USA > West Virginia > Men of West Virginia Volume I > Part 29
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On November 8, 1841, Mr. Atkin- son was married to Melissa G. Haigh, who was born in Steubenville, Ohio, a daughter of Simeon and Mary (New- ton) Haigh, natives of England and early settlers in Virginia. Mr. Haigh made the first cards that came in use in a carding machine west of the Alle- ghany Mountains. No children were
born to Mr. and Mrs. Atkinson, but they have acted the part of parents to a number who fondly call where they live,-home. For more than fifty years he has been an elder in the Presbyterian Church, of which his wife has been a member.
The author of this sketch is sorry to add that Mrs. Atkinson departed this life March 14, 1903, in her 85th year, mourned by hundreds who had grad- tiated from her primary class in the Sabbath-school. She was a true friend, a sincere Christian, a loving wife, and her own works praise her in the gates.
REV. JAMES W. SMITH.
REV. JAMES W. SMITH, pastor of the Missionary Baptist Church of Clay, Clay County, and of Summer-
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ville, Nicholas County, West Virginia, is a very prominent and much esteemed citizen. Mr. Smith was born May 4, 1854. in Kanawha, what is now Roane County, West Virginia, then included in Kanawha County, Virginia, on a farm near Looneyville. He is a son of Rev. Jonathan and Lydia (Stump) Smith.
Rev. Jonathan Smith is of English ancestry, and was born in Barbour County, Virginia, now West Virginia, August 8, 1829. His education was obtained in the common schools. About the time he attained his major- ity, he entered upon his ministerial work in the Baptist Church. His many charges have extended through Virginia, Pennsylvania and West Vir- ginia, and he now resides at Spencer, Roane County, West Virginia. Al- though retired from active work, the venerable divine is still occasionally heard in the pulpit. He married Lydia Stump, a daughter of George Stump, who was of German ancestry, and a family of eight children were born to this union,-six sons and two daugh- ters.
Rev. James W. Smith was the sec- ond member of his parents' family. His literary education was concluded at the State Normal School at Glenville,
West Virginia. His inclinations led him to prepare for the ministry, and while he followed farming in Roane County he prepared himself in theology and was admitted to the ministry of the Baptist Church in 1890. Mr. Smith continued in his first charge, at Bar- ren Creek, for five years, and remained three years at Tariff, also in Roane County. For the past four years he has been in charge of the church at Clay and during this time has built up the church, and gained the esteem of the whole community.
In 1875 Mr. Smith was united in marriage with Mary C. Godbey, who was born January 22, 1855, and is a daughter of William J. and Margaret H. (Trout) Godbey, of Roane County. Seven children have been born to this marriage, the five survivors being : Jo- seph H., born March 31, 1876; Maggie M., born March 7, 1878; William H., born March 18, 1880: Homer C., born October 7, 1881; and Olie M., born May 8, 1884. Ernie G., born August 7, 1886, died October 17, 1887; and the youngest son died in infancy.
Mr. Smith is not only an earnest and popular preacher and attentive pas- tor, but he is a sincere supporter of all moral movements and has been very prominent in the cause of temperance.
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In 1902 he was the candidate at the polls of the Prohibition party for a seat in the West Virginia House of Dele- gates.
RICHARD M. McGUFFIN, M. D.
RICHARD M. McGUFFIN, M. D., one of the most prominent physi- cians and surgeons in Mercer County, extremely well known in the vicinity surrounding Bramwell, and also a lead- ing coal magnate of West Virginia, was born September 24, 1847, in Ripley, Jackson County, Virginia, now West Virginia. He is a son of the late Rob- ert and Margaret ( McCowan) McGuf- fin, who removed from Ripley when their son was but a few years old, and purchased a place eight miles above Point Pleasant. in the district known as Pleasant Flats.
Robert McGuffin was a native of Bath County, Virginia, near the Warm Spring ; he married a daughter of John McCowan, who came from Pennsyl- vania to Jackson County and erected and operated a saw and gristmill and carding machinery and was the first sheriff of Jackson County, being also a magistrate, Mr. McCowan died at the age of 98 years. Mrs. McGuffin died at the age of 83 years, but the father of our subject died in comparative youth, at the age of 35, in 1854. At that time he was serving as sheriff of Jackson County. He was the last colonel of militia in Bath County, Virginia. Dr. McGuffin has two brothers, one sister and two half-sisters : J. A., of Sewell, Fayette County, West Virginia, who is manager of the Longdale Coal & Iron Company, president of the Dunloop Coal & Coke Company, the Harvey Coal & Coke Company, and the Pru- dence Coal & Coke Company, being general manager of each; Capt. J. B., formerly a captain in the National Guards, who is manager of the Dunloop Coal & Coke Company in Fayette Coun- ty ; Elizabeth, who is the wife of W. H. Hogg, a farmer living within four miles of Point Pleasant; Fannie, who is the wife of Morgan Long, and lives on the Ohio River, four miles below West Columbia ; and Lucy, who is the wife of
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James Brown, a resident of Eighteen Mile Creek, on the Kanawha River.
Dr. McGuffin attended the public schools until the age of 14 years when he entered Cheshire Academy, in Ohio, conducted by Profs. W. O. Atkinson and D. P. Guthrie. Later he read medi- cine under Dr. Frank Campbell at Point Pleasant, and became a student in the medical department of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, where he was graduated as Doctor of Medi- cine in 1872. Immediately after leav- ing college, he was elected resident phy- sician of the Presbyterian Hospital, at Philadelphia, and remained there one year and then located at Quincy, Ken- tucky, for a like period. He next prac- ticed at the furnaces at Sampsonville, Ohio, where he remained until the fur- naces closed down.
About this time, the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway had been completed to the Ohio River, and the development of the New River coal fields became very active, and in a short time no less than seven coal and coke companies were in successful operation. Dr. McGuffin was employed as resident physician for these plants and continued as such for 10 years. The practice required much physical exertion and fatigue, the coun- try being destitute of roads, and his duties necessitated his following on
foot the line of railway for miles, often at night, and in most inclement weather. About this time the Norfolk & Western Railway had completed its lines into the great Flat-Top coal field and Dr. Mc- Guffin was solicitated by his friend, John Cooper, to take charge of the plants that were being opened in the Flat-Top field. Disposing of his prac- tice in the New River field, the Doctor removed to the Flat-Top region and was at once employed as resident physician for seven plants, and located with his family at Bramwell in 1885. His prac- tice increased as the mining force be- came larger and he has found it neces- sary to associate with him several other physicians to attend the demands of the growing population resulting from the development of the coal and coke in- dustry, these being: Dr. J. M. Shep- herds, Coopers, West Virginia; Dr. D. P. Crockett, Goodwill, West Virginia ; Dr. John W. English, Norfolk, West Virginia; Dr. George T. Honaker, Hallsville, West Virginia ; Dr. R. Coale Price, Lick Branch, West Virginia; Dr. Ed. T. Cecil, Bramwell, West Vir- ginia; Dr. W. T. Ferguson, Marytown, West Virginia; Dr. F. L. Round, Big Sandy, West Virginia; and Dr. W. T. Clutwood.
Dr. McGuffin is extensively inter- ested in the coal business, the compan-
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ies including the leading ones of West Virginia and Kentucky, viz .: Cletus Coal & Coke Company, of Davy, West Virginia; the Tug River Coal & Coke Company, on the line of the Norfolk & Western in McDowell County; the Algona Coal & Coke Company in Mc- Dowell County ; the new operations on the line of the Norfolk & Western to ship coal from Pike County, Kentucky ; and the Dunloop, the Harvey and the Prudence coal and coke comjanies, lo- cated on Loop Creek, along the Chesa- peake & Ohio Railway. Dr. McGuffin has charge of the practice, as physician and surgeon, of 21 collieries along the Norfolk & Western Railway, of nine in the Flat-Top field and of 12 in the Lower or Davy field. He is also one of the local surgeons for the Norfolk & Western under Joseph A. Gale, M. D., chief surgeon of the Norfolk & West- ern Railway.
Dr. McGuffin married Lucy A. El- liott, of Kentucky, who is a daughter of Capt. William and Nancy ( Bruce) Elliott, and a niece of the late Judge Bruce of Louisville, Kentucky. Cap- tain Elliott owned valuable property in Lewis county, Kentucky, six miles be- low Portsmouth, Ohio, and was also owner and commander of several large river vessels. He died in 1879, aged 62 years, his widow surviving until
1898, dying at the age of 70 years. Dr. and Mrs. McGuffin have one daughter, Alma Margaret, who recently married Dr. E. T. Cecil of Catlettsburg, Ken- tucky. The Doctor's fine home in Bramwell is of modern structure and equipment and has a beautiful situa- tion. In politics he is a Republican. He is very prominent in Masonic cir- cles, having attained the 33rd degree. He has belonged to the order for 30 years, is past high priest of Bramwell Chapter, R. A. M., and has taken the degrees of the Scottish Rite. He is past noble grand in the Odd Fellows; is past district deputy chancellor com- mander in the Knights of Pythias; and belongs also to the Red Men, Elks and Foresters. Dr. McGuffin is also a mem- ber of the Ohio Valley Medical Asso- ciation, and the International Associa- tion of Railway Surgeons. Mrs. Mc- Guffin is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.
JOSEPH SPEIDEL, who has been a resident of the city of Wheeling for the past fifty years, is president of the Joseph Speidel Grocery Company. He established this great business con- cern January 1, 1863, and it was in- corporated January 1, 1892, with the following officers : Joseph Speidel, pres-
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ident; Archie T. Hupp, vice-president ; Allen Brock, secretary and treasurer ; and Hal Speidel, assistant secre- tary. The main office of the com- pany is at Wheeling, but it con- ducts a branch house at Grafton, West Virginia. The building occu- pied by the plant was erected on Main street, near 14th street, in the wholesale district of the city, in 1884, and is five stories high, with a floor space of 60,- 000 square feet. The front part of the lower floor is utilized for office purposes, and the rooms are well appointed for the handling of an immense business. The branch house of the company, lo- cated at Grafton, contains a floor space of 40,000 square feet, making a total of 100,000 square feet of floor space in its two establishments. It employs about 100 people, and the country cov- ered by the traveling representatives includes Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsyl- vania and Maryland.
Mr. Speidel was born at Wellsburg, Virginia, now West Virginia, in 1843, and is a son of Benedict Speidel, who was well known in the early days as a grocer of Wheeling, and died in 1875, at the age of 61 years. He married, at New Lisbon, Miss Fisher, who came to this country from Germany in 1831, and became a resident of Wheeling. They reared several children, but Jo-
seph Speidel is the only one actively en- gaged in business in Wheeling at the present time.
Joseph Speidel came to Wheeling with his parents in 1850, and in 1855 his business career began as a clerk in his father's retail store in this city. He began wholesaling in 1863, the firm be- ing Speidel & Inderrieden, and has built up his present business, serving actively as manager until recent years, when he gradually allowed the more onerous du- ties to fall upon younger shoulders. His life work is represented in the mag- nificent business which his untiring en- ergy has so largely built up. He is a director and stockholder in the Dollar Savings Bank, and is interested in vari- ous other important business enter- prises.
Mr. Speidel was united in marriage, at Wheeling, with Lydia H. Wheat, a member of a prominent family of Wheeling, and they have four children, namely: Hal, who is assistant secre- tary of the Joseph Speidel Grocery Company; Joseph, Jr., manager of its Grafton branch; Jesse W., a salesman in the Wheeling house of the company ; and Eliza, who is at home. Mr. Speidel has a fine home at No. 1308 Chapline street, Wheeling. Politically, he is a stanch Republican, and has served 16 years as county commissioner. He is
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a faithful member of St. Matthew's Protestant Episcopal Church, of which he is a vestryman.
WILLIAM J. LEAHY, M. D.
WILLIAM J. LEAHY, M. D., one of the most successful practitioners of medicine located at Mannington, Marion County, West Virginia, and a most highly esteemed citizen, was born in 1876, at Ansonia, Connecticut.
After completing his early educa- tion, he entered the offices of Drs. E. K. Parmelee and T. J. O'Sullivan, of his native State, where he began his medical education. In 1895, he entered the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Baltimore, Maryland, where he grad- uated with honors in April, 1899. As a result of his high standing in college
he was appointed resident physician at the Maternity Hospital, Baltimore. After leaving the hospital he at once took the examinations before the West Virginia State Medical Board. Later, he located at Mannington and has built up a most satisfactory practice and has made a reputation for medical ability and surgical skill. He is a valued member of the State, county and the American medical associations. He is serving as medical examiner for the Aetna, the Prudential and other life in- surance companies and the Ancient Order of United Workmen and other fraternal orders. In politics he is a Democrat.
HAZAEL COLEMAN WILLIAMS.
HAZAEL COLEMAN WILL- IAMS .- The subject of this sketch, who has built up a fine business as a
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photographer at St. Mary's, Pleasants County, West Virginia, was born at Muse's Bottom, Jackson County, Vir- ginia, now West Virginia, October 15, 1859. His father, P. D. Williams, was born at Front Royal, Virginia, of old Virginia and Maryland stock, and a near relative of Otho H. Williams, of Revolutionary fame. His mother, Mrs. F. J. (Coleman) Williams, was a daughter of Thomas Coleman, one of the pioneer farmers of Jackson Coun- ty, West Virginia. Thomas Coleman's father was killed by the Indians when he was a child.
Mr. Williams worked on his fa- ther's farm in summer and attended the district school in winter until he was 21 years old. In 1881 he started in the mercantile business across the Ohio River from his old home, in Meigs County, Ohio. Seeing the great need of a post office in that section, he suc- ceeded in having one established in 1882, and out of respect for his energy and ability in securing the same the office was named Hazael, that being his first name. He was appointed post- master and served for four years. The office is one of the leading post offices of Meigs County, Ohio.
While in business at that place, he met Leonora C. Roberts, a daughter of R. T. Roberts, of Clay County, Illi-
nois ; they were married at her home December 31, 1885. Soon after their marriage, Mr. Williams purchased a small tintype outfit, more for diversion than anything else, but finding he liked the business and being determined to master the art of photography, he was led to launch out in the business. In 1886 he gave up the mercantile business at Hazael and purchased a large photo- graphic boat, afterward known on the Ohio and Muskingum rivers as "Will- iams' Floating Gallery," and fitted it with the very best appliances the busi- ness required, his motto being: "The best-always the best." He followed the business on the river for 15 years and by hard work and strict attention to business and the valuable aid of his wife, who was also a close student of the art, he built up a business never equaled by any other floating gallery. The family growing larger, however, Mr. Williams and his wife, wishing to become located at some place where they could give their children better educa- tional facilities, dismantled their float- ing gallery and built a fine studio in St. Marys, Pleasants County, West Vir- ginia. Mr. Williams is today one of West Virginia's leading photographers. Five children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Williams: three boys and two girls.
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In religion Mr. Williams is liberal in his views. In politics he is a stanch Jeffersonian Democrat and a very en- thusiastic admirer of William J. Bryan.
ALFRED W. BELL.
ALFRED W. BELL, the genial proprietor of the Stevenson Hotel at Clay, Clay County, West Virginia, and a member of the Clay County bar, was born September 5, 1866, on a farm in Gilmer County, West Virginia. He is a son of Isaac and Caroline (Cain) Bell, the latter a daughter of Wallace Cain, of Gilmer County, West Virginia. The Cains were of Irish descent. The Bells were of English ancestry and early settlers in Virginia, and the grandparents of our subject, Town- send and Catherine ( Parsons) Bell,
were pioneers in the Little Kanawha Valley, West Virginia.
Alfred W. Bell worked on the home farm until he reached his majority, in in the meantime securing his education in the local schools and the Glenville State Normal School. After complet- ing this course, he engaged in teaching and for three terms was principal of the Glenville public schools and during one year was assistant teacher of the Spen- cer graded schools. He then entered upon the study of the law at Spencer, his preceptor being Hon. G. F. Cun- ningham, ex-prosecuting attorney of Roane County and one of its ablest law- yers. Mr. Bell was admitted to the bar in 1895, and he located at Clay, it being the county seat and the most promising field. He opened his office in May, 1895, and almost immediately came into public notice on account of his activity in politics. In 1900 he be- came the nominee of the Republican party for prosecuting attorney, but was beaten by a small margin of 22 votes, in a Democratic precinct. From 1807 to 1899 he was journal clerk of the State Senate, and now fills the office of commissioner of school lands, commis- sioner in chancery and commissioner of accounts for Clay County, the latter be . ing practically a life position. For the past five years he has also been city
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recorder, and is a notary public for the county. He was the founder, the first editor and is still a stockholder in the Glenville Pathfinder, the first and only Republican paper in Gilmer County. He is also a stockholder in the Clay County Bank. He was chairman of the Republican Executive Committee for Clay County from 1896 to 1900, and was a member of the Republican Executive Committee in the First Con- gressional District from the time he became a voter until he left Gilmer County in 1893. He is now a member of the committee of the Sixth judicial circuit. He occupies one of the finest law offices in Clay, well equipped with a complete library, and holds a leading position among practitioners.
Mr. Bell was married October 19, 1807, to Bettie G. Kelly, who is a daughter of A. J. Kelly of Clendenin, Kanawha County. The two children born to them were: Alfred W., Jr., born October 25, 1900, and died Octo- ber 13, 1902; and Mary Ruth, born January 22, 1903. Mr. Bell is erect- ing one of the largest and costliest resi- dences in his section. It is located on Mountain street, on an eminence which commands a fine view of the surround- ing country.
In 1892 Mr. Bell leased the Steven- son Hotel and enjoys the leading pat-
ronage of the city. He is an able man of business and is thoroughly identified with his section of the State, having in- vested in many prospering enterprises. In religious belief he is a Methodist. Mr. Bell is a strong believer in secret societies and is an enthusiastic member of the Knights of Pythias and the Inde- pendient Order of Odd Fellows.
ALEXANDER GORDON PUGH.
ALEXANDER GORDON PUGH, justice of the peace and one of the leading citizens of Chester, Han- cock County, Virginia, was born near Pughtown, Brooke County, Virginia, now Hancock County, West Virginia, November 17, 1830. He is a son of of Hugh and Nancy (Gordon) Pugh. The Pugh family is of Welsh ex-
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traction, and its founder in this portion of the country was Hugh Pugh, who lo- cated here prior to the Revolutionary War. Peter Pugh, son of the founder, married Annie Dunkin, of Scotch an- cestry, and he died at Pughtown in 1845, aged So years.
Hugh Pugh, the father of our sub- ject, was a son of Peter and Annie Pugh, and was born in Brooke County, where he engaged in farming until shortly before his death, in August, 1862, at the age of 68 years. His death took place at Macomb, Illinois. The mother also died there, aged 58 years. She was born in Beaver County, Penn- sylvania, within five miles of Frank- fort, and was a daughter of David and Adah Gordon. Mr. Gordon served in the War of 1812.
Alexander G. Pugh is the fifth mem- ber of a family of seven children born to his parents, the others being: James H., who died at Pughtown; Juliana, deceased, who married Ahimanaz Pitt- inger; Adah, who married Alexander Scott, both being deceased ; Peter ; John Bardolph, of Illinois; and Hiram, who died at Sacramento, California,-the last mentioned was a gallant member of the 7th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry, during the Civil War.
Mr. Pugh was reared on a farm and secured his education in the subscrip-
tion schools, of which he later became one of the instructors. Then he took charge of a flouring mill which he operated in connection with farming and was thus engaged when the Civil War broke out. On August 22, 1862, he enlisted for service, at Macomb, Illi- nois, in the 19th Reg., Illinois Vol. Inf., under Col. T. J. Kinney, and until he was mustered out in 1865 took part in the movements and operations of the right wing of the 16th Army Corps. Mr. Pugh served under a number of the noted military men, and was with General Grant at Jackson, Tennessee. Among the battles in which, as chief wagon-master, he was a very respon- sible person, were Tupelo, Nashville, Fort Blakely, the expedition against Price under Rosecrans, under Thomas at Nashville and with Sherman in the "March to the Sea." At Brotherford's station, on the Columbus & Jackson Railroad, he was taken prisoner, but was paroled the next day, December 24, 1862, and walked in his stocking feet until he reached the Union lines. After a season of parole in St. Louis, he re- turned to his regiment at Memphis and was at Mobile when General Lee sur- rendered. He was recommended for the rank of captain at the close of the war. Returning to Pughtown, he again engaged in farming and milling,
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later carpentering and contracting, un- til 1900. At that date he moved to Chester, since which time he has been engaged in the insurance business, rep- resenting a number of the leading com- panies. In the fall of 1902 he was elected justice of the peace, having served in the same office in the county for the previous 12 years. Mr. Pugh is secretary of the Board of Education and has served as surveyor of the pub- lic roads.
On December 15, 1862, he married Elizabeth Moody, who is a daughter of James and Isabel ( Ewing) Moody, both deceased, of Beaver County, Penn- sylvania. Mrs. Pugh died September 12, 1902, aged 73 years. The four chil- dren born to this marriage are: Flora, wife of John Wells, of Chester ; James, of Chester; Eva Etta, wife of Joseph Bailey, of East Liverpool; and Jesse H., of Chester. For 40 years Mr. Pugh has been an elder in the Presby- terian Church. In politics he has been one of the Republican leaders in his section. Fraternally he belongs to Major Kerr Post, No. 522, Grand Army of the Republic, at Hookstown, Pennsylvania, of which he has been commander. He is one of the repre- sentative men of Chester and his long official career has made him known to almost every one in the county.
J. S. HYER.
J. S. HYER, president of the Sut- ton Bank, and one of the town's most prominent citizens, was born in Brax- ton County, Virginia, now West Vir- ginia, January 10, 1849. That section of country was at that time practically a wilderness and educational advan- tages were very meager. He attended school for three or four winter terms in the little log schoolhouse which he de- scribes as having greased paper for window lights and round poles for seats.
At the age of 13 during the Civil War, he went to Weston and entered the county clerk's office where he re- mained for a year. In 1863 he became a clerk in the store of A. A. Lewis in which capacity he served for six years. At the expiration of this period he en-
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