USA > West Virginia > West Virginia and its people, Volume II > Part 79
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(VI) Benjamin Rathbone, son of John Graham and Mary ( Van Win- kle) Blackford, was born in Parkersburg, West Virginia, February 7, 1864. He was educated at the public schools of the town and at the Nash School. At the age of sixteen he helped to survey the Baltimore & Ohio railroad south of Parkersburg. In 1880 he was assistant clerk in
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Otras. E. Bryan
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the old Parkersburg National Bank, where he served for nine years. In 1889 he started in the insurance business with Charles A. Swearingen. He later sold out and engaged in business for himself. He is a member of the Elks, and a very active member of the Parkersburg Country Club, being president of the club. Since 1884 he has been a stockholder in the Peerless Milling Company, and is a director of the Parkersburg Chair Company.
BRYAN The grandfather of Charles Ellis Bryan, the engineer of Parkersburg, was William Bryan. Very little is known of of him but that he left a son, Henry.
( II) Dr. Henry Bryan, son of William Bryan, was born in Pennsyl- vania, October 24, 1824, died February 3, 1899. He practiced medicine there for twenty-five years. He married (first) Sarah Murdoch, and their children were: George M., Hatty, Ora, Mary Ann, Charles Ellis. Sarah (Murdoch) Bryan died January 3, 1872. He married (second ) Eliza Stockdale, and they had one daughter Ella.
(III) Charles Ellis, son of Dr. Henry and Sarah (Murdoch) Bryan, was born in Washington county, Ohio, January 7, 1860. His education was received at the public and high schools of the county, and after leav- ing school he worked for a time on his father's farm. His bent had al- ways been towards mechanical and engineering work, and November 26, 1877, he obtained a position to work on the old Marietta Columbus & Cleveland railroad. His work was in the maintenance of way engineer- ing department, and here he remained for four years. He then accepted a position with the Hocking Valley railroad in the engineering depart- ment, and in this place he remained for two years and eight months. On November 18, 1883, he came to the Ohio River railroad, where he han- dled the construction work until June, 1887. He then accepted a posi- tion with the McCathers Brothers Construction Company, remaining here for a year, when he was offered a position with the Lancaster & Hamilton railroad as the superintendent of construction. In February, 1891, he came back to the Ohio River railroad, this time as road master. In May, 1895, he was promoted to be the superintendent of maintenance of way and as acting chief engineer. He was responsible for the building of the short line between New Martinsville and Clarksburg, West Vir- ginia. In April, 1903, he was promoted to be the superintendent of the Ohio River railroad, and in this position he has continued up to the present time. He is a member of the West Virginia Board of Trade and Board of Commerce at Huntington and Parkersburg, West Virginia. He is a charter member of the Society of Engineers, and he is a member of the Free and Accepted Masons, No. 320. He is a member of the Pres- byterian church and serves it as president of the board of trustees.
Mr. Bryan married, in 1881, Margaret Elizabeth, daughter of Alex- ander and Elizabeth Galbraith. Their children are: Flora Ellen, born July 6, 1885, married, June 16, 1910, Victor Garritson : William Ellis, December 13, 1887: Bessie Cora, March 7, 1890; Mary Catherine, May 25, 1893: George Robinson, November 30, 1895; Charles Henry, March I, 1899; James Frederick, June 3, 1903 ; a child who died in infancy.
LINK Charles William Link, D. D. S., of Martinsburg, Berkeley county, West Virginia, a prominent citizen and leading den- tist of the city, was born in Duffields, Jefferson county, West Virginia. February 6, 1868. He obtained his primary education in the district schools of the county, and later attended the Charles Town Acad-
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emy of Jefferson county. In 1890 he matriculated at the West Virginia State University, and there began the study of medicine, graduating with distinction in 1892. He entered the University of Maryland, and grad- uated therefrom in 1895 as a Doctor of Dental Surgery. Immediately after his graduation he moved to Martinsburg and began the practice of his profession. In a remarkably short period of time he established a lucrative practice, which is constantly .growing. He has kept abreast of his profession, always striving to perfect and add to his knowledge of his chosen calling, and by so doing he has gained the confidence of the community with which he cast his lot on leaving college, and is regarded as an earnest, conscientious and able man. He is by inheritance and con- viction a Democrat, taking a keen and positive interest in politics, but he has never sought nor held office. At college he was identified with vari- ous clubs and organizations and still retains his membership in them. He is a member of the Presbyterian church and is a regular attendant.
He married, in 1903, in Martinsburg, Margharetta, daughter of John Joshua and Anna ( Barndollar) Hetzel, of Martinsburg. Children : Win- ifred A. and Elizabeth J.
CLOHAN This family is of Scottish origin, and through its present descendant, Mr. Alexander Clohan, has become one of the best known in the state of West Virginia.
The first member of the family to come to America was William Clohan, a coal miner of Scotland, who came to Preston county, Virginia, in 1849, where he followed the calling of a farmer for five years. He then removed to Ohio county, of this state, where he established himself for a time as a coal operator. He became successful in his undertakings, and attained a prominent position in the community. He was for many years justice of the peace in Webster District of Ohio county, and was president of the board of registration at Wheeling during the civil war, being prominent in all movements to sustain the Union cause. He was a distinguished member of the Masonic fraternity, being a member of Ohio Lodge, No. I, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons ; Wheeling Un- ion Chapter, No. 2, Royal Arch Masons ; Wheeling Commandery, No. 1, Knights Templar ; Knights of Pythias, past chancellor in that order. His religious connection was with the Presbyterian church, of which he was a consistent member. His death occurred in Wheeling in 1873, and his wife, who was Agnes Anderson, of Scotland, survived him, dying also in Wheeling in 1894. She was a sister of the Rev. William Anderson, of Old Calabar, Africa, who served fifty years as a missionary. Mr. and Mrs. Clohan had children: I. William, who was among the first to answer to President Lincoln's first call for troops, enlisting in Company B, First Virginia Loyal Regiment : they were three months' men under Colonel B. F. Kelly, and after serving his time Mr. Clohan re-enlisted, this time becoming a member of Company G, First Virginia Regiment, under Colonel Joseph Thoburn, was promoted and transferred to Com- pany K, as first sergeant, where at the head of his company he fell at Kernstown, near Winchester, Sunday, March 23, 1862; his body was sent back to Wheeling, where he was buried with military and civic honors, his remains being escorted to the grave by the Masons and the Odd Fellows; he was the first of Wheeling's soldier boys who sealed his devotion to his country with his blood. 2. Lewis, who is in the grocery business at Wheeling. 3. Elizabeth, who became the wife of William Erskine, a lawyer of Glendale, West Virginia. 4. Agnes, of Martins- burg, Berkeley county, West Virginia. 5. Margaret, also of Martins- burg. 6. Alexander, see forward.
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(II) Alexander, son of William and Agnes (Anderson) Clohan, was born at Hollytown, Scotland, April 8, 1846. He came with his parents to Preston county, Virginia, when he was three years of age, and attended the public schools until he was ten years old. He then engaged in the coal business with his father for a while, subsequently entering the em- ploy of the Labelle Iron Works as a puddler. He remained with them for ten years, then secured a similar position with the Bellaire Iron Works, where he remained for five years. At the expiration of this time, in 1878, he came to Berkeley county, West Virginia, and purchased a farm in the Gerrardstown district, where he became an agriculturist. In the year 1906 he organized the Highland Orchard Company, of which he is president, and has become a most successful apple grower and a man of great prominence in his section of the country. The Highland Orchard Company has two thousand acres of orchard lands, three hun- dred of which acreage is planted in apple trees which are now six years old. The Hart Clohan Company is another of the large enterprises with which he is connected, and of this he is also the president. He is also president of the Gold Orchard Company, with a hundred and forty acres of bearing trees, and is a large stockholder in the Tomahawk, Cherry Run and Cherry Hill Orchard companies. In 1899 he was elected presi- dent of the West Virginia State Horticultural Society, holding this office for a period of nine years. He is also president of the Berkeley County Horticultural Society and has been since its organization. Governor McCorkle appointed Mr. Clohan as the Republican member of the state board of agriculture, 1895, and he has been a member since its organiza- tion of the Eastern Fruit Growers' Association, having twice been a delegate to that body. Since the year 1888 he has been a delegate to all the Republican state conventions, was chairman of the Republican exec- utive committee from 1891 to 1897 and during this period the Republi- cans carried every election. In 1893 he was appointed deputy sheriff of Berkeley county, and in 1898 was appointed by President Mckinley as postmaster of Martinsburg, was twice re-commissioned by President Roosevelt, serving altogether for a period of twelve years. Mr. Clohan is also in high standing in the Masonic fraternity, being a member of Robert White Lodge, No. 67, Free and Accepted Masons; Lebanon Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, of which he is the high priest at the present time ; Palestine Commandery, Knights Templar ; Osiris Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is a prominent member of the Presbyterian church, and an earnest worker in the interests of the Young Men's Christian Association. As a director in the People's Trust Company of Martinsburg, he has become very influential in busi- ness circles, and is now one of the best known men in the state of West Virginia.
Mr. Clohan married, 1872, Celia, daughter of Enos R. Crouch, of Wheeling, by whom he had children: William E., who was killed by a runaway team when a young man ; Herbert E., a farmer, now deceased ; Robert A., a clerk in the Martinsburg postoffice; Louis G., a farmer in Berkeley county : Lucy, married W. S. Kline, of Martinsburg; Bessie, married Prince Dunn, of Martinsburg; Archie and Elsie, at home.
SOMERS William Henry Somers, vice-president of the Bank of Morgan County, and a leading representative of the finan- cial interests of Berkeley Springs, has also been for many years prominent in political circles and is at present serving as a mem- ber of the second congressional committee. Mr. Somers belongs to a family which has been for several generations resident in Maryland.
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(I) John Somers, grandfather of William Henry Somers, was born in the Old Line State, where his father, who was a native of England, had settled on coming to this country. John Somers was an iron forger, transmuting pig iron into a merchantable article. In politics he was a Democrat, but never held office. He married Mary Leatherman, and their children were: I. John Frederick, mentioned below. 2. John, of Arkansas, married Sarah Widdell. 3. Elias, of Wilson county, Kansas, married Mrs. Mary Shawl. 4. Hezekiah, died young. 5. Jacob, deceased. 6. Aaron, lives near Pendleton, Indiana, married Sarah Michael and has six or seven children. 7. Christopher, also lives near Pendleton. 8. Sarah, married Henry Poff, and lives near Pendleton. 9. Caroline, deceased, married Cornelius Douple, also deceased. 10. Cassie, married Thomas Cline, of Ellerton, Maryland. The father of these chil- dren died in Ellerton, where he had passed his life, at the comparatively early age of fifty-five. His widow survived him many years, passing away near Pendleton, Indiana, in her ninety-eight year.
(II) Dr. John Frederick Somers, eldest child of John and Mary (Leatherman) Somers, was born in 1825, in Maryland. He passed his boyhood at Ellerton, attending the district schools of Frederick county. He was a physician, practising his profession fifty-five years. In early life his political affiliations were with the Whigs and later with the Re- publicans, but he never held public office, preferring to concentrate his energies on his professional duties. He was a member of the Lutheran church to which both his parents had belonged. Dr. Somers married Catherine, born in Wolfeville, Frederick county, Maryland, daughter of William and Catherine ( Westinghouse) Smith. Mr. Smith was a schoolmaster in Wolfeville, where he died. Dr. and Mrs. Somers were the parents of the following children: 1. Martin Luther, physician of Altoona, Kansas, married and has two children. 2. Amos Newton, Uni- tarian minister in Boston, Massachusetts; married Mabel Woodward; no children. 3. Effie J. 4. Ira Clinton, married Lily Rider and has three children. 5. William Henry, mentioned below. 6. John Clem, contractor and carpenter of Berkeley Springs; married Susan Tritapo and has three children. Dr. Somers died in 1897, at Berkeley Springs, at the age of seventy-two, and his wife passed away in the same place, being then about seventy-six.
(III) William Henry, fifth child and fourth son of John Frederick and Catherine (Smith) Somers, was born July 20, 1860, at Ellerton, Frederick county, Maryland. He spent his early years in the neighbor- hood of Alfont, Indiana, where he received his education in the public schools. His first employment was in that state, with a coach and car building company, and on leaving them he came to West Virginia and settled at Berkeley Springs where he opened an implement business which he conducted for about ten years. At the end of that time he was appointed postmaster of Berkeley Springs, serving under Presidents Mc- Kinley and Roosevelt, in all, a period of ten years. He then went into the timber land and fruit growing business, and in the latter he is at present engaged, having an extensive and constantly increasing trade. Mr. Somers is an ardent advocate of the principles of the Republican party, and has been for many years a prominent factor in the political life of Berkeley Springs. He was appointed assistant sergeant-at-arms at Republican national convention at Chicago, 1908, and was elected a delegate to Republican national convention in 1912. For twelve years he served as president of the board of education of this district, and for sixteen years was a member of the state executive committee. For eight years he was county chairman and for the same length of time served as advisory member of the national committee. He is vice-president and
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also a director of the Bank of Morgan county, having held these posi- tions since the organization of the institution about ten years ago. He is also a stockholder and general manager of the Cherry Run Orchard Company, besides having various other interests in companies of this class. He affiliates with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, having filled every chair in the order. Throughout his career Mr. Somers has acted the part of an enterprising and honorable business man whose suc- cess has contributed to the prosperity of the community, and of a public- spirited citizen who has faithfully fulfilled the obligations imposed upon him by the positions of trust and responsibility in which he has been placed by the votes of his fellow townsmen.
Mr. Somers married, February 22, 1880, Mary Ann Rider, born in Ridersville, Morgan county, Virginia, daughter of Edward Rider, born near Mechanicstown, Frederick county, Maryland, who followed the trade of a blacksmith. He married Phoebe Rockwell, who was born at Ridersville, Virginia, and of their eight children the following are living : I. Isabel, married William Hovermale, lives near Ridersville and has six or seven children. 2. Charles T., of Hancock, Maryland, married Fanny Long and has four children. 3. Mary Ann, mentioned above. 4. Mar- garet, married Jacob Rupenthal, lives near Berkeley Springs and has five children. 5. Lilly, married Ira Somers, of Chanute, Kansas, and has three children. 6. Edward E., of Ridersville, married Sarah Butts and has four children. The father of this family, at the time of his death, was about seventy years of age, and the mother is still living at Berkeley Springs, West Virginia. Children of Mr. and Mrs. Somers, the two elder of whom were born in Luray, Virginia, and the two younger in Berkeley Springs: I. Vernon Conrad, of Berkley Springs, married Daisy Cross; two children: one died in infancy, and Donald Benton. 2. Mabel Lorraine. 3. Marvin Witmar. 4. Ethel Mae.
IMBODEN John Imboden, the first member of this family of whom we have any definite information, was born in Lebanon county, Pennsylvania, in 1760. He settled in 1795 at "The old Christian Fork." on Christian creek, Virginia, and died there. (II) George, son of John Imboden, was born in Lebanon county, Pennsylvania, December 25, 1793, died near Afton, Virginia, February I, 1874. He was a farmer. He married Isabella, daughter of Daniel and Susan Wondeflich ; born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, died in Virginia. Children: 1. Benjamin F., killed during the Mexican war and buried at Buena Vista, Mexico. 2. Jacob P., served in the Confederate army. 3. George W., referred to below. 4. John Daniel, served in the civil war and attained the rank of brigadier-general, and for whom Im- boden's Battery of Artillery was named. 5. Captain Frank M., born Feb- ruary 18, 1841 ; now living near Bristol, Virginia. 6. James A., born September 15. 1845: now living in Washington county, Virginia. The last two named also served in the Confederate army.
(III) George W., son of George and Isabella (Wondeflich) Imbo- den, was born on Christian creek, Augusta county, Virginia, June 25, 1836, and is now living in Ansted, West Virginia. He received his early education in the public schools, and was for two terms a student at the Staunton Academy. At the age of eighteen years he took up the study of law and was admitted to the bar in 1858, and then began the active practice of his profession in Staunton, Augusta county, Virginia, il. which he continued until the outbreak of the civil war. On April 17. 1861, he enlisted in the Staunton Artillery, which was later re-named "Imboden's Battery" in honor of his brother, John Daniel Imboden, the 35
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captain, and served until the reorganization in 1862, when he organized Company A, First Regiment Virginia Partisan Rangers ; was then elected major of Sixty-second Virginia Infantry ; December 15, 1862, was elected colonel of Eighteenth Virginia Cavalry and commanded same until after the battle of Gordonsville, December 23, 1864, in which he was severely wounded and incapacitated for further service. He returned to his home in Staunton. In August, 1870, he settled in Fayette county, West Vir- ginia, and was instrumental in locating the coal works and the town of Ansted. He resumed the practice of his profession, in which occupation he continued until 1906, when he retired from active business pursuits. In 1877 he was elected to the state legislature for a term, and was a member of the county court from 1881 to 1885, during which time he was the president of that body, and when the town of Ansted was in- corporated in 1891 he was elected its first mayor. He is a Democrat in politics, and a Presbyterian in religion, and since 1867 has been an elder in that church.
He married ( first) December 4, 1859, Mary F., daughter of Colonel William Tyree, of Fayette county. He married (second) December 8, 1889, Angia Mildred, daughter of Colonel Hudson Dickinson, now living in Ansted. One child by second marriage died in infancy.
DAVIS This common Welsh name, derived from the name David, in common use in Wales as a Christian name, has been brought by a great number of immigrants to America, and is there- fore the surname of a large number of quite distinct American families, found in all parts of the country. The present family is of Welsh origin, William Davis settling at Jersey City, and during the Revolutionary war was a member of the staff of General George Washington.
(II) Thomas Engle Davis was born in Doddridge county, Virginia, July 11, 1846, died at Harrisville, Ritchie county, West Virginia, Febru- ary 15, 1906. His father, Thomas Neely Davis, died before his birth, and he was brought up by his mother, Amelia (Zinn) Davis. When he was about twelve years old, she came to Harrisville and married (second) Eli Heaton, of that place. Having received an education in the common schools, Mr. Davis became the first teacher in Ritchie county un- der the free school system. When he was only eighteen years old, he was appointed deputy sheriff and deputy clerk of the county and circuit courts. He was also a member of the state militia. At Washington and Jefferson College, Washington, Pennsylvania, he was able to take higher studies for three years, and he was admitted to the bar in 1869, soon be- ginning to practice at Harrisville. For two terms he served as prosecut- ing attorney, and was a member of the house of delegates of West Vir- ginia, 1883-84. He was a member of the Ancient Free and Accepted Ma- sons. Thomas Engle Davis married, December 24, 1869, Alethea Anna, daughter of Enoch B. and Sarah (Athey) Leggett. Children: 1. Wini- fred, married September 10, 1890, Homer Boughner Woods (see sketch in this work). 2. Juniata, married, June 23, 1892, Rev. Wheeler Bog- gess ; they have been for several years missionaries in Southern India. 3. Thomas Jeffrey, of whom further. 4. Dada, died in infancy.
(III) Thomas Jeffrey, son of Thomas Engle and Alethea Anna (Leg- gett) Davis, was born at Harrisville, West Virginia, March 19, 1879. He attended the public schools of Harrisville until ten years of age when his parents removed to Washington City, District of Columbia, where he received his common school education in the public schools. In 1897 he completed a business course and graduated from Wood's Commercial College of Washington, D. C., receiving the degree of Bachelor of Ac-
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counts. He then attended the West Virginia University at Morgan- town, West Virginia, and graduated therefrom in June, 1899, receiving the degree of Bachelor of Laws. Desiring further legal training he then went to Columbian University at Washington, D. C., graduating May 31, 1900, with the degree of Master of Laws. In the same year lie was ad- mitted to the bar and began his practice of law at Harrisville. In 1901 he was private secretary of the president of the senate of West Virginia. On November 5, 1912, he was elected prosecuting attorney of Ritchie county on the Republican and Progressive tickets by a large majority and received morc votes than any other candidate for any office on the differ- ent tickets. He was appointed commissioner of school lands of Ritchie county, serving four years until his election as prosecuting attorney ; is now master commissioner in chancery of the circuit court and commis- sioner of accounts of the county court, and on divers occasions has been chosen and served as special judge of the circuit court ; has been trustee in bankruptcy of a number of cases involving estates of large magnitude and has succeeded in building up a lucrative practice in the several courts. He was partially instrumental in organizing the Ritchie County Bar Association and is now its vice-president. He is a member and past mas- ter of Harrisville Lodge, No. 98, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons ; member of Odell S. Long Chapter, No. 25, Royal Arch Masons; past eminent commander of Pennsboro Commandery, No. 20, Knights Tem- plar ; member of Nemesis Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine of North America; past worthy patron of Harrisville Chapter, No. 29, Order of the Eastern Star, and is also a member of the Modern Woodmen of the World. Mr. Davis is a member of the Baptist church, superintendent of the Sunday school at Harrisville, and secretary and treasurer of the Ritchie County Sunday School Association.
HENDERSON This name is not of great frequency of occurrence, yet is well known in various parts of the United States. Dr. Octavius Jennings Henderson, of Mont- gomery, West Virginia, is of Irish descent, the immigrant ancestor hav- ing settled in this country soon after the beginning of its national life.
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