Article from Benbow, 1902, and other selected articles - Tazewell Co. VA Clinch Valley News Tazewell, Tazewell Co., VA Established 1845 J. A. Leslie-Editor Published Each Friday Cost-$1.00 per year-In Advance BENBOW April 25, 1902 Mr. and Mrs. A. B. Buchanan went to town Tuesday. Our Sunday school is progressing nicely. We now have about 40 scholars on roll. The greatest drawback we have is to get enough church members out to open the school. There was no preaching at this place Sunday evening, to the fact that Rev. Hanrahan (sic)was attending Presbytery at Dublin. He returned Tuesday. C. W. Matthews, of Graham, was in the community at the first of the week on business. (Charles Wesley "Wes" Matthews, son of William R. Matthews and Nancy Williams. C. W. Matthews was a well known Confederate Civil War Veteran. He lived to be 102 years of age. Charles married Cynthia Gregar, d/o Montgomery Gregar & his first wife, Susan Felty. Charles died in 1950). OTHER ARTICLES: BIRTHDAY: Clinch Valley News, Friday, May 28, 1948, Tazewell, Tazewell Co., VA. MR. MATTHEWS HAS HUNDRETH BIRTHDAY Charles Wesley Matthews, of Bluefield, Virginia, celebrated his 100th birthday Saturday. He was honored at a meeting sponsored by the Graham Kiwanis club and attended by a large gathering. At the meeting the members joined in singing group songs of several southern melodies, reminiscent of Mr. Matthews’ Civil War days. Mr. Matthews was voted as an honorary member of the Kiwanis club. At the conclusion of the meeting he extended his appreciation and thanks to the club for the meeting. The meal was served by the ladies of the Bluefield, Va., Eastern Star. INDIANS: Clinch Valley News, Friday, May 28, 1948, Tazewell, Tazewell Co., VA. (Located, in paper, under the article about the 100th birthday of Charles Wesley Matthews) A TRIBE OF INDIANS W. E. Hilt, of Tannersville chaperoned a tribe of Indians from his neighborhood to Tazewell last week. They were enroute to Graham to pay respects to Wesley Matthews, a member of the tribe, who celebrated his 100th birthday Saturday. The company included Geo. R. Moore, Claude A. Garrott, Edward Sheppard, Garland Moore, members of the Saltville tribe of Indians. The men were dressed in their regalia, and attracted much attention. When they first appeared in the printing office we were not sure but that they were from the tribe of Cherokees, about which we have heard so much lately, but they turned out to be just people. (Due to the statement of the last sentence I am left wondering if these were real Indians-Karen EAGLE Moman) CIVIL WAR VETERANS: Clinch Valley News, Friday, July 2, 1948, Tazewell, Tazewell Co., VA. FIVE CIVIL WAR VETS REMAIN IN VIRGINIA All but one of Virginia’s five surviving Confederate Veterans has reached or passed the century mark in age, records in the office of the State Chief Pension Clerk show. Ages of the surviving veterans are: John Salling, Scott County, 99 Charles W. Matthews, Bluefield, 100 John G. Dickerson, Suffolk, 103 Theodore N. Mayo, Norfolk, 103 George Bannister, Richmond, 100 General Julius Howell, died in Bristol several days ago at the age of 102. CIVIL WAR VETERANS: Clinch valley News, Friday, October 15, 1948, Tazewell, Tazewell Co., VA. ONLY 4 VETERANS LEFT IN VIRGINIA Norfolk’s last Confederate Veteran died on October 11, at the age of 103. He was Norman Mayo *. He volunteered for the Confederate Army at the age of 16. Through the decades that followed he never forgot the three of vigorous fighting; and he liked to tell of them-especially when he was celebrating a birthday. Mr. Mayo’s death leaves only four Confederate Veterans in Virginia: George Bannister, 100 of Richmond Benjamin Richards, 98, of Strasburg (not mentioned in previous article in July, 1948) John Salling, 99, of Scott County Charles W. Matthews, 100, of Bluefield * We know from a previous article in this paper that Mr. Mayo’s given name was Theodore. Theodore Norman Mayo CIVIL WAR VETERANS: Clinch valley News, Friday, August 12, 1949, Tazewell, Tazewell Co., VA. LAST VETERAN IN RICHMOND DIES Funeral services were held in St. Peter’s Catholic Church in Richmond Tuesday for George Bannister, the last of Richmond’s Confederate Veterans. Mr. Bannister died Saturday at the age of 101. His death reduced to two the living Virginia Veterans of Confederate Forces. The two living veterans are John Salling of Scott County and Charles W. Matthews, of Bluefield, Va. At the age of 16 Mr. Bannister became a drummer-boy with the Forty-Ninth Virginia Regiment of Pickett’s Brigade. He stated that General Lee was the only General he met during the his war travels, and they met for the first time in Richmond following the March from Seven Pines. DEATH: Clinch Valley News, Friday, October 13, 1950, Tazewell, Tazewell Co., VA. C. W. MATTHEWS Charles Wesley Matthews, veteran of the Confederate Army, died at his home in Bluefield Sunday night. He was 102 years old and next to the last Confederate Veteran in Virginia and one less that a score in the nation. Among the historical events remembered by Mr. Matthews in his lifetime was Lee’s surrender at Appomattox and the California gold rush. He was born in Hillsville May 22, 1848 on a farm. My sisters, Shirley and Janice Eagle, and I attended Graham High School with the great granddaughter of Charles Wesley Matthews, Barbara Matthews. Barbara had a cousin that attended the same years, Lynda Brammer. I do not know if the kinship to Lynda was maternal of fraternal. ____ Miss Nellie and Eddy Lynch were visiting in Tazewell Saturday and Sunday. 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