West Virginia Statewide Files WV-Footsteps Mailing List WV-FOOTSTEPS-D Digest Volume 99 : Issue 74 Today's Topics: #1 BIO: Charles Samuel DICE, Greenbri [SSpradling@aol.com] #2 BIO: John A. HANDLEY, Greenbrier C [SSpradling@aol.com] #3 BIO: William G. RATLIFFE, Greenbri [SSpradling@aol.com] #4 BIO: Capt. Robert Flournoy DENNIS, [SSpradling@aol.com] #5 BIO: Joseph N. ALDERSON, Jr., Gree [SSpradling@aol.com] #6 BIO: Thomas Hamner DENNIS, Greenbr [SSpradling@aol.com] #7 BIO: The CURRY Family, Greenbrier [SSpradling@aol.com] #8 BIO: John PETERS, Greenbrier Count [SSpradling@aol.com] 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: Sun, 3 Oct 1999 03:41:18 EDT From: SSpradling@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: <4cbdcb34.2528629e@aol.com> Subject: BIO: Charles Samuel DICE, Greenbrier County Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit History of Greenbrier County J. R. Cole Lewisburg, WV 1917 p. 224-226 CHARLES SAMUEL DICE. Charles S. Dice has been judge of the Twentieth judicial circuit since April 1, 1911. He was elevated to the position first by appointment to fill an unexpired term ending January 1, 1913, and was the youngest man at that time who ever sat upon the circuit bench of West Virginia. At the general election in November, 1912, he was elected to succeed himself for a term of eight years, and thus far his equitable decisions have earned for him the reputation of being "the just judge." By temperament, education, experience and ability, Judge Dice is well equipped for the work of a jurist, which was preceded by a very successful practice as a lawyer at the bar before his advancement to a place on the bench. Judge Dice, son of Rev. John Cunningham and Sallie A. (Roszell) Dice, was born at Rockville, Md., May 13, 1876. After completing courses of study at the Randolph-Macon academies at Bedford City and Front Royal, Va., and Randolph-Macon College at Ashland, Va., taking from those institutions of learning a high stand in literary attainments, he entered the law department of Washington and Lee University, Virginia, graduat-ing with a professional degree from that institution in June, 1896. He then chose Lewisburg for his future abode, and has resided here ever since. Mr. Dice entered the law office of Judge L. J. Williams, his brother-in-law, upon his coming to Lewisburg, and was admitted to the bar when twenty-one years of age, when he became a part-ner in the law firm of Williams & Dice, and remained until Judge Williams's elevation to the bench of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, January 1, 1909, from which time Mr. Dice practiced alone, and with signal success, having a large and important clientele. Judge Dice is a member of the West Virginia State Bar Association, and also of the American Bar Association, having been a vice-president of the former body and served on its important committees. He takes an active interest in all public affairs and was elected first president of the Lewisburg Business Men's As-sociation, a body which is actively engaged in promoting the wel-fare of Lewisburg and community. He is a member of Greenbrier Lodge, No.42, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons., Lewisburg; Ronceverte Chapter, No.21, Royal Arch Masons, Ronceverte; Greenbrier Commandery, No. 15, Knights Templar, Lewisburg, and Beni Kedem Temple Mystic Shrine, at Charleston, W. Va. In politics, Judge Dice is a Republican, and, before his election to the bench, was a very active supporter of that party. For several years he was chairman of the Republican executive coimmittee. Judge Dice married Nina, daughter of Judge Homer A. and Mary A. (Byrne) Holt. Mrs. Dice is a member of the United Daughters of the Confederacy. The family worships in the Methodist Episcopal church, South, of which Judge Dice is a steward. Sandy Spradling SSpradling@AOL.com State Contact for WV GenExchange http://www.genexchange.com/wv/index.cfm ______________________________X-Message: #2 Date: Sun, 3 Oct 1999 03:44:22 EDT From: SSpradling@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: <0.21f7c81d.25286356@aol.com> Subject: BIO: John A. HANDLEY, Greenbrier County Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit History of Greenbrier County J. R. Cole Lewisburg, WV 1917 p. 226-227 JOHN A. HANDLEY. This branch of the Handley family comes from old Virginia stock. Alexander Handley, the father of the subject of this sketch, was a lieutenant in the War of 1812. He was a slave owner and a man of social standing where he lived. He was married twice. By his second wife, Henrietta Burke, he had six daughters and two sons, John A. being the youngest of the family. His wife was a daughter of William and Almira (Campbell) Burke, of Albemarle county, Virginia. Alexander Handley moved first to Missouri and then to Monroe county, West Virginia, where he died in 1843. The widow died in 1865. John A. Handley was horn January 21, 1841. When two years of age, his father died, and after twelve years more, he came with his brother-in-law, George Law, to Lewisburg, where he has remained since that time. Mr. Handley was a soldier in the Confederate army and par-ticipated as a member of the Fourteenth Virginia cavalry in all the engagements of that regiment from 1862 to the close of the war. John A. Handley married Sarah Jean Beard, daughter of William and Peggy (McNeel) Beard, on October 24, 1867. She was an invalid all her life, and a devout Christian woman. She died March 21, 1910. There were four children horn to this union, namely: Launa Kate, wife of Charles E. Conner. Their daughter, Ruth, is in the Lewisburg Seminary. William Law, who died in infancy. Sarah McNeel and Lucy Austin, wife of James George, a farmer. John A. Handley and George Law built many houses in Lewisburg during their partnership of long standing. As an under-taker for thirty-five years, most of those lying at rest in the old grave yard of the Stone Church were taken care of by Mr. Handley. He was a member of the town council for ten years; has been a steward in the Methodist Episcopal church for fifty years and a standing member of the conference committee during the past ten years. Sandy Spradling SSpradling@AOL.com State Contact for WV GenExchange http://www.genexchange.com/wv/index.cfm ______________________________X-Message: #3 Date: Sun, 3 Oct 1999 03:50:13 EDT From: SSpradling@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: <60e7699c.252864b5@aol.com> Subject: BIO: William G. RATLIFFE, Greenbrier County Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit History of Greenbrier County J. R. Cole Lewisburg, WV 1917 p. 227-228 WILLIAM G. RATLIFFE. Merchandising has characterized the industrial habits of the Ratliffe family from the time of their first coming to this part of the State. Thomas W. Ratliffe, born January 19, 1854, was a native of Buckhannon county, where he was educated in the public schools and prepared for the more strenuous duties of life. His death occurred July 30, 1897. On March i8, 1877, he was married to Jennie F. Kendrick, daughter of William and Maria Gillespie Kendrick, and for twenty-six years afterwards Mr. Ratliffe followed the life of a dry goods merchant, twenty-five of which were in Buckhannon. The year before his death the family moved to Tazewell, Tazewell county. Mr. Ratliffe was superintendent of the county schools twelve years, and being a popular man, was a candidate at one tune for the State Legislature. Mrs. Jennie F. Ratliffe was bom Jaiiuary 26, 1857, and is still living. Children born to this union were: (i) May, horn May 1, 1878, died JulyA, 1892; (2) William G., August 19, 1880; (3) Alberta P., May26, 1883; (4) Joseph H., July 30, 1886, died September 11, 1896; (5) Crocker Bowen, October 14, 1887; (6) Walter Clay, July 1, 1890; (7) Thomas Marvin, August 29, 1894, and lives in Roanoke, Va. On April 6, 1898, William G. Ratliffe married Willie Wingo, daughter of Lester and Margaret A. Wingo, and are the parents of three children-Margaret, Thomas Barnes and Elizabeth Freeman. After marriage, Mr. Ratliffe lived in Virginia four years; in Kentucky seven years, coming here in 1910, having been a merchant all of that time. In 1915 he erected his beautiful residence, one of the finest in Lewisburg. Mr. Ratliffe is prominently identified in the Masonic fraternity and is one of the stewards of the Methodist Episcopal church. Sandy Spradling SSpradling@AOL.com State Contact for WV GenExchange http://www.genexchange.com/wv/index.cfm ______________________________X-Message: #4 Date: Sun, 3 Oct 1999 04:04:41 EDT From: SSpradling@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: Subject: BIO: Capt. Robert Flournoy DENNIS, Greenbrier County Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit History of Greenbrier County J. R. Cole Lewisburg, WV 1917 p. 228-229 CAPT. ROBERT F. DENNIS. Robert Flournoy Dennis, eldest son of Col. William H. and Ann (Morton) Dennis, was born in Charlotte county, Virginia, September 18, 1823; was graduated from Washington College, Lexington, Va., in 184-, and from the Law School of the Univer-sity of Virginia a year or two later; located to practice law at Rocky Mount, Va., but remained there only a few months, when he moved to Greenbrier in 1849. In the same year he married Martha Jane, youngest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John A. North. He was a Democrat in politics and a leader of the party in this section for many years prior to the war, fighting the battles of the party against the Whigs, Greenbrier being among the Strong Whig counties; was prosecuting attorney for Greenbrier, Pocabontas and Fayette counties, holding the office at the same time, we believe, in all three counties. When the Civil war came on, in 1861, he raised the first company-the Greenbrier Rifles (Infantry)-that went into the army of the Confederacy from this county and was attached to the Twenty-seventh Virginia, Stonewall Brigade; commanded his company at Kernstown and First Manassas and was with Jackson on his terrible march, in winter, from Winchester to Romney. Upon the reorganization of the army in 1862 or 1863, he went into another branch of the service, and so continued until captured at Crow's Tavern in Alleghany county, and sent to Camp Chase, where he was held many months as a prisoner of war, until in January, 1864, when he was exchanged, and returned to the Confederate service. When the war ended he returned to Lewisburg, but because he could not and would not take the test oath he was not allowed to appear in court. He formed a partnership with Alexander Walker, who looked after their cases in court. Other lawyers who had taken part with the South were forced to take in carpetbag, Yankee partners. In 1873 Captain Dennis was nominated by the Democrats for judge of the circuit court but was defeated by H. A. Holt, of Braxton, running as an independent candidate. In 1876 Captain Dennis was elected a member of the State senate and four years later reelected, serving eight years. During his service in the senate he was chairman of the judiciary committee and one of a commission appointed to revise the code. As a lawyer Captain Dennis ranked high, as an advocate before court or jury was strong and effective, as a stump speaker he held his audience by the force of his argument and the vigor of his speech and in his best days was conceded to be one of the best campaigners in the State. Having passed his seventy-third mile-stone in the journey of life, he passed away from the scenes of the world on October 8, 1897, about two years after the death of his wife. Sandy Spradling SSpradling@AOL.com State Contact for WV GenExchange http://www.genexchange.com/wv/index.cfm ______________________________X-Message: #5 Date: Sun, 3 Oct 1999 04:09:09 EDT From: SSpradling@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: <21f7c81f.25286925@aol.com> Subject: BIO: Joseph N. ALDERSON, Jr., Greenbrier County Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit History of Greenbrier County J. R. Cole Lewisburg, WV 1917 p. 229-230 JOSEPH N. ALDERSON, JR. The subject of this sketch, the present postmaster of Alderson, is the seventh in descent from John Alderson, the founder of the town of Alderson. Joseph N. Alderson, Sr., a well known merchant of the place, was the son of John Marshall and Cornelia (Coleman) Alderson. He was born February 20, 1848, and died August 10, 1901. His wife was Lillie Putney, daughter of Richard Putney, of Kanawha county, whom he married October 20, 1875. Their children were: James Moseley (deceased) ; Joseph N. Alderson, Jr., Aletha Todd Alderson, and Marshall Putney Alderson (deceased). Joseph N. Alderson, Jr., was born June 8, 1887, and was educated and reared in the town of his birth. On February 14, 1911, he married Miss Frances Richardson, daughter of William Richardson, of Huntington. To this union were born Frances Aletha and Alice Todd Alderson. Mr. Alderson has been a successful merchant and business man in Alderson and was connected with the First National Bank of that place for several years. He has been postmaster of Alderson since February 19, 1914. Sandy Spradling SSpradling@AOL.com State Contact for WV GenExchange http://www.genexchange.com/wv/index.cfm ______________________________X-Message: #6 Date: Sun, 3 Oct 1999 04:15:11 EDT From: SSpradling@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: Subject: BIO: Thomas Hamner DENNIS, Greenbrier County Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit History of Greenbrier County J. R. Cole Lewisburg, WV 1917 p. 230-231 THOMAS HAMNER DENNIS. Thomas H. Dennis, youngest son of Col. William I{. and Ann (Morton) Dennis, was born February 20, 1846, in Charlotte county, Virginia. He was educated in the schools of his community; at the Lewisburg Academy, 1865-66; in Washington Col-lege, Lexington, Va., 1866-68, and graduated from the Law School of the University of Virginia in June, 1873. He joined the Charlotte Troop Captain Bouldin-Fourteenth Virginia Regiment, in February, 1864, serving till the close of the war. He taught in the Charleston Male and Female Institute with Rev. Dr. J. C. Barr, 1868-69, then in Kansas for two and a half years. Returned to Lewisburg in 1872, and after reading law; with his brother, Capt. Robert F. Dennis, matriculated in the University of Virginia, graduating, as above stated, in 1873. As chairman of the Democratic county executive committee, about 1876, he prepared the rules and regulations under which the Democratic primaries of the county were conducted with satisfaction to the people for fully twenty-five years. Practiced law at Lewisburg, in partnership with his brother, from 1873 until 1887, when he bought a half interest in The Independent- and since has not been an active member of the bar. From about 1876 to 1882 he served the people as county superintendent of schools; was elected to the Hiouse of Delegates in 1884, and when the Legislature assembled at Wheeling in January, 1885, was chosen speaker of the House. He married Miss Jennie Johnston, daughter of Col. A. H. Johnston, of Union, December 23, 1884; bought Mr. Argabrite's interest in The Independent in October, 1909. and has since been its sole owner and editor; was again elected a member of the House of Delegates in 1908, serving at the January session, 1909. Sandy Spradling SSpradling@AOL.com State Contact for WV GenExchange http://www.genexchange.com/wv/index.cfm ______________________________X-Message: #7 Date: Sun, 3 Oct 1999 04:20:35 EDT From: SSpradling@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: Subject: BIO: The CURRY Family, Greenbrier County Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit History of Greenbrier County J. R. Cole Lewisburg, WV 1917 p. 231-232 THE CURRY FAMILY. With other Irish-Scotch Covenanters belonging to the original settlers in the valley of Virginia before the Revolutionary war, was the Curry family, some of whom afterwards took up their residence in what has since been known as West Virginia. Robert Curry, who came from Ireland in 1755, and settled in Augusta county, Virginia, was the great-great-grandfather of the present generation by that name in Greenbrier county. He reared a family of nine children. He was the father of James Curry, who lived near the headwaters of the North river, but in 1812 moved to Pendleton county, where he was ordained an elder in the Presbeterian church, and died there in 1832. 'Margaret Frances was the wife of James Curry, and her parents were also natives of Ireland. They reared a large family. Their son, James, was mar-ried twice. His first wife was Miss Nickell. Their two children were Mrs. Elizabeth Mann (now dead) and Isaac Curry, who moved west and died in Missouri. By his second wife, Miss Ruth Newton, Mr. Curry had eight children, namely: (1) Newton, (2) Preston, (3) Anderson. (4) Alpheus, (5) Harvey, (6) Robert, (7) Maggie, (8) Rebecca. Anderson was killed in the Civil war. Alpheus and Newton were also in that strife between the States. Their father, James Curry., died in 1880. He lived about a mile from Fort Spring and died when an old man, a very highly respected citizen of the community. He had been an elder of the Mt. Pleasant Presbyterian Church for a long time. His son, Robert Curry, was also an official of the church for many years and lived at the old homestead, where J. F. Curry now resides. Robert Curry died on the home place, May 15, 1899, about fifty years of age. He was a very quiet gentleman, and a deacon in the Mount Pleasant church. He married Lula McClung, July 21, 1886. She was a daughter of Wm F. McClung, of Muddy Creek, and a granddaughter of Devil Sam. (See history of the McClung family.) Mrs. Lula (McClung) Curry is still living. Their children were: Mattie R. Curry, born April 24, 1887, married Dr. E. M. Perry, December 27, 1911 J. F. Curry, born March 30, 1890, lives on the home farm; Evelyn, born May 15, 1892, mar-ried Harry L. Crawford, September 10, 1913. He is a brother of John S. Crawford, county clerk. Dr. Elmer M. Perry (who married Mattie Curry) was born June 25, 1869. He graduated in medicine at the Baltimore Medical College (which consolidated with the University of Maryland), and College of Physicians and Surgeons in 1895. After taking his degree of Doctor of Medicine he was a physician in the hospital at Weston, W. Va., for several years. He then came to Fort Spring, where he has practiced his profession since that time. Two children were born to Dr. and Mrs. Perry: Elizabeth Catherine, born November 23, 1912, died November 25, 1913, and Elmer Richardson Perry, born November 20, 1913. Sandy Spradling SSpradling@AOL.com State Contact for WV GenExchange http://www.genexchange.com/wv/index.cfm ______________________________X-Message: #8 Date: Sun, 3 Oct 1999 04:29:23 EDT From: SSpradling@aol.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-ID: Subject: BIO: John PETERS, Greenbrier County Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit History of Greenbrier County J. R. Cole Lewisburg, WV 1917 p. 232-235 JOHN PETERS. The Peters family is of German origin, with a strand of both Jewish and Indian blood in their veins, but little though it is. They were early settlers in America, the more noted of the family being one Samuel Peters, of Hebron, Conn., who gave to the reading world that wonderful satire on New England Puritanism un-der the name of "Blue Laws of Connecticut." There was an-other Samuel Peters of Hebron, also, who reigned over the State of Connecticut as its Governor, and this man is still honored in that State as one of its wise rulers. The names Samuel, John and Henry are common ones in that family. Samuel Peters, son of Jacob Peters, born November 27, 1772, who married Mary Stevenson, born September 28, 1773, was an early settler of Baltimore, Md. Their children were: Henry, born October 1, 1796; Robinson, December 18, 1797; Nathan, June 20, 1799; Wesley, October 10, 1801; Rachel, May 25, 1803; Stevenson, June 23, 1805; Leah, November 19, 1806; Mary, April 17, 1808; Andrew, August 15, i809; Gideon, August 29, 1811; Elizabeth, November 17, 1814; Lewis, March 23, 1816; Ebenezer, June 27, 1818. This branch of the Peters family settled in Ohio, mostly around Royalton in Fairfield county, and here grew up a multitude of people of that name. John Peters, of Ronceverte, is a great-grandson of John Peters, who sailed from Amsterdam, Holland, settling in New Jersey in 1794. He had three sons, John, Michael and George, the last mentioned of whom settled in western Virginia about the year 1810. John, the grandfather of the subject of this sketch, married Sarah Smith, and by her had three sons, John, William and Henry, and six daughters, Sarah, Betsey, Polly, Nancy, Rachael and Louise, all of whom lived to be over eighty years of age, except John. He was a lawyer in Philadelphia, and died at the age of forty. Henry Peters, the father of John, of Ronceverte, settled in Deposit, N. Y., in i80j. He married Elmira Hulce, daughter of Sylvester and Abigail Hulce of Revolutionary fame. The Hulce family were related to General Doolittle, to the H~rkimers, the Hotchkisses and other Revolutionary families of considerable mil-itary distinction. It was from the Doolittle ancestors the Indian blood came. It originated from a romantic incident connected with the colonial history of Rhode Island in the earlier days of Indian warfare. Alexander, a brother of the Indian chieftain, King Philip, was found in a lone wood, wounded by a panther. He was discovered by John Doolittle, wilo, playing the part of the good Samaritan, took the wounded man to his own home, and then sent word to King Philip of what had happened. The coming to the home of John Doolittle, son of Alexander, brought about a marriage of that scion of the Indian race with the daughter of Mr. Doolittle; hence the taint of Indian blood now in the Peters family. The trace of Jewish blood is somewhat more traditional, but based on racial characteristics the marriage of one of this family to a Slav of the Jewish race. With hardly an exception, this family, like the Jewish one, have been successful in the different walks of life. Honesty and temperance have characterized them as a people, and thrift, of course, followed as a consequence, and generally speaking all of them have been identified with the Methodist Episcopal church. John Peters, of Ronceverte, largely partakes of all of the characteristics of the Peters family, and under whatever clime any of them may be found. He was born in Deposit, N. Y., on June 15, 1852. As his father and grandfather were before him, he has been a lumberman all of his life. For thirty years he rafted logs down the Delaware and the Greenhrier, having made in his career twenty-eight successful trips on the Delaware and one hundred and fifty-seven on the Greenbrier, and never met with an accident. In June, 1902, he piloted the last raft on the Greenbrier and in March, 1880, the last one on the Delaware. Since that time he has remained in the lumber business in one way and another, but about eight years ago he took an agency for the Standard Oil Company. On April 26, 1871, Mr. Peters married Josephine Post, daughter of Daniel, son of Stephen, one of the original Quakers who set-tled in Orange county, New York. That was in 1745. Her mother's name was Mary Fortner, whose father became an early settler at Deposit. They were Presbyterians. Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Peters, namely, Nellie, John and Charles. Nellie married Bernard Austin and resides in Washington, D. C. John married Myrtle Achison and lives in Ronceverte. Charles is unmarried. He is a graduate of Dunsmore Business College, Staunton, Va., and has charge of his father's Standard Oil agency. Mr. Peters came to West Virginia in i880 and to Ronceverte in i888. He and his family worship in the Methodist Episcopal church, of which he is a devout member. In several ways Mr. Peters has become a self-made man. He has been a close observer all his life, and upon that basis has become self-educated. He knows more about the starry heavens than most students from our high schools; he is a better woods-craftsman than some botanists, and is often engaged to make im-portant estimates of large timbered tracts. He has one of the most interesting collections of old stone relics found outside of our large museums and he can tell what State produced any arrow-head or stone hatchet or other implement in his collection. His habit of closely observing things led him into the narrow walks of his religious life, also. By noting the habits of the tobacco chewer he was led to discard the vile weed from his youth; like-wise the sordid life of the drunkard induced him to keep himself free from the flowing howl; and thus it comes about that John Peters can say that he never took a chew of tobacco nor was intoxicated. By close observance he is also enabled to say that every man knows just when he is and when is not in the narrow way, and thus comes the religious key to his religious walk in life. Sandy Spradling SSpradling@AOL.com State Contact for WV GenExchange http://www.genexchange.com/wv/index.cfm