West Virginia County Histories

County Commissioners' Association

of West Virginia West Virginia County Histories

Barbour County History

Barbour County was created by an act of the Virginia General Assembly on March 3, 1843 from parts of Harrison, Lewis, and Randolph counties. Most historians believe that the county was named in honor of the distinguished Virginia jurist Judge Philip Pendleton Barbour (1783-1841).

Philip Barbour was born in Orange County Virginia on May 25, 1783. He studied law, and, at the age of 17, moved to Kentucky to manage some business affairs for his father, Thomas Barbour. The businesses failed, and his father was reportedly so angry that he disowned him. Philip then took up the study of law once again and, at age 19, entered the College of William and Mary. He subsequently returned to Orange County and became a successful lawyer. He was later elected to the Virginia General Assembly (1812-1814), represented Virginia in the U.S. House of Representatives (1814-1825, 1827-1830), and served as Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives (1821-1823). He later served as a Judge of the United States Circuit Court for the Eastern District of Virginia (1830-1836) and Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court (1836-1841) where he remained until his death on February 24, 1841.

Some historians believe that Barbour County was named for Philip's older brother, James Barbour (1775-1842). He was the Governor of Virginia (1812-1814), a member of the U.S. Senate (1815-1825), Secretary of War during John Quincy Adams' Administration (1825-1828), and the U.S. Envoy to Great Britain in 1828.

The First Settlers

The first native settlers in present-day northern West Virginia were the Mound Builders, also known as the Adena people. Remnants of the Mound Builder's civilization have been found throughout northern West Virginia, with a high concentration of artifacts located at Moundsville, West Virginia, just north of the county (in Marshall County). The Grave Creek Indian Mound, located in the center of Moundsville, is one of West Virginia's most famous historic landmarks. More than 2,000 years old, it stands 69 feet high and 295 feet in diameter.

According to missionary reports, several thousand Hurons occupied present-day West Virginia during the late 1500s and early 1600s. They were driven out of the state during the 1600s by members of the powerful Iroquois Confederacy (consisting of the Mohawk, Onondaga, Cayuga, Oneida, and Seneca tribes, and joined later by the Tuscaroras tribe). The Iroquois Confederacy was headquartered in New York and was not interested in occupying present-day West Virginia. Instead, they used it as a hunting ground during the spring and summer months.

During the early 1700s, northern West Virginia, including present-day Barbour County, was used primarily as hunting grounds by the Ohio-based Shawnee, the Mingo, who lived in both the Tygart Valley and along the Ohio River northwest of Barbour County, the Delaware, who lived in present-day eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, but had several autonomous settlements as far south as present-day Braxton County, and the Seneca, one of the largest and most powerful members of the Iroquois Confederacy.

The Shawnee settled in villages along the Ohio River, primarily in the area between present-day Wood and Cabell counties. Following the construction of Fort Pitt in 1758 by the British, the Shawnee moved further in-land and built a series of villages along the Scioto River in southern Ohio. These villages were collectively known as Chillicothe and served as their base camp for hunting and fishing in present-day West Virginia.

The Mingo were not actually an Indian tribe, but a multi-cultural group of Indians that established several communities within present-day West Virginia. They lacked a central government and, like all other Indians within the region at that time, were subject to the control of the Iroquois Confederacy. The Mingo originally lived closer to the Atlantic Coast, but European settlement pushed them into western Virginia and eastern Ohio.

The Seneca, headquartered in western New York, was the closest member of the Iroquois Confederacy to West Virginia, and took great interest in the state. In 1744, the Seneca boasted to Virginia officials that they had conquered the several nations living on the back of the great mountains of Virginia. Among the conquered nations were the last of the Canawese or Conoy people who became incorporated into some of the Iroquois communities in New York. The Conoy continue to be remembered today through the naming of two of West Virginia's largest rivers after them, the Little Kanawha and the Great Kanawha.

The Seneca, and other members of the Iroquois Confederacy, claimed all of present-day West Virginia as their own, using it primarily as a hunting ground. Also, war parties from the Seneca and other members of the Iroquois Confederacy often traveled through the state to protect its claim to southern West Virginia from the Cherokee. The Cherokee were headquartered in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee and rivaled the Iroquois nation in both size and influence. The Cherokee claimed present-day southern West Virginia as their own, setting the stage for conflict with the Iroquois Confederacy.

In 1744, Virginia officials purchased the Iroquois title of ownership to West Virginia in the Treaty of Lancaster. The treaty reduced the Iroquois Confederacy's presence in the Ohio River Valley.

During the mid-1700s, the English had made it clear to the various Indian tribes that they intended to settle the frontier. The French, on the other hand, were more interested in trade. This influenced the Delaware, Mingo, and Shawnee to side with the French during the French and Indian War (1755-1763). Although the Iroquois Confederacy officially remained neutral, many in the Iroquois Confederacy also allied with the French. Unfortunately for them, the French lost the war and ceded the all of its North American possessions to the British. The Mingo retreated to their homes along the banks of the Ohio River, and the Shawnee retreated to their homes at Chillicothe.

Although the war was officially over, many Indians continued to see the British as a threat to their sovereignty and continued to fight them. In the summer of 1763, Pontiac, an Ottawa chief, led raids on key British forts. Shawnee chief Keigh-tugh-qua, or Cornstalk, led similar attacks on western Virginia settlements in present-day Greenbrier County. By the end of July, Indians had captured all British forts west of the Alleghenies except Detroit, Fort Pitt, and Fort Niagara. Then, on August 6, 1763, British forces under the command of Colonel Henry Bouquet retaliated and destroyed Delaware and Shawnee forces at Bushy Run in western Pennsylvania, ending the hostilities.

Fearing more tension between Native Americans and settlers, England's King George III issued the Proclamation of 1763, prohibiting settlement west of the Allegheny Mountains. However, many land speculators, including George Washington, violated the proclamation by claiming vast acreage in western Virginia. The next five years were relatively peaceful on the frontier. In 1768, the Iroquois Confederacy (often called the Six Nations) and the Cherokee signed the Treaty of Hard Labour and the Treaty of Fort Stanwix, relinquishing their claims on the territory between the Ohio River and the Alleghenies to the British. With the frontier now open, settlers, once again, began to enter into present-day West Virginia.

During the American Revolution (1776-1783), the Mingo and Shawnee allied themselves with the British. In 1777, a party of 350 Wyandots, Shawnees, and Mingos, armed by the British, attacked Fort Henry, near present-day Wheeling. Nearly half of the Americans manning the fort were killed in the three-day assault. The Indians then left the Fort celebrating their victory. For the remainder of the war, smaller raiding parties of Mingo, Shawnee, and other Indian tribes terrorized settlers throughout northern West Virginia. As a result, European settlement in the region came to a virtual standstill until the war's conclusion. Following the war, the Mingo and Shawnee, once again allied with the losing side, returned to their homes. However, as the number of settlers in the region began to grow, and with their numbers depleted by the war, both the Mingo and the Shawnee moved further inland.

Earliest European Settlers

Richard Talbot, Cotteral Talbot, Charity Talbot, and their mother, were the first English settlers in present-day Barbour County. They arrived in 1780. Richard was then 16 years old, Cotteral was 18, and Charity was 20. They built a cabin about two miles northwest of the current county seat, Philippi, along the waters of what would later be called Hacker's Creek. They abandoned their cabin several times due to Indian uprisings, and twice had to leave the county entirely due to the treat of Indian raids. In 1788, Richard Talbot married Margaret Dowden, then 11 years old. They subsequently had 13 children together. His older brother, Cotteral Talbot, married Elizabeth Reger later that same year. Most of the two family's children remained in Barbour County and, for several generations, the Talbot family name was by far the most numerous in the county.

There have only been two recorded incidences of Indians attacking European settlers in Barbour County. The first occurred in either 1781 or 1782. John Gibson and his family, possibly the first settlers on Sugar Creek, were at their sugar camp when Indians surprised and attacked them. The Indians took the family prisoner and, before they had gone far, killed Mrs. Gibson in front of her children. One of her sons later escaped to tell the tale. He never found out what happened to the rest of his family.

The second incident occurred on the Buckhannon River, near Teter's Mill. Families living along the river had been warned of Indian attacks, but because Indians had not been sighted in the area for many years no one expected any trouble. John Bozarth Sr. and his sons, John and George, were drawing grain from the field to the barn when they heard screams coming from the house. George reached the house first. An Indian emerged from the house and fired a gun at George. The shot missed, but George fell to the ground, pretending to be hit. A few moments later, George's father reached the house. The Indian chased the man back toward the field, narrowing missing him with a tomahawk. While the Indian was chasing his father, George ran away in the other direction. As he was running, he found one of his younger brothers limping on a bad leg. Believing that if he stayed to help his younger brother to escape they would both be caught and killed, he left his younger brother to his fate. The Indians killed two of Mr. Bozart's youngest children, including the one with the hurt leg, and took Mrs. Bozarth and two of his sons captive. They were never heard from again.

Important events of the 1800s

The first meeting of the Barbour County court was held at William F. Wilson's home on April 3, 1843. At that time, there were twenty-one Justices of the Peace in the county, and all were present at the meeting. One of the first orders of business was to select a county clerk. Three candidates, Lair D. Morrall, Michael H. Nevil and Thomas Hall, were considered by the assembled Justices of the Peace, with Morrall receiving eleven votes, Nevil five, and Hall three, thus making Lair D. Morrall the county's first clerk.

The next order of business was to nominate a sheriff for referral to the governor. At that time, sheriffs had to have served as a Justice of the Peace. By tradition, the sheriff was whomever had served as a Justice of the Peace the longest. However, it was not clear if Isaac Booth or Joseph McCoy had served the longest as a Justice of the Peace in their former counties. An election was held, with Booth receiving two votes and McCoy receiving sixteen. Joseph McCoy was then recommended to the Governor for appointment.

The county court then selected three places to be used as polls in public elections: Jesse Phillips' home at Sandy Creek Cross Roads, Isaiah Welch's home on Elk Creek, and the County Court House.

In 1852, a covered bridge across the Tygart Valley River was built in Philippi. It was designed by Lemuel Chenoweth, from Beverly. When Mr. Chenoweth presented his plan he placed a wooden model of his bridge between two chairs facing each other and stood on it. "Gentlemen, this is all I have to say," is the only statement he made about his bridge, and he was hired. The bridge was 312 feet long, and made entirely of wood (except the steel bolts holding it together). During its construction typhoid fever broke out among the men working on it. Between fifteen and twenty of the workers were ill at the same time, and work almost halted because other workers could not be found.

The Philipi bridge was the first bridge captured during the Civil War. In 1863, the Union Army was going to burn it down, but Southern sympathizers in the town prevented it from happening. Sadly though, in 1989, an accidental fire almost completely destroyed the bridge. It was reconstructed, as close as possible to the original, and reopened in 1991. It is the only bridge of its kind on the national highway system.

Local legend has it that President Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy, held a secret meeting at the bridge shortly after the Civil War began in a futile effort to end the conflict.

There were many southern sympathies in Barbour County. In January 1861, the Confederate flag was raised above the county court house. It remained there until Union troops, under the command of Colonel B.F. Kelley, occupied Philipi on June 3, 1861.

On March 7, 1861 a meeting was held at the county court house to discuss succession for the Union. Only one man, Spencer Dayton, a native of New England, rose to speak in favor of joining the Union. After attempting to speak, a gun was leveled at his chest, and he abruptly removed himself from the meeting by jumping through a court house window.

Fearing for their lives, a group of Unionists later held a secret meeting in Martin Myers Shoe Shop to elect delegates to the Wheeling Convention (a meeting held in Wheeling to decide whether to reorganize the state's government or to form a new state). The meeting was later called the "Shoe Shop Convention." During the meeting, the shop's windows were darkened, the doors were locked, and only enough candlelight was used to enable the clerk of the meeting to write his minutes.

Aware that Unionists had elected delegates to the Wheeling Convention, southern sympathizers posted guards at the end of the covered bridge in an attempt to prevent them from leaving the town. When the time came for the delegates to leave, the only one who would go was Spencer Dayton, the many who had jumped through the court house window to save his life. He waited until past midnight, hoping the sentries would be asleep by the time he came through. As he approached the bridge he whipped his horse to a full gallop and sped across this bridge and onto the turnpike towards Webster.

Although previous encounters between Confederate and Union troops had taken place at Gloucester Port, Baltimore and at Sewell's Point, the Battle of Philippi, on June 3, 1861, is said to have been the first significant land battle between the Union and Confederate Armies during the Civil War. In mid-May, 1861, Confederate Colonel George A. Porterfield arrived in Philippi with an army of 775 men (600 infantry and 175 cavalry). He then marched to Grafton, and after a very short occupation of the town, returned to Philippi. On the night of June 2 1861, two Union columns under the command of General Thomas A. Morris converged on the city from two different directions in an attempt to trap the Confederate troops. Colonel Benjamin F. Kelley led approximately 1,600 men over back roads from near Grafton to reach the rear of the town and Colonel Ebenezer Dumont led 1,450 men south from Webster. Dumont was the first to arrive. He established cannons on the hill overlooking the covered bridge and opened fire before dawn on June 3rd.. Kelly had barely reached the town's outskirts when he heard the sounds of attack. He rushed to join in, but his troops were approaching from the north and east, leaving the turnpike clear to the southwest. Outnumbered and without artillery, experienced officers, or reliable munitions, Porterfield was forced to call for an immediate retreat along the turnpike to Huttonsville. Thirty men lost their lives during the engagement, four from the Union Army, and 26 from the Confederate Army. Porterfield was immediately relieved of his command. He later demanded an inquiry and in it was praised for his coolness under fire, but criticized for his failure to take precautions against a surprise attack.

At the outbreak of the Civil War, almost all of the county's elected officials supported the South. Many of them left with Colonel Porterfield, or left by themselves soon after the battle. As a result, the county government stopped functioning for about five months (the county court adjourned on May 8, 1861 and did not reconvene until October 7, 1861). On October 27, 1861 elections were held to "fill vacancies." Lewis Wilson was elected county clerk, James Trahern was elected sheriff, Nathan H. Taft was elected prosecuting attorney, and Josiah L Hawkings and Samuel S. Lackney were elected assessors.

Philippi was, for all intents and purposes, deserted during the Civil War. The people who lived in the county avoided the town, preferring to stay in their homes. Most of those who lived in the town at the outbreak of the War moved out.

County Seat

Philippi was established as the Barbour County seat by the Act creating the county. However, the city had been around for a long time before that. The land where the city is now located was originally called "Anglin's Ford," after the land's owner, William Anglin. No record has been found of William Anglin before 1789, but it is very likely that he lived in the area as early as 1783 or 1784.

The land came into the possession of Daniel Booth around 1800. He had lived in the area since about 1787. After he gained possession of the land, it became know as "Booth's Ferry."

The town's current name, Philippi, was established by the Act forming the county. By that time, the land was owned by William F. Wilson. The county court was to be build on two acres of land that would be bought from, or donated by, Mr. Wilson. This was so the court would be near the ferry, and thus giving "convenient and easy access to the water."

Philippi was named in honor of the same Philip Pendleton Barbour that the county was named after. The town was originally called Phillippa, a Latinized version of Philip. However, because of misunderstandings and misspellings, the town came to be known as Philippi. The city was incorporated on February 1, 1871 by an act of Legislature.

References

Barbour County, West Virginia...Another Look. 1979. Philippi: The Barbour County Historical Society.

Maxwell, Hu. 1968. The History of Barbour County, West Virginia: From Its Earliest Exploration and Settlement

to the Present Time. Parsons: McClain Printing Company.

Rice, Otis K. 1985. West Virginia: A History. Lexington, KY: The University of Kentucky Press.

Williams, John Alexander. 1993. West Virginia: A History for Beginners. Charleston, WV: Appalachian Editions.

Berkeley County History

Berkeley County was created by an act of the House of Burgesses in February 1772 from the northern third of Frederick County (Virginia). At the time of the county's formation it also consisted of the areas that make up the present day Jefferson and Morgan counties. Berkeley County is the state's second oldest county.

Most historians believe that the county was named for Norborne Berkeley, Baron de Botetourt (1718-1770), Colonial Governor of Virginia from 1768 to 1770. In 1769, he dissolved the Virginia General Assembly after it adopted two resolutions that he felt bordered on treason (the Assembly declared that Virginia should no longer submit to taxation by England and that Virginia would no longer send its criminals to England for trial). Despite his differences with the General Assembly, Norborne Berkeley was well respected by the colonists. He was referred to as the "good governor of Virginia." There is a monument to his memory in Williamsburg, and two counties were named in his honor, Berkeley (in present day West Virginia) and Botetourt in Virginia.

Other historians claim that the county may have been named in honor of Sir William Berkeley (1610-1677). He was born near London, graduated from Oxford University in 1629, and was appointed Governor of Virginia in 1642. He served as Governor until 1652 and was later reappointed Governor in 1660. He continued to serve as Virginia's Governor until 1677 when he was called back to England. He died later that year, on July 9, 1677.

Advocates of Norborne Berkeley note that the other Governor Berkeley (William) was known by some as the "Tyrannical Governor of Virginia" because he ordered the hanging of Nathaniel Bacon's followers for resisting his authority.

The First Settlers

The first native settlers in the eastern panhandle region of present-day West Virginia were the Mound Builders, also known as the Adena people. Remnants of the Mound Builder's civilization have been found throughout West Virginia, with a high concentration of artifacts located at Moundsville, West Virginia, just north of the county (in Marshall County). The Grave Creek Indian Mound, located in the center of Moundsville, is one of West Virginia's most famous historic landmarks. More than 2,000 years old, it stands 69 feet high and 295 feet in diameter.

During the early 1700s, West Virginia's eastern panhandle region, including present-day Berkeley County, was inhabited by the Tuscarora. They eventually migrated northward to New York and, in 1712, became the sixth nation to formally be admitted to the Iroquois Confederacy. The area was also used as a hunting ground by the Mingo, who lived in both the Tygart Valley and along the Ohio River in West Virginia's northern panhandle region, the Delaware, who lived in present-day eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware, but had several autonomous settlements as far south as present-day Braxton County, and by other members of the Iroquois Confederacy, especially the Seneca, one of the largest and most powerful members of the Iroquois Confederacy.

In 1744, Virginia officials purchased the Iroquois title of ownership to West Virginia in the Treaty of Lancaster. The treaty reduced the Iroquois Confederacy's presence in the state.

During the mid-1700s, the English had made it clear to the various Indian tribes that they intended to settle the frontier. The French, on the other hand, were more interested in trade. This influenced the Mingo to side with the French during the French and Indian War (1755-1763). Although the Iroquois Confederacy officially remained neutral, many in the Iroquois Confederacy also allied with the French. Unfortunately for them, the French lost the war and ceded the all of its North American possessions to the British. Following the war, the Mingo retreated to their homes along the banks of the Ohio River and were rarely seen in the eastern panhandle.

During the American Revolution (1776-1783), the Mingo and Shawnee, headquartered at Chillicothe, Ohio, allied themselves with the British. In 1777, a party of 350 Wyandots, Shawnees, and Mingos, armed by the British, attacked Fort Henry, near present-day Wheeling. Nearly half of the Americans manning the fort were killed in the three-day assault. The Indians then left the Fort celebrating their victory. For the remainder of the war, smaller raiding parties of Mingo, Shawnee, and other Indian tribes terrorized settlers throughout northern and eastern West Virginia. As a result, European settlement in the region came to a virtual standstill until the war's conclusion. Following the war, the Mingo and Shawnee, once again allied with the losing side, returned to their homes. However, as the number of settlers in the region began to grow, and with their numbers depleted by the war, both the Mingo and the Shawnee moved further inland.

Earliest European Settlers

In 1670, John Lederer, a German physician and explorer employed by Sir William Berkeley, colonial governor of Virginia, became the first European to set foot in present-day Berkeley County. John Howard and his son also passed through the county a few years later, and discovered the valley of the South Branch of the Potomac. The next known explorer to transverse the county was John Van Meter in 1725. He came across the Potomac River, at what is now known as Shepherdstown, then he made his way to the South Branch River, where John Howard had once been. He believed the land he saw at the South Branch was possibly the best he had ever seen, and when he returned home to New York he advised his sons to precure land there, if they ever moved to Virginia.

In 1726, Morgan Morgan, II founded the first permanent English settlement of record in West Virginia on Mill Creek near the present site of Bunker Hill in Berkeley County. The state of West Virginia has erected a monument in Bunker Hill State Park commemorating the event, and has placed a marker at Morgan's grave, which is located in a cemetery near the park. Morgan Morgan married Catherine Garretson, of Delaware, and they had eight children. His son later settled in present-day Morgantown, West Virginia.

In 1730, John and Isaac Van Meter, two of John Van Meter's sons, secured a patent for forty thousand acres at the South Branch River, much of it located in present-day Berkeley County, from Virginia's Colonial Governor Gooch. The brothers sold the land the following year to Hans Yost Heydt, also known as Joist Hite. In 1732, Joist Hite and 15 families cut their way through the wilderness from York, Pennsylvania, passed through present-day Berkeley County, and settled near present-day Winchester, Virginia. In 1774, John Van Meter moved to a site near Moorefield, then part of Berkeley County, but now in present-day Hardy County. His brother, Isaac Van Meter, settler further to the west.

Important Events of the 1700s

In 1716, Governor Spottswood, the colonial governor of Virginia, decided that the Shanandoah Valley needed to be explored. He organized what he called the Trans-Mountain Order, or the "Knights of the Golden Horseshoe" in Williamsburg, which was, at that time, Virginia's capitol. Thirty men joined the order and accompanied Spottswood on the journey. All of men were provided a minature horseshoe with the inscription "Sic jurat transcudere montes," meaning "Thus he swears to cross the mountains."

In the fall of 1753, just prior to the outbreak of the French and Indian War (1754-1763), Virginia's Governor Robert Dinwiddie sent Major George Washington to a French fort at Pittsburg with a message informing the French comander that the fort was on land belonging to Virginia. The French commander returned the message, saying that he was ordered to hold the French territory in that area. Virginia then sent a group of men from Berkeley and Hampshire counties to erect a fort of their own at the forks of the Ohio River. However, the French attacked and captured it before it was completed. The French then finished the fort, naming it Fort Duquesne in honor of the Marquis du Quesne, Governor General of Canada.

Berkeley County was strongly for Independence during the American Revolutionary War (1776-1783). Most of the able bodied men in the county volunteered for service in the American army and it was the home of General Horatio Gates, one of George Washington's highest ranking officers.

Important events of the 1800s

Berkeley County was reduced in size twice during the 1800s. On January 8, 1801, Jefferson County was formed out of the county's eastern section. Then, on February 9, 1820, Morgan County was formed out of the county's western section.

Berkeley County was of strategic importance to both the North and the South during the Civil War (1861-1865). The county, and the county seat, Martinsburg, lay at the northern edge of the Shanandoah Valley, and Martinsburg was very important because the main line of the Baltimore and Ohio Rail Road ran right through the town. The rail line was of great importance to both armies. Also, Matinsburg was close to the Union arsenal at Harpers Ferry.

Control over Martinsburg changed hands so many times that it is almost impossible to count. Prior to the Battle of Gettysburg (July 1863), the town changed hands fairly often. After Gettysburg, the city remained mostly in Union hands.

Most of Berkeley County's residents were loyal to the South during the Civil War. There were seven companies of soldiers recruited from the county: five for the Confederate Army and two for the Union Army. At least six hundred men from Berkeley County served in either the Confederate or Union Armies during the Civil War.

The two Union Army companies were Company B, First Regiment, Virginia Volunteers, organized in Williamsport, Maryland, by Colonel Ward Lamon, with Joseph Kerns first in command, and Lieutenant James Fayman, second in command and Company C, Third Regiment, West Virginia Cavalry. Captain Peter Tabler was in command, and Lieutenant John E. Bowers was second in command.

The five Confederate companies were: Company B, Wise Artillery, with Captain E. G. Alburtis in command. However, Alburtis resigned in 1861, and was succeded by Captain James S. Brown; Company B, First Regiment, Virginia Cavalry, commanded by Captain James Blair Hoge, who was later succeeded by Captain G. N. Hammond, who was killed at the battle of Yellow Tavern in 1864; Company E, Second Regiment, Virginia Infantry, with Captain Raleigh Colson in command, who was later succeeded by Captain William B. Colston; and Company A, Seventeenth Battalion, Virginia Cavalry, commanded by Captain G. W. Myers.

In addition to supplying over six hundred soldiers to the War, Berkeley County was also the home of Belle Boyd, a famous spy for the Confederacy. She was born in Martinsburg in 1844, and lived there until the outbreak of the war. Belle Boyd's espionage career began by chance. On the fourth of July, 1861, a band of drunken Union soldiers broke into her home in Martinsburg, intent on raising the U. S. flag over the house. When one of them insulted her mother, Belle drew a pistol and killed him. A board of inquiry exonerated her, but sentries were posted around the house and officers kept close track of her activities. She profited from this enforced familiarity, charming at least one of the officers, Captain Daniel Keily, into revealing military secrets. "To him," she wrote later, "I am indebted for some very remarkable effusions, some withered flowers, and a great deal of important information." Belle conveyed those secrets to Confederate officers via her slave, Eliza Hopewell, who carried the messages in a hollowed-out watchcase. Then, one evening in mid-May, General James Shields and his staff conferred in the parlor of the local hotel. Belle hid upstairs, eavesdropping through a knothole in the floor. She learned that Shields had been ordered east, a move that would reduce the Union Army's strength at Front Royal. That night, Belle rode through Union, using false papers to bluff her way past the sentries, and reported the news to Colonel Turner Ashby, who was scouting for the Confederates. She then returned to town. When the Confederates advanced on Front Royal on May 23, Belle ran to greet General Andrew Jackson's men. She urged an officer to inform Jackson that "the Yankee force is very small. Tell him to charge right down and he will catch them all." Jackson did and that evening penned a note of gratitude to her: I thank you, for myself and for the army, for the immense service that you have rendered your country today." After the war, Belle moved west, married twice, and died in 1900 in Wisconsin, where she is buried.

Important events of the 1900s

Over one thousand (1,039) men from Berkeley County participated in World War I (1917-1918). Of these, forty-one were killed and twenty-one were wounded in battle. Eighty-eight of the soldiers were black. A monument to those who fell in battle was erected in 1925.

During World War II (1941-1945), the Newton D. Baker Hospital in Martinsburg treated thousands of soldiers wounded in the war. In 1945, the hospital employed over 1,350 civilians.

County Seat

Martinsburg, the county seat, was chartered by an act of the Virginia General Assembly in October 1788 on the lands of General Adam Stephen who commanded 500 troops mustered from Berkeley County during Lord Dunmore's War against the Indians in 1774. He subsequently rose to the rank of General during the American Revolutionary War before being dismissed for unsoldierly conduct at the Battle of Germantown. He named the town after his long-time friend, Colonel Thomas Bryan Martin. Martin was the nephew of England's Lord Fairfax and had started a settlement a few miles to the north. He had named his settlement Stephen City, in honor of his old-time friend. General Stephen later became the first sheriff of Berkeley County. Because the town did not legally exist at the time of the county's formation, the village of about 200 people did not have a legal name, but the area was known as the "Berkeley Court House."

The first county court session was held in Edward Beeson's home on May 19, 1772. The city was incorporated on March 30, 1868.

References

Aler, F. Vernon. 1888. Aler's History of Martinsburg and Berkeley County, West Virginia: From the Origin of the Indians ...

Hagerstown, MD: Printed for the author by the Mail Publishing Company.

Doherty, William T. 1972. Berkeley County, U.S.A.: A Bicentennial History of a Virginia and West Virginia County,

1772-1972. Parsons, WV: McClain Printing Company, 1972.

Evans, Willis F. 1928. History of Berkeley County, West Virginia. Wheeling, WV: No publisher.

Rice, Otis K. 1985. West Virginia: A History. Lexington, KY: The University of Kentucky Press.

Williams, John Alexander. 1993. West Virginia: A History for Beginners. Charleston, WV: Appalachian Editions.

Boone County History

Boone County was formed from an act of the Virginia General Assembly on March 11, 1847 from Cabell, Kanawha, and Logan counties. The county was named in honor of Daniel Boone (1734-1820), the famous hunter and explorer, founder of Kentucky, Lieutenant Colonel of the Virginia militia, and member of the Virginia General Assembly representing Kanawha County (in 1791).

Although Daniel Boone was known as a son of Kentucky, he was born on November 2, 1734 in the Schuylkill Valley in Pennsylvania. He moved with his parents to Yadkin Valley, North Carolina in 1750. He later married and started a family there, and was active as an Indian trader in that area. He visited the present site of West Virginia in 1755 as a member of General Braddock's army that was defeated by the Indians on the Monongahela River. A few years later, he explored the future site of Kentucky and moved his family there. In 1788, he lost his Kentucky property because he failed to properly enter his land grants. Homeless, he moved to Point Pleasant, in West Virginia, for nearly a year, and then moved to present-day Charleston. He lived in Charleston for seven years (1788-1795). In 1789, he was named a Lieutenant Colonel of the state militia, and, in 1790, he was elected to the Virginia General Assembly. He left West Virginia in 1799, moving to Missouri, where he had been granted 1,000 acres of land by the Spanish government and given a government position overseeing the area. He died on September 26, 1820 in Missouri.

The idea of naming the county after Daniel Boone came from St. Clair Ballard, a member of the Virginia General Assembly. In an eloquent speech before the Virginia General Assembly, Mr. Ballard recounted the story of how Daniel Boone saved Mr. Ballard's mother from the Shawnee Indians. When St. Clair Ballard's mother, Cloey, was five and one half years old a group of Shawnee Indians came onto her father's farm. They killed her parents, and took her and her older brother, John, prisoner. Her older sister was not seen by the Indians and escaped. Several months later, John escaped and, knowing of Daniel Boone's reputation as an Indian fighter, sought his help in rescuing his sister. Boone listened to John's story and said he would see what he could do. While John rested, Boone disappeared into the woods.. The next afternoon, he returned with Cloey at his side.

When St. Clair Ballard finished telling the story, he moved to name the new county Boone County. The Virginia General Assembly then agreed to the motion, creating Boone County on March 11, 1847.

First Settlers

The first native settlers in southern West Virginia were the Mound Builders, also known as the Adena people. Remnants of the Mound Builder's civilization have been found throughout West Virginia, with a high concentration of artifacts located at Moundsville, West Virginia, in Marshall County. The Grave Creek Indian Mound, located in the center of Moundsville, is one of West Virginia's most famous historic landmarks. More than 2,000 years old, it stands 69 feet high and 295 feet in diameter.

According to missionary reports, several thousand Hurons occupied present-day West Virginia during the late 1500s and early 1600s. They were driven out of the state during the 1600s by members of the powerful Iroquois Confederacy (consisting of the Mohawk, Onondaga, Cayuga, Oneida and Seneca tribes, and joined later by the Tuscaroras tribe). The Iroquois Confederacy was headquartered in New York and was not interested in occupying present-day West Virginia. Instead, they used it as a hunting ground during the spring and summer months.

During the early 1700s, southern West Virginia, including present-day Boone County, was used as a hunting ground by the Mingo, who lived in both the Tygart Valley and along the Ohio River in West Virginia's northern panhandle region, the Delaware, who lived in present-day eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, but had several autonomous settlements as far south as present-day Braxton County, and by members of the Iroquois Confederacy, especially the Seneca, one of the largest and most powerful members of the Iroquois Confederacy.

In 1744, Virginia officials purchased the Iroquois title of ownership to West Virginia in the Treaty of Lancaster. The treaty reduced the Iroquois Confederacy's presence in the state.

During the mid-1700s, the English had made it clear to the various Indian tribes that they intended to settle the frontier. The French, on the other hand, were more interested in trade. This influenced the Mingo to side with the French during the French and Indian War (1755-1763). Although the Iroquois Confederacy officially remained neutral, many in the Iroquois Confederacy also allied with the French. Unfortunately for them, the French lost the war and ceded the all of its North American possessions to the British. Following the war, the Mingo retreated to their homes along the banks of the Ohio River and were rarely seen in southern West Virginia.

Although the war was officially over, many Indians, especially the Shawnee who resided in Ohio, continued to see the British as a threat to their sovereignty and continued to fight them. In the summer of 1763, Pontiac, an Ottawa chief, led raids on key British forts. Shawnee chief Keigh-tugh-qua, or Cornstalk, led similar attacks on western Virginia settlements in present-day Greenbrier County. By the end of July, Indians had captured all British forts west of the Alleghenies except Detroit, Fort Pitt, and Fort Niagara. Then, on August 6, 1763, British forces under the command of Colonel Henry Bouquet retaliated and destroyed Delaware and Shawnee forces at Bushy Run in western Pennsylvania, ending the hostilities.

Fearing more tension between Native Americans and settlers, England's King George III issued the Proclamation of 1763, prohibiting settlement west of the Allegheny Mountains. However, many land speculators, including George Washington, violated the proclamation by claiming vast acreage in western Virginia. In 1768, the Iroquois Confederacy (often called the Six Nations) and the Cherokee signed the Treaty of Hard Labour and the Treaty of Fort Stanwix, relinquishing their claims on the territory between the Ohio River and the Alleghenies to the British. With the frontier now open, settlers, once again, began to enter into present-day West Virginia.

In 1772, a series of incidents between settlers and Indians in West Virginia ended what had been nearly eight years of peace. During the spring of that year, several
Indians were murdered on the South Branch of the Potomac River by Nicholas Harpold and his companions. About the same time, Bald Eagle, an Indian chief of
some notoriety, was murdered while on a hunting trip on the Monongahela River. In the meantime, Captain Bull, a Delaware Indian Chief and five other Indian
families were living in Braxton County in an area known as Bulltown, near the falls of the Little Kanawha River, about fourteen miles from present day Sutton.
Captain Bull was regarded by most of the settlers in the region as friendly. But some settlers suspected him of providing information to and harboring unfriendly
Indians. While away from home in June 1772, the family of a German immigrant named Peter Stroud was murdered, presumably by Indians. The trail left by the
murderers led in the general direction of Bulltown. Peter's brother, Adam Stroud, had a cabin nearby and seeing smoke rising into the sky, raced to his brother's
cabin. He gathered up what was left of the bodies and buried them. He then headed for Hacker's Creek where he met with several other settlers who agreed to join
him in an attack on Bulltown. They killed all of the Indians in the village, including Captain Bull, and threw their bodies into a nearby river. News of Captain Bull's
murder quickly spread across the western frontier.

Following what the Indians referred to as the Bulltown massacre, Shawnee Chief Cornstalk, who had led numerous raids against West Virginia settlers in the past,
began to organize the Indians in a concerted effort to drive the whites from their territory.

In 1773, land speculator Michael Cresap led a group of volunteers from Fort Fincastle (later renamed Fort Henry) at present-day Wheeling, murdering several
Shawnee at Captain Creek. Among other atrocities, on April 30, 1774, colonists murdered the family of Mingo chieftain Tah-gah-jute, who had been baptized under
the English name of Logan. Although Logan had previously lived peacefully with whites, he killed at least thirteen settlers that summer in revenge.

Virginia Governor John Murray, Earl of Dunmore, worried about the escalating violence in western Virginia, decided to end the conflict by force. He formed two
armies, one marching from the North, consisting of 1,700 men led by himself and the other marching from the South, comprised of 800 troops led by western
Virginia resident and land speculator Captain Andrew Lewis. Shawnee chieftain Keigh-tugh-qua, or Cornstalk, along with approximately 1,200 Shawnee, Delaware,
Mingo, Wyandotte and Cayuga warriors, decided to attack the southern regiment before they had a chance to unite with Lord Dunmore's forces. On October 10,
1774, the Indians attacked Lewis' forces at the confluence of the Kanawha and Ohio Rivers, at present-day Point Pleasant, in Greenbrier County. During the battle,
both sides suffered significant losses.

Although nearly half of Lewis' commissioned officers were killed during the battle, including his brother, Colonel Charles Lewis, and seventy-five of his
non-commissioned officers, the Indians were finally forced to retreat back to their settlements in Ohio's Scioto Valley, with Lewis' men in pursuit. In the meanwhile,
Lord Dunmore arrived and joined forces with Lewis. Seeing that they were now outnumbered, Cornstalk sued for peace.

Although western Virginia's settlers continued to experience isolated Indian attacks for several years, Cornstalk's defeat at Point Pleasant was the beginning of the
end of the Indian presence in western Virginia. The Indians agreed to give up all of their white prisoners, restore all captured horses and other property, and not to
hunt south of the Ohio River. Also, they were to allow boats on the Ohio River and promised not to harass them. This opened up present-day West Virginia and
Kentucky for settlement. Cornstalk was later killed at Fort Randolph near Point Pleasant in 1777 in retaliation for the death of a militiaman who was killed by an
Indian.

During the American Revolution (1776-1783), the Mingo and Shawnee, headquartered at Chillicothe, Ohio, allied themselves with the British. In 1777, a party of 350 Wyandots, Shawnees, and Mingos, armed by the British, attacked Fort Henry, near present-day Wheeling. Nearly half of the Americans manning the fort were killed in the three-day assault. The Indians then left the Fort celebrating their victory. For the remainder of the war, smaller raiding parties of Mingo, Shawnee, and other Indian tribes terrorized settlers throughout West Virginia. As a result, European settlement in the state came to a virtual standstill until the war's conclusion. Following the war, the Mingo and Shawnee, once again allied with the losing side, returned to their homes. However, as the number of settlers in the region began to grow, and with their numbers depleted by the war, both the Mingo and the Shawnee moved further inland.

European Pioneers and Settlers

John Peter Salley was the first European to set foot in present-day Boone County. In 1742, he explored the county and is credited for discovering coal along the Coal River. Other Europeans to pass through the area during the late-1700s included Mitchell Clay who passed through the area while tracking a band of Indians who had killed his children, and Richard Hewett, who was exploring in the county when he was killed by Indians at the mouth of Hewett Creek in 1782.

In 1792, settlers on the Blue Stone River, led by Captain Henry Farley, chased a group of Indian raiders through present-day southern West Virginia, including Boone County. The chase ended in a large fight at the headwaters of the Coal River that lasted several hours.

Important Events of the 1800s

Four engagements took place within the county during the Civil War (1861-1865). The first was called the Battle of Boone County Courthouse. When Brigadier General Jacob Cox, in command of the Union Army in the Kanawha Valley, heard that a Confederate regiment was forming in Boone County, he sent Colonel J. V. Guthrie from Charleston to destroy it. On August 29, 1861, Colonel Guthrie sent two companies, Company G, 26th Ohio Infantry, and Company A, 1st Kentucky Infantry, to Boone County. On the following day, he dispatched Company K, 26th Ohio, to reinforce the first two companies. On September 1, 1861, Companies G and A, and some local militia, were in the process of crossing the river on their way to the Boone County Courthouse in Madison when the Confederate militia, commanded by Colonel Ezekiel S. Miller, opened fire on them. However, after twenty minutes of fighting, the Confederate troops were forced to retreat. Twenty-five Confederate soldiers were killed, wounded, or captured during the engagement. One Union soldier was killed and five more were wounded. In retaliation for supporting the South, before returning to Charleston, the Union soldiers burned the court house, and several other buildings in the town, to the ground.

The second engagement occurred on September 12, 1861 near an area of the county known as Paytona. Four Union companies from the First Kentucky Volunteer Infantry were setting up camp at the mouth of Joe's Creek when they were ambushed by four companies of Confederate cavalry. Forty-two Union soldiers were either killed, wounded or captured. The Confederate Army suffered only minor casualties.

The third engagement occurred at Pond Fork, of the Little Kanawha River, on September 17th, 1861. On that morning, a company of Mounted Confederate Rangers attacked a detachment of Unionist Homeguards at Pond Fork. The Unionist Homeguards retreated, but the Confederate troops captured seventeen of them. Fourteen of them were accused of treason against the Confederacy and were sent to Richmond as prisoners of war.

The fourth engagement occurred on September 25, 1861. The fight started on Trace Fork or Big Creek, approximately five miles from the Logan County line, and ended in the Kanawha Gap, near Chapmanville, in Logan County. Union scouts reported a concentration of Confederate troops in the Chapmanville area, and Colonel Piatt was sent to disperse it. He left on September 23, 1861 with six companies from the 34th Ohio. He was accompanied by Lieutenant Colonel David A. Enyart and three hundred men from the 1st Kentucky Infantry, and two hundred Unionist Homeguards. When the force reached Peytona they camped for the night and the next day separated, with Colonel Enyart moving up the Coal River, and Colonel Piatt moving on to the Boone County Court House. The next morning, near what is now Manila, they met the Confederate advance guard and exchanged gunfire. The Confederate advance guard retreated to within two miles of Kanawha Gap. The then set up on a hill side and fired on the Union Army pursing them. Colonel Piatt deployed his troops on either side of the hill and eventually forced the Confederate soldiers to retreat from the area.

County Seat

Madison, the county seat, was incorporated in 1906. Most historians claim that the town was named in honor of William Madison Peyton, a leader of the movement to form Boone County and a pioneer coal operator. Others have suggested that it was named in honor of James Madison (1751-1836) the 4th President of the United States (1809-1817), a leading member of the Philadelphia Convention that wrote the U.S. Constitution, and life-long friend and neighbor of Thomas Jefferson, the 3rd President of the United States (1800-1809). Still others claim that the town was named in honor of Madison Laidley, a Charleston lawyer who helped to re-organize the civil affairs of the county.

The first meeting of the county court took place at the home of John Hill, then a Justice of the Peace in Logan County. He lived about three-fourths of a mile below the present county court house. The names of three of the four Justices of the Peace in attendance were Adam Cool, John A Barker, and John Hill. By tradition, John Hill, the longest-serving Justice of the Peace residing in the county, was commissioned to be the county's first sheriff. J. H. French was selected to serve as the county's first prosecuting attorney.

Until the county's first courthouse was built at the junction of the Pond and Spruce forks of Little Coal river, court was held in the log church at the mouth of Turtle Creek. Grand juries, when charged, and petit juries, when cases were submitted to them, retired to the bushes surrounding the church to deliberate.

The county has had three court houses. The first was burned to the ground during the Civil War, and the second was condemned in 1913. The foundation for the current county court house was laid in 1919, but construction was stopped when Danville tried to replace Madison as the county's seat of government. Madison eventually won out, most likely because work on a new court house had already begun there. On June 7, 1921, the county court deemed the court house completed enough to be used, although it was not completely finished until 1923.

References

Boone County, West Virginia, History. 1990. Madison, WV: Boone County Genealogical Society.

Kith and Kin of Boone County, West Virginia. 1977. Madison, WV: Boone County Genealogical Society.

Moorhead, Virginia B., editor. 1976. Boone County Then and Now, 1835-1976: A History in Words and Pictures by Her Sons

and Daughters to Celebrate the Bicentennial of the Signing of the Declaration of Independence. Belvidere, IL:

Boone County Bicentennial Commission.

Nelson, W. W. 1982. Branches of Turtle Creek: Origins and Extensions of the Families of God and Men at a Place in Boone

County, West Virginia, "Where No Other Creek Would Fit." Hewett, WV: Boone County Genealogical Society.

Rice, Otis K. 1985. West Virginia: A History. Lexington, KY: The University of Kentucky Press.

Williams, John Alexander. 1993. West Virginia: A History for Beginners. Charleston, WV: Appalachian Editions.

Braxton County History

Located in central West Virginia, Braxton County was created by an act of the Virginia General Assembly on January 15, 1836 from parts of Lewis, Kanawha and Nicholas counties. It was named in honor of Carter Braxton (1736-1797), a noted Virginia statesman and a graduate of William and Mary College. He was a long-time member of the Virginia House of Burgesses (serving from 1765 until the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War in 1776) and a signer of the U.S. Declaration of Independence.

The First Settlers

The first native settlers in central West Virginia were the Mound Builders, also known as the Adena people. Remnants of the Mound Builder's civilization have been found throughout West Virginia, with a high concentration of artifacts located at Moundsville, West Virginia, in Marshall County. The Grave Creek Indian Mound, located in the center of Moundsville, is one of West Virginia's most famous historic landmarks. More than 2,000 years old, it stands 69 feet high and 295 feet in diameter.

According to missionary reports, several thousand Hurons occupied present-day West Virginia during the late 1500s and early 1600s. They were driven out of the state during the 1600s by members of the powerful Iroquois Confederacy (consisting of the Mohawk, Onondaga, Cayuga, Oneida and Seneca tribes, and joined later by the Tuscaroras tribe). The Iroquois Confederacy was headquartered in New York and was not interested in occupying present-day West Virginia. Instead, they used it as a hunting ground during the spring and summer months.

During the early 1700s, central West Virginia, including present-day Braxton County, was used as a hunting ground by the Mingo, who lived in both the Tygart Valley and along the Ohio River in West Virginia's northern panhandle region, the Delaware, who lived in present-day eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, but had several autonomous settlements as far south as present-day Braxton County, and by other members of the Iroquois Confederacy, especially the Seneca, one of the largest and most powerful members of the Iroquois Confederacy.

In 1744, Virginia officials purchased the Iroquois title of ownership to West Virginia in the Treaty of Lancaster. The treaty reduced the Iroquois Confederacy's presence in the state.

During the mid-1700s, the English had made it clear to the various Indian tribes that they intended to settle the frontier. The French, on the other hand, were more interested in trade. This influenced the Mingo to side with the French during the French and Indian War (1755-1763). Although the Iroquois Confederacy officially remained neutral, many in the Iroquois Confederacy also allied with the French. Unfortunately for them, the French lost the war and ceded the all of its North American possessions to the British. Following the war, the Mingo retreated to their homes along the banks of the Ohio River and were rarely seen in central West Virginia.

During the American Revolution (1776-1783), the Mingo and Shawnee, headquartered at Chillicothe, Ohio, allied themselves with the British. In 1777, a party of 350 Wyandots, Shawnees, and Mingos, armed by the British, attacked Fort Henry, near present-day Wheeling. Nearly half of the Americans manning the fort were killed in the three-day assault. The Indians then left the Fort celebrating their victory. For the remainder of the war, smaller raiding parties of Mingo, Shawnee, and other Indian tribes terrorized settlers throughout West Virginia. As a result, European settlement in the state came to a virtual standstill until the war's conclusion. Following the war, the Mingo and Shawnee, once again allied with the losing side, returned to their homes. However, as the number of settlers in the region began to grow, and with their numbers depleted by the war, both the Mingo and the Shawnee moved further inland.

European Pioneers and Settlers

The first land survey in the county took place in 1784 on behalf of John Allison who had a warrant on 11,000 acres of land in area. Adam O'Brien, an Indian scout and noted hunter, was part of the survey party. An old story recounts the reason why Adam O'Brien left his home in Bath County, Virginia to settle in the uncharted wilderness of then Augusta County, Virginia. It was said that O'Brien had been spurned by Isabelle Burgyone, the daughter of British General "Gentleman" John Burgyone. So, in order to escape his rejection, he left his home to start a new life on the Elk River. 7,000 acres of Allison's land were later purchased by John Sutton of Alexandria, Virginia. His son, John D. Sutton, visited the area in 1798 and found a small, abandoned cabin on the land. He learned that John (or Adam) O'Brien once lived in the hallow of a large sycamore tree in the area around present day Sutton in 1792, 1793 or 1794, but he never did discover who had built the cabin.

The county's first permanent white settlers were the Carpenter family, including brothers Jeremiah, Benjamin, Jesse, and Amos, and their mother. They arrived in 1789 or 1790 and built cabins near present-day Centralia along the Holly River. According to local legend, Benjamin Carpenter and his wife were killed by two Indians who were passing through the area. Supposedly, a couple of Indians had seen some chips from an axe floating downstream. Recognizing this as a sign of white settlers, they decided to head upstream to investigate the situation which was when they came upon the Carpenter settlement. In 1800, Jeremiah Carpenter and Henry Mace settled near present day Sutton. In 1807, Colonel John Haymond moved from Harrison County and settled near the Falls of the Little Kanawha. His three brothers, Benjamin, Daniel, and John Conrad, settled three miles south of him. Also in that year, Nicholas Gibson and Asa Squires moved into the county. In 1810, John D. Sutton moved to the present site of Sutton, which, at the time, was known as Newville.

Important Events During the 1700s

Braxton County was the location of a famous Indian massacre. A 1764 treaty with the various Indian tribes was violated in 1772 when several Indians were murdered on the South Branch of the Potomac River by Nicholas Harpold and his companions. About the same time, Bald Eagle, an Indian chief of some notoriety, was murdered while on a hunting trip on the Monongahela River. In the meantime, Captain Bull, the son of the Delaware Indian Chief Teeyuscung, and other Indian families were living in Braxton County in an area known as Bulltown on the Little Kanawha River about 14 miles from present-day Sutton. Captain Bull was regarded by most of the settlers in the region as friendly, but there were some white families who suspected Captain Bull of providing information to and harboring unfriendly Indians. While away from home in June, the family German immigrant Peter Stroud was murdered, presumably by Indians. The trail left by the murderers led in the general direction of Bulltown. Peter's brother, Adam Stroud, had a cabin nearby and seeing smoke rising into the sky, raced to his brother's cabin. He gathered up what was left of the bodies and buried them. Peter then headed for Hacker's Creek where he met with several others who agreed to join him in an attack on Bulltown. They killed all of the Indians in the village and threw their bodies into a nearby river. Here, the facts surrounding the incident become murky. Historians believe there were Delaware Indians killed at Bulltown, but there is a dispute over whether Captain Bull himself perished during the attack. Some have reported that Captain Bull was not present during the raid because he had previously left for Ohio following the death of one of his children. Those who subscribe to the theory of Captain Bull's absence during the massacre tend to believe he died in 1781 after being attacked by Colonel Lowther's company near Isaac's Creek in West Virginia. News of Captain Bull's massacre (or at least the Massacre at Bulltown) spread across the western frontier and set off a series of incidents between the Indians and the English settlers, ending the eight years of peace on the western frontier.

Ann Bailey, an eccentric Englishwoman from Liverpool was a colorful character on the frontier and a native of Braxton County. Known as "Mad Ann," she served as a messenger for the militia during the French and Indian Wars (1754-1763) and was an accomplished marksman and hunter. It was said that she rode her famous black horse, Liverpool, like a man, with a rifle over one shoulder and a tomahawk and butcher's knife in her belt. She entertained many crowded campfires with the stories of her many adventures and was welcomed at every home in the county.

Important Events During the 1800s

Two significant engagements occurred within the county during the Civil War (1861-1865). On December 29, 1861, Confederate troops, commanded by Captains Sprigg, Tunings, and Downs, approached Sutton and its garrison of sixty Union cavalrymen under the command of a Lieutenant Dawson. Seeing that he was outnumbered, Dawson withdrew from the town. The southern forces then occupied the town, and, according to eye witness accounts, began to raze some of its buildings at the behest of Captain Tunings. When Captain Sprigg arrived at the scene, some of Sutton's citizens pleaded with him to order a halt to the burning. However, the burnings continued and only four structures survived the fire. In another, smaller incident, a small Confederate force occupied Sutton for a short time and set fire to the Camden Hotel. The hotel fire spread to a nearby hospital, burning both buildings to the ground.

The second significant engagement within the county during the Civil War was the Battle at Bulltown on October 13, 1863. Union soldiers held a well-fortified position on a hill located on the Cunningham farm overlooking Bulltown. Confederate forces approached the town from the southeast through Webster County. At Falls Mill, the Confederate forces split in order to launch a synchronized two-pronged surprise attack on the Union position. The Confederate advance was to begin after the firing of a cannon. Unfortunately for the Confederate Army, the attack did not take place as planned. One of the Confederate groups under the command of Major Kessler moved before the signal, alerting the Union Army of the Confederate's presence. During the ensuing battle, seven Confederate soldiers were killed and four were wounded, and two Union soldiers were wounded. Realizing that they no longer had the advantage of surprise, the Confederate force retreated down the Weston and Gauley Bridge Pike that had been constructed in 1851-1852.

After the war, Braxton County's economy began to grow, with most of the growth due to the presence of tanneries, brick manufacturers, pottery manufacturers, grain mills, and the smelting of iron ore. Also, the timber industry was very important to the heavily wooded county. In 1892, a railroad extending from Clarksburg in Harrison County to Sutton, and then on to Richwood in Nicholas County was built. The railroad line helped the county's economy to grow by providing it a means of shipping goods to and from northern West Virginia.

Important Events During the 1900s

In 1904, Braxton County's resurgence continued when the Coal and Coke Railroad, which traversed the center of the state from the capital at Charleston to Elkins in Randolph County, added a branch from Gassaway to Sutton. The new railroad opened a new corridor of trade for Braxton County. Previously, the only way to ship goods to Charleston was by boat. The Coal and Coke railroad provided a more efficient and cost effective method of trade.

In the mid 1950's, Sutton became the site of a large building project. A plan to dam the Elk River had been proposed as early as 1941, but World War II and the Korean War caused the project to be put on hold. Finally, with the help of U.S. Representative Cleveland Baily, an act appropriating money for the construction of the dam was pushed through Congress, and in July of 1955, President Dwight Eisenhower signed the bill making the dam construction a reality. Groundbreaking ceremonies for the dam commenced on November 3, 1956 and it was completed in 1960.

County Seat

The first meeting of the county court took place on April 11, 1836 at the home of John D. Sutton. Sutton, the county seat, had been chartered as a town by an act of the Virginia General Assembly on January 27, 1826. Originally located in Nicholas County, it had been known as Newville and later as Suttonville. The town's name was changed to Sutton on March 1, 1837 and it was incorporated on February 20, 1860.

References

"Ernie Carpenter: Tales of the Elk River Country." Goldenseal (Summer 1986):112.

Rice, Otis K. 1985. West Virginia: A History. Lexington, KY: The University of Kentucky Press.

Sutton, John Davison. 1919. History of Braxton County and Central West Virginia. Parsons, WV: McClain Printing Company.

West Virginia Writer's Project. 1940. Of Stars and Bars. Charleston, WV: West Virginia Writer's Project.

West Virginia Writer's Project. 1941. Sutton…On-The-Elk, 1798-1941. Charleston, WV: West Virginia Writers Project.

Williams, John Alexander. 1993. West Virginia: A History for Beginners. Charleston, WV: Appalachian Editions.

Brooke County History

Located in the Northern Panhandle along the Ohio River, Brooke County was created by an act of the Virginia General Assembly on November 30, 1796 from parts of Ohio County. Upon its creation, Brooke County became the northernmost county in the state of Virginia until the creation of Hancock County from Brooke's territory in 1848. According to the national census of 1800, Brooke County had 4,706 residents, the 6^th largest population of the 13 counties then in existence within the present state of West Virginia. Berkeley County had the largest population then (22,006) and Wood County had the smallest population (1,217).

Brooke County was named in honor of Robert Brooke (1751-1799), who was educated at the University of Edinburgh, practiced law in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, served in the Virginia General Assembly in 1794 and, later that year, was elected the third Governor of Virginia (1794-1796) by the General Assembly. He later served as the Attorney General of Virginia (1798-1799).

The First Settlers

The first native settlers along the Ohio River in the area of present day Brooke County were the Mound Builders, also known as the Adena people. Remnants of the Mound Builder's civilization have been found throughout the Ohio River Valley, with a high concentration of artifacts located at Moundsville, West Virginia, just south of Brooke County. The Grave Creek Indian Mound, located in the center of Moundsville, is one of West Virginia's most famous historic landmarks. More than 2,000 years old, it stands 69 feet high and 295 feet in diameter.

During the 1600s and early 1700s, northern West Virginia, including present-day Brooke County, was used primarily as hunting grounds by the Ohio-based Shawnee, the Mingo, who lived in both the Tygart Valley and along the Ohio River, and the Seneca, one of the largest and most powerful members of the Iroquois Confederacy headquartered in New York (comprised of the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, Mohawk, and Tuscarora tribes).

In 1744, Virginia officials purchased the Iroquois title of ownership to West Virginia in the Treaty of Lancaster. The treaty reduced the Iroquois Confederacy's presence in the northern panhandle region.

During the mid-1700s, the English had made it clear to the various Indian tribes that they intended to settle the frontier. The French, on the other hand, were more interested in trade. This influenced the Delaware, Mingo, and Shawnee to side with the French during the French and Indian War (1755-1763). Although the Iroquois Confederacy officially remained neutral, many in the Iroquois Confederacy also allied with the French. Just prior to the outbreak of the French and Indian War, George Washington, then a British officer, reported seeing Mingo campfires near Follansbee, in present-day Brooke County. Unfortunately for them, the French lost the war and ceded the all of its North American possessions to the British. The Mingo retreated to their homes along the banks of the Ohio River, and the Shawnee retreated to their homes at Chillicothe.

The most famous Mingo in West Virginia history was known to the European settlers as Logan. He was born near Auburn, New York in 1725 and was called Talgayeeta (or Taghahjute). His father, Shikellamy was a member of the Cayuga tribe and a Vice-Gerent of the Iroquois Confederacy. Following the French and Indian War, Shikellamy moved his family to central Pennsylvania. His father had taken the name Logan after a Pennsylvania official named John Logan. In 1763, Logan moved west to the Ohio River where he established a small settlement consisting primarily of members of his extended family. Logan and the other members of his settlement were considered friendly and cooperative by most settlers in the region, until his settlement was attacked by English settlers on April 30, 1774. The attack occurred on the West Virginia side of the river, in present-day Hancock County. Ten members of Logan's settlement, including two women, were killed and scalped by the settlers. Among the victims were members of Logan's immediate family, including his wife and all but one of his children. Several versions of the massacre circulated on the frontier. Lord Dunmore blamed a settler named Daniel Greathouse while Logan blamed Michael Cresap, a Maryland soldier and land speculator who was building cabins along the Ohio River as a means of securing land. Although the evidence suggests that Cresap was in the vicinity at the time of the massacre, many historians believe that he was not involved in the murders. In any case, following the massacre, Logan allied himself with the British and went on the warpath, leading four deadly raids on the Virginia and Pennsylvania frontiers and instigating what would later be called Lord Dunmore's War of 1774.

Logan gained national fame for his eloquent speech that was delivered during the peace negotiations following the Indians' defeat at the Battle of Point Pleasant in 1774. Logan was not at the decisive Battle of Point Pleasant, but returned to the main Indian camp during the peace negotiations. His famous speech was not delivered in council, but was given to Colonel John Gibson who wrote it down and delivered it on Logan's behalf during the negotiations. The speech was later published in many newspapers across the nation:

"I appeal to any white man to say if he ever entered Logan's cabin hungry and I gave him not meat; if ever he came cold and naked and I gave him not clothing. During the course of the long and bloody war Logan remained idle in his cabin, an advocate for peace. Such was my love for the whites that my countrymen pointed as they passed and said, "Logan is the friend of white men." I had even thought to have lived with you but for the injuries of one man. Colonel Cresap, the last spring, in cold blood and unprovoked, murdered all the relations of Logan, not even sparing my women and children. There runs not a drop of my blood in the veins of any human creature. This called on me for revenge. I have sought it. I have killed many. I have fully glutted my vengeance. For my county I rejoice at the beams of peace. But do not harbor a thought that mine is the joy of fear. Logan never felt fear. He will not turn his heel to save his life. Who is there to mourn for Logan? Not one."

After Lord Dunmore's War concluded, Logan moved from place to place and, in 1789, joined an Indian raiding party that attacked settlements in southwestern Virginia. He was later killed by one of his own relatives in 1780, near present-day Detroit. He said before his death that he had two souls, one good and the other bad, as he put it

"...when the good soul had the ascendant, he [referring to himself] was kind and humane, and when the bad soul ruled, he was perfectly savage, and delighted in nothing but blood and carnage."

European Pioneers and Settlers

The French claims on the Ohio River Valley stemmed from the expedition of Robert Cavalier de La Salle. He was probably the first European to set foot in present day Brooke County. He sailed down the Ohio River in 1669. Then, in 1749, Louis Bienville de Celeron sailed down the Ohio River, and he also may have set foot on present day Brooke County. He met several English fur traders on his journey and ordered them off of French soil and wrote strong letters of reprimand to the colonial governors protesting the English's presence on French soil.

The first English settlers in the county were three brothers: Jonathan, Israel, and Friend Cox. Upon arriving on the banks of the Ohio River after leaving their home in Brownsville, Pennsylvania, the Cox brothers erected a rudimentary shelter near the present-day town of Wellsburg. The Cox's then explored the area up the Ohio River, claiming 1,200 acres for themselves. The following year, the Cox brothers followed up on their surveying expedition by once again entering Brooke County, but this time, with the intention of erecting a permanent settlement. Soon afterwards, their cousin, George Cox, staked a claim just north of his cousins' claim.

As mentioned previously, settlement in the county slowed considerable following the advent of the American Revolutionary War (1776-1783), primarily because the British supplied rifles and other weapons to the various Indian tribes in the region. The Indians, in turn, used the weapons to stop what they viewed as an invasion of their hunting grounds. After the war, members of the Revolutionary Army were offered land in exchange for their military service. This attracted many war veterans to the area. One of them was Captain Van Swearigan, a former company commander who traded George Cox a rifle for some land located in the present-day Brooke County. Van Swearigan was known throughout the region for his bragging about his war record, particularly his ability to kill British soldiers.

By the late 1780's, Brooke County's population was beginning to grow. By 1788, an area within the county, then known as Buffalo Town, had become a trading center for settlers on their way to the Northwest Territory. In addition to Captain Van Swearigan, another settler of note, Charles Prather, had become a resident of the county by this time. On March 6, 1788, John Cox, heir of Friend Cox, sold 481 acres of land to Charles Prather for $3,000. In January 1791, Prather's land was incorporated as Charlestown, Virginia. Charles and Ruth Prather deeded lots to the town on October 3, 1791 for the construction of a schoolhouse, meetinghouse, and a graveyard. The town became the county seat when Brooke County was created in 1797.

Important Events During the 1700s

During the 1700s, many interests vied for control over the current Northern Panhandle of West Virginia. These included the Mingo (who lived there), the Iroquois (who claimed "ownership" of the land), the French (who controlled the lands west and north of the Iroquois), and the English (who controlled the land east of the Iroquois). The French and Indian War (1755-1763) resulted in the end of the French presence in North America, leaving Great Britain free to deal with the Iroquois. At this time, Brooke County, and the rest of the Northern Panhandle, played an important in the British's plans to colonize the western territories because it lay directly between its settlements and the Iroquois. Also, Brooke County was home to several important forts, including Beech Bottom Fort and Wells Fort. They were part of the chain of forts constituting the British colonies' western defense.

In the years just prior to the American Revolution, the ownership of land in the Northern Panhandle region, including Brooke County, was claimed by both Pennsylvania and Virginia. Both colonies were granting land to settlers in the region, creating the potential for violence. Eventually, the land was officially granted to Virginia. Ironically, years later, it was the citizens of the Northern Panhandle who would push for the western Virginian counties to secede from Virginia during the Civil War to form the state of West Virginia.

Important Events During the 1800s

The 1800s marked an era of economic expansion for Brooke County. With the stabilization of the American government and the abundant natural resources located within the county's borders, the environment was ripe for economic success. Early light industry included grain production and distilleries. The construction of a shipyard along Buffalo Creek established the county's position as an important contributor to the nation's shipbuilding industry. Also, the glass industry made its way into Wellsburg in 1813 and remained an important part of the county's economy for over 150 years.

During the early 1800s, Wellsburg competed with both Pittsburgh and Wheeling as a destination for both people and jobs. Unfortunately for Wellsburg, it lost one of the most important competitions of the era. Both Wellsburg and Wheeling were finalists for the ending point for the National (Cumberland) Road that the national government was constructing to connect the eastern seaboard with the western frontier. Both cities recognized the strategic economic importance of being directly connected to the new highway and aggressively lobbied state and national politicians in an attempt to influence their decision on the layout of the new road. The Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, Henry Clay, came to Brooke County to see Wellsburg first-hand. Unfortunately, Clay was more impressed with Wheeling, and that city was ultimately selected. The decision to build the National Road to Wheeling gave that city a huge economic boost. Although Wellsburg continued to experience economic growth, Wheeling soon became the larger of the two cities.

In 1840, Brooke County became home to Bethany College, the first college in the state. Alexander Campbell, who also founded the Disciples of Christ Church, founded Bethany College. Bethany's central building, Old Main, was constructed from 1858 to 1872. Built in the Scottish Gothic style, it was modeled after buildings at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. Old Main is on the National Register of Historical Sites.

Most of Brooke County's residents, as did most of the residents within the Northern Panhandle, sided with the Union during the Civil War. At that time, as today, the counties located in the Northern Panhandle, had strong economic ties to both Ohio and Pennsylvania, and its economy, unlike the counties in eastern Virginia, was not dependent on slave labor. There were very few slaves in Brooke County prior to the war. When the question of secession arose, the county's residents voted to send a unionist to the Virginia secession convention in 1861. Although there were no major battles fought in the county, many of its citizens volunteered to serve in the Union army.

The Civil War slowed economic growth in the county, and across the new state. After the war, the county's economy began to change from an agricultural economy to an industrial economy. Paper mills, iron foundries, and leather manufacturing all began to take hold in the area.

Important Events During the 1900s

The industrial revolution brought even more industry and economic growth to the county. During the early 1900s, new towns were created near coal mines, chemical plants, steel plants, and glass factories. The economic changes also impacted the county's ethnic makeup as European immigrants seeking the relatively high-paying jobs in American manufacturing plants arrived in this country. Like the rest of the nation, Brooke County experienced tough times during the Great Depression and strong economic growth during the 1950s. Since then, the county's economy, like the rest of the state, has diversified, with a greater reliance on service industries and less reliance on manufacturing and coal mining.

County Seat

The first session of the Brooke County court took place on May 23, 1797 in the home of William Sharpe in Charlestown. The town was originally named in honor of Charles Prather, who owned the land on which the town was built. The town was later renamed Wellsburg (in 1816) to avoid confusion with two other towns in the state that were also called Charlestown. The town was named in honor of Charles Prather's son-in-law, Alexander Wells. He is credited as the builder of the first large warehouse in the east. In its early years, Wellsburg was famous for its "Gin Weddings" and "Marrying Parsons" who reportedly would marry couples on a moments notice. The Virginia General Assembly chartered the town on February 21, 1787.

References

Boyd, Peter. 1927. History of Northern West Virginia Panhandle embracing Ohio, Marshall,

Brooke, and Hancock Counties. Indianapolis, IN: Historical Publishing Company.

Brooke County Virginia and West Virginia Official Centennial Program, 1963. 1963. Follansbee, WV: Follansbee Review Press.

Caldwell, Nancy L. 1975. A History of Brooke County. Wellsburg, WV: Brooke County Historical Society.

Cobb, William H., Andrew Price and Hu Maxwell. 1921. History of the Mingo Indians. Parsons, WV: reprinted for the

Mullins Antique Market and Rare Books, Elkins, WV by McClain Printing Company, 1974.

Rice, Otis K. 1985. West Virginia: A History. Lexington, KY: The University of Kentucky Press.

Williams, John Alexander, 1993. West Virginia: A History for Beginners. Charleston, WV: Appalachian Editions.

Cabell County History
Located in Southwestern West Virginia along the Ohio River, Cabell County was created by an act of the Virginia General Assembly on January 2, 1809 from part of Kanawha County. It was named in honor of William H. Cabell (1772-1853), who served as Governor of Virginia from 1805 to 1808. He was born on December 16, 1772 in Cumberland County Virginia, graduated from William and Mary College in 1793 and began practicing law in Richmond the following year. He was chosen as a representative to the Virginia General Assembly from Amherst County in 1796 and was re-selected six times until his election as Governor. After serving for three years as Governor, he served as a Judge of the General Court until 1811 and then a Judge of the Virginia Court of Appeals until his retirement in 1841. He served as the President of the Court from 1822 until his retirement in 1841. He died on January 12, 1853 in Richmond.

The First Settlers

The first native settlers along the Ohio River in the area of present-day Cabell County were the Mound Builders, also known as the Adena people. Remnants of the Mound Builder's civilization have been found throughout the Ohio River Valley, with a high concentration of artifacts located at Moundsville, West Virginia, just north of the county (in Marshall County). The Grave Creek Indian Mound, located in the center of Moundsville, is one of West Virginia's most famous historic landmarks. More than 2,000 years old, it stands 69 feet high and 295 feet in diameter.

According to missionary reports, several thousand Hurons occupied present-day West Virginia during the late 1500s and early 1600s. They were driven out of the state during the 1600s by members of the powerful Iroquois Confederacy (consisting of the Mohawk, Onondaga, Cayuga, Oneida and Seneca tribes, and joined later by the Tuscaroras tribe). The Iroquois Confederacy was headquartered in New York and was not interested in occupying present-day West Virginia. Instead, they used it as a hunting ground during the spring and summer months.

During the early 1700s, the Ohio River valley, including present-day Cabell County, was primarily used as hunting grounds by the Ohio-based Shawnee, the Mingo, who lived in both the Tygart Valley and along the Ohio River north of Cabell County, and the Seneca, one of the largest and most powerful members of the Iroquois Confederacy.

In 1744, Virginia officials purchased the Iroquois title of ownership to West Virginia in the Treaty of Lancaster. The treaty reduced the Iroquois Confederacy's presence in the Ohio River Valley.

During the American Revolution (1776-1783), the Mingo and Shawnee allied themselves with the British. In 1777, a party of 350 Wyandots, Shawnees, and Mingos, armed by the British, attacked Fort Henry, near present-day Wheeling. Nearly half of the Americans manning the fort were killed in the three-day assault. The Indians then left the Fort celebrating their victory. For the remainder of the war, smaller raiding parties of Mingo, Shawnee, and other Indian tribes terrorized settlers throughout the Ohio River Valley and Northern Panhandle regions. As a result, European settlement in the region came to a virtual standstill until the war's conclusion. Following the war, the Mingo and Shawnee, once again allied with the losing side, returned to their homes. However, as the number of settlers in the region began to grow, and with their numbers depleted by the war, both the Mingo and the Shawnee moved further inland.

European Pioneers and Settlers

Robert Cavelier de La Salle was probably the first European to set foot in present-day Cabell County. He sailed down the Ohio River in 1669. The earliest English explorers to enter Cabell County were probably Thomas Batts and Robert Fallam. They explored the area in September 1671. When Batts and Fallam explored the county they found trees marked in coal with the letters MANI and M.A., signifying that other Englishmen had been there before them.

In 1749, Louis Bienville de Celeron explored the Ohio River and may have landed in Cabell County. He claimed all of the lands drained by the Ohio River for King Louis XV of France. He met several English fur traders on his journey and ordered them off French soil and wrote strong letters of reprimand to the colonial governors protesting the English's presence on land claimed for France.

Mary Ingles was probably the first English women to pass through what would later be Cabell County. She, and Betty Draper, were captured by Indians at Drapper Meadows, Virginia (now Blacksburg) on July 8, 1755 and taken by the Indians through the county as they made their way to the Shawnee Village at Chillicothe, Ohio. Mary Ingles escaped four months later and may have passed through the county on her return to Virginia.

In 1772, a grant of 28,628 acres, including much of the current county, was made to John Savage and 60 other persons for military service during the French and Indian Wars (1754-1763). William Buffington of Hampshire County purchased lot 42 of the Savage Grant from John Savage and willed it to his two sons, Thomas and William Buffington. Thomas Buffington and his brother, Jonathan, came to present-day Cabell County in 1796 and found Thomas Hannon, who had settled along the Little Guyan River. Hannon is regarded as the first, permanent English settler in Cabell County. Soon after building his cabin, Jonathan was out hunting and returned to find it burnt to the ground by Indians and all of his family, except for one daughter, murdered and scalped. The daughter was captured by the Indians. He chased the Indians, but was captured and forced to run the gauntlet. He survived the gauntlet and was allowed to return home, but he never found his daughter. However, in 1901, at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York, an Indian Chief named Jonathan Buffington was in attendance, suggesting that the captured girl may have named her Indian children in honor of her father.

Important Events During the 1800s

Throughout the 1800s, Cabell County's location along the Ohio River made it a natural resting place for settlers headed to the frontier lands in the west. Prior to the Civil War (1861-1865), many settlers followed primitive Indian trails to the west. Several of these trails passed through the county. On the advice of George Washington, Virginia commissioned the James River Company to upgrade these trails into roads. One of the company's largest and most important road project was the James River and Kanawha Turnpike. The turnpike traversed the frontier from Lexington, Kentucky to Charleston, Virginia. In 1814, the road was extended to Barboursville in present-day Cabell County.

In 1837, Marshall Academy, predecessor of Marshall University, was formed. One of the Academy's founders, local lawyer John Laidley, recommended that the school be named in honor of his friend, John Marshall, the late Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Marshall Academy was a "subscription school" serving the wealthier families in the Cabell County vicinity. It was incorporated in 1838 by the Virginia State Legislature. In 1867, the new state of West Virginia created the State Normal School of Marshall College to train teachers. Marshall College continued to increased in size and, in 1961, achieved the status of University.

Although most of the state's residents sided with the Union during the Civil War, the residents of present-day Cabell County were divided. Trouble began when, Eli Thayer, an abolitionist congressman from Massachusetts, spoke to some citizens in the county in 1857. Thayer supported the creation of colonies of northern workers in southern states. He hoped this would change the social makeup of the state, and turn the tide against slavery. The newspapers in Richmond chided the residents of Cabell County for allowing a Yankee abolitionist to meddle in the affairs of the state of Virginia.

After the Thayer controversy, many Cabell County citizens organized to pledge their allegiance to the state of Virginia. As the country moved closer to war, tensions in the county began to rise. After the election of President Lincoln in 1860, some of the county's citizens organized a militia loyal to the South known as the Border Rangers. William McComas, Cabell County's representative to the Virginia secession convention of 1861, voted for Virginia to remain in the Union. Although McComas voted as a unionist, the area's congressman, Albert Gallatin Jenkins, who owned a farm in the county, was a staunch secessionist. He was the leader of the Border Rangers. Jenkins later became a General in the Confederate Army, and was wounded in battle at Gettysburg.

While Virginia, as a whole, voted to secede from the Union, Cabell County's citizens voted to remain in the Union. However, the town of Guyandotte, located within the county, voted to secede.

The first engagement during the Civil War in Cabell County was the Battle at Barboursville on Fortification Hill in 1861. The 2^nd Kentucky regiment entered the town and, after some minor fighting, dispersed the local militia. Later that year, a Confederate force attacked a Union recruitment station at Guyandotte. The Confederacy won the day with the assistance of several local residents who distracted the Union recruiters while the Confederates launched their surprise attack. The Union Army later recaptured the town and set it on fire to punish its citizens for aiding the Confederacy. Two-thirds of the town was burnt to the ground. After the town's destruction, the Unionist Newspaper the Wheeling Intelligencer declared Guyandotte "the worst secession nest in that whole country. It ought to have been burned two or three years ago."

The county's economy become stagnant during the Civil War, and the burning of Guyandotte, one of the county's major population centers, was a major blow to the local economy. However, the county's proximity to the Ohio River and the building of the railroad by Collis Huntington, played a major role in the region's economic recovery and its future success.

Legend has it that when Collis Huntington visited the county to decide where to place his railroad that he was initially interested in using Guyandotte as the railroad's end-point. However, when he arrived there, he tied his horse to the hitching post in front of the local hotel and it somehow reversed its position and ended up on the sidewalk. The town's mayor, seeing the horse, entered the hotel and demanded to know who the owner of the horse was. After identifying himself as the horse's owner, Mr. Huntington was fined by the mayor. Not liking his reception, Mr. Huntington announced the next day that he would not locate the railroad in Guyandotte but would, instead, build a new town (later called Huntington) just west of Guyandotte and make it the western terminus for his railroad. Ironically, Guyandotte was later merged into Huntington.

Important Events During the 1900s

In the early 1900s, industrial development occurred throughout Cabell County and in the fledgling city of Huntington. The glass industry, a flour mill, furniture manufacturers, and, in 1921, the International Nickel Company opened a plant near Guyandotte. The new industry brought economic success and population growth to the county.

In 1923, Huntington became home to the state's first radio station and, in 1949, the state's first television station. The construction of Interstate 64 through the county during the 1960s strengthened the local economy by providing ready access to Charleston and the rest of the state.

County Seat

The first meeting of the Cabell County court took place in 1809 the home of William Merritt who was living in or near the present town of Barboursville. The county seat was then located at Guyandotte and remained there until 1814, when it was moved to Barboursville. In 1863, the county seat was returned to Guyandotte for two years because Barboursville was controlled by the Confederate Army. Following the Civil War, Barboursville was, once again, named the county seat (in 1865). It continued to be the county seat until 1887 when the county voters moved it to Huntington.

Huntington was settled in the early 1800s. James Holderby was one of the first settlers in present-day Huntington. He purchased a farm on lands within the city in 1821. At about that same time, Richard and Benjamin Brown established a river landing for boats nearby, then known as Brownsville. Huntington, currently the second most populated city in the state, was incorporated by an act of the West Virginia State legislature on February 27, 1871 and named in honor of Collis P. Huntington, President of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad.

One of the first orders of business following Huntington's selection as the new county seat of government was where to build the new county courthouse. A site between Fourth and Fifth Avenues and Seventh and Eighth Streets was selected and purchased for $24,757. On May 8, 1895, the County Court, then composed of B. H. Thackston, President, and C.H. Morris and C.C. Dickey entered an order that the court would receive plans and specifications for a courthouse that would:

"to be of stone and brick or of stone or brick, two stories, high slate or clay roof, lighted with gas and electricity, heated by steam or air, it must have three fronts and four entrances and must contain rooms for Circuit Court, for County Court and for clerk's offices of each court, with fire-proof clerk's offices or vaults attached and must range in cost from $60,000 to $100,000."

The building was subsequently built of Berea sandstone with a copper roof.

On July 21, 1896, the contract for the construction was let to Charles A. Moses. The first corner stone was laid on November 11, 1899. There was a large parade and a grand ceremony to mark the event. The Courthouse was completed on December 4, 1901. In 1923, construction was undertaken on the west wing. The contract was awarded to King Lumber Company at a cost of $133,900, paid for a three year levy. Then, on August 22, 1938, Frampton & Bowers, architects, were hired to prepare the plans for the new jail and for an east wing to the Courthouse. On December 28, 1938, the contract was awarded to Engstrom and Wynn of Wheeling, West Virginia, for this construction and remodeling in parts of the old building. It was completed March 16, 1940. The cost of the east wing was $208,000 and the cost of the jail was $246,000 for a total cost of $454,000.

References

Casto, James E. 1985. Huntington: An Illustrated History. Northridge, CA: Windsor Publications, Inc.

Cabell County, West Virginia Heritage 1809-1906. 1996. Marceline, MO: Walsworth Publishing Company.

Geiger, Joe Jr. 1991. Civil War in Cabell County, WV 1861-65. Charleston, WV: Pictorial Histories Publishing.

Rice, Otis K. 1985. West Virginia: A History. Lexington, KY: The University of Kentucky Press.

Wallace, George Selden. 1935. Cabell County Annals and Families. Richmond, VA: Garrett & Massie Publishers

Williams, John Alexander. 1993. West Virginia: A History for Beginners. Charleston, WV: Appalachian Editions.

Calhoun County History
Calhoun County was created by an act of the Virginia General Assembly on March 5, 1856 from parts of Gilmer County. At that time, the county had less than 2,500 residents.

Calhoun County was named in honor of John Caldwell Calhoun (1782-1850), a famous statesman from South Carolina who championed the cause of slavery, the South, and state's rights. Born on March 18, 1782, he graduated from Yale University in 1804, studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1807. He elected to the South Carolina state legislature (1808-1809), represented South Carolina in the U.S. House of Representatives (1811-1817); served as Secretary of War (1817-1825); Vice-President of the United States (1825-1832); represented South Carolina in the United States Senate (1832-1843); served as Secretary of State (1844-1845); and returned to the U.S. Senate in 1845 and remained there until his death on March 31, 1850.

The First Settlers

According to missionary reports, several thousand Hurons occupied present-day West Virginia during the late 1500s and early 1600s. They were driven out of the state during the 1600s by members of the powerful Iroquois Confederacy (consisting of the Mohawk, Onondaga, Cayuga, Oneida and Seneca tribes, and joined later by the Tuscaroras tribe). The Iroquois Confederacy was headquartered in New York and was not interested in occupying present-day West Virginia. Instead, they used it as a hunting ground during the spring and summer months.

During the early 1700s, central West Virginia, including present-day Calhoun County, was used as a hunting ground by the Mingo, who lived in both the Tygart Valley and along the Ohio River in West Virginia's northern panhandle region, the Delaware, who lived in present-day eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, but had several autonomous settlements as far south as present-day Braxton County, and by other members of the Iroquois Confederacy, especially the Seneca.

The Seneca, headquartered in western New York, was the closest member of the Iroquois Confederacy to West Virginia and took great interest in the state. In 1744, the Seneca boasted to Virginia officials that they had conquered the several nations living on the back of the great mountains of Virginia. Among the conquered nations were the last of the Canawese or Conoy people who became incorporated into some of the Iroquois communities in New York. The Conoy continue to be remembered today through the naming of two of West Virginia's largest rivers after them, the Little Kanawha and the Great Kanawha.

In 1744, Virginia officials purchased the Iroquois title of ownership to West Virginia in the Treaty of Lancaster. The treaty reduced the Iroquois Confederacy's presence in the state.

During the mid-1700s, the English had made it clear to the various Indian tribes that they intended to settle the frontier. The French, on the other hand, were more interested in trade. This influenced the Mingo to side with the French during the French and Indian War (1755-1763). Although the Iroquois Confederacy officially remained neutral, many in the Iroquois Confederacy also allied with the French. Unfortunately for them, the French lost the war and ceded the all of its North American possessions to the British. Following the war, the Mingo retreated to their homes along the banks of the Ohio River and were rarely seen in central West Virginia.

Fearing more tension between Native Americans and settlers, England's King George III issued the Proclamation of 1763,