USA > West Virginia > Randolph County > A history of Randolph County, West Virginia, from its earliest exploration and settlement to the present time > Part 15
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Dr. Oscar Butcher was the eldest son of Baliss G. and Patsy McNeil Butcher, and was born in Randolph County, December 24, 1820. He moved to Indiana with his father and studied medicine under Dr. Creigh, of Delphi, that state, and later attended medical lectures in Chicago. He returned to Virginia and commenced the practice of medicine at Falling Springs, Greenbrier County. He married Sarah J. Beard of that county May 16, 1849. In 1851, he moved to Green Bank, Pocahontas County, where he practiced until he moved to Huttonsville, this county, in 1860. He practiced at Huttons- ville until the outbreak of the war, when he became identified with the Confederate army. He was with the advance on Elkwater and Cheat Mountain, also at Stewart Run and Camp Bartow and Allegheny Mountain. In declining health for several years, he died at Lockwillow, in Augusta County,. December 21, 1861. Although always in delicate health he- was energetic and a very successful physician.
Dr. George White located at Huttonville in the early forties. He was from eastern Virginia. After several years' practice in that locality he returned to his native county
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Dr. James Hamilton of Bath County, Virginia, located at Huttonsville, about 1850. He moved to Parkersburg prior to the outbreak of the civil war.
Dr. Jones located in Huttonsville about the commence- ment of the civil war. He returned to Virginia during the progress of that conflict.
Dr. Blair was located at Huttonsville for a short time subsequent to the war of the rebellion.
Dr. David W. Gibson was born in Pocahontas County in 1829 and was the son of David and Mary Gibson. He was married in 1861 to Martha, daughter of Ellen and Jacob Stalnaker. He studied in Richmond, practiced in Buckhannon a few years, then located near Elkwater, where he practiced until the time of his death.
Dr. Charles Rice, son of Rev. John and Susan (Denton) Rice, was born December 3, 1855. He was educated in the public schools and at the Fairmont Normal school. He re- ceived his medical education at the University of Maryland, where he graduated in 1884. He was married to Miss Georgie Brown of Louisville, Kentucky, May 9, 1888. He died of typhoid fever, October 14, 1888 From the time of his gradu- ation until his death, Dr. Rice was engaged in the practice of his profession at Kerens, this county. During his short pro- fessional career he revealed a marked adaptability to his chosen profession and attained a success that gave promise of a useful and honorable career.
W. F. Snyder, M.D. was born in Charleston, Virginia, in 1859, son of David H. and Mary Snyder, was married to Isis, daughter of J. Harvey Woodford. He was educated at the Military Institute, Lexington, Virginia. After graduating from the medical department of the University of Maryland, he located at Huttonville, where he entered upon the practice of his profession in 1887. He received the Democratic nomi- nation for House of Delegates in 1888, and died suddenly a few hours later of an affection of the heart. He had built up a large practice and was regarded as one of the foremost physicians of the country.
Dr. William B. Collett, son of Solomon and Edith Davis- son Collet was born in 1832. Dr. Collett was perhaps, the
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first physician in Randolph County to receive a diploma from a medical school. When 23 years old in 1855, he graduated from the Winchester Medical College, a school then conduct- ed by Dr. Hunter McGuire, who in later years became one of the noted surgeons of the country. After the war Dr. Mc- Guire moved to Richmond, Virginia, and founded the College of Medicine. Dr. Collett was regarded as a very skillful and successful surgeon and performed operations before the days of asepsis and anaesthesia that would do credit to modern surgery. In 1885, he visited Brazil as a surgeon for a com- mercial company and contracted an illness which compelled him to return to his native country. However, he did not regain his health and died at Beverly in 1860.
Dr. John T. Huff practiced at Beverly, Huttonsville, and Valley Bend for several years in the eighties.
J. C. Irons, M.D., born in Monroe County, Virginia, 1853. He was educated in the public schools of Monroe County. Prior to studying medicine Dr. Irons taught school several terms. He graduated in medicine from the Central University of Louisville, Kentucky, in 1881. He has practiced his pro- fession at Huttonsville and in Elkins and is at present phy- sician for the Wildell Lumber Company at Wildell. He has been three times mayor of Elkins and was the first mayor of the city in 1890.
Dr. O. L. Perry, M.D. born in 1861, in Upshur County. He was educated in the public schools and graduated in medi- cine from the College of Physicians and Surgeons, Baltimore in 1891. He has practiced his profession at Belington and Elkins.
A. M. Fredlock, M.D. was born 1866, in Maryland; was educated in Roanoke College, Virginia, and State University at Morgantown. Dr. Fredlock took his degree in medicine from the University of Maryland. He was one of the first residents of the city of Elkins and was a member of the first city council. Dr. Fredlock is serving his fourth term as mayor of the city.
Perry Bosworth, M.D., son of G. W. and Mary (Currence) Bosworth, born in 1867. He was educated in the public schools. He graduated in medicine in 1892 from the Balti-
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more Medical College and has since practiced his profession at Huttonsville. He is also a licensed pharmacist.
J. L. Bosworth, M.D., son of G. W. and Mary (Currence) Bosworth was born in 1856. He was educated in the public schools, West Virginia College and graduated from the Fairmont Normal School in 1881. He graduated in medicine from the College of Physicians and Surgeons in Baltimore in 1889. He was health officer for Randolph County for several terms. Prior to studying medicine he was for seven years editor of the "Randolph Enterprise."
Dr. A. S. Bosworth, M.D., son of George W. and Mary (Currence) Bosworth, was born January 12, 1859. He was ed- ucated in the public schools and at the Fairmont Normal School, where he graduated in 1881 and was elected superin- tendent of the schools of Randolph County the same year. He studied law at the University of Virginia and has been ad- mitted to practice in the Circuit and Supreme courts. He was eight years editor of Randolph Enterprise, and from 1884 to 1886 was in Nebraska where he was editor and owner of the Culbertson Sun and the Trenton Central. He graduated from the Baltimore Medical College in 1892 and has practiced at Beverly and Elkins. He is vice president of the State Medical Association and was elected delegate to the American Medical Association in 1910.
Dr. Thomas B. Crittenden was born in King and Queens County, Virginia, in 1862; was educated in the schools of that county and graduated from the medical department of Georgetown University, Georgetown, D. C. in 1895. Dr. Crittenden was attached to the clinical service of the Emer- gency Hospital for two years. Since 1897, he has been phy- sician for the Parsons Pulp and Lumber Company at Horton.
Decatur Montony, M.D., was born in 1868, in Pendleton County. He was educated in common schools and at the Fairmont Normal School; graduated in medicine from the Baltimore Medical College in 1894. He has practiced his profession at Harmon since graduation.
C. H. Hall, M.D. was born at Boothsville, W. Va., in 1876. He was educated in the public schools and at the Fair-
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mont Normal School. He graduated in medicine from the University of Kentucky in 1904. Dr. Hall was a member of the Elkins city council in 1912-15.
R. R. McIntosh, M.D. was born in Boston, Massachusetts in 1875. He was educated in the Boston public schools. He graduated in medicine from Tufts College in 1897. After tak- ing his degree, Dr. McIntosh spent three months in Floaty Hospital, Boston, one year in St. Johns Hospital, Lowell, Mass., was two years in charge of eye clinic of Methodist Hospital, Boston and has taken post graduate work in Eye and Ear Hospital in New York City. Since 1908, Dr. Mc- Intosh has been a specialist as occulist and aurist in Elkins.
William W. Golden, M.D. was born in Russia in 1866. He was educated at Vilna and Bielostock. Dr. Golden gradu- ated from the medical department of the University of the City of New York in 1892. The same year he located in Elkins and is surgeon of the Davis Memorial Hospital. He is an ex- President of the State Medical Society and the State Board of Health and is at present a member of the State Health Com- mission.
S. G. Moore, A.B., M.D., was born in Barbour County in 1877. He received the degree of Bachelor of Arts from the State University at Morgantown. Dr. Moore graduated from the College of Physician and Surgeons in Baltimore in 1906, and took a post graduate course in the Harvard Medical School in 1914. He is Professor of Biology in the Davis-Elkins College, Elkins, W. Va.
Humbolt Yokum, M.D., son of Dr. G. W. Yokum, was born in 1860. He was educated in the public schools and at the State University. In 1885 he graduated from the Jeffer- son Medical College, Philadelphia, Penna. He has been en- gaged in the practice of medicine at Beverly since his gradu- ation. He has also been prominent in business circles and is President of the Beverly Bank.
Dr. L. W. Talbott, son of William Woodford and Sarah (Simon) Talbott was born in Barbour County in 1855. He was educated in the public schools, West Virginia College and Jefferson College. He graduated in medicine at the Uni- versity of Maryland in 1883. Dr. Talbott took a post gradu-
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ate course in New York City in 1894, and located in Elkins in 1896, where he has since practiced his profession.
William R. Dove, M.D. was born in Pendleton County in 1880. Dr. Dove was educated in the public schools and Normal School. Prior to studying medicine he was nine years a teacher. After graduating in medicine from the Medi- cal College of Virginia at Richmond, in 1907, he located at Harmon, where he has since had a large and lucrative practice.
Dr. D. P. Buckey was born in 1871, son of Alpheus and Lizzie (Daniels) Buckey. Dr. Buckey's preliminary educa- tion was obtained in the Conference Seminary, Buckhannon and in the public schools. He graduated at the Baltimore Medical College in 1894 and entered upon the practice of medicine at Parsons. After remaining there about two years he located at Beverly, where he remained about two years and moved to Flemington, Taylor County, as surgeon for a mining company. After about two years' successful practice of his profession at Flemington he met an accidental death.
Dr. Stuckey practiced medicine at Helvetia in this county from 1872 to 1889. a period of seventeen years. He was a native of Switzerland and a graduate of the University of Berne. Before coming to America he was a student in a Paris hospital for one year. Dr. Stuckey had an extensive practice and his fame as a successful physician was not limit- ed to the locality in which he practiced. He died in 1889 in the 72nd year of his age.
Otto W. Ladwig, M.D. was born at West Milford, W. Va., October 11, 1875. He was educated in the public schools and at the Fairmont Normal School, where he graduated in 1901. He taught school a number of years and was principal of one of the Clarksburg schools. Dr. Ladwig was graduat- ed from the Louisville Medical College in 1905. He practiced for a short time in Harrison and Lewis counties and has been located at Evenwood, this county, since 1908.
Dr. G. C. Rodgers, son of Wm. G. and Rachel (Campbell) Rodgers, came to Randolph County in 1902. He was graduat- ed from the University College of Medicine, Richmond, Va., in 1900. He has taken postgraduate courses in surgery in
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the hospitals of Philadelphia and has been surgeon at the City Hospital since 1907.
Dr. H. W. Daniels, son of Rev. Wm. P. and Minerva (McLean) Daniels, was educated in the public schools and at the Buckhannon Wesleyan College. He graduated in medi- cine at the Baltimore Medical College in 1894. He has been a member of the city council and health officer for the city of Elkins since 1905.
B. L. Liggett, M.D. was born in Braxton County, W. Va., in 1887. Ile was educated in the common schools and Wesle- yan College at Buckhannon. He graduated at the Hanneman Medical College, Kansas City, Mo., in 1910 and in the medical department of the University of Maryland in 1914. Dr. Lig- gett was located at Fort Worth, Texas, three years and has practiced his profession at Mill Creek since 1914.
Thomas H. Chaney, M.D. was born in Marshall County, W. Va., November 21, 1871. He was educated in the West Virginia Conference Seminary, Buckhannon, W. Va. He graduated in medicine from the Starling Medical College, Columbus, Ohio, in 1896. Ile commenced practice at Little- ton, W. Va. and has practiced at Montrose and Elkins.
Dentists.
Dr. David S. Strock, son of Jacob and Letitia Strock, was born April 16, 1871 in Champaign County, Ohio. Dr. Strock was educated in the public schools and at the Ohio Normal University. In 1899, he graduated from the Pennsylvania Dental College with the degree of D.D.S. Dr. Strock has been in active practice in Elkins for eleven years. Dr. Strock was married on April 23, 1895 to Edith Russell, daughter of Mahlon and Arabella Russell. Dr. and Mrs. Strock have one child, Richard Junior.
Dr. John U. Baker, son of Daniel Randolph and Margaret (Chenoweth) Baker, was born in 1879. He was educated at the Wesleyan College, Buckhannon. Dr. Baker married Lena Mae (Bedell) Schuyler. Phillip Schuyler, the ancestor of that family in America came from Amsterdam, Holland, and settled in New Amsterdam, New York, in 1683. Dr. Baker
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graduated from the Baltimore Dental College in 1906, since which time he has practiced his profession in Elkins. Dr. and Mrs. Baker have three children: Rosalind, Margaret Chris- tina, and Daniel Randolph.
Dr. G. C. Baker, son of Eli and Margaret (Sexton) Baker was educated in the public schools and the Wesleyan College at Buckhannon, and was graduated from the Baltimore Col- lege of Dental Surgery in 1906. He practiced his profession at Gassaway from 1906 to 1908. He came to Elkins in 1909, since which date he has practiced dentistry in that city.
Dr. Nathaniel Barnard was born in Westernport, Mary- land in 1887. He graduated from high school and attended the Davis and Elkins College at Elkins. He received the de- gree of D.D.S. from the University of Maryland in 1913. After practicing at Mill Creek for a short time he moved to Elkins where he has practiced about two years.
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CHAPTER XIV. PORTE CRAYON IN RANDOLPH.
"The rudiments of empire here Are plastic yet and warm, The chaos of a mighty world Is rounding into form."
D AVID HIUNTER STROTHER, author and artist, was born at Martinsburg, Va., September 26, 1816. He stud- ied under Sam. F. B. Morse of New York and also spent five years as a student in Europe. From 1852 to 1861 he con- tributed to Harper's Magazine a series of illustrated articles chiefly on Virginia and the South, some of which appeared in book form under the title of "Blackwater and Virginia Il- lustrated." At the outbreak of the civil war he volunteered into the United States service and was appointed Captain, rising to Brigadier General in 1865. He served as Consul to Mexico from 1879 to 1885. He died in Charleston, W. Va., March 8, 1888. These sketches appeared in Harper's Maga- zine in 1852. Though often somewhat exaggerated, they reveal a people primitive in their habits and aspirations. This section, because of its mountainous isolation, long retained pioneer customs and characteristics. However, a half cen- tury and communication with the outside world by means of a railroad have wrought marvelous changes and Dry Fork dis- trict today rivals any other section of the county in all that goes to make up a moral, cultured and intelligent people.
Porte Crayon summarized the gratification of his visit to Dry Fork as follows: "It has been one of the supreme en- joyments of my life to wander among these wild communi- ties, until I have become familiar with their occupations, in- stincts and aspirations as one 'to the manor born,' learning thereby to respect their unsophisticated manhood, and appre- ciate their simple virtues, and it has sometimes appeared to me there was a grace in the woodland blossoms, and a flavor
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in the crabbed fruit not to be found in the cultivated gardens of civilization."
The Country Store.
Adamson's Store.
Although Adamson's store was located at the mouth of Seneca in Pendleton County, it was for years the emporium for the section described in this chapter and the characters mentioned were mostly residents of Randolph. The inci- dents chronicled by Strothers, moreover, were so typical of the country store of an earlier period that we reproduce the narrative. Mr. Sylvester Rains, to whom reference is made, is spoken of by his former employer. Mr. George Adamson, who is now a resident of Elkins, as having been a faithful clerk and an honorable and upright gentleman. As the irony of fate would have it. Mr. Rains lived a life of single blessed- ness, heart whole and fancy free and has long since gone to his reward, an alien and stranger to the joys, charms and delights of "domestic bliss, the only source of paradise below that hath survived the fall."
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"The junction of the North Fork Turnpike and the Pack Horse Road, across the Alleghanies from Beverly, has grown up a little settlement at this place, consisting of a half dozen families, with the conveniences of a store, postoffice, black- smith shop, a schoolhouse, and I believe a meeting house and apple-jack distillery. There was no tavern or regular place of entertainment, but to atone for this deficiency, any of the householders were ready to take in travelers as a special favor.
"Having been recommended to Adamson, the proprietor of the merchantile establishment abont a mile up the creek, we presented ourselves and were hospitably received. Here we dined and spent the afternoon lounging about the store and hooking a mess of trout from the Seneca. Adamson is an exotic, a Scotch Irishman, who had the reputation of being a shrewd and intelligent trader and a worthy and upright citizen. He has set up shop at this ontpost to barter the knick- knacks of civilization for the products of the mountains and to furnish clothes for one class of the natives in exchange for the coats which they strip from another class.
"The place retains many of the characteristics of those frontier trading posts, which we read of in the days when the United States had frontiers and they skinned the aboriginees as well as bears.
"All sorts of queer people congregated here, bringing in peltries, ginseng, venison, yarn stockings, maple sugar, home- made cloth, oats, corn, potatoes, butter and eggs to exchange for gay colored dry goods, crockery, tin and hardware, gimn- powder, tobacco, snuff, infinitesimal packages of coffee, and corpulent jugs of whiskey. Some came on foot, others in sleds, most on horseback, and very few in wheeled vehicles, the country in general not being addicted to this mode of transportation. Adamson's fancy salesman is the model of a mountain bean, in his own conceit at least. Going to the desk to jot down some notes of our journey, I took up a scrap of paper with the following inscription legible, amidst a maze of inky smirks and flourishes: "Sylvanus Rains is my name and happy is the gal that gits me for a man." Thrice happy, Sylvester, may your delusions be perennial! They will help to keep you amiable and obliging, and enable the mountain
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belles to make better bargains in calicoes and ribbons. After this accidental insight I observed Sylvester more closely, and remarked that when a wrinkled dame, overladen with butter and eggs, or a sallow matron, encumbered with babies rode up, she was allowed to dismount as best she could, and might tumble off if she could do no better, but when a frisky lass, all bouncing and blooming. appeared coming up the lane, down went pen, yard stick and molasses jug and out rushed the gallant clerk all smiles and empressment. Although either Mahala Armentrout, Susie Mullenix. or Peg Teters could have jumped from the saddle, or meal bag. to the ground, without discommoding a flounce and after landing, shouldered Sylvester and carried him into the store, never- theless, he must drop everything, run out with a chair and hold the critter, carrying the basket in and then giving his roach, and shirt collar each a sly twig as he passed the fly- specked looking glass, take his stand behind the counter with, 'Well Miss Susan, what can I have the pleasure of show- ing you today?' Meanwhile Dame Wrinkle with her bundle stands waiting and grumbling. 'Take a seat on the tobacco box, I'll attend you presently, mum.'
"'Lookee here man : I can't stop here all day a foolin, I can't, eh, I'm in a desput hurry, I am eh.'
"But here comes Mr. Adamson himself, and the impa- tient granny prefers to deal with him in person rather than wait for that fool feller that hain't no manners for old folks. but only for his likes. So she trucks off to the best advantage the contents of her basket and gets her measure of calico for her daughter's dress, two hats for her grandsons, a quarter of pound of coffee, not forgetting the complimentary paper of snuff-the invariable conclusion of all trades and pur- chases in these stores. Meanwhile Sylvester has denuded the shelves of gay prints, and the drawers of ribbon boxes. He and his fair customers, mutually inclining over the barrier of dry goods, continue to discuss business in a more quiet and rather indirect manner :
"'I say, Miss Susan, how's folks over on Dry Fork about these times ?. '
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".Well, all about our settlement is middlin' hearty, they are.'
".Have you been havin' any fun over there lately?'
"'Ye -- es indeed, we had a turrible good time at Zed. Kyle's last week, we had, eh. You see Zed had a wool pickin', he had, and all the gals and fellers was there, they was, and danced the holen joren night, we did.'
"Sylvester looked radiant at the thought and then with a sly leer asked in a lower tone, 'was Jess there?'
"Susan's face seemed to have caught the reflection from the box of pink ribbons which she was examining with sud- den interest. 'Pshaw, Mr. Rains, what account was it to me if Jess was there? He mostly hunts with them Kyles and Armentrouts, he does, and I shouldn't wonder ef he mought have been there.'
" ** And he seen you home after the dance now didn't he?' whispered the clerk with a smart diplomatic wink.
"'He done no sich thing' replied Susan, sharply, 'cause he only come as far as the Fork with me and Marta and Dilly and Emily.'
"'And I'll bet a new dress he carried you across.'
"'And I'll take the dress jist now off this red and yaller piece, I will; for we all waded across, we did, eh, so we did.' "'Mr. Rains, Old Sam Bonner from over the mountain has just brought in a lot of bear skins. Go out and receive them. Miss Susan I can wait on you. Have you selected a dress yet?' "
Soldier White's.
Porte Crayon, in this chapter, narrates incidents and ex- periences of customs long since obsolete. Goose-picking or any form of labor which would be a tedious task for one per- son in that day, was interchanged and a frolic and a dance was the result. Soldier White, as well as most other charact- ers referred to by Porte Crayon, have gone to their reward. Their lives were simple, moral and happy. The innocence and isolation of their primitive environment gave them a child- ish zest and appreciation of life that the modern man, striving
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for the material rewards, in order to shine, dazzle and out- strip his neighbor, can neither enjoy nor comprehend.
"At Soldier White's we found a regular two-storied log house, containing half a dozen rooms, which serves as a place of entertainment to drovers who come from below to sum-
SOLDIER WHITE.
mer their cattle on the Fork, and to the occasional traveler who ventures to cross the wilderness by pack horse road from Seneca to Beverly, the county seat of Randolph. Here is also a tub mill, driven by a pretty stream of water, which has been caught and utilized before being swallowed by the dry river. This combination of circumstances makes Soldier White's rather a notable place in the Dry Fork community, and as the proprietor himself observed somewhat boastfully, 'ther's not a month passes but he sees a stranger of one sort or another under his roof.' The soldier is personally a man
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