Early History of Monroe County
History of New River Settlements.

The people living along the New River to the northeast thereof 
and north of the Narrows of said river, in what is now Giles 
County, were inhabitants of Greenbrier County and lived many 
miles from Lewisburg,their county town. They therefore determined 
to apply for the creation of a new county, and by an act of the 
Legislature of Virginia passed January 14th, 1799, the County of 
Monroe was created out of the territory of Greenbrier, with the 
following boundaries as set forth in the said Act, viz: 

"Beginning 
where the ridge dividing the eastern from the western
waters joins Peter's Mountain, and with said eastern ridge to the 
ridge which divides Howard's and Second Creek, thence with the 
said ridge westwardly, including the waters of Second Creek to 
the Wagon road at Robert Knox's, thence with the said creek to 
Thomas Nichols' Spring branch, thence a straight line to 
Alderson's ferry landing on Greenbrier River, thence down the 
said river to the mouth of Muddy Creek, thence crossing the same 
to the ridge which divides the waters of Muddy Creek and 
Griffith's run, and with the said ridge to Keeney's Knobs and 
with said Knobs, including the waters flowing into Greenbrier 
River to New River, and up the same to where it breaks through 
Peter's Mountain, thence with said mountain an east course to 
the beginning."


From Lewis' History of West Virginia the following information 
is given concerning the organization of said county. 

"At one mile east of the present town of Union at the house of 
George King on the 21st day of May, 1799, the first County Court 
was held. William Hutchison, James Alexander, Isaac Estill, 
William Haynes, John Hutchinson, John Gray, John Byrnside,
William Graham, James Hanley, and William Vawter holding 
commissions from the governor of Virginia, composed the members 
of the first court. John Hutchison was appointed clerk, and John 
Woodyard Commonwealth's Attorney.

Isaac Estill having been by the Governor commissioned as sheriff, 
entered into bond as such, with James Alexander, William Haynes, 
and John Byrnside as his bondsmen. John Byrnside was recommended 
for appointment as surveyor of lands. John Arbuckle was appointed 
Deputy Sheriff.

The second day of the term was taken up largely in putting the 
military establishment on a proper footing, whereupon James 
Graham was recommended for appointment as Colonel for the county; 
John Hutchinson and John Hanley for Majors; and for Captains, 
Isaac Estill, John Byrnside, James Jones, Robert Nickel, William 
Graham, Samuel Clark, Henry McDaniel, and Watt
Farley. For Lieutenants, Nimrod Tackett, John Hanley, Jr., 
George Swope, James Gray, William Maddy, David Graham, Tollison 
Shumate, and Thomas Wyatt; and for Ensigns, Alexander Dunlap, 
Charles Keenan, James Young, James Byrnside, James Miller, James 
Gwin, James Thompson, and John Harvey.

James Graham was recommended for appointment as Coroner, and 
Thomas Lowe,Robert Dunbar, John Cottrell, William Dison, George 
Foster, Enos Halstead,and Joshua Lewis were appointed Constables.

On the 19th day of May, 1800, Honorable Archibald Stewart, Judge 
of the District composed of the counties of Greenbrier, Botetourt, 
Montgomery,Kanawha, and Monroe held the first court for the 
county, at Sweet Springs.

John skinner was appointed to prosecute for the Commonwealth, and 
Samuel Dew to discharge the duties of clerk.

A grand jury was empanelled, composed of William Royal, foreman, 
Dennis Cochran, John Matthews, Samuel Todd, Hugh Caperton, Joseph 
Snodgrass,Isaac Snodgrass, William Howell, John Peck, Joseph 
Cloyd, (the latter two citizens of Giles County.) John Lewis, 
William Vawter, Jacob Persinger, John Byrnside, and James 
Byrnside. Two indictments found at the term, parties tried same 
term and acquitted.

The second term of the court held at the same place on the 18th 
day ofOctober, 1800, at which Judge Paul Carrington presided.

In 1799, the County Court selected the present site Union, for 
the County town on twenty-five acres of land the property of 
James Alexander, and was laid off into lots and streets, and 
the same was subsequently, to wit: January 1800, established as a 
town by the General Assembly, and William Haynes, John Gray, John 
Byrnside, James Hanley, Michael Erskine, John
Hutchison, Isaac Estill constituted trustees thereof."

The territory now embraced in Monroe County was visited by white 
people as early as 1760. John Alderson and William Morris visited 
the county about 1777. Christian Peters, an American Soldier, who 
served in General LaFayette's Corps at Yorktown, came to what is 
now Petestown in 1783. In the year of 1770, came the Manns, Cooks, 
Millers, Alexanders, Nickels, Campbells, Dunsmores, Hokes, Lakes, 
Calloways, Sweeneys, Haynes, Erkines,
Grahams, and Hutchinsons, largely from the Virginia Valley.

The early history of this people is the same substantially as 
those of the Greenbrier and New River Valleys, which has already 
been given in this volume.

The military history of the people of Monroe is in a measure 
written in the chapter devoted to that subject in this volume, as 
her citizen soldiers served largely with the New River Valley men, 
with the exception of one company, which was led to the war by 
Captain Hugh Snidow Tiffany, who fell in the first battle of 
Manasses. His company belonged to the 27th Virginia Regiment of 
the Stonewall brigade.

In both civil and military life, Monroe has furnished a number of
distinguished men, among them Hugh Caperton, Andrew Beirne, Allen T.
Caperton, A. A. Chapman, John Echols, Frank Hereford, John M. Rowan, Judge
A. N. Campbell, Rev. J. P. Campbell, and others.

Among her valued citizens, are Campbells, Hansbargers, Swopes, 
Johnsons,Johnstons, Symns, Clarks, Ballards, Fleshmans, Pecks, 
Aldersons, Nickels,Rowans, Becketts, McClaughertys, Osborns, 
Harveys, Pences, Adairs, Packs,Thrashers, Karnes, Spanglers, 
Shanklins, Vawters, and numerous others. Its
population is steady, industrious, and as little crime is 
committed in thecounty of Monroe as any county in the state.

Adam Mann, Jacob Mann, and others as early as the year 1770, 
built a fort on Indian Creek, some ten miles west from the present 
town of Union. The Cooks, also built a fort on Indian Creek some 
three miles from its mouth.

This Mann family was of English origin--from Kent. They came at 
an early day to America, and that branch of the family, the 
ancestor of the present New River Valley families of that name was 
William, who settled in Augusta in 1778. It is a numerous family, 
some of them attained to prominence in
the revolutionary, border and civil wars. From Mann MS. it 
appears, that two of this family, Thomas and William, were 
soldiers on the Ohio at fort Randolph shortly after the battle of 
Point Pleasant, and while there, on the south side of the Kanawha, 
appeared one Simon Girty, who gave to
Thomas and William Mann the sign of distress, and urged them to 
cross for him as he was pursued by the Indians; yielding to his 
entreaties, they with others crossed the river in a canoe, and 
as they approached the shore a party of Indians in hiding fired 
upon them, killing Thomas Mann, and badly wounding William, who 
escaped but died in what is now Fayette County, while trying to 
make his way to Donnally's Fort, in Greenbrier (Mann MS.). Of this 
family are Isaac T. and Edwin Mann, prominent and
successful business men of Mercer County. Mr. James E. Mann of 
this same family, a most useful, intelligent citizen, and 
successful financier lived for a number of years in the city of
Bluefield, where his widow and children still reside. Mr. Mann 
died a few years ago, a highly respected and esteemed citizen.