USA > West Virginia > Upshur County > The history of Upshur county, West Virginia, from its earliest exploration and settlement to the present time > Part 26
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THROUGH THE COURTESY OF HUGH MAXWELL who has studied these Indian trails for many years and has prepared a map showing the streams they follow, the mountains they cross and the general direction they take we give the following from his history of Barbour county.
"Having thus spoken of the highways and the proposed highways between the Potomac and the Upper Valley of the Ohio, it remains to be shown that those were not the only paths across the mountains. The paths yet to be mentioned were more local, but, within a narrower sphere, were of no less importance. So far as Randolph, Tucker, Barbour and Uphur Counties were concerned, the paths amounted to more than the great highways through Pennsylvania, for the early settlers came over the trails of which there were three important ones and a fourth (Mccullough's) of lesser importance. The Mccullough trail passed from Moorefield to Patterson Creek, up that stream to Greenland Gap in Grant County ; crossed a spur of the Alleghanies to the North Branch, following the general course of the Northwestern Pike to the head of the Little Youghiogheny, in Garret County, Maryland ; thence to the Youghiogheny, west of Oakland, and on to Cheat River, near the Pennsylvania line. But a branch of it led down Horse Shoe Run to the mouth of Lead Mine Run, where it intersected another path to be spoken of later. Another trail led up the North Branch of the Potomac striking the face of Backbone Mountain near where Bayard now stands ; thence reaching the summit near Fairfax Stone. Passing to the western slope, it de- scended to the mouth of Lead Mine, ten miles east of St. George. It reached Cheat River at the mouth of Horse Shoe Run, three miles above St. George. Thence one branch led down Cheat, across Laurel Hill to the Valley River below Philippi, and thence westward to the Ohio. The other branch followed up Cheat, reaching the head of Leading Creek, in Randolph County, and after joining the Seneca Trail, near the present village of Elkins, passed up the river to its source, where dividing, one part led down Elk River, one down the Little Kanawha and a third crossed to the Greenbrier. The majority of the settlers on Cheat, above and below St. George, came to the country over the North Branch Trail, as did many of those on Leading Creek, and the early settlers on the Buckhannon. There is no record of the marking of the trail near Fairfax Stone. It was there at the earliest visit of white men, and was no doubt an Indian trail antedating history. The first white man to follow the trail was probably William Mayo in 1736. He ascended the North Branch that year and discovered the tributaries of Cheat. History does not say how far westward and northward he followed the
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stream ; probably not far. In 1745 other explorers, following the same route, reached the present territory of Tucker County, and a map made of the region soon after is fairly accurate.
Twenty miles south of Fairfax Stone, another path crossed the Alleghanies, the most important in West Virginia north of Greenbrier. It was called the Seneca Trail, or the Shawnee Trail. The latter name was given it because it was traveled by Shawnee Indians, notably by Killbuck's bands in raiding the South Branch settlements. It was called the Seneca Trail, because, after crossing the Alleghany Mountains at the head of Horse Camp Creek, it passed down Seneca Creek, in Pendleton County, to the North Fork. The Shawnee Trail, or a continuation of it, was an old Indian war path, perhaps used centuries ago. It came from Pennsylvania, passed through Maryland, crossed the Potomac at the mouth of South Branch, ascended that stream to Moorefield where the McCul- lough Trail struck off ; thence it ascended the river to the mouth of the North Fork; up that stream to the mouth of Seneca; thence across the mountains and the tributaries of Cheat to Tygarts Valley at Elkins, from there it became one with the trail, coming by way of Fairfax Stone. The Shawnee Trail was the chief highway between Tygart's Valley and South Branch for a century. In the early times, hundreds of pack horses, loaded with salt, iron and merchandise, passed over it every year, and many a drove of cattle went by that route to the eastern markets. During the Civil War it was frequently used by soldiers. Many of the horses and cattle captured by the Confederate Generals, Jones and Imboden, were sent across the mountains by that trail. General Averell, who had command of the Federal forces in this part of West Virginia, found it necessary to post strong pickets on the path. A wagon road has since been made following the same general course, and the old trail is no longer used, but sections of it remain, deeply worn through the wilderness of pine and laurel. A century will not suffice to destroy the old highway over which Indians passed before a white man had seen the valleys of the West. Killbuck's Indians retreated by that trail after the Fort Seybert massacre in 1758.
Thirty miles south of the Shawnee Trail was another path leading from the South Branch of the Potomac into Pocahontas County, and thence into Tygart's Valley. It was a branch of the Shawnee Trail, and instead of crossing the mountains at Seneca, it continued up the North Fork to Dry Run in Pendleton County ; passed up Laurel Creek into Highland County, Virginia, and crossed the mountain on the general route of the Staunton and Parkersburg Pike, coming into Tygart's Valley probably at the mouth of Riffle's Run or Becca's Creek, where it joined the trail up the valley already described. Many of the settlers in the upper end of Randolph came over this trail. Thus the routes by which emmigration entered the upper valleys of the Monongahela were three; that down Horse Shoe Run, in Tucker County ; that by way of Seneca Creek, and that through northern Pocahontas County. The majority of the settlers on Cheat, Tygart's, Buckhannon and the upper West Fork, traveled these trails. A few worked their way up the river from the vicinity of Brownsville, Pennsylvania."
The Indians must, at one time, have inhabited Upshur county. The Indian skull unearthed in the year 1892 under the Indian Camp rock, by L. V. Mcwhorter, Ernest Phillips and others, and sent to Washington, D. C., would prove it tenta- tively. But the finding of spear-heads, stone hatchets, flints and earthen pots covered with three feet of wood ashes under this same projecting rock and at Ash
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Camp rock near by, reinforces the first proof so abundantly that it would be folly to controvert the habitancy of Upshur by the Indians.
What tribe or tribes lived and hunted here is unknown. How long they lived here or how often they came to hunt, is uncertain. All we know is that tons and tons of ashes have been hauled away from under these two rocks and spread upon near-by farms, and the supply is not yet exhausted.
THE BEGINNING OF ROADS
There are no records which indicate the means of connection between the various settlements on the Buckhannon River, Tygart's Valley, Hacker's Creek, and West Fork, other than what has come to us by tradition. Maxwell in his History of Randolph County mentions Pringle's Trail, which led down the Tygart's Valley and up the Buckhannon River. This is the only evidence we have that there was a path or road over which the pioneers traveled to reach Buck- hannon settlement. This road or path followed the water course, and while it was too narrow for wagons it served for many years the purpose of the settler in going from and coming to his home. The first roads established in this county did not regard grade, but led directly over mountains and valleys from settlement to settlement. The early settler ignored that old adage, "that a pot bail is as long lying as standing." In fact why should they regard it because all of their travel was on horseback or by foot and both horse and man being strong, sinewy and supple they adopted the shortest route because it was the quickest. A few roads were surveyed and brushed out which will interest our readers and among them are the following :
In 1787 "A road from John Cutright's along the northwest side of Buck- hannon River, by John Jackson's to Pringle Ford, at the same time an order was passed establishing 'a road' from the head of Elk up the Buckhannon River to John Cutright's."
In 1798 the Court established "a road" from Beverly to Wolfs and the foot of Rich Mountain toward Buckhannon. These are the beginning of the great and complex system of highways which are the avenues of travel to all parts of Upshur County.
In 1814 the County Court of Randolph County passed an order to brush out and make passable on horseback and pack horses the road from Beverly to Buck- hannon. This was afterwards widened and graded and made into the Parkersburg and Staunton Turnpike.
COUNTY ROADS
The first session of the County Court of Upshur County met on Thursday the 24th day of July, 1851. Present: George Clark, George Bastable, David Bennett, John W. Marple, Amos Brooks, Adam Spittler, Simon Rhorbough, William W. Foster, Anthony B. See, Willis H. Woodley, A. M. Bastable, Alva Teter and Jacob Lorentz. Gentlemen justices of the peace composing the County Court (at the time of the formation of the County, up to 1864 the County Court was made up of the several justices of the peace, in the various townships of the County.)
The first order passed by the Court was that Jacob A. Hyre, Josiah Abbott, and Thomas Hamner, mark out a way for a road from Atwell Dowell's house to
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the road on the Glady Fork of Stone Coal to where said road crosses that water leading to Bull Run and by way of David S. Pinnell's Mill on Glady Fork.
Thomas Rothwell was appointed in the place of Lair Dean to review a road from Hinkle's mill by way of John B. Shreaves to
On petition of Robert McCray, David Bennett, W. M. Haymond and Henry Boggs were ordered to mark out a road from the mouth of Buffalo of the Little Kanawha River by way of Honey Camp Run to W. M. Haymond's.
On motion of James Lemmons, Elmer Hyre, is appointed surveyor of the road leading from John W. Abel's, by way of Peter Hyer to Captain Gilbert Gould's on Bull Run and that "William S. Brady, Stuart Hyre, Turner Hyre, and John S. Lemmons be his hands to work and prepare said road."
It was ordered that Nicholas Dean, Valentine Dickinson, William Griffith be surveying committee to mark out a road from Ryland R. Alexander by Isaac Warner and intersect the "Yankee Road" going from the Buckhannon River at Andrew Lewis's on to Stevenville.
John Weatherholt, Abram Wolf, and Frederick Willfong, were appointed to survey a road from John Weatherholt's on Ten Mile to A. C. Queen's Mill on Middlefork.
On petition of John Jackson and others, S. C. Tenney, William Goodwin, John M. Haney, Watson Westfall and John G. Jackson, or any three of them are appointed a committee to review a road from the mouth of John G. Jackson's lane to Armsey's Run and one from John G. Jackson's lane to the Middlefork River.
A road was also ordered reviewed from John Jackson's to the Staunton and Parkersburg Turnpike "on motion of James Cutright order that Jacob Cutright, Lot Cutright and Elmor Cutright be appointed reviewers, to review and mark a road from the Ford at Elmor Cutright's along Buckhannon river between Nathaniel and Elmor Cutright through said Nathaniel Cutright's place and John Wilfong's land along E. D. Rollin's line to intersect the Big Road near Hiram Rollin's.
FRIDAY, JULY 25, 1851.
James Reed is appointed surveyor of the road from Daniel Knight's to the Lewis County line and Richard Altop, John Heavner, and Burket Jett be assigned to him as hands. That William Freymyer is appointed surveyor and that part of the County taken from Barbour and the same hands be attached to his precinct that he had when surveyor before the formation of the County.
On petition of R. L. Brown, Lot Cutright, Jacob Cutright and Edmond Rollins were appointed commissioners to mark out a road from Theodore Cut- right's to the Philadelphia Church.
John Swick precinct was laid out as the highway from the line between William Herschman and William Busley to upper Hacker's Creek, from John Marples to the top of the mountain going to Rooting Creek and half way up the hill toward Turkey Run.
In the town of Buckhannon over the road leading from the turnpike at D. S. Pinnell's house to John Davis's farm Charles D. Trimble was appointed sur- veyor in repair : John Davis, George W. Berlin, David S. Pinnell and hands ; D. T. Farnsworth, James L. Will, C. W. McNulty, Selden Harrison, John O. Core,
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William Jennings, George C. Ackle, Levi Ackle, James Willson, Jackson Shultz and hands; Geo. W. Miller, Isaac Teeter, John Hurst and hands; K. Hopkins, John Maxwell and hands ; M. J. Fog, C. W. Russell, L. L. D. Loudin, A. Spittler, C. G. Miller and hands ; I. D. Rapp, John L. Smith and hands, Miflin Lorentz, John White and hands; H. C. Middleton, Samuel Spittler, George Ambrose, Joseph B. Ambrose, George F. Cooper and hands, A. N. Bastable and hands, C. C. Williams and hands; John Thurman; Nathaniel Farnsworth, W. D. Farnsworth, Calvin Farnsworth, Thomas Farnsworth, Leonard Farnsworth, Moses Marple, and his son, Silas Martin and hands ; T. A. Janey and hands ; W. E. Balsley, Geo. Balsley, Geo. Nicholas, Geo. Bastable, James Mulins, A. Pound- stone, John W. Blagg, Daniel Rollins, Jacob M. Hyre, J. O. Fretwell, W. H. Williams, Henry McFadden, James Farnsworth, John Baker and hands; B. Hawks, S. F. Paren, E. Wertenbaker Geo. W. Honchens, E. Johnson, Robert Hurst, Robert Coyner, Joseph Coyner, Jerome Reger, W. B. Brown, Edwin Maxwell, Asa Carper, and all other citizens of Buckhannon and Charles Trem- ble's hands.
The Court ordered the establishment of a road from John Davis's farm to Jacob Crites's blacksmith shop, and hands to work it. Peter Barb was appointed surveyor of the road, from John Light's lane on Grassy Run to the turnpike at the farm of James Griffin.
John Strader was appointed surveyor of the road from Stony Run to Cut- right's Run and from Jasper N. Lorentz's to Jacob Crites's blacksmith shop. Aquilla Osborne was made surveyor of the highway from Queen's Mill down the River to the turnpike.
SEPTEMBER 18, 1851.
The Court ordered Pascal P. Young, Peter Hyre and Jonathan Heffner reviewers to mark out a way from Elias Simmons's passing down by Slab Camp, at or near Abram Hosaflook's. W .M. Haymond, William McNulty and Geo. Rexroad were ordered to view out a road from near Jacob Strader's by way of Andrew Bogg's and Jonathan Reese's to intersect the Hyre road ; on motion of James Lemmons, William Reed, James Pritt and W. M. Haymond were appoint- ed to view out roads from William Props' farm to the Randolph line crossing the right hand fork of the Buckhannon river. A road was ordered reviewed up Little Sand Run to Joseph Howser's mill and along the ridge by M. L. Humphreys to Fleming's house, and on to the Big Sand Run road. A review of a new road was ordered from Lair Dean's to Valentine Hinkle's mill, and one from Amos Sample's to the head of Straight Run. One down Sand Run up Laurel Fork and across the Hill to E. C. Bridge's farm; also one from Turkey Run below Isaac Brakes' by way of Timothy Mick's to Anthony Strader's mill on Hacker's creek.
OCTOBER 23, 1851.
On motion of Lindsay Sandridge, Isaac Warner, John Kesling and Moses Roberts were appointed reviewers to establish a road from the Proudfoot road passing said Sandridge's house to intersect the Decker road near Adam Rada- baugh's. The court on the same day authorized the establishment of a road from the house of John J. Burr to the bridge across French creek and from the top of the Meeting House hill to James P. Sexton's.
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DECEMBER 18, 1851.
On the petition of Phillip Smith reviewers were appointed to mark out a road from Benjamin Rohrbough's house to C. W. Herndon's house. At the same session the road was ordered from the Strange Ford through Elmor Cutright's meadow up Strange Run and to Chipp's mill, and one from Nathan Ligget's store on Finks Run bridge to Sandy Leonard's, and one from the head of Cub Run on the road leading from William Rude's to William Hyres' and ending near Peter Johnson's, and one from Enoch Gibson's house to Howser's mill, and on to the forks of the road at Isaac Strader's, and one from the church at the top of the hill between Grassy Run and Truby's Run to Jolin Tenney's mill by way of Abram Our's.
THE RELIGIOUS LIFE.
The religious life of the backwoodsman was unavoidably neglected. The strenuous and oftimes desperate contest with the external phenomena gave him little time or opportunity for self inspection. The outside world was his battle- field.
Life depended upon the issue of his fight with dense forests, wild beasts and vindictive savages. All his mental and physical faculties were brought into con- stant training by the vicarious contingencies ever before him. There was no break in the continuity and therefore no change in the activity of his life struggle. By day and by night he labored to keep the prowling wolves of want and treacherous devils of destruction from his cabin door. There was no oasis of rest, abiding peace and moral self inspection. His call to duty led, yea, forced him to cultivate the baser passions of human nature. Annihilation was the goal of his ambition; by it frontier life would be transformed into the unattainable dreamland of perfect contentment and earthily bliss. The seductive evil passions of harm, such as way-laying, torturing and evil pursuits were the dangerous weapons of this total extermination.
His martyrdom was one of physical defense and self preservation. Like Moses coming from Egypt these two lessons were to him "pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night." No sound escaped his keen ear, no object lost his peering eye, and few experiences avoided his sense of tast. "The forest was his home. There he loved to roam," not for what it now gave, but what it promised.
Then can it be any wonder that little time is given in frontier settlements to contrasting vice and virtue, good and evil, sin and holiness? Religious freedom they had, governmental protection they wished for. Possessing the former, they sought to live to enjoy the latter. Understand that these backwoodsmen were not lacking in ethics. Far be it from us to so indict them. Their laws of dealings with one another were unwritten, few and rarely violated. With all mankind right was right with them shorn of all the contrivances to evade and defer its im- mediate good. The magistrate ferreting out the shades and degrees of crime had no work in the bosom of such a society.
His expositions were as "sounding brass and tinkling cymbals." The laws of.nature are higher than the laws of man; and they were the unchangable decis- ions along which the pioneer's path led. At first much silent comtemplation abounded over the loss of the church's refining influence as it was being estab- lished and promulgated by John Wesley and George Whitefield. Their trumpet
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like appeals had already reached and effected them ere they took their departure from the South Branch. But now they did neglect the seeds of evangelical faith and purer life sown by apostles of these two reformers, and contented themselves in an exhausting controversy with the most numerous unforseen difficulties ever confronting the physical man.
As passing time separated them more and more from the benign influences of church organization, our readers can well understand that our forefathers had conformed their lives to the broader theology of the Ten Commandments as against the dissenting, quarrelsome and destructive denominational doctrines which are more often the "Synogogues of Satin than the Temples of God."
In this respect the settlement for the first twenty-five years of its existence went through its golden age.
The need of religious teaching from the view-point that personal activity
OLD CARPER CHURCH
leads to growth, consecration and rectitude in all things, was very apparent. There was a beginning of the preached word in 1781, according to an article writ- ten years ago by Rev. John W. Reger, by Rev. Bozeman at the home of John Reger near Volga. Mr. Reger is mistaken in part about this. He says the mem- bers were John Reger and wife, Abram Casper and wife. The latter family did not come here until the spring of 1800. In 1800 Shadrack Tappan, a Methodist minister of the Baltimore conference, ventured into the settlement and proclaimed the mission of the Master. His sermon was delivered in the home of Abram
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Carper, whose anxiety for the church was second only to his love and knowledge of the Word upon which the church was superstructed. This service caused a rip- ple of excitement and speculation which waned with procrastination. No class was formed. No church house was built. The devout satisfied their religious cravings in the sacred halls of home for ten more long years or until 1810. This year witnessed the formation of the first society at the house of John Reger. Steps were then and there taken to provide a home for the society. This particular society can have no more significance in the annals of church chronology than it was the parent church after and to which the multitude of succeeding Methodist churches should follow and look. As if by accident, mayhaps by Providence, the number of members of this first Methodist class corresponded with the number of the commandments and agreed with the casting of the characters in which all computations must be expressed. The names of this holy band were Abram Car- per and wife, Anthony Rohrbough, John Strader, Henry Reger, George Bush, Joseph Hall and wife, Catherine Hall, John Reger and Nancy Bennett. From the good works of this first Methodist class of ten went out great constructive influ- ences. Here and there whenever a few could assemble regularly other classes were organized and churches were built. Nothing impeded this building up pro- cess, and today the Methodist Episcopal church has thirty-five hundred communi- cants, forty working classes and as many edifices in the limits of the county. With so many forts at which spiritual ammunition may be had and with such an army properly using these exhaustless supplies, this division of God's church ought to see, meet and conquer "with the sword of the spirit," not only its own land, but others as well. But the Methodist alone has not grown and worked here for the religious man. Other demoninations have found this a good field of labor.
PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
Third denomination in point of time to establish and conduct religious exer- cises was the Presbyterian. Rev. Thomas Hunt, once pastor of the Second Pres- byterian church of Pittsburg, delivered the first sermon on Calvinistic theology. The second minister of the gospel to visit the settlement on French creek was Rev. Moses Allen, for many years pastor of the church at Raccoon, Pa. These two divines delivered an address each in the home of Aaron Gould, where for years a few families met every Sabbath for worship, especially reading sermons. The first reader of these sermons was Robert Young, esq.
Jonathan Alden, Pascal P. Young, Augustus W. Sexton, William Phillips, succeeded him in this commendable practice. The first resident minister of the Presbyterian church was Rev. Asa Brooks, who was sent out as a missionary by the Hampshire County Missionary Society of Massachusetts in the fall of 1816.
This society promised to make good his salary of $400.00, or as much of it as the settlers failed to pay. He established missions at French Creek, Buck- hannon and Beverly, where he expounded the Word on every third Sunday.
During the week he oftimes would have appointments at points between these places. The mid-week visit at Philippi was successful and did much good. Rev. Brooks labored hard for one year before he went back East. On this first visit home he married Miss Polly Sumner, a woman of strong mind and great excellence, and returned to Virginia in 1818. The next year he became a member of the Presbytery of Redstone and was immediately asked to accept a call from French Creek and Buckhannon congregations. Without hesitancy or delay he assumed the work. The Presbyterian church at French Creek was really organ-
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ized on September 10, 1819. The first minutes of the Sessional Records contain these important words: "French Creek, Lewis county, Virginia. There being in this settlement a number, both male and female, having letters of recommendation from different congregational churches in Massachusetts, with which they were united previous to their emigrating to this place, and wishing again to be favored with church privileges, a time was appointed for the election of Ruling Elders." Time set for the election of Ruling Elders was July 5, 1819. Aaron Gould and Robert Young were chosen without opposition to be the responsible dignitaries. The organization of the church was not completed until September 10 of this year, when several of the grace-full worshipers met at the house of Samuel Gould, close to the present residence of Alva Brooks, and finished the noble preliminary work by receiving on certificate Nathan Gould and wife, Esther, Mrs. Lydia Gould, wife of Aaron, Mrs. Lydia Young, wife of Robert Young, Zedekiah Mor- gan's wife, Rebecca, Samuel Gould, Aaron Gould, jr., and Mrs. Polly Brooks, wife of Rev. Asa Brooks; and on examination David Phillips and Anna Phillips, his wife, Captain Gilbert Gould's wife, Mehitabel Gould, and Mrs. Lucy Alden, wife of Jonathan Alden. The next year the membership increased more than 100 per cent and Captain Gilbert Gould, Jonathan Alden, Daniel Gould and wife, Margaret, Pascal P. Young and wife, Cynthia, the wives of James and Samuel and Aaron, jr., Gould, Rhoda and Esther, and niece, Mrs. Mary Knowlton, wife of Warren, Chloe Conkey, Anna Young, Misses Sallie, Nancy, Martha and Eliza- beth Gould and Sarah Peebles and Roswell Knowlton and Prudence, his wife. joined the church.
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