USA > West Virginia > Ritchie County > History of Ritchie County, with biographical sketches of its pioneers and their ancestors, and with interesting reminiscences of revolutionary and Indian times > Part 34
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Thomas Pritchard was first married to Miss Nancy Tichi- nell, who died at the Glades, leaving seven children : and his second wife was Miss Mary Moody, who was the mother of his other eight children. He survived until 1846, when lie was laid in the Baptist churchyard, at Oxford. His second wife rests by his side, but the first one sleeps at the Glades.
The children of the first union were: Peter, the White
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Oak pioneer; Mrs. Kathrine Queen ; Mrs. Anna Queen, and Mrs. Peggy Castor, all of Harrison county; Mrs. Sarah (Jacob) Watson,1 Anburn : Mrs. Elizabeth (John) Harris,1 Pullman ; and Mrs. Mary ( William) Snodgrass, Berea.'
Those of the second marriage were: Thomas D. Pritch- ard,1 John Moody, who was drowned in the pond at his own mill at the M. H. Davis farm in 1862 : William, an early peda- gogue, who never married; Mrs. Jane Gaston, Doddridge county ; Samuel, Lewis county ; Mrs. Emily (George) Gar- rison, Auburn : Rachel died in youth and Amos lost his life in the Civil war.
John Moody Pritchard was married to Miss Sarah Had- dox, sister of the late Jonathan Haddox, and their children were : Philip, Jason, and Jackson, who all fought in the Civil war, and who are now all dead; the late Mary (Sylvester) Parker, Mrs. Eliza (Allen) Parker, Colorado; Henry, of Cali- fornia : and Thomas B., of Ohio.
Webb's Mill .- The well known Webb's mill is one of the oldest landmarks in the county. It has been in operation for almost a century, it having come upon the stage, as a grist- mill, in cabin fashion, before the war of 1812. It vies with the Maley mill for the first place in the county's history, and if these dates be correct, it is entitled to this place. However, it is a contemporary.
Benjamin Webb was the owner and operator of this mill from the time that it came into existence until his death, on May 27, 1879, when it became the property of his grandson, B. F. Prince, by his bequest.
M. R. Lowther, of Parkersburg, then owned it (Mr. Prince having had the misfortune to lose it). until it was purchased by the late J. S. Hardman and son, Sheridan, a few years since ; the latter being the present owner and opei- ator. Though it is frequently referred to as "Hardman's mill," the old name still lingers about it.
Archibald Burrows .- Quite an interesting bit of history hangs about the name of the millwright, Archibald Burrows. who re-built this mill in 1818, or in the carly twenties. Mr. Burrows was a Scotch-Irishman, who had been a Revolu- tionist in his native land; and his cause being lost, he was
1See other chapters for farther accounts of these families.
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compelled to flee for his life, as the death sentence had been the fate of all who had been captured. He fled to America. and adopted the name of "Burrows" instead of Davisson, his real name.
With his brothers and sisters, he crossed from Ireland. butt on the next day after they landed, they were separated. and he never saw any of them again. He came to Lewis county where he was married to Miss Mary Holbert, and. from there, he removed to Calhoun county and became the first settler where the town of Grantsville now stands. He resided here at the time of his death, which took place shortly after he had completed his work on Webb's mill, while he was at work on Frederick's mill. He had contracted the whooping-cough, and after spending a few days at home, had returned here to collect his money, for the work. staying all night; and the next morning he was found dead in his bed. His wife was notified, but before she reached the scene he was laid in the Smithville cemetery.
He was the father of six children: Mrs. Jane Taylor, Philadelphia ; Mrs. James Johnson, Mrs. Joseph Hamrick, William, John and George, all of Calhoun county, where a large number of his descendants live.
Benjamin Webb, whose nanie refuses to be divorced from this mill, was born in Harrison county, in 1789, and with his father. Nutter Webb, came to the South fork of Hughes river, near the year 1801.
He married Miss Martha Stuart, daughter of William Stuart, an early pioneer on this river, who was born at sea, on board the emigrant ship that brought her parents from Ire- land to America, in 1789; and soon after his marriage. he made the first settlement at the mill; and being called into service as a soldier of the war of 1812, his wife operated this mill during his absence.
He was one of the most prominent figures in the early history of this part of the county, being a man of very high character, and of no small degree of ability.
He was sheriff of the county from 1845 to '47, and filled
1Another tradition says that his changed name came through some error in the Freemasons order, he having got his papers mistakenly changed with another man, but doubtless the first explanation is the cor- rect one.
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the office of magistrate for a term of forty years, during which time none of his decisions were ever reversed. He was, also, an early merchant. Beside his wife, he sleeps in the cemetery that bears his family name.
He was the father of five daughters and one son: Mrs. Anna Dye, Mrs. Elizabeth Hyman, Mrs. Sarah Rogers, Mrs. Louisa Hostetter, and Mrs. Drusilla Prince, and John Webb, who have all passed on, but his descendants in this county are quite numerous.
Frederick's mill, too, ranks among the oldest landmarks in the county. It was built, perhaps, in the early twenties by Benjamin Hardman and Benjamin Cunningham (whose his- tories belong to an earlier chapter), who owned and operated it for a number of years ; and near 1845, the late Joel West- fall, of Smithville, rented it, and the following year he and his father, John W. Westfall, purchased it and the "Westfall farm" (now the liome of Henry Barker). of Huffman and Camden, of Weston ; and the son took charge of the mill, and the father, of the farm.
Shortly after they came into possession, they erected a new saw-mill and set it in motion, they having entered into a contract with Proviance Murphy to build a plank-road, from the Hardman farm to where Grass run crosses the Staunton pike ; and they had much of the lumber ready for the road, when the flood of 1852 came, sweeping away lumber, grist- mill and all, except the saw-mill. Disheartened at this loss, Joel at once made his arrangements to go West ; but the mill was rebuilt, and the elder Westfall continued to keep it in motion until 1857, when it passed into the hands of the late Joseph B. Frederick, who rebuilt it in 1858, and again, in 1876 ; and who continued to operate it until his death, on June 10, 1896, when it became the property of his son, Joseph L. Frederick, who repaired and changed it from a burr, to a roller-process, the following year ; and who is still the owner.
The Fredericks are of German origin. Joseph B. Fred- erick's parents, John and Rachel Erhart Frederick, were both natives of the "Keystone" state, and were both born of Ger- man parentage. He, in 1779, and she, in 1785. Shortly after their marriage, they removed to Virginia, where Joseph B., who
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was one of thirteen children, was born, on April 26, 1821, and where he grew to manhood. He then went to Hardy county (W.) Virginia, where he learned the miller's trade, and where he met and married Miss Rebecca Ghokenour; the marriage taking place on February 13, 1845; and there they resided until they came to this county, where the family still live. Mrs. Frederick died on April 10, 1893. Both rest on the old homestead with their children who have passed on: Isaac, Jacob, Mrs. Elizabeth Hardman, Mrs. Martha Cooper, Vir- ginia and Rebecca. Mrs. Mary Goff sleeps near Burnt House, and the rest survive -- Mrs. Lucy Slack lives in Ohio; Mrs. Frances Barker, near the old home ; Lulu is Mrs. Allen Smith of Texas ; and Ellen Mrs. Sylvester McCartney : Miss Sallie is at home : J. L. and Calvin are the two sons.
John Frederick, the father of Joseph B., was a brother of Philip, the pioneer of Grass run.
The Mckinney Mills .- William Mckinney, senior, was the author of the first grist-mills in what is now Grant dis- trict. The first one was erected near the year 1823, on the "Hatfield farm"-then the farm of William McKinney, junior : and the other one, a little later, about two miles below Cairo, where the County bridge now crosses the river. Both were carried away by the floods, and some time afterwards, his son. David Mckinney, built a grist-mill four miles below Cairo, which served the public for many years, before it went out of existence.
James Drake built a saw-mill on Indian creek, near the Isaac Wilson residence, near 1825 or '30. This was one of the earliest of its kind in the county.
Brown's Mill .-- The widely known Brown's mill is en- titled to the first place in the history of the mills of Clay dis- trict. It was built by Isaac Clarke, of Pennsylvania, who is identified with the early settlers of Chevauxdefrise, in 1848. It came into existence as a grist-mill, but a sawing-apparatus was attached some years later. Among those who have owned it from time to time, we find the names of James Malone. James L. Collins, Lawrence Minor, Daniel Rexroad. Wilson Patton, A. S. Core. Martin Cochran, and Samuel Malone. Mr.
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Core and Mr. Patton, being partners, re-built and otherwise improved the property.
Mr. Cochran instituted the carding business in connection with the grist and saw-mill, but in 1875, while he was owner, the mill and all of its accessories was swept away by a flood : and Samuel Malone and Wilson Patton bought and rebuilt it. Then in the early eighties, John M. Brown purchased Mr. Malone's interest and finally that of Mr. Patton's, and he is still the owner and operator. It being the only old-time mill in this section that is still doing service.
The Broadwater Mills .- Jefferson Broadwater is accred- ited with the first saw-mill in Clay district, which is said to have come into existence in 1855, and to have been located near the present site of Tollgate. He owned and operated this mill for more than twenty years, and was also the builder of the Valley flouring-mill, near Pennsboro.
Mr. Broadwater was a native of Virginia, he having first opened his eyes upon this mundane sphere in Loudin county, on August 1, 1806; but he came to this county from Mary- land, in 1842, and remained until his death on August 5, 1894. He rests in the U. B. cemetery at Pennsboro. He was first married to Miss Mary Beckner, of Maryland, who was laid in the Taylor cemetery, in 1861 ; and his second wife was Mrs. Elizabeth Scott,1 of Harrison county, who, with her daughter, Miss Vashta, resided at Salem until her death in June, 1910; the late Wade Broadwater was her other child.
The children of the first union were twelve in number, and were as follows: the late Mrs. Eliza (M. M.) Taylor, Salem: Mrs. Mary (Archibald) Barnard, the late Mrs. Re- becca (C. R.) Brown, Mrs. Alice (Sherman) Wilson, Mrs. Isabella (L. C.) Wilson, all of Pennsboro: the late T. J. Broadwater. Tollgate: the late Peter, Lynn Camp: Mrs. Minerva (D. H.) Kelley, and Chas. P. Broadwater, Oxford : the late Mrs. Cena ( E. J.) Taylor, Trilby : the late Mrs. Theo- dore Davis, Idaho : and the late Miss Elizabeth. Pennsboro.
No other class of pioneers played a more important part in the early affairs of the county, than did these millers. They
1Mrs. Scott was the mother of H. J. Scott, of Pennsboro, and W. H Scott, of Rutherford.
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were in general men of unalloyed integrity, and were promi- nent factors in other walks of life, as well.
The Broadwaters are of English origin, but the time of their emigration to the "New World" is not known. Yet circumstances point strongly to the fact that one Charles Broadwater, who received, from the King of England, a grant for a tract of forty thousand acres of land in the Vir- ginia colony in the early days of its history, and, by the pro- visions of this grant, settled a ship load of English emigrants upon it, was their ancestor. But so little is known of the sub- sequent history of this distinguished individual, that this fact cannot positively be established. But, he sleeps in the old burying-ground at Fairfax Court House, and this ancient land grant is preserved among the records at Richmond, Vir- ginia.
The connected and authentic history of this family in America, however, begins near the year 1800, when Charles and Cornelius Broadwater, two brothers, settled in Loudin county. Virginia. Charles went from there to Tennessee, and became the founder of the family that scattered from there. But Cornelius lived and died in Loudin county. His son, Charles, married Miss Mary Ripes, of the "Old Dominion" and removed to Maryland, before the war of 181?, and settled Rear eight miles above the present site of the town of West- ernport, where he constructed a residence of hewed-pine-logs, which is said to be still standing.
He and two of his brothers served their country as sol- diers in the war of 1812, and were identified among the heroic defenders of historic old Fort McHenry, when the immortal "Star Spangled Banner" was penned. He was the father of Jefferson and Peter Broadwater, of this county ; of Ephraim, who lives in Sommerset county, Pennsylvania, and is now eighty-one years of age ; and of Ashford, of Tyler county, who survives at the age of seventy-nine years.
Peter Broadwater was born in "Maryland. My Mary- land!" on March 20, 1820, and came to this county with his brother, Jefferson in 1842,
He married Miss Love Taylor, sister of the late Edmund Taylor, and settled on the farm that is now, principally owned
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by his son, Marcus M. Broadwater, near Hannahdale, where his life came to a close in 1858, and beside his first wife in the Taylor burying-ground he lies at rest.
His second wife, Mrs. Fannie Malone Broadwater, died in 1891, and she lies in the churchyard at Riddel's chapel.
Five children were the fruits of his first union : viz., Mar- cus M, of Hannahdale, who served as a soldier in the Union army ; Edmund, of Illinois ; Mrs. Margaret (Granville ) Willis, of Market, Doddridge county ; the late Mrs. Rachel (Thomas) Athey, Marion county ; and Mrs. Lovisa (Peter D.) Calhoun, of White Oak.
The children of the second union were Jennie who is now Mrs. John M. Brown, of Hannahdale; and Charles, of near Harrisville.
C. L. Broadwater, principal of the New Martinsville school is the grandson of Peter, he being the son of Charles.
1
CHAPTER XXXIII
Post-Offices
ENNSBORO is the oldest post-office in the county. It came into existence as early as 1820 with James Martin, post-master.
James Martin was a native of Harrison county and a prominent figure in the early affairs of this part of the county. His wife was Miss Edith Davidson Wilson, daughter of Col. Benjamin Wilson, senior. She being one of the thirty children of this distinguished gentleman, whose names and dates of birth appear elsewhere in this history ; and in Harri- son county, she was born on November 19, 1799. On April 15, 1815, they came to Pennsboro and settled in the "Stone House" where they spent the remainder of their lives. He passed from earth in 1856, and she, twenty years later. Both rest in the Presbyterian cemetery. They were the parents of the following named children: William, Benjamin W., La- fayette. James, junior, Gilbert, Marshall M. Watts, Margaret, Mrs. Hattie (M. P.) Kimball, Mrs. Mary Dunnington and John W., who survived until 1910 at his home in Arkansas, have all passed on. Mrs. Susan Watson, who has reached her eighty-eighth milestone is a resident of Fairmont; and F. H. Martin is one of Pennsboro's well-known business men.
The Martins are of English-German origin, and are the lineal descendants of emigrants, who crossed to the New Jer- sey colony early in the eighteenth century and figured as Revolutionary soldiers.
William Martin was one of the early settlers of Harrison county, and there his son. James, the Ritchie county pioneer post-master was born.
The Second Post-office was established at Harrisville near the year 1830 under the name of "Solus," but after the birth
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of the county, the name was changed to Harrisville, and later to "Ritchie Court House," owing to the fact that an office by the same name in Virginia occasioned confusion in the mail. but it was changed back to Harrisville a number of years ago.
William Mckinney, junior, son of William, senior, of Cairo, was the first post-master here, and William L. Jackson was another early incumbent of this office.
William McKinney, senior, was the first post-master in Grant district, this office being kept in the McGregor mill, below Cairo.
The First Post-office in Murphy district was established near 1830 at Smithville under the name of "Hughes River." Valentine Bozarth, who resided where the M. A. Ayres hotel now stands, was the first post-master, but he, losing his home here, went to Iowa and the office was removed to Webb's mill, where it remained under the name of "Webb's mill" until 1880 when it was changed back to Smithville, and took the name of the village.
The First Mail-carrier was a lad of twelve years by the name of Isaac Cox, who came from Weston once a week, and stayed over night at Smithville. This youthful carrier was no other than the late Isaac B. Cox of Chestnut Grove, Cal- houn county. He was the son of Isaac, and the grandson of Isaac and Sarah Sutton Cox, whose line . will be found in the Cox family history in the "Slab creek chapter."
There are now forty-two offices in the county, thirty-one of which are money-order offices, besides fifteen rural free de- livery routes. Three of these, Pennsboro, Harrisville and Cairo, which are third class, are International money-order offices. The post-masters are appointed by the President, and their respective salaries are $1,600, $1,500, and $1,300.
CHAPTER XXXIV
Ritchie County Formed
ITCHIE county was formed in 1843, from portions of Wood. Lewis and Harrison counties, and was named in honor of Thomas Ritchie, a journalist, who for many years edited "The Richmond Enquirer," and later "The Washington Record."
This county covers an area of four hun- dred fifty-seven square miles, and is bounded on the north by Pleasants and Tyler : on the east by Doddridge, on the south by Gilmer, Calhoun and Wirt: and on the west by Wirt and Wood. It is divided into four districts. Grant, Union. Clay and Murphy. The North and the South branches of Hughes river are its principal streams : and its highest1 elevation of' land (1380 feet) is in the north-eastern corner of the county near Stanley, and King Knob two miles southwest of Pull- man is the second highest point, it being 136? feet. Its popu- lation, according to the first census after its organization, was three thousand eight hundred fifty-six, it now numbers near twenty thousand.
The first court convened, on April 4, 1843, at the resi- dence of John Harris, near the late residence of John P. Har- ris, and was composed of Daniel Haymond, Daniel Ayres, William R. Lowther, Alexander Lowther, senior, and James Malone, junior, justices of the peace, each holding a commis- sion from the Governor. The first three had, for many years. been justices in Wood county, and the last two, in Harrison and Lewis counties.
The following named officers were chosen by this court : William R. Lowther, clerk of the County court: Thomas
'King Knob, near Washburn, has always been regarded the highest point of land in the county, but this information comes from the late U. S. Geological report.
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Stinchcombe, clerk of the Circuit court; Hon. J. J. Jackson. of Parkersburg, Attorney for the Commonwealth ( a position which he held until his death in 1850, when he was succeeded by J. B. Blair, a Harrisville barrister) Archibald Wilson, County surveyor ; Austin Berkeley, sheriff, with his brother, Granville, deputy. They (the Berkeleys) served one term, and from the expiration of this term until the adoption of the Constitution in 1851, this office was given to the oldest justice of the peace.
Then after Mr. Berkeley, came Benjamin Webb (as sher- iff from 1845-48) with James Mckinney, as deputy for the first two years, and James and John P. Harris, for the last year. John Harris was the next in line (1848-9) with James and John P. Harris deputies. Noah Rexroad then filled the office until the new Constitution (1851) made all the offices elective by the people, and he was the first sheriff chosen under this new provision. Then came William M. Patton, James Taylor, Benjamin Wells, Eli and John Heaton, B. F. Mitchell, John B. Hallam, D. F. Haymond, John B. Hallam (again) Job Musgrave, M. H. Tarleton, D. B. Patton, B. F. Hill, Okey E. Nutter. and John Hulderman, the present in- cumbent.
Henry Collins was the first clerk of the Circuit court chosen by the people, in 1851, and William M. Patton was his deputy. This office has since been filled by Amos Culp. W. H. Douglass, Will A. Strickler, John H. Lininger, and H. E. McGinnis.
James McKinney was the first clerk of the County court under the new Constitution (1851-8), and William M. Patton was his successor (1858-6?). He (Mr. Patton) was also made clerk of the records. He was followed by Josiah M. Wood; and then came the late George W. Amos who filled this office from 1871 until 1896, when W. R. Meservie, the present clerk, took his place.
Cyrus Hall was the first prosecuting attorney chosen by the popular vote (1851-61) ; and F. P. Peirpoint was his suc- cessor. The office since that time, has been filled by E. G. Day, Robert Kercheval, John A. Hutchinson, C. F. Scott, R. S. Blair, senior, T. E. Davis, Henderson Peck, R. H. Freer, H.
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B. Woods, and S. M. Hoff. The last four named gentlemen still survive.
John Douglass was the first County surveyor elected by the people ; and among others who have filled this office since that time are: Fred Douglass, Alexander Lowther, junior, H. N. Wilson, Wm. Bennett Hayden, A. A. Clayton, A. M. Douglass, A. C. Cunningham, Gilbert Hayden, and John W. Cain.
Benjamin Webb, Robert Tibbs, Richard Wanless, John Harris, Jacob Hatfield, Isaac Lambert, Peter Reed, and Wil- liam R. Lowther were the first justices to be elected by the vote of the people, Mr. Wanless being the presiding officer. The justices continued to form the Court until the Constitu- tion of the "Little Mountain state" went into effect in 1863. Then a Board of Supervisors became the law-making body of the county.
Henry B. Collins, Jacob Hatfield, and Christopher N. Nutter comprised the first Board of Supervisors. Among others, who served in this capacity were: Benjamin Wells, Solomon Stull, Phillip Reitz, A. C. Barnard, Richard Wanless, senior, Andrew Law, James Moyer, John McGinnis, J. P. Strickler, John Sommerville, J. H. Haddox, George Corbin, and H. N. Wilson.
In 1872, our State Constitution underwent a change and since that time, the members of this court have been called commissioners. Among those who have served as commission- ers are : P. S. Austin, M. A. Ayres, Dr. M. S. Hall, S. R. Daw- son, A. C. Barnard, J. R. Brake, Alexander Prunty, Samuel Hatfield, WV. G. Lowther, Benjamin McGinnis, S. J. Taylor, B. F. Marshall, E. N. Summers, L. D. Bartlett, W. A. Flesher, J. M. Brown, C. W. Nutter, I. M. Jackson, and Jacob T. Reeves.
Among those who have filled the office of assessor, we find the names of, J. B. Collins, Eli Riddel, Nathaniel Parks, James H. Harris, Alexander Lowther, junior, J. W. Troy, James W: Shroyer, Benjamin McGinnis, W. G. Lowther, M. A. Ayres, Alexander Prunty, Samuel Hatfield, George Crum- mett, John O. Lynch, H. Kibbee, Ellet Woofter, C. S. Jack- son, G. M. Britton, H. C. Buzzard, and G. M. Britton, who
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is now the only one in the county, under a new provision of the law, there having been two heretofore.
The following named gentlemen represented this county in the Legislature at Richmond, when this state was a part of the "Old Dominion :" James Malone, Jacob Prunty, William L. Jackson, Henry B., and John Collins.
Cyrus Hall was a member of the Richmond Convention that passed on the ordinance of secession, which finally re- sulted in Virginia becoming a part of the Southern Con- federacy.
Archibald Wilson represented Ritchie county in the con- vention that framed the first Constitution for the State of West Virginia, in December 1861 ; and J. P. Strickler was a member of the body that gave us our present State Constitu- tion. Other citizens of this county, who have occupied seats in our State Legislative halls are: (Senators) Daniel Hay- mond, David McGregor, P. W. Morris, and Samuel Hatfield : (House of Delegates) Eli Riddel, S. R. Dawson, A. S. Core, Noah Rexroad, Gen. T. M. Harris, James Taylor, E. J. Tay- lor, J. B. Crumrine, Felix Prunty, G. W. Miller, J. M. Mc- Kinney, T. E. Davis, J. C. Gluck, P. W. Morris, R. H. Freer, Benjamin McGinnis, C. L. Zinn, Job Musgrave, E. C. Goff, M. M. Luzader, W. A. Flesher, M. K. Duty, and Sherman Robin- son ; and J. C. Lacy and Newton Law are the newly elected ones.
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