USA > West Virginia > Monroe County > A history of Monroe county, West Virginia > Part 17
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42
In 1826 the free white housekeepers and freeholders of Union were empowered to elect seven of themselves as trustees each first Monday of April. The sheriff was to supervise such elections. This board was to appoint a clerk on such salary as might be deemed rea- sonable; to levy a tax of not more than $100 a year; and to make by-laws, rules, and regulations. Vacancies for a remainder of a year could be filled by the board.
.
194
A HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA
Mrs. Royall has this to say of Union at the end of its first quar- ter-century :
Union is a poor little village, remarkable for nothing but a very ele- gant brick courthouse and the residence of the renowned Andrew Beirne and his famous rival Caperton, both of whom have amassed great wealth as merchants and speculators. Both began poor and have succeeded with- out a parallel, taking into view the nature of the country. They used to call Beirne the "greasy peddler." He began with ginseng, taking it from people's doors instead of their taking it to Staunton. He covered several counties, bringing his goods from Philadelphia, and doing a barter busi- ness. The country teeming with ginseng, cattle, and poultry, he wrested the trade from the merchants in the lower country.
But while Mrs. Royall pays a graceful tribute to the more pleas- ing qualities of the two rival merchants, she is very severe on their business methods. She says they were fleecing the people and reduc- ing them to insolvency and vassalage. The people had to take what the merchants were offering them. She adds that the inclination of the people for dress, foreign manners, and table luxuries was caus- ing them to play into the hands of the merchants.
Early in 1838 the town limits were extended on the north so as to take in some land belonging to the heirs of Matthew Alexander. This addition was to be laid off in quarter-acre lots which were to sell at not less than $25 each.
In 1839 the trustees were authorized to make such alterations in the lots and alleys as they might think best, but none without the consent of Hugh Caperton, guardian of the heirs of Matthew Alex- ander.
In 1849 the Monroe Savings Bank was incorporated with a cap- ital of not over $50,000, its negotiable notes to be on the same foot- ing with those of the Bank of Virginia. Its incorporators were James H. Alexander, Andrew Allen, Richard F. Allen, Charles Baldwin, Andrew Beirne, Matthew Campbell, Robert Campbell, Augustus A. Chapman, George W. Curry, John Echols, Samuel Hamilton, Samuel R. Houston, George W. Hutchinson, Madison M. McDaniel, Benjamin F. Steele, Andrew Summers, Jeremiah Tracy, and Jacob Zoll.
195
TOWNS AND VILLAGES
Yet the very next year there was a numerously signed petition for a bank with a capital of $100,000. It stated that there was no bank within 70 miles to the east or 100 miles to the north or south. The trade in cattle and horses in this and the contiguous counties was represented as about $500,000 a year. It was remarked that there were heavy losses through the bank paper from abroad.
In 1853 permission was given to the Bank of Virginia, the Farm- ers' Bank of Virginia, the Bank of the Valley, or the Exchange Bank of Virginia to establish at Union an office of discount and deposit-
In March, 1861, the town charter was amended. The trustees were to appoint a sergeant, who was to give bond in the sum of $3000.
Union was incorporated August 14, 1868. Under this act the first mayor was Alfred Phillips, and the first sergeant was D. C. Callaway. The councilmen were George W. Davis, William Mon- roe, Andrew Prentice, A. G. Tibbetts, and John R. Wiseman.
The first tavern license was granted to Patrick Boyd in 1800. He was followed about 1801 by Zachariah Decamp; by Charles Friend in 1803, Henry Stever in 1804, Henry and Matthew Alexander in 1813, and Robert and James Dunlap in 1824. Keepers of the Un- ion hotel in antebellum days were Samuel M. Wallace, 1844, Zoll and Shanklin, 1852, Madison McDaniel, 1853, Snead and Com- pany, 1855, Zoll and Dunsmore, 1858, and Zoll and Campbell, 1859. Keepers of the Bell Tavern were John W. Lanius, 1844, William McCreery, 1846, Walter Douglas, 1847, and Joseph Zoll, 1855. The following year, Zoll kept the Virginia Hotel.
Mrs. Sarah A. Osborne was born in Union in 1823. Among the residents she remembers as a girl are the following: Dr. Bald- win, Andrew P. Beirne, a merchant, Undrell Budd, a tanner and harness maker, Thomas Burns, a brewer who kept a bowling alley, Hugh Caperton, George Chapman, a lawyer, William Clark, a tailor, William Crebs, a wagonmaker, William Derieux, a tailor (?), John Dickson, a tailor, Henry Francis, a carpenter, one Harris, a hotel keeper, Dr. Nelson Haynes, James Hundley, tavern keeper, John Wiseman, blacksmith, and Jacob Zoll, a saddler. Mrs. Os-
.
196
A HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA
borne remarks that the first geraniums and fuchsias ever seen in Union were brought there by Mrs. Henry Alexander. Tomatoes appeared about 1830, and were grown for display, not being thought fit to eat.
A gazetteer of 1835 states that Union then had two hotels, two tan-yards, two saddlers, one school, two churches, one attorney, two doctors, 45 dwellings, and 400 people. Unless the population was overestimated, as was probably the case, the county seat had as many people 80 years ago as it has now. But until nearly 40 years later, the iron horse had not yet crossed the Alleghany and travel still followed the wagon roads. In a commercial sense Union was a more important place than now, since it held sway over a wider radius. In this particular it is like other county seat towns that railway development has left to one side. In the middle decades of the last century the town was the home of men of statewide repute and there were special facilities for secondary education.
Facing the north end of the main street, but unfortunately not reached by any open thoroughfare whatever, is a monument to the Confederate soldiers who went from Monroe. It is of white marble, is almost 20 feet high, and stands on a limestone pedestal. The un- veiling took place in 1901, on which occasion some 12,000 people were present, including about 250 veterans. The latter marched under Colonel Charles S. Peyton, who delivered the address of wel- come. The battleflag of the 27th Virginia Infantry was carried by R. S. McCartney. The unveiling was by 15 young ladies. There was a sponsor, as well as seven maids of honor, for each of the 11 states of the Confederacy. The marshals were L. E. Campbell, C. E. Lynch, and J. L. Rowan. The first speaker was Edward Echols and the second was Colonel W. W. Arnett of Wheeling.
Beyond the monument and in plain view is Walnut Grove, once the home of Andrew Beirne, Sr. Here President Van Buren was entertained a week by Colonel Beirne. A crowd of people assem- bled to hear the president speak at the barbacue given in his honor.
The town cemetery, known as Green Hill, occupies a sightly position on the summit of a knob. Its white monuments are visible
197
TOWNS AND VILLAGES
from some distance. The first interment was that of Jane Ingle, a maid of 17.
The high school building, erected in 1876 at a cost of $4700, stands rather out of town on the road to Salt Sulphur Springs.
The present business and professional interests of the county seat include two banks, two general stores, two hotels, one grocery, one drugstore, two flour mills, one garage, one planing mill, one printing office, two telephone centrals, three attorneys, two physicians, one dentist, two blacksmiths, one saddler, one barber, one shoemaker, and one milliner.
The town of Alderson is built on the homestead of John Alder- son, who settled here in 1777. The site remained farm land almost a century. But it was not long until a public ferry was authorized. The mouths of Wolf and Muddy are near by, and it very early be- came an important place of crossing. One of the reasons for this importance was the location on the north bank of Old Greenbrier church.
When the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad came along in 1872, a station at this point was a business necessity. The town thus oc- casioned has become the largest one between Ronceverte and Hinton. But since it lies in a corner of Monroe, much the greater share of its tributary region lies in Greenbrier and Summers. As a railroad out- let the usefulness of the town to this county is thereby much lessened. And of "Greater Alderson," only the business section lies in Mon- roe. A large residential suburb lies across the river in Greenbrier, as a result of good building ground being more plentiful on that side.
As a tri-county town, Alderson soon grew into a brisk commercial and educational center. In June, 1872, there were already three gen- eral stores, two steam sawmills, two shoe stores, one doctor, one blacksmith, and a carpenter shop. Near by was a woolen factory. A Confederate reunion in 1883 drew a crowd of from 500 to 1000 persons and led to a permanent organization.
The number of business concerns has now risen to 36. These include a wholesale grocery house doing a business of half a million
.
198
A HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA
dollars annually; two department stores, a milling company, a national bank, a power company, three general merchandise houses, two hardware stores, one furniture store, one drug store, an automo- bile agency, a cable office, a theater, two hotels, and three restau- rants. There are also two jewelers, two clothes cleaning establish- ments, a confectioner, a meat shop, a shoestore, a barber shop, and a dealer in ice and coal.
The higher educational interests are looked after by the Alleghany Collegiate Institute, a school under the care of the Meth- odists. In North Alderson is the Alderson Baptist Academy.
Within the past year a new concrete bridge has been put across the Greenbrier at this point.
Peterstown began its official existence in 1803 as the result of a petition by Christian Peters, in which it is stated that an area of 181/2 acres had been laid off in lots and streets. The earlier home of Peters was on Trigger Run, two miles above, but after the town was started he came here to live. He also built a flouring mill. The earliest purchaser of a lot of whom we have any definite knowl- edge was Isaac Dawson in 1807. The size of the parcel was 48 rods. The place grew and prospered, the fine waterpower on Rich Creek being an important factor. In 1835 there were 20 houses, three tanyards, one sawmill, one gristmill, one store, one wheelwright, one blacksmith, one tailor, one saddler, and a school. The Virginia Railroad is only two miles away and the Norfolk and Western but little farther, these lines running on opposite sides of New River. This nearness has enabled the place to more than hold its own and to rank third among the population centers of Monroe. It has now a population of about 350, and the following business houses: One bank, six general stores, three mills, and one electric light plant. There are Methodist and Baptist churches, one doctor, one dentist, three fraternities, and a graded school with five teachers and a library.
Sinks Grove was formerly Rocky Point, and is very often spoken of by the old name, which it should have retained. The location is in a hollow fronting the great depression between Swope's Knobs
199
TOWNS AND VILLAGES
and Middle Mountain. Looking down upon it is the truncated cone of Bickett's Knob. In size Sinks Grove ranks fourth among the towns of Monroe, and without prejudice to any of the others it may be remarked that it is surpassed by none of them in the generally modern look of its houses and its trimness of appearance. Yet the town is not so new as it looks, since there was already something of a village in the days of the great war. The first house erected here was the Burwell Hotel, built by Alexander Leach about 1839. Six highways branch out like the spokes of a wheel, and the well set- tled vicinity gives it a high degree of business importance. Fort Spring, the nearest railway point, is six miles away. The village contains a creamery, two general stores, one blacksmith, and one barber. There are Presbyterian and Baptist churches, a two-roomed school, two fraternities, two doctors, and one resident minister. The population is 100.
Greenville was formerly called Centerville. It lies at the con- fluence of Indian and Laurel Creeks, 11 miles from the county seat and about the same from Lowell, its railroad outlet. The village came into being partly from the fine water power just above the mouth of Laurel, and partly through the influence of Cook's fort, which in its day was a rallying point for the settlers over a consid- erable distance around. The almost forgotten site of the stockade is about a quarter of a mile below the footbridge over Indian and in the midst of the bottom on the south side of the creek. As a river village the situation of Greenville is somewhat unusual. A high peninsula thrusts itself upon Indian Creek from the north and for a brief distance confines the stream to a gorge, leaving broad pockets of bottom above and below. It is on this shoulder that Greenville is built. About 1870 it stood some chance of winning the courthouse, and its failure to do so was instrumental in creating the county of Summers. The possibility of separating itself from the county seat led the Union interest to consent to a division of the county. The population is about 75. There are Methodist and Presbyterian churches, a bank, a grist and saw mill, a hotel, two general stores, a furniture store, and an undertaking establishment.
200
A HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA
Lindside, 14 miles from Union and 10 from Peterstown, may be styled the youngest of the population groups of this county. Its growth has been almost wholly since 1872. It commands a large country trade, in which it is helped by its position at the mouth of an important gap in Little Mountain. This gives it ready access to Peters Mountain valley. The village has about 50 inhabitants. There are two general stores, three hotels and boarding houses, a furniture and undertaking establishment, one livery stable, a tele- phone exchange, one electrician, two resident physicians, and sev- eral mechanics and teamsters. There is no church within three- quarters of a mile. There are three fraternities. The public school library has 75 volumes.
A cluster of population can hardly be called a village unless it includes within a very limited distance one or more churches, a schoolhouse of not less than two rooms, a hotel, two or more gen- eral stores, probably a flouring mill and a few other business con- cerns, and a resident physician. A center which falls conspicuously below the above minimum is a hamlet rather than a village. Of such Monroe contains, in addition to its summer resorts, Waiteville, Laurel Branch, Gap Mills, Willow Bend, Rock Camp, Cashmere, Ballard, Hunter's Mills, Pickaway, Hillsdale, and Hollywood.
RED SULPHUR BAPTIST CHURCH (Near Ballard) Congregation Organized a Century Ago
THE CONFEDERATE MONUMENT AT UNION
--
PETERSTOWN Viewed from the West
XXI
SUMMER RESORTS
Sweet Springs-Salt Sulphur Springs-Red Sulphur Springs-Minor Resorts.
WEET SPRINGS is the oldest, most permanent, and most interesting of the watering places of Monroe. James Moss, said to have been the first settler on the up- per course of Dunlap, reared his cabin about 1760 near the mineral spring. He did not acquire title and disposed of his interest to William Lewis. Patent was issued in 1774. Like his more famous brothers, William Lewis was an indefatigable land pros- pector and secured choice tracts in several localities. But Sweet Springs was the spot he selected for a home. The Lewis brothers often conducted their land operations in partnership. So Thomas Lewis deeded to William in 1786 his interest in 1220 acres on "Sweet Springs Branch," the consideration being 1000 pounds, or $3333.33. The conveyance recites that a division had been agreed upon in the lifetime of Andrew Lewis, in whose hands had rested the deed of partition. The consideration in this instance was $200. This pa- per was not found among Andrew's effects, and an acknowledgment could not be made because of the suspension of courts of justice upon the dissolution of British authority in Virginia. The deed by Thomas affected all the Lewis land above the falls in Dunlap Creek.
After the restoration of peace, William Lewis began to develop Sweet Springs as a health resort. As a related step in his own in- terest, he offered to provide a home for the court of the circuit that embraced the counties of Botetourt, Greenbrier, Kanawha, and Montgomery. The inducements included a courthouse and a jail. Until these quarters should be built, which was done in 1795, the sessions of the court were to be held alternately at Fincastle and Lewisburg. A view of the buildings was ordered to take place by May 1, 1796.
202
A HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA
The plans of Lewis did not stop short of the creation of a town. Section Three of an Act of Assembly of December 16, 1790, thus reads :
That thirty acres of land on the southeast side of the Sweet Springs in the county of Botetourt, the property of William Lewis, shall be and they are hereby vested in James Breckenridge, Martin McFerran, Henry Bowyer, Matthew Harvey, John Beal, John Wood, John Smith, Robert Harvey, John Hawkins, Thomas Madison, and Sampson Sawyers, gentle- men trustees, to be by them, or a majority of them, laid off into lots of one-half acre each, with convenient streets, and establish a town by the name of Fontville.
As soon as laid off, the lots were to be advertised two months in the Virginia Gazette, and sold at public auction at the best price to be had. The title was to be conveyed in fee, and the money paid to the proprietor. Purchasers were to build within five years from the day of sale houses at least 16 feet square with chimneys of stone. The trustees were empowered to make rules for the building of houses, and it was left to them to pass upon boundary disputes. The Act contains these further provisions:
Section Eleven: And be it further enacted, that three acres of ground to include the said Sweet Springs, shall be and they are hereby vested in the trustees of the town at the said place, and their successors forever; in trust to and for the use of all such persons as may from time to time at- tend the same for the recovery of their health.
Section Twelve: No person shall hold more than two lots at the Sweet Springs, nor shall the trustees convey more than that number to any person. Provided always, that nothing herein contained shall be construed to au- thorize the trustees of the town at the Sweet Springs to sell the land whereon the courthouse of the said county and the tavern of the said William Lewis are built.
But Fontville did not spring into actual existence. Whether the movement were premature, or whether the public lacked the in- clination to make it succeed, we have at this late day no certain knowledge. William Lewis has been styled the "civilizer of the frontier." He wished to establish a town that would be thoroughly attractive to seekers after health. No tannery, distillery, or butcher
203
SUMMER RESORTS
shop was to be permitted within its limits. Lewis was far-sighted, yet he met with much opposition.
Sweet Springs was the seat of the District Court only eleven years, and it was a period of discord. An Act of Assembly decreed the removal to Lewisburg by February 1, 1807. The proprietor of Sweet Springs and the county court of Greenbrier were each to ap- point three commissioners to value the jail and other buildings erected by the proprietor for the use of the district court. When the amount of such valuation, collected by voluntary subscription or otherwise, should be paid to the clerk of Greenbrier for the use of the proprie- tor, or his legal representative, the clerk of Greenbrier was to cer- tify the same to the next court at Sweet Springs, which court at the end of its term should adjourn to Lewisburg.
This removal was a result of an agitation that seems to have arisen at a very early date. The paragraph below is our digest of the report of a committee to examine into the title to the courthouse at Sweet Springs. The committee consisted of Samuel Blackburn, George Hancock, Augustus Woodward, Allen Taylor, Thomas Rowland, William H. Cavendish, and John Hutchinson. The dic- tion of the paper is excellent and the criticism of Lewis seems re- luctant. It was recorded October 21, 1799.
It is so usual to have the seats of superior courts at county seats, that in the few exceptions ample provision does not seem to have been made. This is peculiarly the case here. The court was to alternate between Fin- castle and Lewisburg until the proprietor of Sweet Springs should at his own expense build courthouse and prison. This inconvenient way lasted several years. The records were twice every year taken horseback over several mountains and dangerous watercourses. By later Acts, the "ad- vention" of the court to Sweet Springs was hastened, but there was no provision to vest in the commonwealth the title to necessary grounds or buildings. The proprietor now has the freehold. The commonwealth has no other claim than merely the provision that the courthouse be here. The buildings were erected with the verbal consent of the proprietor. Between the last and present terms of court, the tenant now at Sweet Springs has with the consent of the proprietor commanded the jailor to leave, and has molested him in his use of the tenement. The clerk has avoided such treatment by keeping his papers at his house six miles away over a diffi- cult mountain, but has exposed them thereby to dangers, and this is incon-
204
A HISTORY OF MONROE COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA
venient to suitors. The courthouse is used in vacation as a boarding house for hotel guests, is never in the custody of the jailor, and is now in ill repair. The jail is totally insufficient, and several escapes have occurred. It is recommended that a town be created to destroy a monopoly preju- dicial to the public and oppressive to individuals. The committee was of unanimous opinion that the present seat was by no means adapted to per- manency, and that therefore there was embarrassment to the public and probably injustice to private individuals. The proprietor has a slender claim on the commonwealth, because the building put up as courthouse will answer his private purposes. To make the prison secure necessitates an expense equal to the original cost. If indemnity to the proprietor is in order, it will be small. The interest of the public may be subjected to a dangerous association with the interest of a private citizen."
John Lewis, son of William and present proprietor, made reply a few days later than he understood the buildings were vested ab- solutely in the commonwealth so long as the court might sit here. In case of doubt he was willing to convey the necessary land under the condition that when the commonwealth should vacate, its right to it should cease. He was also willing to grant land under like regulations for clerk and jail.
A petition of 1800 asks that the court be moved to Union on the ground that the proprietor's tavern is given a monopoly "under the most inconvenient charges and regulations." It asserts that the expense to a witness is equal to the fine for his absence. The jail is alleged to be so weak and undesirable that prisoners often escape. It says the peculiar circumstances of the place lead to a "lamentable train of continuances. The records are kept in no certain place and are therefore unsafe." Union is represented as in "the heart of a compact and plentiful settlement rapidly progressing." The court- house is large and commodious, and the jail is strong. The signa- tures to this paper are numerous.
A counter petition by Lewis, backed by 42 signers, says there are two houses of entertainment at Sweet Springs, other than the proprietor's, and still another at Red Springs, less than a mile away. Within three to five miles are other houses where the cheapest liv- ing may be had. Altogether, Sweet Springs can shelter 200 guests and Union only 50. The charges by the tenant of the proprietor are
205
SUMMER RESORTS
the same as at the public houses in Union, and his house alone can receive all the people who come to court. It says the delays com- plained of are chargeable to the lawyers, who have a long way to come. The clerk's office is "one of six rooms in a log house, and but for the grasping individuals who try for removal," a better of- fice would be put up. Sweet Springs is central to its district and convenient to reach.
In a petition of 1802, the proprietor of Sweet Springs argues that his courthouse is of stone, much larger than the one at Union, and has walls two feet thick. The jail has two rooms, whereas the jail at Union has a single room 18 feet square. Only two felons have escaped from his jail. He adds that Union and Lewisburg are not agreed, each wanting the district court.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.