WV-FOOTSTEPS-D Digest Volume 99 : Issue 155 Today's Topics: #1 BIO: McCONIHAY, John M., M.D. -Cha [PJSTON@aol.com] #2 BIO: REAY, David Chadwick-Monongal [PJSTON@aol.com] #3 BIO: HENNEN, Robert D. - Monongali [PJSTON@aol.com] #4 BIO: BEK, Hugh Ernest-Charleston, [PJSTON@aol.com] #5 BIO: McDERMOTT, Bernard James-Mono [PJSTON@aol.com] #6 Henry Louis Carspecken- Morgantown [Joan Wyatt ] Administrivia: To unsubscribe from WV-FOOTSTEPS-D, send a message to WV-FOOTSTEPS-D-request@rootsweb.com that contains in the body of the message the command unsubscribe and no other text. No subject line is necessary, but if your software requires one, just use unsubscribe in the subject, too. To contact the WV-FOOTSTEPS-D list administrator, send mail to WV-FOOTSTEPS-admin@rootsweb.com. ______________________________X-Message: #1 Date: Tue, 14 Dec 1999 10:10:37 EST From: PJSTON@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: <0.8fa66ba6.2587b7ed@aol.com> Subject: BIO: McCONIHAY, John M., M.D. -Charleston, WV Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit The History of West Virginia, Old and New Published 1923, The American Historical Society, Inc., Chicago and New York, Volume II pg 191 John M. McConihay, M. D. More than forty-five years of the life of Doctor McConihay have been devoted to the profession of medicine and surgery. One of the oldest and best known members of his profession at Charleston, Doctor McConihay has combined with his profession a distinctive service in the order of Masonry, the crowning honor in token of this long service coming in October, 1921, at Washington, when the Southern Grand Jurisdiction conferred upon him the supreme honorary thirty-third degree of the Scottish Rite. Doctor McConihay was born near Milton, Cabell County, West Virginia, in 1853, son of Ira and Mary (Morris) McConihay also natives of the state. Doctor McConihay was a boy when his parents moved to a home on the Kanawha River in Mason County, where he was reared and where he attended the public schools. He completed his literary education in Dennison University of Ohio, and in 1876 graduated M. D. from the Kentucky School of Medicine at Louisville. After about a dozen years of arduous country practice at Leon in Mason County and Buffalo in Putnam County Doctor McConihay removed to Charleston in 1889, and for over thirty years has been one of the busy professional men of this city. He is a member of the County, State and American Medical Associations. His active service in Masonry began in 1880. Among other honors he is a past grand master of the Grand Lodge of West Virginia, a past grand high priest of the Grand Chapter of the Royal Arch Masons, was grand lecturer for eleven years, and his activities have covered a wide range of usefulness during forty years. He is also a past potentate of Beni-Kedem Temple of the Mystic Shrine, and past commander of Kanawha Commandery of Knights Templar at Charleston. For several years Doctor McConihay has been president of the Charleston Alumni Chapter of the Sigma Chi fraternity. He married Miss Anna Evelith, a native of Tennessee but of West Virginia ancestry. Their five children are Mrs. Evelith Wilkerson, Mrs. Almah Wilson, Mrs. Pauline King, Miss Vivian McConihay and Morris McConihay. ______________________________X-Message: #2 Date: Tue, 14 Dec 1999 15:59:04 EST From: PJSTON@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: <0.238cc682.25880998@aol.com> Subject: BIO: REAY, David Chadwick-Monongalia Co., WV Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit The History of West Virginia, Old and New Published 1923, The American Historical Society, Inc., Chicago and New York, Volume II pg 194 David Chadwick Reay, who is engaged in the practice of his profession in his native city of Morgantown, as one of the representative members of the bar of Monongalia County, is a scion of the fourth generation of the Reay family in America and of the third generation in what is now the State of West Virginia. John Otho Reay, son of Capt. John Otho Reay, of the Royal English Navy, came to America in 1795, and first settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, whence he later removed to Baltimore, Maryland. From the latter city he thereafter removed to Hardy County, Virginia. He was twice married, his second wife having been Elizabeth, a daughter of Capt. John Neville and granddaughter of Gen. Joseph Neville, of Virginia, and of the marriage were born two sons and two daughters, of whom the son, George M., was the grandfather of him whose name introduces this review. George M. Reay was born in Hardy County, Virginia, in 1813, and when he was four years of age his widowed mother became the wife of David Gilmore. Soon afterward the family came to what is now Tucker County, West Virginia, and in 1833 George M. Reay established his residence at Morgantown, where he continued actively in business until 1870. Here he served as justice of the peace from 1841 to 1859, and within this period served also as captain of militia. December 24, 1840, he married Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Maple, of Greene county, Pennsylvania, and their son, Thomas P., became the father of David C. Reay of this sketch. Thomas Presley Reay was born at Morgantown, August 30, 1841, received good educational advantages, as gauged by the standards of the locality and period, and he prepared himself for the legal profession. However, he turned his attention from the law and engaged in the coal and oil business, in which he had active part in the development of these productive industries in this section of the state. He served as general deputy collector of internal revenue for the Eleventh Revenue Division, comprising West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware and the District of Columbia, and this office he resigned in 1895, since which time he has continued his residence at Morgantown and given his supervision to his varied capitalistic and business interests. His wife, Sarah Virginia, a daughter of Dr. Marmaduke Dent, died on the 17th of October, 1920, and her memory is revered by all who came within the sphere of her gracious influence. David Chadwick Reay, son of Thomas P. and Sarah Virginia Reay, was born at Morgantown on the 21st of November, 1870, and the local schools afforded him his preliminary education. In 1895 he was graduated from the law department of the University of West Virginia, and his reception of the degree of Bachelor of Laws was followed in the same year by his admission to the bar of his native state. In 1896 he was appointed deputy clerk of the Supreme Court of West Virginia, and he continued his service in this capacity until 1902, when he resigned to enter the practice of his profession at Morgantown. Here he was associated in practice with Charles A. Goodwin, under the firm name of Goodwin & Reay, until 1918, when President Wilson appointed him auditor of the treasury for the Department of the Interior at Washington. In this office he gave a most effective and creditable administration, and in October, 1919, he resigned his Government post for the purpose of resuming the practice of his profession, but it was not until October, 1920, that his resignation was accepted and he returned to Morgantown, where he has continued in the practice of law, with a representative clientage. Aside from his law business Mr. Reay has substantial interests in coal mining and oil production, and to these he finds it expedient to give the major part of his time and attention. He is a member of the West Virginia State Bar Association and the Monongalia Bar Association, is affiliated with the Phi Sigma Kappa college fraternity, is a staunch democrat, holds membership in the Morgantown Country Club, and he and his wife are active members of the First Presbyterian Church in their home city. He is a loyal and progressive member of the Morgantown Chamber of Commerce. July 2, 1900, recorded the marriage of Mr. Reay and Miss Margaret Katheine Krieger, daughter of Frederick and Margaret (Kirschner) Krieger, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The names and respective dates of birth of the children of Mr. and Mrs. Reay are here recorded: Margaret Virginia, January 19, 1902; Virginia Dent, October 5, 1904; and David Neville, April 11, 1919. ______________________________X-Message: #3 Date: Tue, 14 Dec 1999 16:20:58 EST From: PJSTON@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: <0.da33db0e.25880eba@aol.com> Subject: BIO: HENNEN, Robert D. - Monongalia Co., WV Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit The History of West Virginia, Old and New Published 1923, The American Historical Society, Inc., Chicago and New York, Volume II pg 193 Robert D. Hennen, of Morgantown, Monongalia County, has achieved high standing in his profession, that of civil engineer, is actively identified with important industrial and capitalistic interests, and is a scion of one of the old and honored families of this section of West Virginia. He was born at Morgantown, August 17, 1883, and is a son of the late Frederick A. and Ella E. (Coil) Hennen. The father was born at Morgantown, February 26, 1844, a son of Robert P. and Elizabeth (Wilkins) Hennen. Robert P. Hennen was born in the State of Pennsylvania, where his father, Matthew Hennen, settled upon immigration to America from his native County Down, Ireland. Robert P. Hennen later came to Morgantown, in what is now West Virginia, and here engaged in the work of his trade, that of cabinetmaker, in which connection he became one of the pioneer undertakers of this place. He served as a member of the borough council during the '60s, and here his death occurred in 1873. His wife was born in New Jersey and her death occurred in 1871. Frederick A. Hennen learned the trade of cabinetmaker under the direction of his father, and at Morgantown he followed his trade and engaged in the undertaking business, the enterprise later being amplified to include the furniture business, in which he continued until about 1912, when he retired. He was one of the honored and influential citizens of Morgantown, served about twelve years as a member of the City Council and was one of the most loyal and progressive citizens of his native city and county. His marriage to Miss Ella E. Coil was solemnized in 1882, and the gracious ties were severed by the death of Mrs. Hennen in 1910. He survived her by more than a decade and his death occurred June 5, 1921, both having been earnest members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and he having been affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Robert D. Hennen gained his preliminary education in the public schools of Morgantown, and in 1908 he was graduated in the celebrated Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the City of Boston. He received from this institution the degree of Bachelor of Science, and in 1912 the same degree and also that of Civil Engineer were conferred upon him by the University of West Virginia, in which he had taken effective post-graduate work. In 1908 he was appointed civil engineer of Monongalia County by the County Court, and he served in this position four years, within which he did much important work for the county. From 1912 to 1914 he was engineer in chief in the construction of the Morgantown & Wheeling Railroad, and in the latter year he organized the Monongahela Valley Engineering Company of Morgantown, of which he continued the executive head until he disposed of his interests in the corporation in 1920. Mr. Hennen was one of the organizers of the Moore-Tex Oil Company of Morgantown, of which he is vice president, and he was likewise one of the organizers of the Knob Coal Company, of his interest in which he later disposed. Mr.. Hennen is affiliated with Morgantown Lodge No. 411 Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and is a valued and progressive member of the local Rotary Club and the Morgantown Chamber of Commerce. He is a member also of the Morgantown Country Club, is treasurer of the Alumni Association of the University of West Virginia, a trustee of the Phi Kappa Psi college fraternity, and he and his wife hold membership in the Methodist Episcopal Church in their home city. Mr. Hennen married Miss Louise Reiner, daughter of Thomas P. and Emma (Porter) Reiner, of Dunbar, Pennsylvania, and she is a popular factor in the representative social activities of Morgantown. ______________________________X-Message: #4 Date: Tue, 14 Dec 1999 17:39:03 EST From: PJSTON@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: <0.284d7cf2.25882107@aol.com> Subject: BIO: BEK, Hugh Ernest-Charleston, WV Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit The History of West Virginia, Old and New Published 1923, The American Historical Society, Inc., Chicago and New York, Volume II pg 195 Hugh Ernest Bek is a Western man by birth and training, is a mechanical and electrical engineer, and during the past ten years has been building up a highly successful business at Charleston, where he is president of the Triple State Electric Company, who are distributors for Studebaker cars in Southern West Virginia. Mr.. Bek was born at Arago, Richardson County, Nebraska, in 1884. He lived in his home town until he was of age, attending the public schools, and showing special aptitude for mechanical lines, later entered the Iowa State College at Ames, where he was graduated in 1909 in Mechanical and Electrical Engineering. Mr. Bek located at Charleston, West Virginia, in 1912, and soon afterward became principal owner of an automobile business that had been founded in 1903 and is now incorporated as the Triple State Electric Company. He is president and active manager of this company whose exclusive business is devoted to handling Studebaker cars, and parts. Its jurisdiction for sales and service comprises the counties of Kanawha, Putnam, Clay, Braxton, Webster, Nicholas, Fayette, Raleigh, Summers, Greenbrier, Boone and Monroe, and there are two branch agencies, one at St. Albans and one at Clendenin. The different departments of the business comprise one of Charleston's leading industries. Mr. Bek is one of the public spirited, active young business men of the city, is affiliated with the Charleston Chamber of Commerce, the Charleston Automobile Club and Rotary Club. He married Miss Jessie Pearl Lanier, of Mason County, West Virginia, and they have one son, Hugh Ernest, Jr. Mr. Bek is a Scottish Rite Mason, a Knight Templar and a Shriner. He is Master of Kanawha Lodge No. 20, A. F. and A. M. He is also a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Charleston. ______________________________X-Message: #5 Date: Tue, 14 Dec 1999 21:12:39 EST From: PJSTON@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: <0.6da20509.25885317@aol.com> Subject: BIO: McDERMOTT, Bernard James-Monongalia Co., WV Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit The History of West Virginia, Old and New Published 1923, The American Historical Society, Inc., Chicago and New York, Volume II pg 194 Bernard James McDermott, civil and mining engineer and coal operator, is one of the progressive citizens and representative business men of Morgantown, county seat of Monongalia County. He was born at Taunton, Massachusetts, February 9, 1882, and is a son of Michael and Mary Ann (Lynch) McDermott, the former of whom was born in County Leitrim, Ireland, and the latter at Cool Springs, New York, both being now deceased. The parochial and public schools of his native city afforded Bernard J. McDermott his early education, and at the age of nineteen years he entered the engineering department of the Shawmut Mining Company at Byrnedale, Elk County, Pennsylvania, in the capacity of draftsman. His technical ability and effective service led to his promotion to the position of division engineer for the company of which he continued the incumbent four years. He left Byrnedale in May, 1906, to assume the position of chief engineer of the Elkins Coal & Coke Company at Morgantown, West Virginia. Here he received appointment also to the post of chief engineer of the Morgantown & Kingwood Railway Company, and of these two responsible offices he continued in tenure eleven years-until August 3, 1917. Within this period Mr. McDermott had charge of the designs and construction of five new mines of the Elkins Coal & Coke Company and the reconstruction of two other mines of the company. He became associated with Joseph Miller, of New York City, and built and placed in operation mines No. 1 and No. 2 at Britz, West Virginia, and mill No. 3 at Kingwood, of which properties he is now the chief operator, under the title of chief engineer and general superintendent, with office headquarters in the Price Building at Morgantown. Mr. McDermott is affiliated with Morgantown Lodge No. 411, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; Branch No. 62, Knights of St. George; and the Council of the Knights of Columbus at St. Mary's, Pennsylvania. He is an active member of the Morgantown Country Club. Mr. McDermott married Miss Angela De Lisle, and they have four children: Susan Marie, Bernard Joseph, Louis Leo and Mary Ann. ______________________________X-Message: #6 Date: Tue, 14 Dec 1999 21:52:57 -0500 From: Joan Wyatt To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: <38570285.15F18AAD@uakron.edu> Subject: Henry Louis Carspecken- Morgantown, WV Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii; x-mac-type="54455854"; x-mac-creator="4D4F5353" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit The History of West Virginia, Old and New Published 1923, The American Historical Society, Inc. Chicago and New York, Volume 11 pg.172 Henry Louis Carspecken- Morgantown, WV When an individual has been identified with the business, financial and civic interests of a community for a period of more than twenty years it would be anomaly were he not intimately known to the citizens of that place. In the seething, progressive life of a rising, enterprising town or city the man who shows himself interested in the advancement of the public weal is bound to be more or less in the public eye, and that eye, as it has often showed itself, is capable of piercing its way into the best-huried secrets. For more than twenty years the record of Henry Louis Carspecken has stood inviolate before the citizens of Morgantown, among whom he is recognized as a capable business man of sound integrity, a financier of ability and a citizen of public spirit and constructive ideas. Mr. Carspecken was born in the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, February 3, 1873, a son of Henry and Mary (Schott) Carspecken. His father was a civil engineer at Pittsburgh for many years, the latter's father was educated for that profession, and his grandfather practiced that vocation. In 1879 Henry Carspecken retired from civil engineering and removed to Oakland , Iowa, where he engaged in stock raising and farming for a number of years, but for the past twenty years has been living in that town. The mother of Henry L. Carspecken died when her son was an infant but nine days old. Henry Louis Carspecken accompanied his father and the other children to Iowa, and in that state he attended the public schools, acquiring the equivalent of a high school education. At the age of eighteen years he commenced teaching school in the West, a vocation in which he was engaged for a year, and in the meantime prepared himself for college, with the intention of following the family vocation of civil engineering, as had his father, grandfather and great- grandfather. However after returning to Pittsburgh and attending a business college he gave up, as he then thought temporarily, his intentions as a civil engineer, and in 1893 entered the glass industry as secretary to the president of the Brownsville Plate Glass Company at New Kensington, Pennsylvania,eighteen miles above Pittsburgh. Upon the death of the president of that company Mr. Carspecken reorganized that business under the name of the Brownsville Glass Company, and became its secretary and treasurer. Later on that concern was merged with the Appert Glass Company, whose plant was at Port Allegheny, Pennsylvania, and general offices in New York City. Mr. Carspecken became manager of the new concern. In 1903 he organized the Brownsville Glass Company, a new company with the old name, and became its secretary and general manager, in which capacities he built the plant at Morgantown, which later was absorbed by the Mississippi Glass Company. Mr. Carspecken continued as manager of the Morgantown plant of this concern, and has remained in the same capacity to the present time. For nearly twenty years he has been identified with the business interests of Morgantown, particularly those dealing with its oil, coal, glass, gas and allied financial interests, and has been an offical and director of numerous companies in these lines, all of which have benefited through his connection. He is now vice president of the Bank of Morgantown, one of that city's most important banking institutions. He has at all times taken an active and helpful interest in local and civic affairs, formely served as president of the Morgantown Independant School District Board, is a member of the Morgantown Rotary Club, and served, with the rank of colonel, as a member of the staffs of Governers Glasscock and Hatfield. Mr. Carspecken married Miss May Hutson, daughter of the Rev. J.S.Hutson, a minister of the Baptist Church of Pittsburgh, and to this union there were born the following children: Harold, born in 1905; Margaret, born in 1907; Henry Louis Jr., born in 1912; and John Frederic, born in 1915.