no superior in West Virginia. He practices in all the higher courts. His affable and congenial nature, together with his great ability, renders him one of the most popular men of the State.

Pg 389
Francis Hoover, brother of William Hoover, married Amanda Prince, daughter of Simon and Peggy (Sisk) Prince. They raised a large family. Mr. Hoover died in 1916.

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John Hoover moved from the Valley of Virginia to Braxton county, at an early date, and settled on the mountain between the Elk and the Holly, for many years known as Hoover mountain. Mr. Hoover's wife's name was Esther. They had two sons, John and Paul. Their daughters were Sally, who married McKeever, and Eliza, who married Wm. Morrison. Mr. Hoover's family were born and reared in the Shenandoah Valley. He was one of a large family, said to be six brothers, that scattered and settled in Pennsylvania and other states.
John Hoover, son of John and Hester Hoover, married Lucinda Butcher; they lived for many years on Flatwoods Run, where they reared a family of six sons and one daughter. Their children were Jesse M., Asa, Wesley, William, Francis, Granville and one daughter, Caroline.
Paul, son of John and Esther Hoover, married Martha Short. Their children were Morgan, James, Thomas Benjamin and two daughters. The eldest married Morgan Simmons.

Pg 389
William Hoover, son of John and Cynthia Hoover, married Jerusha, daughter of Tunis McElwain who was born in Pendleton county in 1773. Mr. Hoover settled on the head of Birch shortly after his marriage which occurred in 1867. He was the father of eleven children, and two of his sons are prominent men of Webster county. Dr. Marshall Hoover is one of the leading physicians of his county. John Hoover is a lawyer, and enjoys a lucrative practice, and is the present Prosecuting Attorney. William Hoover died in 1890, and his wife died in 1909.

Pg 388
Andrew J Hopkins, son of Caleb and Mary A. (Cocke) Hopkins, was born in Goochland county, VA., Jan. 17, 1825, and came to Braxton county with his parents in 1842. On Dec. 16, 1851, he married Sarah, daughter of G. G. and Martha (Stout) Dennison. Their children numbered ten: Lucian M., Minerva C., Martha A., Matilda E., Lucy J., Narcissus W., Sabina C., Walter L., Alice V. and William J.

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William Hudkins was born in Randolph county, Va., in 1805. He was the son of Bascal Hudkins. He came to Braxton when a young man, and married Polly, daughter of James and Becca Boggs. She was born in 1814. Mr. Hudkins died in June, 1877, and his wife died in Nov., 1886. Their children were Susan who married James Squires (son of Eligah), Hanson B., married Lyddia Squires, daughter of Eligah Squires; Caroline married H. A. Baxter, son of Wm. D. Baxter; one child died young; James P. married ……… Kizer. Mary married Thomas C. Meadows, Jane married Nelson McLaughlin, Francis B. son of Leonard Hyer; Minter and Lisa Link were twins; Minter married a Miss Young, and she having died, he married for his second wife ………. Lisa Link married ……… Gillespie

Pg 386
Benjamin Huffman was born in Barber county, Va., May 9, 1828. His father, Alexander Huffman, was a native of Virginia, and was said to be of German descent. His mother, Hannah Vanoy, was of Scotch-Irish descent.
The subject of this sketch was married to Drusilla Stump on Nov. 16, 1846, and their children are Granville, Henson, Daniel, Jacob, Ward, Ruhala Jane, and John. By occupation, Mr. Huffman has always been an industrious farmer, and is a faithful member of the Missionary Baptist church.

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Rev. Levi J. Huffman, son of Alexander and Hannah (Vannoy) Huffman, was born in Calhoun county, June 9, 1839. On Nov. 17, 1860, he married Ruhala, daughter of Jacob and Jane (Boggs) Stump. Her birth was in Gilmer county, Oct. 3, 1842. Mr. Huffman was converted in 1860, and was ordained to the work of the ministry on July 23, 1866. Since that time, he was constantly and actively engaged in the work of his calling in the Baptist church until a few years ago when he closed out his fiftieth year in active ministry. Rev. Huffman was married Aug. 24, 1916, to Mrs. Lelia Belsches of Charleston, his former companion having deceased some years previous

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Elias Hughes was born on the South Branch of the Potomac, his birth occurring sometime before Braddock' defeat in 1755.
He first appears on the public stage as a soldier, participating in the battle of Point Pleasant in 1774, in which he took an active part. He was the last survivor of that conflict and lived seventy years after it was fought.
He next appears in Harrison county where for many years he was engaged as a scout, watching the Indian war parties and giving notices of their approach to the settlers of the Monongahela Valley, and in this capacity he was of great service to the frontier by his activity and knowledge of Indian warfare.
He pre-empted four hundred acres of land in 1770 on the West Fork river near the mouth of Hacker's creek.
Hughes' father, and others of his kindred, and a young lady to whom he was much attached were murdered by the Indians. These acts of barbarity made him ever after an unrelenting and merciless enemy of the Indian race, and he never spared one of them when opportunity occurred.
The Indian troubles having ceased by the treaty at Greenville in 1795, Hughes' services not being longer required, he entered into the employment as a hunter for a party of surveyors in Ohio, probably under the direction of John G. Jackson, Deputy Surveyor under Rufus Putnam, Surveyor for the United States Government.
Hughes was attracted by the fine appearance of the land on the Licking river, and concluded to locate on it. Accordingly in 1797, with his wife and twelve children, his nephew John Ratcliff with his wife and four children on foot and pack horses, started west and settled on what is called the Bowling Green on the banks of the Licking four miles east of the present city of Newark. This colony of twenty-one souls was the first permanent white settlement in the present county of Licking, State of Ohio.
In 1801, four horses were stolen by two Indians from Hughes and his neighbors. They were followed and overtaken, and though his companions endeavored to persuade Hughes to spare their lives, he strenuously objected, his old hatred for the race was too great to be overcome and the horse thieves paid the penalty.
Although about sixty years of age, he served in the war of 1812, as also did three of his sons, one of whom died from disease.
He died in 1844, at about the age of ninety years, and was buried with military honors.

Pg 394
Jesse Hughes, the noted border and Indian scout, was, it is supposed, born on the South Branch of the Potomac, and came to the West in 1770, and located his four hundred acres on Hacker's creek, adjoining lands afterwards owned by Colonel William Lowther.
He participated in many expeditions against the Indians, and was perhaps better known and had a wider reputation for daring than any other man on the upper waters of the Monongahela, and he did much to protect the settlers from the forays of the savages.
He had a fierce temper and bore an intense hatred to the Indians, and no one of that race was safe with him either in war or peace.
He lived to a great age and died at the house of his son-in-law, George Henshaw, in Jackson county, West Virginia, about 1830..

Pg 385
Dr. Andrew C. Humphreys was born March 13, 1810, in Greenbrier county, Virginia. He married Mary McQuain Hefner in 1832; she was born in Pocahontas county. Dr. Humphreys came with his family and settled in Sutton, West Va., in 1860, and practiced medicine until his death, which occurred September 15, 1866. Mrs. Humphreys died October 7, 1893; they are buried in the Skidmore cemetery. Their children were, Caroline J., Samuel A., Andrew J., Malinda A., Mary E., James W., Milton W., John C., Robert H., Sarah F., Daniel F., Houston B. His son, Milton W., graduated at Washington & Lee University, Berlin University and at the University of Leipsic. He is the author of many works of the highest merit; some of his text books are used in the best institutions of learning in America. He ranks as one of the great scholars of the world. Two sons are living in Sutton, Robert H. and James W. The latter has four sons in the U. S. Army.

Pg 394-5
Hutchinson
The name is Scotch and can be traced back as far as the days of Charles Stuart, first of the family that reigned as king of England, in his parliament was a Colonel Hutchison who was a faithful and efficient leader for the Stuart cause. However when Charles the first was beheaded and Oliver Cromwell became the same as king, all the assistants and sympathizers of Charles the first that did not seek safety in fight were put to death. As it happened Colonel Hutchison died at this time and certain ones of his descendants, his children to be exact, emigrated to the new world, with William Penn, and the Pennsylvania colonists. This was in the year 1682. Joseph Hutchison, settled somewhere near Chester, Pa. David Hutchison, son of Joseph Hutchison. Settled in Westmoreland county. In 1745 William, son of David, settled in the valley of Virginia where one of his daughters married Jacob Warwick and moved to Clover Lick, Pocahontas county. September 17, 1770, William, son of William, married Rebecca Warwick. (They were cousins.) In June, 1771, he took pneumonia fever and died. His wife went and lived with her father where on Oct. 17, 1771, she gave birth to three children, Rebecca, William and Jacob. Rebecca married David Hanna of Greenbrier county, William went to Ohio and was lost sight of, and Jacob married Hanna MacMillian June 27, 1797. Four children were born: John, May 4, 1798; William, May 6, 1800; Jacob, May 22, 1802; Joseph, July 23, 1804.

William and Jane MacMillian, daughter of Joseph and Jane MacMillian, were married February 6th, 1825. (They were cousins). For his second wife he married Elizabeth, daughter of William and Mary Bell; to this union no children were born. To the former marriage the following children were born:
Nathan MacMillian Hutchison, born Dec. 15, 1825
Daughter (not named), born Feb. 9, 1827. Died Feb. 10, 1827.
Hannah Jane, born March 6, 1828.
Joseph, born Sept. 22, 1829
Felix, born Feb 20, 1831. Died April 22, 1916
Virginia, born Nov. 8, 1832
Miles M., born Nov. 11, 1834
Ann, born March 9, 1838. Died Dec. 22, 1838
William Hutchison died May 16, 1866. His former wife died April 5th 1838.
Felix Hutchison married Ann E. Knicely, daughter of John and Nancy Knicely, Aug. 28, 1852, by the Rev. William Sisk. She was born May 23, 1832, and died Aug. 7, 1906. The children were:
William, born Sept. 12, 1853
Henderson B., born April 25, 1855
John R., born July 25, 1857
Elizabeth J., born Nov. 10, 1859
Ellis Lee, born March 27, 1862. Died Sept. 15, 1880.
Nancy F., born Aug. 9, 1864. Died Aug. 28, 1877
Clark, born June 5, 1868. Died May 12, 1869.
Winfield S., born April 7, 1870. Died March 17, 1872.

Pg 395
Charles L. Hutchinson was born June 4, 1887, at Gem, Braxton county. His father, H. B. Hutchinson, was born at Corley, April 25, 1855, and his mother, Sarah V. (Moyers) Hutchinson, was born at Cutlip, May 28, 1860. His grandparents, Felix Hutchinson and Ann (Knicely) Hutchinson, were born at Corley, in the years 1831 and 1832 respectively.
Charles L. Hutchinson was married Feb. 5, 1910, to Elsie D. Hefner. Mr. Hutchinson is a manufacturer of knit goods, and now resides in Cleveland, Ohio.

Pg 389
J. H. Hutchison was born Feb 13, 1884, at Flatwoods. His father, Wm. Hutchison, was born in this county, while his mother, Esther C. Jones, was born in Highland county, Va. His grandparents, Felix Hutchison and Anne Kniceley, were natives of Nicholas county.
Mr. Hutchison was married to Miss Blanche Mearns Dec. 25, 1906, and their children are Bernard Mearns and William Milton. He began teaching school in 1901, attending Glenville Normal in 1902 and 1903. He was elected County Superintendent of Free Schools in 1914. As a teacher and County Superintendent, he is very popular. When not engaged in school work, he cultivates his farm situated on the head of Salt Lick.

Pg 390
A. J. Hyer, son of Christian Hyer and Judy (Sirk) Hyer, was born in Braxton county Aug. 24, 1818. He married Hannah Rodgers, daughter of Levi and Naomi (Skidmore) Rodgers, and to this union were born Naomi J., Jacob S., Christian B., Julia, Mary E., Alice, Wm. G., George T.
By his second marriage with Hannah Morrison, widow of James Morrison, there were born three children, Joseph, Jackson and Flora. Mr. Hyer owned a good farm in Boling Green that he bought by his own industry and frugality. He was a model farmer and citizen, and for many years was a member of the M. E. church. He died December 10th, 1894, and was buried at the Hyer cemetery on his father's old farm near Flatwoods, by the side of the remains of his first wife.

Pg 392
Ellis Hyer, son of Christian and Judy Sirk Hyer, married Clara Wheeler. Their children were Sherman, L. D., John, and one daughter. Mr. Hyer was a farmer. He lived several years in Clay county and owned valuable land on O'Briens creek where he lived. He died some years after the Civil war, and was buried at his old home where rest the remains of most of his children who died in middle life.
In 1816, Isaac Shaver and Christian Hyer, brothers-in-law, moved from Rockingham county, Va., to Flatwoods, now Braxton county, and settled on lands, part of which is still in the hands of their descendants. They landed in October, bringing their goods in one wagon.

Pg 391
Jacob S. Hyer, son of Adam J. and Hannah Rodgers Hyer, was born in Braxton county, Jan. 10, 1849. He was reared on a farm until his thirteenth year. It was his industry and close application to business that induced his parents to send him to Weston where he could have better educational advantages. The opportunities thus afforded were very diligently improved. After he left school, he secured a position with George A. Jackson in the clerk's office, and later he entered the mercantile store of A. A. Lewis as a clerk.
After the close of the Civil war, Mr. Hyer came back near his old home, and went into the mercantile business at Flatwoods run, on the Elk, at a place now called Hyer. After successfully conducting the business there for a few years, he moved his store to Sutton where he expanded in business and soon became the principal merchant of the town. He helped organize the old Sutton Bank which was the first bank established in the country, and became its President, a position which he held until his death in 1903. He was a candidate on the Republican ticket for House of Delegates, and while the county was largely Democratic, he reduced the majority and lacked only a small number of votes of being elected. He was the nominee of his party in 1892 for the office of State Auditor, and once more reduced the majority in the sections where he had been best known for many years. Mr. Hyer was connected with school work in this town for many years. He was a member of the Masonic order, and the last few years of his life was a member of the M. E. church, and was liberal of his means. And active in promoting the interests of the church.
He married in 1878 a daughter of Charles E. Singleton, and after a short period, this highly esteemed lady was taken from his embrace, and he was left with two children, George Edwin and Charles J.
In 1886, Mr. Hyer married for his second wife, Mary C., the daughter of Wm. Hawkins of Buckhannon. By this union, he had the following children, Harry Jackson, Thomas Hawkins and Lulu Winifred
Mr. Hyer accumulated a large estate, and was considered one of the finest business men and financiers in the central part of the state. He died at his home in Sutton July 7, 1903, of typhoid fever, greatly beloved by his countrymen.

Pg 392
Jacob Hyer, son of Christian and Judy Sirk Hyer, born 1828, owned a farm on the Elk river near Hyer. He married Mary, daughter of Eliga Squires. She was born in 1837. They were married in 1849. Their children were Ellis, B. F. and Jacob.

Pg 390
Leonard W. Hyer, son of Christian and Judy (Sirk) Hyer, was born … …., 18… He married ………… McPherson and their children were James, Harvy. Mr. Hyer served through the Civil war in his brother's company. He owned a farm on Cedar creek, and was a carpenter as well as a farmer. Was a member of the M. E. church.

Pg 391
L. D. Hyer, son of Samuel E. and Clara J. (Wheeler) Hyer, was born in 1861. He married Clemna Riffle, and their children were: Victor, Minter, Porter, Dessie, Edgar, Carder, Hallie, Orile Otis and Oley Oris, the last two named being twins.
Mr. Hyer owned a good farm on O'Brions creek in Clay county where he resided. He was elected Sheriff of Clay county in 1908. He died May 4, 1911, and his son Porter finished his term of office.

Pg 389-90
Captain N. M Hyer. The founder of the Hyer family came from Germany at an early period of the country's history, and settled on the James river at or near Jamestown. He had two sons, one of who emigrated East, and the other moved to Rockingham county, Va., It was here that Leonard Hyer, grandfather of the deceased, was born about the year 1758. He was captured by the Indians at the age of thirteen, and kept in captivity for three years. After regaining his liberty, he joined General Washington's army, and served until the independence of the country was gained, then returning to Rockingham he married a lady by the name of Rohrbaugh and reared seven children. Two of these children, Christian and Mary, came to Harison county, now Braxton, and settled near Flatwoods about 1817; the other five emigrated to Ohio.
Captain Hyer was a son of Christian and Julia Hyer; his mother's name was Sirk; she was a niece of the celebrated Adam Poe. It was at the exemplary Christian home of his parents that he grew to manhood, and whence he received his early moral and religious training.
He married Elizabeth Jane, daughter of James W. Morrison, and their children are James M., Mary E., Nancy V., Emma T. and John W.
In 1862, when the struggle waged the fiercest and vast armies were struggling for supremacy, Mr. Hyer volunteered as a private in Company F, Tenth West Virginia infantry, and was shortly afterwards made 1st Lieutenant of the company, and then elected Captain, a position that he held until the close of the war. He was taken prisoner in 1863 and was sent to Libby and then to Charleston, S. C., from there he was sent to Savannah, Ga., remaining as a prisoner seventeen months and eleven days. He had as companions in Libby, Bishop C. C. McCabe, Neal Dow, the great temperance advocate of Maine, and others of national celebrity. His prison life was one of great privation and danger, and at the time of his release his life hung upon a very brittle thread.
Captain Hyer died at the age of seventy-five

-J-

Pg 395-6
John Jackson, the pioneer of the Jackson family in West Virginia, was born in Londonderry, Ireland, about the year 1719, his father removed to London when John was quite young, and there he learned the builders trade.
In 1784, he immigrated to Cecil county in the colony of Maryland and there married Elizabeth Cummins, an English woman, who according to tradition was a large, strong minded, energetic, courageous woman of great strength of character, which traits were inherited by her descendants.
This couple were the progenitors of a long line of able enterprising men who were distinguished in military and civil life and left their impress on the times in which they lived.
Several years after their marriage the young couple moved West and after several temporary locations, in 1769, crossed the mountains and located on the Buckhannon river at the mouth of Turkey Run. Jackson had under the guidance of Samuel Pringle explored the country in the year previous, 1768.
John Jackson did his share of pioneer work and took an active part in the Indian wars of the period. He was the father of George, who was distinguished above his brothers, the grandfather of John G., the able United States Judge and Congressman, and the great grandfather of Thomas J. (Stonewall) whose fame as a soldier is world wide.
He died at Clarksburg in 1804, age 85 years. His wife, Elizabeth, also died in Clarksburg in 1825 at the age of 101 years.

Pg 396
Jackson Family - Very early in the settlement of the country, Jesse, Robert and Abraham Jackson came and settled on the Birch. They were the sons of Robert Jackson who lived in Bath county, Va.

Pg 396
Abraham Jackson, son of Robert Jackson, came to Braxton county in an early day. His wife was Polly Ralph. They were married before coming to this county.

Pg 396
David M Jackson, son of Robert Jackson, married Elizabeth, daughter of Sarah Cuberly, and granddaughter of Andrew Skidmore, Sr. The children of Robert Jackson were William, David, Henry L., James (who died in the southern army), Washington, Clayton, Felix, Sarah, Mary and Eliza. Mr. Jackson built a mill about two miles below his brother Jesse's residence where he lived and reared his ability.

Pg 396
David M Jackson, son of Jesse and Rebecca (Skidmore) Jackson, was born Aug. 4, 1838, and was married to Sylvina Mary, June 10, 1865. Their issue consisted of sixteen children, of whom fourteen are living, including one set of triplets: Abigal, Sarah, George C., Edna J., Rebecca, Warder, Minter, Violet, Mariah, Lafayette, and one child who died unnamed. Mr. Jackson inherited the old home farm where he was born, and where he has reared his family. His land is underlaid with very fine coal seams, and the old mill still grinds and mainly supplies his bread

Pg 396
Jesse Jackson was born Sept. 18, 1811. He married Rebecca, daughter of Andrew and Margaret (Johnson) Skidmore. Their children were Polly, Robert, Sylvester, David M. and Abigal. His home was on the Little Birch where the turn pike road crosses the river. He build the first mill on the Little Birch, and it is still in use, being owned by his son, David M. Jesse Jackson died May 1, 1888.

.Pg 397-8
Governor Joseph Johnson of Harrison County, VA
Joseph Johnson was born in Orange county, New York, December 19, 1785, and came with his mother, a widow, to near Bridgeport about 1803, where he lived until his death February 27, 1877.
He was self educated, and was always an eager participant in the debating societies in his neighborhood. In 1811, he was appointed a constable, his first appearance in public life. He was captain of a Company of Riflemen from Harrison county in the war of 1812 with England and marched it to Norfolk.
He was elected to the Legislature in 1818. In 1823, he was elected to the 18th Congress, also the 19th; to the vacancy in the 22nd , occasioned by the death of Philip Doddridge, serving from January 21 to March 2, 1833; and to the 24th, 25th, 26th, and 29th Congress retiring in 1847. He was again elected to the Legislature in 1847 and in 1850 he was chosen a member of the Constitutional Convention.
While serving in that body, he was elected Governor for a short term by the Legislature and thus it came to pass that Mr. Johnson was the first Governor of Virginia chosen by the suffrage of the people, and the only one who ever held the office living west of the Allegheny mountains.
In the war of 1861, Governor Johnson's sympathies were with the South, and during that period he left Bridgeport, and lived quietly inside of the Confederate lines in Virginia, and returned to his home in 1865 after the cessation of hostilities.
Governor Johnson was a medium sized man of agreeable manners, a persuasive stump speaker, and of great political popularity among the people.
When he was a candidate for Governor, he was opposed by George W. Summers of Kanawha county, who was a finished orator, and the idol of the Whigs in Western Virginia.
There were no joint debates during the campaign, and Johnson's political opponents charged that he would not dare meet Summers on the stump to discuss the issues of the campaign.
To this Johnson replied, "I do not shrink from meeting Mr. Summers, for have I not met the lion of the forest and shaken the dew drops from his mane?" This illusion is to Philip Doddridge who was perhaps the ablest man in the West, and had a reputation as a scholar, lawyer and orator, exceeded by none.
Governor Johnson was a good conversationalist, and having met all the prominent men of his time, his recollection of past events was exceedingly interesting.
He had the respect and admiration of the people of his county, and his private life was without reproach.

Pg 398
Okey Johnson was born Sept. 17, 1888, at Herold, W. Va. Both his father, L. N. Johnson, and mother, Malissa Isabel Johnson, were born at Herold. His grandfather, Wm. Johnson, was born in Monroe county, and his grandmother, Jane Given, was born in Braxton county. He was married April 30, 1913, to Miss Bessie Leigh Robertson of Petersburg, Va., and now resides in Charleston where he holds the position as Credit Man in the Abney-Barnes Co. of that city.

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