WV-FOOTSTEPS-D Digest Volume 00 : Issue 5 Today's Topics: #1 bio: Whitten, Charles, Kanawha Co. [Elizabeth Burns ] #2 bio: King, Page F., Preston Co. [Elizabeth Burns ] #3 bio: Wilson, Scott, Preston Co. [Elizabeth Burns ] #4 bio: Wilson, Gay, Preston Co. [Elizabeth Burns ] #7 Andrew Harper family list, Cave, W [Linda Cook ] ______________________________X-Message: #1 Date: Sun, 02 Jan 2000 23:58:09 -0700 From: Elizabeth Burns To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-id: <38704881.F7DF9C66@mainex1.asu.edu> Subject: bio: Whitten, Charles, Kanawha Co. Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii MIME-Version: 1.0 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. 219 Charles O. Whitten is proprietor and active head of the Whitten Paint Company of Charleston, the only exclusive paint supply house in the capital city. This is a prosperous business recently organized but Mr. Whitten has been in business as a painting contractor, handling the highest-class work for many years and is one of the most successful men in his line in the state. Mr. Whitten was born in Monroe county West Virginia in 1881, son of J.A. and Margaret (Campbell) Whitten, residents of Hinton West Virginia. His father was also a native of Monroe County and represents an old Virginia family. The original seat of the Whittens in old Virginia was Botetcourt County. Charles O. Whitten acquired his early education in the public schools of Monroe County and in that county learned his trade as painter and also at Bluefield West Virginia. He has been working as a painter at Charleston at intervals since 1901 and as a journeyman his experience has covered many states, particularly in the Southwest. Soon after his return to West Virginia in 1916, Mr. Whitten entered business on his own account as a painting contractor. During the war with Germany he did much Government work, the most important job being as boss painter on the great naval ordinance and armor plant at South Charleston. The Whitten Paint Company of Charleston was organized by Mr. Whitten and incorporated June 8, 1921, and he is practically the entire owner. The establishment is located at 119 Court Street and carries a complete stock of paints, oils, varnishes, colors, painters' supplies and painters' specialties. As the largest painting contractor in Charleston Mr. Whitten has handled many contracts involving thousands of dollars. The work of his organization extends to many other towns and cities of the state. While a complete list of his work would be too long, it will suffice to give a comprehensive idea of the style and class of the contracts he handles by noting some of the contracts performed by him during 1921. These include the residences on Quarrier Street, the Brawley, Doctor Davis, Hughes, Clyde Swinburn and other modern residences; a number of the large apartment houses, such as the Barkus apartments, the Cohen apartments, the Schwabe and May apartments, the Lipske twenty-four apartment house on Donnaly Street, the Shields apartment house on the south side, the Soloff Hotel and the store building of the Wagner Candy Company. Mr. Whitten is in every way an expert in the painting business and is a thoroughly able businessman as well. He married Miss Catherine Selby of Charleston. They have one son, Charles O., Jr. Mr. Whitten is a member of Charleston Lodge No. 153, A.F. and A.M., a Knight of Pythias and a D.O.K.K. He is also a member of the Baptist Church of Charleston. ______________________________X-Message: #2 Date: Sun, 02 Jan 2000 23:58:42 -0700 From: Elizabeth Burns To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-id: <387048A2.2DFE77EA@mainex1.asu.edu> Subject: bio: King, Page F., Preston Co. Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii MIME-Version: 1.0 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. 219-220 P.F. King, present county clerk of Preston County has an interesting career that in the main has been one of essential public service, first as a teacher and latterly as a public official. Not from liberal advantages bestowed upon him when a youth or by any specially favoring fortune, but out of his quiet determination and persistence Mr. King has demonstrated his worth and usefulness. He represents one of the old families of West Virginia and was born near Aurora in Preston County, March 16, 1884. His remote ancestor came to America from England several generations ago. It is said that he belonged to a family of wealth in England and had fortune in his own right. It was for religious reasons that he left the old country, abandoning his fortune and his American heirs have never made a determined effort to secure their share of legacies that might properly be theirs. The old ancestor located in Frederick County Maryland. It was in Frederick County Maryland, that Mr. King's grandfather, Nathan J. King was born and he married there Miss Hale. He was a blacksmith by trade, also owned a farm and lived for some years near Fellowsville in West Virginia and also at Stemple Ridge. He died at the home of his son, John W. King and is buried in Carmel Cemetery at Aurora. He died at the age of seventy-five. His son, Francis was a soldier in a West Virginia regiment and was killed in the battle of Antietam. Nathan J. King had the following children besides Francis: Christiann who married P.S. Fike of Eglon West Virginia; Daniel J. who was a blacksmith at Eglon; Joshua M. who lived for many years and died at Ogden Center Michigan; Lydia A who became the wife of J.N.H. Woodring, a farmer near Aurora; Alice, who married Phenis Miller and died in Preston County; Luther who has lived for several years in Michigan and is connected with an automobile factory and John W. John W. King, father of the county clerk is still living on the King farm near Aurora where he has had his home for nearly forty years. He was born in Preston County in November 1861, grew up on a farm, learned the blacksmith's trade under his father and worked at the trade until almost forty years of age, since which time he has concentrated his efforts upon the farm. He belongs to a republican family and has always acted with that party, though he had no ambition for public service. Page Franklin King lived during boyhood and early youth on the farm at Aurora. During that period of his life the chief encouragement held out to him was to make use of his physical strength and beyond the common schools there was no thought of a higher education. His labors seemed necessary as a means of sustaining himself and the most available employment was in the lumber woods and about the sawmills. While the years were adding strength to his body, his mind had little nourishment from the knowledge sealed up in text books and his days were being spent in strong arm and strong back work at a small wage. He continued this routine until he attained his majority. It was then that he returned to school in the fifth grade, determined to make up for lost time. He had the native qualities of intelligence which when spurred and supplemented by his great determination enabled him to finish the term with record grades and with this encouragement he pressed on to greater achievements. He attended the summer normal school at Terra Alta and later completed a correspondence course. After successfully passing an examination for a teacher's license he began teaching in rural districts and altogether was a factor in educational affairs for twelve years, part of the time in grade schools and finished as principal of the Corinth schools. Mr. King left the schoolroom when appointed deputy sheriff under Sheriff J.D. Browning. He served with him through his term of office and then became a candidate for clerk of the County Court. There were three candidates aspiring for the nomination but Mr. King secured the right of way at the primaries and at the following general election it seemed that the people of the county were almost unanimous with regard to his special qualifications and fitness. He defeated his competitor by a ratio of three to one, and a majority of almost 5,000 securing more votes than the normal vote of the entire county. Mr. King entered the office in January 1921 as the successor of E.C. Everly. One improvement he is installing is the Russell system of indexing, known as the L.M.N.R.T. system which will make the deed records one of the most complete found in any county clerk's office in the state. On December 25, 1913, Mr. King married Miss Lesta Fries. She was born near Terra Alta, August 29, 1895, daughter of John and May Cramer Fries, farmers near Terra Alta. Her father grew up at his father's mill, was a millwright by trade but in later years has devoted his time to the farm. Mrs. King has a sister, Mabel Fries and a brother Jesse Fries. Mr. and Mrs. King have a daughter, Bernice, born December 7, 1916. Mr. King is affiliated with Preston Lodge No. 90, A.F. and A.M., the Scottish Rite and the Shrine and is also a member of Brown Lodge No. 32, Knights of Pythias and Kingwood Lodge No. 1515 of the Loyal Order of Moose. He and Mrs. King are members of the Methodist Church and Mrs. King is active in all church causes, including the Ladies' Aid Society. ______________________________X-Message: #3 Date: Sun, 02 Jan 2000 23:59:16 -0700 From: Elizabeth Burns To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-id: <387048C4.C2AB378E@mainex1.asu.edu> Subject: bio: Wilson, Scott, Preston Co. Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii MIME-Version: 1.0 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. 220 Scott Harter Wilson became a resident of Kingwood while he was in the railroad service and when he resigned his post as a conductor he established a drub business and has since been active in merchandising and is one of the public spirited men of that prosperous community. Mr. Wilson represents one of the old and prominent families of Preston County, some of its members being represented on other pages of this publication. He was born in Portland District, October 28, 1877 a son of Nathan and Sarah (Schaeffer) Wilson. Scott Wilson grew up on the home farm, attended the common schools and accepted the duties of the farm until he was twenty. He then entered the service of the Virginia and Northern Railroad and was with that company nineteen years, serving through the ranks until he reached the position of conductor. For several years he had maintained his home at Kingwood and when he left the railroad he established a new business, The Korner Drug Store of which he is proprietor. Mr. Wilson has never been active in politics though he has always voted t local and general elections and has exercised an independent choice though nominally a republican. He is a Scottish Rite Mason and Shriner, being a past master of Preston Lodge No. 90, F. and A.M. and has represented it in the Grand Lodge. He is past grand of his lodge of Odd Fellows, has been district deputy grand master and is a member of the Encampment Degree of Odd Fellowship. He is a member of the Methodist Church and Mrs. Wilson is active in Home Mission work and in the Ladies' Aid Society. In Preston County, June 8, 1904, Mr. Wilson married Eula Menefee, who was born in this county in April 1884, daughter of James and Jean (McMackin) Menefee. Her father was a soldier in the Civil war and his civil life was spent as a farmer, his death occurring near Albright. There were six sons and six daughters in the Menefee family and the survivors are: Mrs. Ollie Fenton of Idaho; Frank of California; Mrs. Ella Smith of Albright; Robert of Terra Alta; James Walker and Wesley of Morgantown; Mrs. Wilson; Mrs. Anna Morgan of Morgantown; and Clint, Mrs. May Phillippet and Mrs. Lelia Waterbury residents of California. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson have two daughters: Genevieve and Syreta Mae Wilson. ______________________________X-Message: #4 Date: Sun, 02 Jan 2000 23:59:46 -0700 From: Elizabeth Burns To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Message-id: <387048E2.F6173B0@mainex1.asu.edu> Subject: bio: Wilson, Gay, Preston Co. Content-type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii MIME-Version: 1.0 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. 220 Gay E. Wilson is active head of the Kingwood Hardware Company. He has been a merchant in Preston County for a number of years and is a member of one of the old and prominent families of that section of the state. His father was Nathan A. Wilson and a more extended record of the family is published on other pages. Gay Elbert Wilson was born in the Whetsell settlement of Preston County, five miles east of Kingwood, April 22, 1883. The common schools gave him his early advantages. At the age of eighteen he left home and went west to Springfield Illinois where he was employed as a merchant's clerk. For five years he remained in the city which is the shrine of Abraham Lincoln and interested himself in a better knowledge of the modest president, sitting in the old chair of the great lawyer and familiarizing himself with many local incidents of Lincoln's career. >From Springfield Mr. Wilson returned to Preston County and established a general store at the lumber camp at Caddell. He was in business there eight years, until the camp was "cut out," when he closed his store and since then has been identified with the commercial life of Kingwood. Here he became successor to the hardware firm of Martin and Company, the business being known as the Kingwood Hardware Company in which his brother, Lawrence S. Wilson is his only partner. This is the sole hardware concern in Kingwood and has an extensive retail business over the county. Mr. Wilson comes of a democratic family and has been similarly aligned in his political action. He is secretary of the Business Men's Association of Kingwood and at all times is ready to work for the welfare and progress of the community. In the way of permanent improvements nothing makes a stronger appeal to him than good highways. Practically all the permanent roads out of Kingwood have been built since he moved to the town and he has done his part in furthering that commendable work. During the World war he invested his funds liberally in Government securities, helped in the sale of Liberty Loans among the laboring classes and was an active member of the Red Cross. Mr. Wilson is a trustee of the Kingwood Presbyterian Church, for three years was superintendent of the Sunday school and is secretary of the Monroe Bible Class. He has been affiliated with the Masonic Order at Kingwood since 1911, being a member of Preston Lodge, No. 90, A.F. and A.M., which he served as master in 1916 and is also a member of Royal Arch Chapter, No. 33 at Terra Alta West Virginia Consistory No. 1 of the Scottish Rite at Wheeling and is a member of the Scottish Rite Guard of Perfection at Morgantown. He belongs to the Odd Fellows and Knights of Pythias Lodges at Kingwood. In Preston County February 20, 1908 Mr. Wilson married Miss Rheua Copeman of Bruceton Mills. She was born in the northern part of Preston County. Her father, Fred Copeman was a native of Germany, came to the United States in 1871 to escape enforced military duty and has devoted his active life to farming. His first wife was a Miss Cale, who was the mother of Mrs. Wilson, born January 8, 1884; Isa, wife of Ross Spiker of Preston County; and Henry a farmer near Brandonville. Fred Copeman married for his second wife another Miss Cale and she was the mother of a daughter Matha, now Mrs. Harry Orcutt of Akron Ohio. The Third wife of Fred Copeman was Jennie Wolfe and they have a son, Paul. Mrs. Wilson grew up on a farm near Bruceton and was educated in the schools or that locality. She and Mr. Wilson were married by Rev. Mr. Ramsey at Kingwood. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson had an infant daughter Willard, who died before she was two years of age. __________________________________________#7 Resent-Date: Sun, 2 Jan 2000 15:33:50 -0800 (PST) Date: Sun, 2 Jan 2000 15:33:50 -0800 (PST) From: Linda Cook Subject: Andrew Harper family list, Cave, WV Old-To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Resent-From: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com X-Mailing-List: archive/latest/1094 X-Loop: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com Resent-Sender: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L-request@rootsweb.com The following framed, typed family history was found in the home of Emma Harper Beverage, no living descendents. My name is ANDREW HARPER, Cave, W.Va. I was born Dec. 25, 1855 at Cave, W.Va. My wife's name is MARY FITZWATER HARPER She was born July 28, 1863 at Valley Furmice, Barbour Co., W.Va. She was the daughter of WILLIAM and HARRIET NESTER FITZWATER. We were married March 19, 1878 at Cave, Pendleton Co., W. Va. Our childrens names are: WALTER L. HARPER b.Dec. 25, 1878 at Cave, WV d.July 27, 1959 DELIA HARPER b. Jan. 1, 1881 at Cave, WV d. July 9, 1946 SARAH E. HARPER by May 11, 1883 at Cave, WV d. April 17, 1942 OLLIE H. HARPER b July 3, 1885 at Cave, WV d. Sept. 14, 1955 JOHN C. HARPER b. Feb. 10, 1887 at Cave WV d May 8, 1945 EFFIE J. HARPER b. Feb. 21, 1889 at Cave, WV EMMA C. HARPER b. Feb. 9, 1891 at Cave, WV KENNIE A. HARPER b. June 29, 1893 at Cave, WV CARRIE M. HARPER b. Nov. 7, 1895 at Cave, WV ESTA HARPER b. Aug. 28, 1897 at Cave, WV WILLIAM P. HARPER b. Feb. 19, 1900 at Cave, WV LURA M. HARPER b. Nov. 18, 1901 at Cave, WV d. Mar.9, 1945 My brothers and sisters: MARGARET C. HARPER b. Jan.25, 1847 d. Mar. 14, 1902 HENRY H. HARPER b. Dec. 22, 1848 d. May 1891 GEORGE HARPER b. Ap. 27, 1851 d. Ap. 21, 1862 SUSSANA HARPER b. Aug. 12, 1853 d. Nov. 26, 1928 ANDREW HARPER b. Dec. 25, 1855 d. Aug. 14, 1942 SARAH HARPER b. May 12, 1858 d. Mar. 7, 1926 PHEOBA HARPER b. Aug. 8, 1860 d. Dec. 24, 1929 MARY E. HARPER b.Ap. 23, 1863 d. Oct. 30, 1954 ANDERSON HARPER b. Sept. 8, 1865 d. Oct. 26, 1865 EMELY F. HARPER b. May 23, 1867 d. Dec. 1, 1913 SAMUEL B. HARPER b. Oct. 28, 1869 d. Jan. 5, 1952 WILLIAM A. HARPER b. Oct. 28, 1871 CARRIE B. HARPER b. Nov. 13, 1873 d. Oct. 8, 1885 ************************** submitted by Linda Harper Cook lcook53@yahoo.com ==== WV-FOOTSTEPS Mailing List ==== ********************************************************************** WV-FOOTSTEPS/USGENWEB NOTICE: These messages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. **********************************************************************