Beham Henline's Business Records

Beham Henline's folks had settled in the Hackers Creek area in the early 1800s and he was born there in 1850. That would make him 10 years old when the Civil War broke out.1

Beham married a young widow, Samantha Elizabeth Skinner, daughter of Alexander and Phoebe (Conrad) Skinner, original settlers of what would become Orlando. They set to housekeping and farming near her family on the south side of Oil Creek, across from where the brick church now stands. In the course of 36 years together (Beham died in 1912 at the age of 62) they raised a healthy family of eight children and, as best we can tell, built a successful farming business.

An indication of his success is an account book dated 1891-1892 in which Beham Henline kept a record of transactions in a store or agency he kept in Orlando. David Parmer copied as much of the info in the old, frail book as he could make out, and shares it with us: "As you may know the B&O Railroad was completed through Orlando around the time Beham operated his store and, judging from the entries in the book, it appears that the railroad was the means of shipping out the domestic produce mentioned in the account book, such as lumber, green hides, sheep pelts, chickens, beef, and the like. There were items sold to local customers which probably came in by railroad, such as flour, tobacco, nails, cooking utensils, and many other things which were unlikely to have been produced locally."

The names in the old records include familiar names from old Orlando and near-by communities as well as some we don't know. Maybe you can tell us about some of them: C. S. Clauston, Bill Hernon, Nuten Blake, David Bragg, Clover Fork Church, Asa Clark, J. H. Cosner, S. Blake, D. J. Denard, John Baldwin, J. A. Blake, John Conrad, F. A. Caynor, Nuten Caynor, James Donelson, Joseph Riffle, J. W. Groff, Victor Groff, Mary Fox, Victoria Groff, N. M. Foster, W. A. Fox, B. F. Fleming, ___ Fox, Hanson Heater, J. W. Hollen, Mrs. Huggins, Jamima (?) Heater, Emily Grarees, Mollie Hollen, Thomas Heater, Press Jackson, A. Johnson, ___ James, Samuel Heater, Marrion Heater, Elias Heater, John Henline, Godf__(?) Melehin (?), John Blake, Joseph Keith, Ben Fleming, Herman Johnson, J. P. Kenedy, H. H. Posey, David Law, Perry Luzader, J. P. McCarty, J. P. McCally, Mike Rush, Allen More, Salamine Mick, J. W. Muvey, C. E. Mitchell, Martin Mulvey, Lee Morrison, thoams McCally, W. T. Moody, Willmon McCally, H. Mick, M. V. McCarty, N. Ann Skinner, C. L. Bennett, John Posey, Perry Posey, Arch Pennyton, Dick Posey, Sully Posey, A. L Persinger, E. J. Posey, L. H. Casey, Pllmer Posey Ruddle Posey, ___Cllaahers, Olive Church, C. L. Gainer, A. G. Griffin, D. N. Godfrey, Morrison Riffle, John Riffle, J. Riffle, Aa Riffle, Russ Riffle, Z. Townsend, Robert Skinner, Ann Skinner, James Skinner, Jack Reaser, Frank Ratcliffe, M. A. Rush, C. D. Stout, Joe Skinner, Joe Sandy, M. E. Shoulders, T. P. Townsend, Jackson Thompson, July Bue, D. C. Wellen, Daisy Heath, T. A. Cayner, Mrs. Dolan, Joseph Keath, M. V. Carney, T. A. Clark, Joe Scarf, T. S. Riffle, Draper Riffle, Sally Posey, Mrs. Heater, Joe Groves, Jno. Baldwin, Ruth Blake, Oat Fox, Marry C. Heater, Owen More, Frank Radcliffe, W. S. Moody, J. W. Groff, Morrison Heater, P. S. Skinner, W. L Posey, Jacob I. Riffle, James B. Blake, H. D. Johnson, Peter Farrell, Buck Fox, Sarah Posey, T. L Williams, Mike Tully, Thomas Godfrey, William Bee, A. D. Burrell, J. H. Cosner, Sterman Johnson, Harry Bee, John Baldwin, L. P. Fox, Mollie Hollen, Steward Blake, Jacob Bush, Ila Fox

Photo, ca. 1900, is of Beham Henline (bearded, 2nd from left) and his brothers Lloyd, John and McClellen (Mack).
The picture of raw wool is simply to suggest some of the domestic produce Orlando folks were selling in the 1890s.

See also
Oct 03, '06 Samantha (Skinner) Henline's Family
Oct 10, '06 Beham Henline's Funeral

1. We know his father lived in the Jane Lew area and two of his sisters settled in Gilmer County, also in the Collins Settlement area. For more info on Collins Settlement see History of West Virginia, Old and New - Chapter IX