Shenandoah Valley Pioneers and Their Descendants: A History of Frederick County, Virginia., Part 51

Author: Cartmell, T. K. (Thomas Kemp), 1838-1920
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: [Winchester, Va.] : [Printed by the Eddy Press Corp.]
Number of Pages: 607

USA > Virginia > Frederick County > Frederick County > Shenandoah Valley Pioneers and Their Descendants: A History of Frederick County, Virginia. > Part 51

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This brief sketch is intended to embrace that branch of the Lupton Family commonly called the Presbyterian Luptons, often mentioned as the Round Hill branch. The other branch was designated as the Applepie Ridge Luptons and known as the Quaker Luptons. This family will appear in separate sketch.

Cloverdale. This well-known plantation has been in the Miller family for full sixty years. It has the reputation that its owner never at any time lived on the estate; and this accounts for the indifferent dwelling-house seen there at this time,-supposed to be, and do doubt is, the house built there about 1744. The original grant for this land was to Branson and Thomas in 1735, who assigned it to Martin Cartmell Jany. 14, 1740, who bequeathed it to his two sons Nathan- iel and Edward. The great grant embraces the farms adjoining,-the Stribling farm on the Northeast (now Walter A. Miller's), and the Greenfield farm on the West. The tract was divided into several farms when Gerard Briscoe became the owner. He never lived there, how- ever. His heirs, Mrs. Elizabeth Holmes, Mrs. Alex. G. Baldwin and others, sold their undi- vided interests to Abraham Miller. Hugh Holmes

owned and controlled Cloverdale for a number of years prior to 1825; and tradition gives him the credit for building the largest barn then in Frederick County. He also held some shares in the Stribling farm in 1813. Financial embar- rassment compelled a sale of all his interests; and in 1827 the two farms became the property of the Miller family, and it has never changed owners since. The writer has been informed that Judge Hugh Holmes lived in the old house, the remnant of which is now habitable.

Robinson's Spring was the Lyles Robinson farm, now owned by Mr. James B. Russell. The old stone mansion-house about one mile West from Winchester, in full view from the Northwestern Turnpike which is the Northern boundary of the magnificent estate, was erected by Mr. Robinson about 1800. (This must have been the father, since Lyles was only 45 at the time of his death.) He there reared his large family of ten children, their mother being the daughter of Dr. Richard Goldsborough of Mary- land. After his death in 1834, the estate passed to the Merryman family. One of his sons, Rich- ard A. Robinson, who by his liberality and ten- der regard for his native county, endowed the present Shenandoah Valley Academy,-had not attained the period of manhood. The family disposed of the large real and personal estate and sought homes elsewhere. Several of the sons became prominent in business circles in Louisville, Ky., and elsewhere. At this writing (1908) one of the name is enquiring for authen- tic incidents pertaining to the history of this family while residents of Frederick County. We may add that Mr. Russell has divided the large tract into two farms; and has erected a dwell- ing house, etc., near the turnpike, directly oppo- site the site of the large mansion-house erected by Alexander Tidball about 1840, afterwards the well-known property of Geo. W. Ward, deceas- ed,-"Elmwood." The latter notable structure was destroyed by fire during the latter years of Mr. Ward's life. The large farm is now the property of his two sons, Dr. Julian F. Ward and State Senator Robert M. Ward.

Wending our way towards Winchester, the traveller finds himself on historic ground as he stops to slake his thirst at the Old Town Spring; for on his right is an old brick mansion-house almost hidden from view by vine-clad walls, and a miniature forest of tall trees, of the Colonial period, while out on yonder hill above the Spring to the left, standing out in bold relief, is seen a large square brick-house. Fifty years ago it was surrounded by a beautiful grove of orna- mental trees. Both these places have an inter-

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esting history ;- the old homestead first men- tioned, hoary with age, and of Ye Olden Style, impresses the beholder. This is Glen Burnie, now the home of Col. William Wood Glass. This property has been known to the generations which have come and gone for one hundred years as the Old Wood estate. At some point on the great lawn lived James Wood the first owner to build habitations on the virgin soil. No white man had trodden there who could call it his. Lord Fairfax had not then seen what he after- wards claimed. Wood came with his order from the Virginia Council "to measure out and settle families on such tracts that he surveyed of lands on a branch of the Opeckon Creek, not here- tofore settled." As Mr. Wood failed to make report of surveys, he lost his right to many thousand acres of the ungranted land. He was content to take what he reported as tracts he had chosen for his settlement, estimated to be 1200 acres. (In 1758 Fairfax gave him title to 1241 acres within the survey.) This embraced the present site of Winchester; and extending Westward, included what are now known as the Edward M. Tidball and Aulick farms, and what has been known as the Steele Lot Company land, starting from the Spring and extending West to the Tidball farm.

We find James Wood living at this place in 1743, when he qualified as Clerk of the first court held in Frederick County; and evidence has been shown in this volume that the Court held its first sessions "at the house of Mr. Wood," and also that the Clerk's Office was there for about two years; as it appears from orders of court that James Wood had allowances for use of his house for court purposes, and also an order for him to "transfer the records of the Court to the Clerk's Office at the Court House." The Glen Burnie mansion-house was erected by James Wood the Clerk prior to 1755-exact date unknown. The brick were brought from Eng- land to Alexandria as ballast on sailing ships, thence by wagons to the plantation. The struc- ture has durability stamped on every feature; the style is Colonial in everything, lacking the portico and large pillars. The porch now over the front was erected by the present owner. The old doorway, of antique style, was familiar to many dignitaries of the 18th Century. The old justices composing the Old County Court, had right of way to Col. Wood's spacious hall and dining-rooms. Their Clerk had their pro- found regard; Lord Fairfax and Col. Wood had many transactions, and much evidence appears of their intimate relations; and he, too, enjoyed the hospitality of Glen Burnie; and many emi- nent men assembled there in council-aspirants

for political office. George Washington, with his first military commission, deemed it wise to counsel with the Glen Burnie politician, when a candidate for the House of Burgesses, and securing favor, he was elected. Col. Wood was well versed in the arts and tactics of bold leaders in civil and military life. He was no novice. When he first appeared in the Court of 1743, the an- nouncement was made to the Court that he de- sired to dedicate a portion of his land to the new county, as a site for her public buildings. We have already shown how well he succeeded. This in itself, made him ever after a conspicuous figure in the Lower Valley. Upon this first act, he erected an imperishable monument, marking him the founder of Winchester. The Colonel was prominent in Orange County affairs; and previ- ous to his settlement on his Frederick County tract, was the owner of several tracts of lands elsewhere. Mentioned in the Court Order books as Col. of horse and foot in the Colonial Line, "and as County Surveyor in 1734;" special order appears in the minutes of 1742 in connection with Col. John Lewis, Major Morgan Morgan, Cap- tains Andrew Campbell, Thos. Rutherford, Lewis Neill, Lt. Jacob Hite, Thos. Swearingen, and many others who became prominent in Freder- ick County when the first court was organized. Col. Wood was a conspicuous figure during his entire life. As clerk of the celebrated Court for about seventeen years, his official life was of high order, as the records of the old office fully attest. As County Surveyor, and as one of the commission to ascertain and settle claims of of- ficers and men of the French and Indian Wars, he left a record of marked ability. He is also credited with service in the House of Bur- gesses, acting as proxy for Washington when engaged in the French and Indian War. (See Hayden's Virginia Genealogy.) Family records show that he came to his new home with his wife and four children of tender age. As he states in his will, written in 1746, "they are un- der age." The writer, being aware that the name of Wood appears often in records, in con- nection with several other families long resi- dent of Frederick County and the Lower Val- ley, deems it desirable to show in this sketch, who comprised the Glen Burnie Wood family and their descendants.

James the founder married Mary the daugh- ter of Captain Thomas Rutherford, the first Sheriff of Frederick; and as Col. Wood and Capt. Rutherford were living in Old Orange County in 1738, we assume the marriage was solemnized in that County. The following is copied from an old note-book of James Wood,

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now in possession of one of his descendants, daughter of Col. Glass :

Children of James Wood Jr. and Mary Ruth- erford-

'(1) Elizabeth, born Sept. 20, 1739

(2) James Jany. 28, 1741

(3) Mary " Sept. 23, 1742

(4) John Jany. 1, 1743-44

(5) Robert, July 27, 1747.

The following is taken from the family rec- ords: Elizabeth married Hon. Alexander White -no children.

James married Jane Moncure, leaving no de- scendants. He was Col. of a Regt. during the Revolutionary War; promoted Brig. Genl. for gallant services, and Governor of Virginia 1799- 1802. At that date he was president of the Vir- ginia Society of Cincinnati at Richmond (See Va. Mg. of Hist., Vol. 1, pp. 95-6-7.)

Mary Wood married Col. Mathew Harrison, an officer in the Revolutionary Army. They have many descendants. The writer regrets his inability to give an intelligible list, owing to the failure on the part of some well-known descend- ants to furnish their respective lines. We can at present give in part the line of one daughter, Mary Ann Harrison, who married Obed Waite, a prominent official in Winchester for many years. Their daughter Maria Antoinette, mar- ried Washington G. Singleton, member of the Winchester Bar in its palmy days. Their town residence was on Cork Street between Wash- ington and Stewart Streets. It has been shown in Gleanings from the Old Courts, that during the War of 1861-65, court was held in Mr. Sin- gleton's residence. The writer knew the sons Obed W., Caldwell, and Wm. Allen, during their school days, at the old Winchester Acad- emy. There were several daughters, one, Miss Mary Singleton, married Henry St. George Of- futt; and their daughter, Eleanor Offutt, is now Mrs. Eleanor Barton, of Flushing, New York.

John Wood, son of James was a physician; he married Susannah Baker, and left many de- scendants.

Robert Wood, youngest son of James Wood and Mary Rutherford, married Comfort Welch. List of their children as follows:

James, Mary, Robert, William, Sarah Ann, Comfort, Catherine, Harriet and Julia. This large family lived at Glen Burnie. Mary Ruth- erford, widow of James, held her dower in the homestead as provided for in the will of her husband, which was probated 1760; and at her death, about forty years thereafter, her son Rob- ert became sole owner. Only three of the nine children married :

Mary married Lawrence A. Washington.

Comfort married Robert Dailey, of Romney, W. Va., their children being: Doct. Robert, who married a Miss Taylor, his children, Ben- jamin, James, Judge Robert, C. Wood, Doct. Griffin, Howland and Thomas. Doct. Griffin is located in Romney. C. Wood is a lawyer; he has several children; Judge Robert Dailey lives in Romney-has several children. Doct. Robt.'s daughter Jane married Chas. Lobb. Thomas died single. One daughter married Mr. Baird. She left several children, one of her daughters is a teacher at Fort Loudoun.

Catherine married Thomas Glass, son of Sam- uel Glass and Elizabeth Rutherford. There were two children by this marriage, Ella and Wm. Wood Glass. The . daughter died many years ago in blooming womanhood. William Wood married Nannie R. Campbell, daughter of R. Madison Campbell of Stony Meade. They lived for many years at his father's old homestead Rosehill on the Opecquon. Later on, Col. Glass inherited Glen Burnie by the will of his Aunt Julia, the survivor of the large family; but dur- ing her latter years he removed his family to the old ancestral home; and there his family of seven children were reared, viz :

(1) Katherine R., the owner of Fort Loudoun Seminary. Her accomplishments are of that high order and attractive style, that as principal of this renowned institution of learning, she is favorably known to a large circle at home and abroad.

(2) Thomas is married, and at present re- sides in the new State, Oklahoma.

(3) Hattie W. G., now the wife of Mr. Davis, an official in one of the Departments at Wash- ington, D. C.

'(4) William married Miss Louise Baker of Winchester; is a lawyer and lives in Waynes- boro, Va .; has one son Wm. Wood, Jr.

(5) Susie married Harry Strider of Jefferson County, W. Va. She and her daughter survive her husband.

(6) Robert McC. is a prominent physician; resides in Winchester-married Miss Kate Cover, daughter of Thomas Cover, Esq. They have one child.

(7) Wood married Mrs. Embrey; lives in Indian Territory, a lawyer in active practice.

This brief sketch gives only an outline of the activities of Glen Burnie life. The old home- stead has afforded a resting place to many mem- bers of the several generations, as these activi- ties ceased. We find a small plat of ground shel- tered from storms by ancient cedars-the family burial place of the Wood family. Here may be found the graves of Robert Wood and his wife Comfort Welch Wood, and their children Dr.

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James, Dr. Robert, Sarah Ann, Harriet, William and Julia Wood. Mrs. Comfort Dailey and Mrs. Catherine Glass, and her husband Thomas Glass. Two granddaughters of Robert have their mounds here, Ella Glass and Harriet Dailey. His daugh- ter Mrs. Lawrence Washington, the record shows, was buried in Wheeling, W. Va. Gov. James Wood was buried at Chelsea near Richmond. There is no positive evidence that James, the first Clerk, and his wife Mary are in the un- marked graves seen in the family plot. Some have thought that his prominence and vast pos- sessions would have prevented his grave being unmarked by those who placed him there; and for this reason, some doubt has fallen over his last resting place. This should not be; for it was not the custom in that early day to distin- guish graves as is now done. For instance, the Old Episcopal graveyard once on Main Street : if those graves were marked, what has become of the marks? The same can be said of the Old Lutheran and Presbyterian graveyards on the hill; also that Old Chapel in Clarke, where it is well known that wealthy and distinguished persons were buried prior to 1760. But where are the slabs to distinguish them? Family tra- dition in the Judge White family says that Hon. Alex. White, son-in-law of James Wood was in one of the unmarked graves. Governor James Wood must have been a frequent visitor to his old home; for the deed books from 1796 to 1811 make frequent mention of his presence to ac- knowledge instruments of writing. His last ap- pearance was in 1811, when he released a mort- gage held by him on the Lawrence A. Wash- ington farm, when Alfred H. Powell purchased 350 acres adjoining the Town Spring, from Law- rence A. Washington and wife, then living in Jefferson County, Va. She was daughter of Rob- ert Wood. Tradition says he presented her the Hawthorne homestead as a bridal present. Wash- ington had in 1803 placed a mortgage of $13,- 420.00 on 570 acres of this tract in favor of Genl. James Wood of Chelsea, Henrico County, Va. This fixes his residence at that point; and there it may be he was laid to rest.

The writer will add in this connection that the Washington tract was part of the Wood tract; also the old Academy tract of 5 acres due West from the Memorial Hospital, and the Judge Hugh Holmes lot or square, now the old Byrd property.

Governor Wood, while Colonel in the Virginia Line, was ordered to Charlottesville to "super- intend the Convention prisoners" and was there June 14, 1780. In 1781, his accounts for provi- sions and care, were settled.

Col. James Wood, as already stated, held his commission as Colonel and County Surveyor in

Orange County in 1734. In 1758 he was acting as County Lieutenant in Frederick, though no record of this fact appears in our Order Books. The Secretary's Office has the original of the following copy: "Williamsburg, Sept. 28, 1755. To Col. James Wood: The Bill for adding your lotts to Winchester, has been and I make no doubt will pass into law, Thomas Rutherford is sick * * * 20,000. is voted for payment of yr. Regimt. to ye first of Dec. Yr. Humble Servt., Thos. Walker, Secy."

This proves clearly that he was regarded as the County Lieutenant. The law required this officer to receive the pay for the County Regi- ments, and to disburse the fund; and there is nothing to show that his commission as Colonel was withdrawn. The Colonel was a favorite, it seems; for we find that Gov. Gooch issued him a commission dated April 28, 1739, as Col- lector for Orange and Prince William Counties. This embraced duties on all skins and furs ex- ported and liquors imported,-to hold the office at pleasure. This might imply that Col. Wood was yet a resident near the Orange Court House. As Surveyor of Orange County, he surveyed a tract of land for Abram Hollingsworth in 1735, and signs the report, and that he was on the tract-the number of acres being 1250-being within the limits of Alexander Ross's patent for 100,000, and that it adjoined the tract where Hol- lingsworth lived. We find him again in 1736 making a survey for John Lilley (or Tilley) for 293 acres on West side of Opecquon, on Lick Run, part of Ross tract. Again we find him in 1738 surveying lands in Augusta County, for Reuben Rutherford, 400 acres, adjoining Jno. Bell and others. At this time he was locating the numer- ous tracts for which he had obtained orders for himself, six of these being styled the New River Patent, aggregating 934 acres. He also had sev- eral large tracts on South Branch. The latter gave him trouble with Fairfax. This will be shown in Chapters on Fairfax suits.

Col. Wood accomplished much in his short life, for he was only 52 years old when he died Nov. 6, 1759. This is proven by an interesting in- cident, being an inscription on a mourning ring possessed by the family through the after years.

Hawthorn, familiarly known as the home of Thomas Allen Tidball, the third clerk of the county court. As previously stated, it was part of the Glen Burnie plantation, passing from that estate to Alfred H. Powell, who sold 331-72 acres to Joseph Tidball the father of Thomas A. Sub- sequently Alexander S. and Thomas A. purchas- ed this tract from their father, and Thomas A. having purchased his brother's interest, became

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sole owner, and after his marriage in 1813, Haw- thorn was his residence until his death in 1856. In Sept., 1856, his executors sold the mansion house and 60 acres to Col. Angus W. McDonald, who became a prominent officer in the Confed- erate States Army. During the Civil War the old homestead was shorn of its beauty-the build- ings became a wreck, and the handsome lawn despoiled by wanton destruction of the great or- namental trees, and the magnificent estate was left a dilapidated ruin. The vandalism of cer- tain well-known Federal Brigadiers and their com- mands, was without the pale of civilized warfare. After the war, the McDonald family sold it to Henry Laughlin of St. Louis, who did much to reinstate what had been destroyed. Passing from his estate to Wm. R. Alexander, a member of the Winchester Bar, it subsequently passed to the present owners, Mr. Edmunds and wife. Under their artistic treatment, we see the New Hawthorn. May it never cease to attract the admiration of the small number who knew and admired the old homestead. The Old Town Spring on the roadside, with brick house and walls, became the property of Winchester by a deed from Mr. Tidball June 15, 1840, with reservations for the use of owners of Hawthorn.

Thomas A. Tidball was Deputy-Clerk for James Keith from 1804 to 1824. Upon the death of Judge Keith, Mr. Tidball was appointed Clerk. When the office was made elective by popular vote, he was elected, and continued his long term of 52 years as deputy and clerk without oppo- sition. His official life has been a guide to his successors. None, however, ever felt they could equal their model. The systematic and perfect work found in the old office is easily recognized as that of the man who had the confidence and esteem of all who knew him. Mr. Tidball mar- ried Susan Hill, a daughter of Rev. William Hill, D.D., Nov. 18, 1813. They had three children, Joseph, Scott and Bettie. Mr. Tidball was elect- ed and ordained a ruling elder in the Loudoun Street Presbyterian Church, Winchester, Va., the 14th day of Jany., 1855. While the writer knew Mr. Tidball and his family, and could draw from memory many incidents of interest, he pre- fers to insert here the language of another, taken from a sketch published in "Memorials of Vir- ginia Clerks," written by James Carr Baker, Esq., member of the Winchester Bar, and Mr. Tidball's deputy for many years. "Indulge the writer in a reminiscence of the family of Mr. Tidball. When the writer, in his fourteenth year, entered the family, it consisted of Rev. William Hill and wife, Mr. Tidball and wife, and their three children : Joseph, Alexander Scott, and Bet- tie Morton. William Marshall of Happy Creek

and Lewis Armstead of Fauquier became mem- bers soon after. Bettie Morton (now Mrs. Thurston) of Cumberland is the only living mem- ber of the family. Joseph was an accomplished scholar; became a lawyer; removed to Califor- nia, and left the impress of genius on the coun- try of his adoption. Alex. Scott had gone to the same State before his brother, and became in that new country an artist of some note. Wil- liam Marshall died before completing his edu- cation. Lewis Armstead graduated at West Point, and espoused the cause of the Confeder- acy, and at the Battle of Gettysburg was killed in his saddle."

The author must add that the writer just quot- ed and Mrs. Thurston, have long since gone beyond the River to join the family circle re- ferred to. Mrs. Thurston's daughter, Miss Hel- en, married Edward M. Tidball. One daughter (now Mrs. Samuel Barton) survives both par- ents. One other daughter-is now Mrs. Hunter Boyd of Cumberland, wife of the Judge of the Supreme Court of Maryland.

Joseph married Mary M., daughter of Dr. Stuart Baldwin. Two children survive them: William A. Tidball, of Texas, married Miss Swartzwelder; and Susan married Ed. M. Tid- ball.

Alex. Scott married in California, and had an interesting family when the writer visited them in 1879.

Selma, the palatial home of Alex. R. Pendle- ton, Esq., a retired member of the Winchester Bar, located on the lofty eminence just East of Hawthorn, occupies the site of Senator James M. Mason's old home Selma. The old mansion was destroyed during the War by Federal troops, because of Mr. Mason's mission abroad as rep- resentative of the Confederate States Govern- ment, to secure recognition of the Confederacy. This was known as the Mason and Slidell mis- sion. Senator Mason had sons and daughters : James M., Jr., who has been prominent as a lawyer and politician in West Va., his home be- ing at Charlestown, Jefferson County, being one.

John, another son, also lived in the new State. The oldest son, George, lived in Galveston many years, where the writer saw him last. One of the daughters married the Hon. John Ambler; the other daughters removed to Alexandria, and established a seminary for young ladies.

Judge Edmund Pendleton and his wife erect- ed the present mansion, and lived there in regal splendor during their latter days. They are sur- vived by their only son, A. R. Pendleton.

Hollingsworth Homestead. On the Southeast

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side of Winchester can be seen an old homestead known as the first settlement of the Hollings- worth family. Tradition gives a much earlier date than is justified by any evidence recorded concerning their arrival. The writer has been assured by the survivors that very much that has been written about this family is without foundation. Suffice it to say, however, that their first grants fix the family at the old place about 1736. The three survivors, Mary, Jonah and Anna Hollingsworth are children of David, who lived in the stone house now occupied by his children-the oldest being full seventy-five years of age. David the father died many years ago (1859). He was the son of Jonah Hollings- worth. The house was erected prior to 1800. The Hollingsworths intermarried with the Par- kins, Lytle, Jolliffe, Robinson, Houghton, Lup- ton, Griffith and many other families, which makes the lines so intricate and the descendants so num- erous, that it would require a large volume to enumerate them ;- it being positively asserted that the name appears in Census Reports of ev- ery State in the Union save three. The old mill, the remains of which are now used for the power house and pumping station of the new water works, was operated by David and doubtless by his father. The family were re- puted as good millers. The large stone mill on the Valley Turnpike one mile South of Win- chester, was erected by Isaac Hollingsworth in 1827; who always took pleasure in stating that he himself was the stonemason who built the corner next the water-wheel. This was the mill site for a mill that stood there many years before the stone building went up. The proof of this is interesting to the antiquarian citizens of Win- chester; for it establishes two important facts, as will be seen: There is a deed recorded in the County Clerk's Office dated 1746 from Wil- liam Dobbins, for a lot of ground in Winchester, using this language: "South of Cork Street out towards Mr. Isaac Parkins residence and mill, upon which there is a stone house and other buildings, and the said Dobbins reserves a room in said stone house for his own use." This shows that Winchester had one stone house as early as 1746, and the Parkins mill was a land- mark near the village that was slowly rising in the virgin forest. Until recently, the date of erection of the present mill was plainly seen from the Valley Turnpike. The old house on the hill, part stone and part logs, was the residence of Isaac Parkins when he operated the mill in 1746, and later on was a member of the House of Burgesses. This property passed from the old Isaac Hollingsworth estate to Festus Hahn sub- sequent to the Civil War. He built the sub-

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Shenandoah Valley Pioneers and Their Descendants: A History of Frederick County, Virginia., Part 51

Author: Cartmell, T. K. (Thomas Kemp), 1838-1920 Publication date: 1909 Publisher: [Winchester, Va.] : [Printed by the Eddy Press Corp.] Number of Pages: 607

Author: Cartmell, T. K. (Thomas Kemp), 1838-1920
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: [Winchester, Va.] : [Printed by the Eddy Press Corp.]
Number of Pages: 607