Mineral County, West Virginia Biography of Arthur ARNOLD This file was submitted by Valerie Crook, E-mail address: The submitter does not have a connection to the subject of this sketch. This file may be freely copied by individuals and non-profit organizations for their private use. All other rights reserved. Any other use, including publication, storage in a retrieval system, or transmission by electronic, mechanical, or other means requires the written approval of the file's author. This file is part of the WVGenWeb Archives. If you arrived here inside a frame or from a link from somewhere else, our front door is at http://www.usgwarchives.net/wv/wvfiles.htm The History of West Virginia, Old and New Published 1923, The American Historical Society, Inc., Chicago and New York, Volume III, pg. 211-212 ARTHUR ARNOLD. The prosecuting attorney, Arthur Arnold, is one of the able, resourceful and aggressive mem- bers of the Mineral County bar, and one who has taken a leading part in all of the important, first-class litigation in his native county. He has devoted himself, his capabil- ities and skill, to the practice of his chosen profession, and not only has built up a very large and valuable connection, but has been called upon to occupy positions of trust and responsibility by his fellow citizens. The birth of Arthur Arnold took place at Piedmont, Mineral County, West Virginia, where he still maintains his residence, September 21, 1884. He is a son of Stewart B. and Hannah (Elliott) Arnold. Stewart B. Arnold was born in the Valley of Virginia, near Winchester, and was there reared and educated. Prior to his marriage he came into West Virginia and established himself in a mercan- tile business at Piedmont. Here he continued to conduct a general store and deal in meat and cattle upon an extensive scale. His death occurred in 1887 when he was only forty years of age. He was married at Piedmont, and his wife was a daughter of James B. and Jane (Sewell) Elliott. Mrs. Elliott was born in England, was there married and came to the United States, with her husband locating at Piedmont, West Virginia, in 1850. Her husband, James B. Elliott, aided in the construction of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad as an engineer, with which organization he was connected until his death. While he was not identified in a military sense with either side during the war of the '60s, his sympathies and those of the Elliott family were with the North, and it was under this influence that Arthur Arnold was reared, his father having died when the son was only two years of age. The Arnolds were Southern sympathizers, and one of the brothers of Stewart B. Ar- nold was in the Confederate service, and a sister, Laura Arnold, took a very active part in the conflict, being a trusted messenger for the Confederacy, operating in the Valley of Virginia. Stewart B. Arnold and his wife had the following children: Arthur, whose name heads this re- view; and Miss Stewart E., who is one of the popular and efficient educators of the Piedmont schools, being principal of the Piedmont High School. Arthur Arnold attended the Piedmont schools through the high-school course, and then entered the University of West Virginia, where he took up law, history and litera- ture, and was graduated from the legal department in the spring of 1906. During the time he was attending the uni- versity he was a member of the Glee Club, and belongs to the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity. Upon completing his law course Mr. Arnold was admit- ted to practice in the Circuit Court of Mineral County, and in the fall of 1906 established his law office at Piedmont, which is five miles from Keyser, the county seat. Subse- quently he opened another office at Keyser, and maintains both. He tried his first Circuit Court case in Keyser, but since then has had cases outside of the county, for his skill, determination and fearlessness have brought him many clients from a wide area. Mr. Arnold has never taken a partner, preferring to practice alone, and he has concen- trated his attention upon his professional work. In 1909 Mr. Arnold was chief clerk of the Judiciary Committee of the State Senate, and in 1910 was appointed prosecuting attorney of Mineral County by Judge F. M. Reynolds to fill out the unexpired term of A. J. Welton. With the ex- piration of that period Mr. Arnold retired to private life, but in November, 1920, was elected to the same office. Since assuming the duties of this office Mr. Arnold has had ample opportunity of not only proving his ability as an at- torney but his worth as a citizen. He has done both, and is giving the people a service which is marked by its stern pursuit of evildoers and its unflinching insistence upon equal rights for all classes. In politics a republican, Mr. Arnold cast his first presi- dential ballot for William H. Taft, but long before that, during his minority, made himself useful on behalf of his party, and was active in the interests of the party which he had already selected for his own, his mother and her immediate relatives being ardent republicans. He has been a delegate from Piedmont to every republican convention held in the county, district and state, since he attained his majority. At different times he has been a member of the Mineral County Republican Committee, and managed nu- merous campaigns in the county. As a member of the State Senatorial and, Second Congressional District com- mittees of his party he has also rendered yeoman service, and he has been one of the effective campaign speakers for years. Fraternally Mr. Arnold maintains membership with the Knights of Pythias. He is a communicant of the Episcopal church, and was reared in its faith. On June 26, 1918, Mr. Arnold married at Piedmont, West Virginia, by Rev. Mr. Ronalds Taylor, rector of the Epis- copal Church at that place, Mrs. Mabel (Shook) Long, a daughter of the late Maj. E. H. Shook, a Union veteran of the Michigan Volunteer Infantry, with an enviable war record. He was born in New York State, but was taken to Michigan by his parents, and was reared at Mount Clem- ons and Detroit. Following the close of the Civil war Major Shook was employed by the Government, and he came to Piedmont with the United States postal card fac- tory after the Spanish-American war, and was in the Gov- ernment service until his death. Both he and his wife are buried at Mount demons, Michigan. Mrs. Arnold is the younger of two children, the elder being Mrs. Mira Gore, of Detroit, Michigan. Mr. and Mrs. Arnold have no chil- dren. In every respect Mr. Arnold measures up to the high- est standards of American citizenship, and the future looks very bright for him. His fellow citizens realize that no matter what honors may be bestowed upon this talented young attorney they will be deserved, and that he will prove capable of discharging greater responsibilities if called upon to do so, for his is a character which expands under the stress of demand.