USA > West Virginia > History of West Virginia > Part 35
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HARRISON.
Harrison was formed from Monongalia by an act of Assembly passed May, 1784, which provided that : " From and after the 20th day of July next the county of Monongalia shall be divided into two distinct coun- ties by a line beginning on the Maryland line at the Fork Ford on the land of John Goff ; thence down the said creek to Tygart's Valley Fork of the Mononga- hela river ; thence down the same to the mouth of the West Fork river ; thence up the same to the mouth of Bingamon's creek ; thence up said creek to the line of Ohio county ; and that part of the said county lying south of the said line shall be called and known by the name of Harrison."
BENJAMIN HARRISON, in honor of whom the county was named, was a native of Charles City county, Vir- ginia, one of the signers of the Declaration of Inde- pendence, a Governor of Virginia from 1781 to 1784, and the father of General W. H. Harrison, President of the United States.
The act creating the county provided that the first court should be held at the house of George Jackson, at Bush's Fort, on Buchannon river.
The early settlers suffered severely during the con- tinuance of the French and Indian wars. To tell the story would be to write a volume. Around Nutter's Fort, where Clarksburgh now stands, and West's Fort, near the present site of the village of Jane Lew, were enacted many of the scenes in the drama of savage warfare. From the many we select the following :-
The last appearance of the Indians on the waters of the West Fork in the year 1778, was at the house of
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Samuel Cottrail, near the present town of Clarksburgh. " During the night considerable fear was excited both at Cottrail's and at Sotha Hickman's, on the opposite side of Elk creek, by the continued barking of the dogs, that Indians were lurking near, and in consequence of this apprehension, Cottrail, on going to bed, secured well the doors and directed that no one should stir out in the morning until it was ascertained that there was no danger threatening. Awhile before day, Cottrail being fast asleep, Moses Coleman, who lived with him, got up, shelled some corn, and giving a few ears to Cottrail's nephew with direction to feed the pigs around the yard, went to the hand-mill in an out-house and began to grind some of the corn. The little boy being squatted down shelling the corn, found himself sud- denly drawn on his back and an Indian standing over him, ordering him to lie there. The savage then turned toward the house where Coleman was, fired, and as Coleman fell, ran up to scalp him. Thinking this a favorable time for him to reach the dwelling house, the little boy sprang to his feet, and running to the door, it was opened, and he admitted. Scarcely was it closed after him when one of the Indians with his tomahawk attempted to break it open. Cottrail fired through the door at him and he went off, followed by his companions, several in number, who had been concealed near the house."
Indians on Hacker's Creek .- On the 5th of Decem- ber, 1787, a party of Indians and one white man- Leonard Schoolcraft-came into the settlement on Hacker's creek, and meeting with a daughter of Jesse Hughes, took her prisoner. Passing on, they came upon E. West, Sen., carrying some fodder to the
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stable, and taking him likewise captive, carried him to where Hughes' daughter had been left in charge of some of the party. Here the old gentleman fell upon his knees and expressed a fervent desire that they would not deal harshly with him. His petition was answered by a stroke of the tomahawk and he fell dead.
They then went to the house of Edmund West, where were Mrs. West and her sister, a girl of eleven years, a daughter of John Hacker, and a lad of twelve, a brother of West. Forcing open the door, School- craft and two of the savages entered and one of them immediately tomahawked Mrs. West. The boy was taking some corn from under the bed. He was drawn out by the heels and the tomahawk sunk twice in his forehead directly above each eye. The girl was stand- ing behind the door. One of the savages approached and aimed a blow at her. She tried to evade it, but it struck on the side of the head, though not with suffi- cient force to knock her down. She fell, however, and lay as if killed. Thinking their work of death accom- plished here, they took from a press some milk, butter and bread, placed it on a table and deliberately sat down to eat-the little girl observing all that passed in silence. When they had satisfied their hunger they arose, scalped the woman and boy, plundered the house-even emptying the feathers to carry off the ticking-and departed, dragging the little girl by the hair forty or fifty yards from the house ; they then threw her over the fence and scalped her ; but as she evinced symptoms of life, Schoolcraft said, " that is not enough," then one of the savages thrust a knife into her side, and they left her. Fortunately, the point of
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the knife came in contact with a rib and did not injure her much.
Old Mrs. West and her two daughters who were alone when the old man was taken, became uneasy that he did not return ; and fearing that he had fallen into the hands of the savages, they left the house and went to Alexander West's, who was then on a hunting expedition with his brother Edmund. They told of the absence of old Mr. West and their fears as to his fate ; and as there was no man there, they went over to Jesse Hughes, who was himself uneasy that his daughter did not come home. Upon hearing that West, too, was missing, he did not doubt that both had fallen into the hands of the savages; and knowing that Edmund West was absent from home, he deemed it advisable to apprise his wife of danger and remove her to his house. For this purpose, and accompanied by Mrs. West's two daughters, he went. On entering the door the tale of destruction was soon told. Mrs. West and the lad lay weltering in their blood, but not yet dead. The sight overpowered the girls, and Hughes had to carry them off. Seeing that the savages had just left, and aware of the danger that would attend any attempt to move out and give the alarm that night, Hughes guarded his own house until day, when he spread the sorrowful intelligence, and a company was collected to ascertain the extent of the mischief and try to find those who were missing.
Clarksburgh was established by legislative enact- ment in October, 1785, when the following trustees were appointed : William Haymond, Nicholas Car- penter, John Myers, John M'Ally and. John Davisson. December 30, 1809, the following additional trustees
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were appointed : Benjamin Wilson, Jr., James Pindall, John G. Jackson, Jacob Stealy, Daniel Morris, Alexan- der F. Lanham and Allison Clarke. At the May term of the county court, 1810, commissioners were ap- pointed to contract for the building of a court house on a lot given by Benjamin Wilson, Jr., for that pur- pose, in the town of Clarksburgh. Three commis- sioners contracted with Allison Clarke, John Smith and Daniel Morris, to erect the building at a cost of $3700, but after considerable work had been performed and $1200 received for the same, a doubt arose as to the legality of removing the seat of justice. To set the matter at rest, the Assembly, January 18, 1811, enacted that the removal should be legal whenever Benjamin Wilson should convey by deed in fee simple the lot to the justices of Harrison county. The town was incorporated March 15, 1849.
New Salem was made a town by legislative enact- ment December 19, 1794, on lands of Samuel Fitz Randolph. John Patterson, John Davis, Samuel Lip- pincott, James Davis, Zebulon Maxon, Benjamin Thorp, Thomas Clayton, William Davis, Jacob Davis, George Jackson and John Haymond were appointed trustees thereof.
Bridgeport was established a town by act of Assem- bly passed January 15, 1816, on lands of Joseph John- son at Simpson's creek bridge, with Benjamin Coplin, Mathias Winters, Peter Link, John Davisson, David Coplin, Jedediah Waldo and Joseph Johnson, trustees.
Shinnston became a town by act of February 2, ISIS, on lands of Asa and Levi Shinn, with John Righter, David Warmsley, Samuel Shinn, John D. Lucas, Benja- min Wood, Joseph Wilson and Jeremiah Roby, trustees. 34
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JESSE HUGHES .- The vicinity of Clarksburgh was long the home of Jesse Hughes, the distinguished Indian scout and border ranger. He was bred from infancy in the hotbed of Indian warfare, and came to what is now Harrison county as early as 1770, where for many years he was conspicuous in the Indian wars. Of his ancestry and early life but little is known, but after the storm of war had passed away, he lived many years to enjoy that peace and quiet which the valor and heroism of himself and compatriots had won. He died about the year 1830, at the residence of his son-in-law, George Hanshaw, at Ravenswood, in Jackson county, and is buried at that place. His name is commemo- rated in that of Hughes river, the principal northern tributary of the Little Kanawha. Early in life he married Grace Tanner, by whom he had the following issue : Jesse, Jr. ; William ; Rachael, who married Wil- liam Cottrell ; Martha, who married Jacob Bonnett ; Sudna, who married Elijah Runner; Elizabeth, who married James Stanley ; Massie, who married Uriah Gandy ; Nancy, who married George Hanshaw ; and Lucinda, who married Uriah Sayre. Massie was the last surviving member of the family. She died in Roane county in 1884, aged ninety-eight years ; she was the grandmother of Hon. Frederick Gandy, of that county.
WILLIAM LOWTHER .- Henry, George and William were the sons of Henry Low, and were English miners; for their superior skill and meritorious service " ther" was added to their name by royal edict. William had a son Robert, who with his wife, Aquilla Rees Lowther, emigrated to America in 1740, and came to the Hacker creek settlement in 1767, accompanied by their son
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William, the subject of this sketch, who was born in 1742. The latter married Sudna Hughes, sister of Elias, Jesse, Thomas and Job, of Indian war fame, and settled on Simpson's creek in 1772. Many of their descendants are now living in Clarksburgh and the surrounding country.
William Lowther became distinguished as a skillfu! and courageous frontiersman, and for his unselfish de- votion to the good of the colonists. The population of these frontier settlements increased so rapidly that the supply of provisions became insufficient, and the year 1773 was called, in the early traditions of the sec- tion, " the starving year." Such were the exertions of William Lowther to mitigate the sufferings of the people, and so great was his success that his name is transmitted to their descendants hallowed by their blessings. During the war of 1774, and subsequently, he was the most active and efficient defender of the settlements in that vicinity, against the savage foe, and many a successful expedi- tion against them was commanded by him. He was one of the first justices of the peace in Harrison county, also the first sheriff of Harrison and Wood counties, and a delegate to the General Assembly of the State. He also attained all the subordinate ranks in the mili- tary service until promoted to that of colonel, and by his unassuming good qualities endeared himself to all with whom he became associated. He died October 28, 1814.
JOSEPH JOHNSON, the only governor of Virginia ever chosen from a county west of the Alleghenies, lived and died near Bridgeport, in this county. He was born in Orange county, New York, December 19, 1785, his parents being Joseph and Abigail Johnson, the father
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a distinguished soldier from that State during the Revo- lution. When Joseph was five years of age his father died and the family removed to New Jersey, where they resided until 1801, when a second removal was made, this to Harrison county, Virginia. Here Joseph grew to manhood, acquiring by his own exertions that mental culture which afterward rendered him an exemplification of the hackneyed term " self-made." During the War of 1812, he commanded the Harrison Riflemen, doing service on the Atlantic seaboard. In 1818, he was elected a member of the General Assembly, defeating John Prunty, who was a candidate for reelection. In 1823, he was elected to Congress and served two terms, having defeated the distinguished Philip Doddridge in both contests. In 1832, he was again elected a member of the same body, to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death of Philip Doddridge, and by successive reelection served until 1841, when he declined a reelection and supported Samuel L. Hays, who was, however, defeated by George W. Summers. In 1845, Mr. Johnson was again a candidate and was elected, defeating Gideon D. Camden. The expiration of this term ended, at his
own request, his Congressional career. The people in 1847, elected him a member of the Assembly, and in 1850, he was chosen a member of the Constitutional Convention. While serving in that body he was elected Governor of Virginia for the term of one year, by the General Assembly, and upon the adoption of the new Constitution, by which that office was made elective by the people, he was chosen for the term of four years. In 1855, he retired to private life, and continued to reside in Harrison county until his death, February 27, 1877, at the age of ninety-two years.
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THOMAS JONATHAN JACKSON, popularly known as !
" Stonewall," was a native of Harrison county, having been born in Clarksburgh, January 21, 1824. His great-grandfather, a native of England, early in life found a home in the wilds of Virginia, and his grand- father, Edward Jackson, was a prominent surveyor in the Monongalia Valley. Jonathan, son of the last, adopted the legal profession, and located at Clarks- burgh, soon after which he married Julia, a daughter of Thomas Neal, of Wood county. Four children-two sons and two daughters-were the issue of this mar- riage, the youngest being Thomas J., the subject of this sketch. His father died in 1827 and his mother in 1831 ; thus he was an orphan at the age of seven years. He now found a welcome home in the family of his uncle, Cummins Jackson, who resided on a farm eighteen miles distant from Clarksburgh, and here remained until he was eighteen years of age, in the meantime performing the usual labor of the farm and attending the schools of the neighborhood. At the age of sixteen he served as constable of Lewis county. He was ambitious, with an insatiable thirst for knowl- edge, and in 1842, learning of a vacancy in the United States Military Academy at West Point, he determined to make application for the appointment. His friends cordially supported him, and dressed in a suit of homespun, made his way to Washington, where he at once appeared before the Secretary of War, Hon. John C. Spencer, who was so much pleased with his appearance, that he ordered a warrant for his appointment to be immediately made out. Young Jackson entered the Academy July 1, 1842, and at the expiration of four years, was graduated with the rank
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of brevet second lieutenant, standing seventeenth in a class of fifty-nine members. Among his classmates were Generals George B. McClellan, John G. Foster, Jesse L. Reno, D. N. Couch, Truman Semour, M. D. L. Simpson, S. D. Sturgiss, George Stoneman, Innis N. Palmer, Alfred Gibbs, George H. Gordon, Freder- ick Myers, Joseph N. G. Whistler, and Nelson H. Davis, of the United States Army, and Generals John A. Brown, John Adams, Darbney H. Maury, D. R. Jones, Cadmus M. Wilcox, Samuel B. Maxey, and George E. Pickett, of the Confederate Army. The Mexican War was in progress, and Lieutenant Jackson was at once ordered to join the First Regiment of Artillery, then at New Orleans. Complying, he entered Mexico with the army of General Taylor, under whom he served until transferred to the com- mand of General Scott. His military career was one of distinction and rapid promotion. He was engaged in the siege of Vera Cruz, and in the battles of Cerro Gordo, La Hoya, Oka Laka, Contreras, Cherubusco, Molino del Rey, the storming of Chapultepec, and the capture of Mexico. In the conquered city, he received the rank of Major. Returning home with the army, he served in Fort Columbus, New York, in 1848, in Fort Hamilton, New York, in 1849, and was engaged in the Seminole War in Florida, in 1851. February 29, 1851, he resigned his commission and returned to Virginia, where he was elected Professor of Natural and Experimental Philosophy and Instructor of Artillery Tactics in the Virginia Military Institute at Lexington, which position he filled until the beginning of the Civil War. Immediately upon the secession of Virginia, Governor Letcher issued to Jackson a colonel's com-
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mission, and he took command of a small body of troops in the vicinity of Harper's Ferry. We can here make but a brief recapitulation of his subsequent career. Promoted to the rank of Brigadier General, June 17, 1861, he, on the 2d of July, checked for a time the advance of General Patterson at Falling Waters. He bore an important part in the battle of Bull Run, where, in the language of General Barnard E. Bee, of South Carolina, " he stood like a stone wall." October 7, he was commissioned a Major-General, and in January, 1862, marched into western Virginia, strik- ing Bath and Romney. March 23, he engaged Gen- . eral Shields at Kernstown, and early in May, forced Banks to abandon Front Royal. Hastening his com- mand to Richmond, he threw it against McClellan's rear and saved the fortunes of the Confederate arms at Gaines' Mills. His achievements of the next few days won for him the distinction of one of the great commanders in the world's history. He was engaged in the invasion of Maryland, and September 15, cap- tured Harper's Ferry with more than 11,000 prisoners, then joined Lee in time to do the severest fighting at Antietam. October 11, 1862, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-General, and witnessed the battle of Fredericksburg in December. May the 2d, 1863, he succeeded in turning Hooker's flank at Chancellors- ville, but in the darkness of the evening, as he was returning to the rear with his staff, he was fired upon by mistake by his own men and received a wound from the effects of which he died May 10, 1863. The last hours of the distinguished chieftain have been vari- ously described. Within a few hours of his death he was informed by the surgeon that there was no hope ;
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that he was dying ; he answered, " Very good; it is all right." It was Sunday, and a long cherished wish was now to be gratified. In life he had often been heard to express the hope that he might die on the Sabbath day. So it was to be. A few moments before he died, he cried out in delirium, " Order A. P. Hill to prepare for action ; pass the infantry to the front rapidly ; tell Major Hawks-" The sentence was never completed. A smile spread over the pale face, and he whispered, " Let us cross over the river and rest under the shade of the trees." With these beautiful and typical words trembling upon his lips, the Christian soldier sank to eternal rest. His remains repose in the cemetery at Lexington, Virginia.
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GEN. THOMAS J. JACKSON.
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HARDY.
The county of Hardy was formed from Hampshire by act of October, 1785, which declared " That from and after the first day of February next, the county of Hampshire shall be divided into two distinct counties by a line beginning at the North Branch of the Potomac, opposite to the mouth of Savage river, and running thence in a direct course so as to strike the upper end of the plantation known by the name of Myre's Mill, on New creek ; thence in a direct course to Lewis' Mill, on Patterson's creek; thence in a direct course to the highest part of the mountain known by the name of High Knob; thence in a direct course to the gap of the Short Mountain, where the North river runs through the same; thence along the road leading to the upper end of Henry Fry's Plantation on Capon, and along the said road to the top of North Mountain to the dividing line between the counties of Shen- andoah and Hampshire; and that all that part of the said county lying south of the said line shall be called and known by the name of Hardy ; and the residue of the said county shall retain the name of Hampshire."
Another section of the act provided that the first court for the new county should be held at the house of William Bullitt, and that the justices composing it should then select a site for the county seat.
SAMUEL HARDY, in honor of whom the county was named, was long a resident of Isle of Wight county, Virginia. He was one of the early members of Con- gress from that State, and as such, on behalf of Virginia, he was one of the number who signed the Deed of
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Cession which transferred the Northwest Territory to the General Government.
The early settlers of this county were among those who suffered much during the long period of Indian hostilities. Many heroic deeds in defence of pioneer homes deserve a lasting record.
The Battle of the Trough .- This was one of the most sanguinary conflicts which took place between the pioneers of western Virginia and the savages aided and abetted by the French. It occurred in the spring of 1756, just after Braddock's defeat had laid the frontier open to Indian incursion. The following ac- count is given by Dr. Charles A. Turley of Fort Pleasant.
" The memorable battle of the Trough was preceded by the following circumstances. On the day previous two Indian strollers, from a large party of sixty or seventy warriors, under the well-known and ferocious chief, Kill-buck, made an attack on the dwelling of a Mrs. Blake, on the South fork of the South Branch of the Potomac, about fifteen miles above Moorefield, and took Mrs. Blake and a Mrs. Neff prisoners. The former not being able to travel was tomahawked and scalped, and the latter brought down to the vicinity of Town Fort, about one and a half miles below Moore- field. There one of the Indians, under the pretence of hunting, retired, and the other laid himself down and pretended to fall asleep, with a view, as was believed, to let Mrs. Neff escape to the fort and give the alarm. Everything turned out agreeably to their expectations; for as soon as she reached the fort and gave the circumstances of her escape, eighteen men from that and Buttermilk fort, five miles above, went in pursuit.
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They were men notorious for their valor, and who had been well tried on many such occasions.
"As soon as they came to the place indicated by Mrs. Neff, they found a plain trace left by the Indian, by occasionally breaking a bush. John Harneas, who was well acquainted with the mode of warfare of the Indians, pronounced that the hunter Indian had not returned to his comrade, or that they were in great force somewhere near and in ambush. They, how- ever, pursued the trace without discovering any sign of a larger party, until they arrived between two mountains, forming what from its resemblance is called the Trough. . Here, directly above a spring about two hundred paces from the river, which at that time was filled to an impassable stage by a heavy fall of rain, these grim monsters of blood were encamped to the number above stated. The western face of the ridge was very precipitous and rough, and on the north of the spring was a deep ravine cutting directly up into the ridge above. Our little band of heroes, nothing daunted by the superior number of the enemy, dis- mounted unobserved and prepared for battle, leaving their horses on the ridge. But by one of those unfore- seen accidents which often thwart the seemingly best planned enterprises, a small dog which had followed them just at this juncture started a rabbit, and went yelping down the ridge, giving the Indians timely notice of their approach. They immediately flew to arms, and filling up the ravine before described, passed directly in the rear of our little band, placing them in the very situation in which they had hoped to find their enemies, between the mountain and the swollen river. Now came the 'tug of war,' and both parties rushed
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to the onset, dealing death and slaughter at every fire. After an hour or two of hard fighting, during which each of our little band had numbered his man, and more than half their number had fallen to rise no more, those that remained were compelled to retreat, which could only be effected by swimming the river. Some who had been wounded not being able to do this, de- termined to sell their lives as dearly as possible ; and deliberately loading their rifles and placing themselves behind some cover on the river bank, dealt certain death to the first adversary who made his appearance, and then calmly yielded to the tomahawk.
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