USA > West Virginia > Summers County > History of Summers County from the earliest settlement to the present time > Part 32
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HISTORY OF SUMMERS COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA.
thrown open in a true Christian spirit, and the Church South has for many years had full use of the building, controlling the same, the legal title remaining in the northern branch of the church, of which members are very few at this time, some twelve in number. The Church South at that place has a membership of seventy. The church building is one of the best in the county. It was used for many years as a place for holding the elections. At that time the voters for many miles around went to Forest Hill to vote. It was then known as the "Farms." The Bucklands and Grimmetts from Big Creek, the voters to the mouth of Greenbrier, and ex- tending to the Red Sulphur Springs, came to Forest Hill to vote. Later, Indian Mills precinct was established, the large grist mill now owned by C. A. Baber and others was built, and it divided the honors with Forest Hill. At Forest Hill there has been as many as two stores for many years. It had a large tobacco fac- tory at one time, and there is a strong Missionary Baptist Church congregation at that place, also at which there is a cemetery, and in the yard of which is the monument to Mike Foster, the brave Confederate soldier, was unveiled in 1907.
INDIAN MILLS CHRISTIAN CRURCH.
I am unable to give as complete a record of this church as it is entitled to, but give the best information which I am able to ascer- tain. I am under obligations to Rev. G. W. Ogden, a very promi- nent citizen of Raleigh County and an able minister of the Christian Church, and to Mr. Wm. A. Lowe, of Indian Mills, for facts we are enabled to present.
This church was organized at Indian Mills in the year 1865, by Messrs. Ballard and Cowgill, with an original membership of fifteen communicants. There has been during the intervening years as many as 200 members added from time to time, many of whom have died, while others have removed and sought new homes in other sections of the country, and are not now residents of the county and State.
Church property of the value of $800 has been acquired, and the congregation now occupies a neat, comfortable frame church at the Mills, mouth of Bradshaw's Run, and the title is held by deed to the trustees. Among the regular pastors were Rev. Pow- hatan B. Baber, the father of Charles A. Baber; Rev. James D. Johnston, Rev. A. T. Maupin and Rev. C. H. Poage.
Many protracted meetings have been held at this church, some
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HISTORY OF SUMMERS COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA.
by the regular pastors and others by evangelists, including Rev- erends J. D. Hamaker, Arthur Thorns, R. W. Lilly and J. C. Reynolds.
CENTRAL BAPTIST CHURCH.
Rev. Wilbur F. Hank, who is mentioned in this narrative, is a native of Monroe County, now living at Land Crafts Ferry. He is a son of an ancient Monroe family, the son of Rev. Jehu Hank, a Methodist (E. South), who was known far and wide for his great ability as a singer and musician, and his son is endowed with the same accomplishment ; besides, he is an eloquent and practical missionary Baptist minister. He owns a handsome residence and has reared an accomplished family, one son being a Baptist min- ister at Kenova, and who married Miss Haynes, a daughter of Joseph N. Haynes; another son is an employee of the C. & O. Railway as agent at Belva, W. Va. Mr. Hank has many times been urged to become a candidate for the Legislature by his Demo- cratic friends, but has declined. He is a prominent and useful citizen.
The Central Baptist Church of Hinton was organized in the old Bruce Hall, which was afterwards remodeled, and is now known as Hotel Miller, in 1894. The first pastor was Rev. Mullaney, a minister from Pennsylvania. After using the old Bruce Hall for some time, the Opera House of Col. J. A. Parker was rented, which was occupied as a church for six months, at which time the church purchased the building on the corner of Second and Ballangee Streets, now occupied by Charlton & Grimmett as a storeroom, which was fitted up and occupied as a church for some time. Later. this property was sold, and a lot 48 x 70 feet purchased from James H. Miller on Ballangee Street, on which a modern frame church building was erected.
Mr. Mullaney undertook to operate the politics of the city of Hinton, and became quite unpopular, although a very interesting and eloquent preacher, so that his pastorate continued for only about one year. The next pastor was Rev. C. T. Kirtner, a native of Mercer County, who married a daughter of Mr. Joseph Nowlin, of Pence's Springs. He was the first pastor to occupy the pulpit of the new church building, and did excellent work for his congre- gation while pastor. The third pastor was Rev. George Spencer, of Philadelphia, who remained with the church about two years. and then resigned.
After his resignation Rev. A. A. McClelland was called by the
.
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HISTORY OF SUMMERS COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA.
congregation, and served them satisfactorily for two years, resign- ing of his own accord, after which the present pastor, Rev. H. W. Stoneham, was called, and took charge. Rev. Stoneham resigned in 1905, to accept a more advantageous call at the old Sweet Springs Church, in Monroe County.
The church, from the date of its organization, has continually grown. It encumbered its property with a large debt upon its organization, which it has been gradually decreasing. George W. Thomas, J. A. Graham, Joseph Grady, of the gentlemen, and Mrs. E. A. Gooch, Mrs. Julia Huddleston, Mrs. A. H. Phillips and Mrs. G. W. Thomas, of the ladies, are active and leading members of this congregation and in the church work.
The first trustees were: Geo. W. Thomas, J. A. Graham and Joseph Grady.
This church organization originatel from a "split" in the First Baptist Church, by reason of dissensions growing out of the calling of Rev. W. W. Smith, an evangelist who had formerly held a great revival in the city of Hinton. A portion of the congregation of the First Baptist Church were dissatisfied with the calling of Mr. Smith, whose call, however, was regular and by a majority of the church members. The minority, however, refused to accede to the action of the majority, and formed a separate organization, having au- thority as provided under the rules and regulations of the Mission- ary Baptist Church.
The baptistry for this church was erected in 1907, through the enterprise of its lady members, and the church debt eliminated, which was also largely due to those devout lady members. Rev. Hall is the present pastor by recent election in 1907.
OAK GROVE M. E. CHURCH SOUTH.
This church is about three miles from Talcott, and is a neat frame church, which has been built in recent years to take the place of the old log church which was one of the first built in the county. The trustees are Thomas J. Holstine and Wilson Maddy, confirmed in 1880. Both are descendants of old settlers. Mr. Thomas J. Hol- stine is one of the pillars of the Methodist Church in this county, and one of the county's best citizens. He married a Miss Kincaid, a descendant of the old settler at Talcott. He resides on the Big Bend Mountain, near the Pisgah Church, of which he is one of the principal retainers. Richard McNeer is a direct descendant of the old settler of Monroe of that name. This county had within its
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HISTORY OF SUMMERS COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA.
borders, and has to this day, as pure a type of Americanism as any county within the Commonwealth. There are a few that even to this day might be deemed foreigners-that is, those who came direct from foreign lands-as will be noticed from the names of persons holding important positions, as in this case of MeNeer and Holstine. Rev. Sneed is the present pastor. Squire W. C. Hedrick and J. F. Leftwich are active officers of the church, which is situated at Ballengee Post Office.
BLUESTONE BAPTIST CHURCH.
The Bluestone Baptist Church, now located at Jumping Branch, was organized in the year 1798, in the house of Rev. Josiah Meador, on Little Bluestone River. The house was a double log cabin, with a dirt floor, where the people met to worship for several years. Eventually a rude log house was built. It had but one door and no windows. In this building they worshiped for many years. The membership was small and scattered from the mouth of East River, in Giles County, Virginia, to the marshes of Coal, in Raleigh County. Although living so far from the place of wor- ship, these people gathered on Friday evening before their regu- lar appointment and stayed until Monday, having preaching twice on Saturday and twice on Sunday. Monday morning at an early hour they started for their homes, thankful for the privilege of meeting each other and worshiping the God of their fathers.
Rev. Josiah Meador was their first pastor, who served them for several years. He was succeeded by Rev. Rev. Jackson Keaton. After a long, successful pastorate Rev. James Ellison became their pastor. He was the father of the late Matthew Ellison, and his pastorate was a successful one. As the country was being settled the membership seemed to drift towards Jumping Branch, and a log house was built near that place, which was burned. The people came together and built another on the same foundation. In after years they built a log house on the hill near the old Lilly farm, which was burned by the Federal troops in time of the war. In the burning of this house all of the old records were destroyed. Rev. Matthew Ellison became its pastor. He was succeedced by Rev Rufus Pack, who served them until he moved West. Rev. John Bragg also served the church as pastor. perhaps before Rev. Rufus Pack. After Rev. Rufus Pack, Rev. Lewis Kincaid was pastor, and served the church until his death. He preached his last sermon in the church that now stands at Jumping Branch.
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HISTORY OF SUMMERS COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA.
He complained of not being well, and after preaching Sunday morn- ing, he mounted his horse and rode to the home of Allen Mead- ows, on New River, and was not able to go home, and after a week or more of suffering he died. Rev. R. H. Stuart then became the pastor. His pastorate was short. He was succeeded by Rev. A. D. Bolton. In the spring of 1890, W. F. Hank was called to the pastorate, and served them until January, 1906, and to his cour- tesy I am indebted for information concerning this church.
A new, neat and comfortable frame church is now in use by this congregation. Mr. G. F. Meadows, the merchant, is one of the "pillars" of that church. He devotes much of his best energies for its progress and advancement, and occasionally fills the pulpit acceptably to the congregation, being a good minister, as well as a good merchant.
CHAPTER XVIII.
HOTELS.
At the beginning there were, of course, no hotels in the county, nor what may be termed boarding houses. A number of the citizens took out licenses for what was called private entertainment, as Hon. Gordon Jordan, of Pipestem, did, and entertained a great number of persons passing through to Princeton and Mercer County. The attorneys from Monroe and Greenbrier who attended the Mercer courts almost universally "stopped with" Mr. Jordan. Among these were U. S. Senator Frank Hereford, of Union; Col. Jas. W. Davis, of Lewisburg; Senator John E. Kenna, of Charles- ton, as well as, frequently, the judges. Mr. Jordan kept "open house" on his farm near Pipestem, a kind of half-way point. Rev. Rufus Pack, who lived on the Plumley farm, at the lower end of which was the old log house, the first court house ; James Keatley, at mouth of Indian ; John A. Richmond, at mouth of Lick Creek ; Dr. John G. Manser, at mouth of Greenbrier; Nick Deeds (C. B.). at Jumping Branch. Each kept houses of entertainment, for which they had license from the county court now corresponding to our modern hotels. Also C. E. Stevenson at the brick house near Jump- ing Branch.
Mrs. M. S. Gentry opened up the first boarding house in Hin- ton in the old Hinton log house, where Joe and Silas were born.
The first hotel was built by W. C. Ridgeway, one of the first set- tlers, who erected a three-story frame hotel on the site of the corner of Third Avenue and Front Street, now familiarly known as "Scrap- per's Corner," owned by Mrs. R. S. Tyree. Mr. Ridgeway was something of a notorious character, being a Democrat, without religious connections; warm and generous of heart; a liquor seller. whether license was granted or not, and indicted many times. It was, without confirmation, claimed that Mr. Ridgeway vended his own spirits in the basement of his hotel, and that he therein oper- ated a moonshine distillery. Several years after the erection of this building it was destroyed by fire, and in the basement were a lot
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HISTORY OF SUMMERS COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA.
of irons and pipes which may have been a distillery. If so, it was not discovered by the lynx-eyed officers of Uncle Sam. About the same time that this building was constructed the Wickham House was built on the opposite corner by M. A. Riffe, now owned by Col. J. A. Parker. This was owned and operated a number of years by M. A. Riffe, a son of D. M. Riffe, and was considered a fine hotel in those days. Perkins & Sprowel, about the same time, built the New River Hotel, lower down on Front Street, where the Perkins Hotel is now standing (now owned by H. Ewart), and which is operated and known as the Chesapeake Hotel, being a three-story brick, with an "L" on Fourth Avenue, having about forty rooms. The old Sprowel & Perkins building was a long two-story building. A. B. Perkins, one of the first settlers of Hinton, and now residing in the city of Parkersburg, was the builder of this old hotel, and, later, the Chesapeake on the same site and he also built the brick hotel at the ferry opposite the present old frame freight depot, about 1885.
Furgeson Brothers, early in the eighties, built a three-story brick hotel on Third Avenue, across the alley from the D. H. Peck property, where the "Hinton Leader" office is now operated. How- ever, one of the first, if not the very first, hotels in the city of Hinton was the building of J. M. Carden, now occupied as an apartment house, opposite the court house. This was known as the Hotel Hotchkiss, and was operated for some time by John M. Carden as proprietor. The only hotel ever operated in Upper Hinton or Avis was the old Sperry House, which was one of the first, and is the house long since abandoned as a hotel and used as a residence, owned by the Wm. James Sons Co., above the Silas Hinton home- stead at the Upper Ferry. This house was entirely surrounded by the flood of 1878, but little damage, however, was done to it.
The Brunswick Inn, a frame structure near the present passen- ger depot, was erected by H. Ewart. All of the original hotels were wooden houses. Wickham House (Riffe's), the Hinton Hotel (Ridgeway's), Central Hotel (Furgeson's), New River Hotel (Per- kin's), were all destroyed by fire at different times. The Hotel Miller was opened by James W. Miller about 1894, opposite the court house square, a two-story frame building, and is still operated by him; the Brunswick is still being operated by John Orndoff ; the Chesapeake Hotel by E. N. Faulconer, and the Riverside by Col. J. A. Parker. This is a frame three-story house built by Col. J. A. Parker some eight years ago.
The city of Hinton has never had an up-to-date, modern hotel.
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HISTORY OF SUMMERS COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA.
The Hinton Hotel Co. is now constructing a new building of brick and concreate opposite the corner of the court house square, with 100 rooms for guests, which is expected to be an all-around, up-to-date hostelry, and will be, if completed according to present plans, a monument to the enterprise of the city, and at this time no name has been selected for it. Messrs. Wm. Plumley, W. H. Warren, J. T. McCreery, H. Ewart, Jas. H. Miller and T. H. Lilly are the chief promoters of the enterprise. It will likely be named Hotel McCreery.
A new frame hotel of thirty-two rooms is now being built at Talcott by Messrs. Dunn & Willey, enterprising merchants of that town. There has been a two-story frame hotel operated at Lowell for some twenty years, built by A. C. Lowe, and now operated by the estate of C. W. Spotts, deceased. The Greenbrier Springs Com- pany, in 1905, erected a twenty-five-room, three-story frame hotel at Greenbrier Springs, known as the Greenbrier Springs Hotel.
HOTEL McCREERY.
The new hotel in Hinton has been completed since this chapter was begun. It has been named the McCreery Hotel, for Thomas J. McCreery, the president of the company which constructed it. It is six stories, with 100 rooms. The building cost $90.000. the lot, $12,500, and the furniture, $12,000. It is a modern hotel com- plete in all its equipments-baths, electric lights, electric elevators, baths in the rooms, a telephone system complete, by which a person in any room can talk to a person in New York, Chicago or San Francisco.
It is a monument to the town and to the enterprise of the men who built it, especially to T. J. McCreery, the president ; H. Ewart. secretary ; T. H. Lilly, J. H. Jordan, Jas. H. Miller and William H. Warren, the board of directors, upon whom the burdens fell; the greater part, however, on the building committee, composed of T. H. Lilly, J. T. McCreery and H. Ewart. Frank N. Milburn was the chief architect, and for making the plans received $1,000.00. The lot was purchased of A. E. and James H. Miller in May, 1905. The building was completed September 1, 1907, and thrown open to the public. A. E. Kelly, of Sparta, Kentucky, was elected man- ager. The building is 90 x 100 feet, fronting on Second Avenue and Ballangee Street, opposite the court house park.
Among the enterprising citizen stockholders, and in addition to those named, are Frank Puckett, C. B. Mahon, R. R. Flanagan,
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HISTORY OF SUMMERS COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA.
M. M. Meador, J. C. James, W. L. Fredeking, John Haynes, Wm. Plumley, Jr., Lee Walker, Mayor Litsinger, R. L. Jones, Wm. H. Sawyers, J. Donald Humphries, M. M. Meador and J. B. Douglas. There were some others who entered into the enterprise, but their nerve gave way, and they undertook to throw down and defeat the enterprise for selfish motives, who deserve no glory or credit.
The building is supplied with heat by steam. The dining-room is on the second floor. The street floor contains the lobby and five store or business rooms. It is the greatest and costliest structure constructed to this time in the county, and, as are all the other enterprises of Hinton, is due to the enterprise of Hinton citizens, and was built with their money.
CHAPTER XIX.
POLITICAL.
The county was created seven years after the close of the Civil War, generally known as the Rebellion in history. The larger part of the people in the territory of the county were sympathizers with the Southern cause, with a respectable minority, however, who favored the Union cause. A large number and majority were fa- vorable to the maintenance of the American Union, and opposed secession, but after their State had adopted that course, they con- sidered their loyalty to their State first, and followed the Confed- erate flag. The larger number of those who took part as soldiers volunteered or were drafted into the Confederate Army. Those opposed to dissolution of the Union were known as Union men, and those who sustained its action in seceding, believing in the doctrine of State rights under the Federal Constitution, and that that instrument gave each State the authority to secede at its pleasure, were called Confederates. There was another class of Union men who adopted the other course, and adhered to the Government of the United States, and remained loyal to that government during the four years of hostilities. This class was in a considerable minority in the territory of this county, as the great majority had either allied themselves as active participants or as sympathizers with the Con- federate cause, so that directly after the war the party known as the Confederate Conservative Party sprang up, which soon after- wards evolved into the Democratic party, while the Northern, or Union, or Federal sympathizers generally went to the Republican party. The anti-war party affiliations being generally severed. the life of the Whig party had become extinct. Many former Whigs became Democrats, and many former Democrats became Republicans, then a comparatively new party which had come into power in 1861, on the election of Abraham Lincoln as President. Generally, at that time, the ex-Confederate soldiers allied themselves with the Conservative or Democratic party, as then called, although there were some loyal Confederate soldiers who believed in the
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HISTORY OF SUMMERS COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA.
Republican doctrine of the tariff, and voted for Republican policies from the beginning.
The party prejudices from the suspension of hostilities and at the time of the formation of Summers County, were rank and bitter, and party lines in national affairs and State politics closely drawn, but in local affairs the strictest partisanship was not exhibited. Party conventions and nominations were not customary in those days. except for political offices, nor even for members of the House of Delegates for a number of years after the formation of the county, but for State Senate and the higher offices conventions were op- erative.
The Democratic party was largely in the ascendency in the county at the date and after its formation; or. rather. after the adoption of the "Flick amendment" to the Constitution of the State had been accepted. The colored vote was then and has always been since, entirely and solidly Republican : the white vote divided, with a very considerable preponderance to the Democratic side. The colored vote at the date of the formation of the county was small, there having been few slaves within its borders, and did not exceed 100 in number. Dr. Thomas Fowler. of "Wildwood." at the mouth of Indian Creek ; William Crump. of Crump's Bottom : the Gwinns and the Grahams and Anderson Pack were the only slave owners, and they generally held but few.
John Miller, Sr .. the grandfather of the writer, had owned three slaves, one man and two women, but they had been liberated before his death and before the war and set free, and provision made for their comfortable maintenance.
The first political nomination or convention of which we are able to learn within the county was a mass-meeting called and held in the grove on the hill in what is now within the confines of the city of Avis, at the place where Dwight James now resides, at the new high school, and out of this meeting grew dissatisfaction and fac- tional differences, which continued and existed for a generation or longer. This mass-meeting was called for the purpose of nominat- ing a candidate for delegate to the House of Delegates, and one hour was fixed in the call, but on account of another hour being more convenient, or certain persons desiring to be "too soon" for the other, the meeting was called to order and held at a different hour. The vote was taken by each voter writing the name of his choice on a slip of paper, and a hat passed around for the reception of the votes. Hon. Wm. Haynes, the nominee, was made the can- didate for the party at this election, which was to be held in the
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HISTORY OF SUMMERS COUNTY, WEST VIRGINIA.
year 1874, it being a Democratic mass-meeting to nominte a candi- date for the Legislature. Hon. Elbert Fowler, then a young attor- ney, son of Dr. Thomas Fowler, whose career and the unfortunate termination of whose life is hereafter detailed fully, was voted for, but he was not a candidate, and it was without his consent.
Great dissatisfaction resulted from this meeting, it being claimed that the voting was unfair ; that every person was allowed to vote as often as they pieased, etc., while, on the other hand, it was claimed to have been entirely fair. The dissatisfied element organ- ized an opposition, led by Mr. Fowler, Dr. Benj. P. Gooch, then a young physician and the first man who settled in the town of Hin- ton ; E. C. Stevenson and others. The Hon Sylvester Upton de- clared himself an independent candidate. No complaints were made against Mr. Haynes as a man or against his personal character, but the fight was against the manner of his candidacy. Mr. Upton was a Republican, a Union man, and had been a delegate to the Legis- lature from Mercer County, and was such member at the passage of the act creating the county, and voted for it. He was a man of character, conservative, broad-minded and popular. Mr. Haynes was one of the most eminent, cultured and distinguished citizens of the county, and was afterwards elected to the State Senate and Constitutional Convention held in 1872.
An incident is recalled of Mr. Upton's legislative career. When a party measure was being pressed, a "whip" who was looking after Delegate Upton, said to him when he had been unsuccessful in coaching him, and desiring to appeal to his party prejudices: "Sir, are you not a Republican? If so, you will support this meas- ure," to which Mr. Upton quietly replied, "Yes, sir. I am a Repub- lican, but I was sent here to represent the interests of all my people. and I shall vote as my judgment dictates and as I deem it to their interests."
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