Lis Thomas, A Syrian Peddler

Fading tattoos of camels, St. Sophia and minarets adorned the left arm of Louis “Lis” Thomas and captured the rapt attention of five year old Tom Jeffries, as he sat listening to Lis tell his tales so strange and wonderful.

Tom Jeffries with his kid brother. John.

Lis was a stooped, swarthy, thin man of medium height, with a hooked nose with flaring nostrils set in a wide face, smelling of strong tobacco, road dirt and sweat. He was spotted coming up the railroad tracks, hunched under the weight of his sixty pound pack of goods by members of the Henline family who were lounging on the front porch under a majestic elm tree.

Departing the cindery tracks and carefully stepping across the foot bridge over Oil Creek, Lis quickened his steps as he came closer to the inviting shade of the porch and the tall elm tree. It was summer and he had walked a long way that day and he needed the rest and the chance to sell a few goods. The Henline family were the inlaws of his deceased older brother, Mike Thomas, who also came to America as a peddler from his native Syria , and Lis considered them friends.

Lis was an intriguing sight for Tom, who, although half afraid, was anxious to look at the Syrian peddler and listen to his strange voice, full of funny pronunciations of common words. After exchanging greetings and talking awhile with Opal, Clora and Heater, Lis, dragging on his Camel cigarette, talked of the merits of Turkish blended tobacco but wide-eyed young Tom, not interested in this adult matter, was dying for the chance to look into the large pack of goods resting beside the porch.

Lis Thomas was born in that portion of the Middle East known as Syria , but under the rule of the Sultan of Turkey. Today we call this area Lebanon, a land of Maronite Christians, Sunni and Shiite Muslims, and Druze, and full of as much violence as there is religion. The family of Lis Thomas was Maronite Christian, a minority in a mostly Muslim country and the frequent target of deadly violence by the hated Turks and the equally despised Muslims. Violence was not all one-sided in this part of the world, and blood feuds and vendettas were daily occurrences. It was long reported by family members that the murder of a revered uncle of Lis and Mike Thomas had brought them to America on the trail of the knife wielding murderer. Failing in their quest to avenge their uncle’s death because the assailant had returned to Syria while the avengers were on their way to America, the Thomas brothers found the opportunities of America too inviting to risk the return to Syria to exact revenge. But these were things Lis Thomas did not reveal to the ears of young Tom, nor the women, but only to the men folk of the Henline family.

Lis, in his peculiar speech, explained his tattoos to Tom, who was eager to hear the tale of the camels, and about the minarets, and St. Sophias. Those same icons Tom could see on the package of cigarettes Lis twirled in his large fingered hand. Tom thought how exciting it was to have someone this exotic to talk to him, as if he were a grown man. He would dream of camels, of minarets and of St Sophias tonight.





Comments
Comment 1 Donna Gloff
Costumes to the left were worn by Maronite Christians in Lebanon in the late 1800s about the time the Thomas brothers were leaving their homeland.

Postmasters

To the left is the behind the scene side of the Post Office boxes in the warehouse, the side that the Postmaster saw.

David Parmer provides the following information.

The Orlando Post Office was originally established under the name of Confluence in 1888 in Braxton County. The name of the post office was changed from Confluence to Orlando in 1907. The Orlando Post Office was changed to Lewis County in 1890, back to Braxton County in 1893, and then back to Lewis County in 1896 and has remained in Lewis County since 1896.

The postmasters, acting postmasters, or officers in charge of the Orlando post office have been:
John A. Tierney 1888
Henderson D. Mitchell 1888
Michael Rush 1893
Francis M. Blake 1897
Michael E. Griffin 1915
Michael V. Moran 1918
Clarence E. Scarff 1926
Claud M. Mick 1927
Pete H. Henline 1947
Bernice M. Mick 1974
Elsie B. Kirkpatrick 1974
Arnold Heater
Sara Jane Dyer Watson 1987
Randy R. Miller 1999
Shirley D. Hamrick 2000
Diane K. Reynolds
Donna J. Wine 2004
Sarah Smarr 2005
Donna J. Keener 2006

To the right are some of the postmasters (top to bottom): Mike Moran, Claud Mick, Bernice (Skinner) Mick and Pete Henline. Their ages in the photos are not related to the ages at which they served as Postmasters.







See also an entry in Feb '07 Mail Delivery In The Early 1900s
See also an entry in Feb. '07 Pres Bragg's Retirement Party

Uncle Zeke, The Blamed Old Fool

Charles McNemar sends this Uncle Zeke poem. He found it in the archives of the Charleston Daily Mail, which regularly excerpted Uncle Zeke's columns in the Braxton Democrat and re-printed them for state wide consumption so all of West Virginia could enjoy his wit and humor about the goings on in Buzzardtown. Need we point out that you pronounce "creek" appropriately for the poem to rhyme?


. . . . . Who Did It? . . . . .

Who put the elk in Elk River?
Who put the steer in Steer Creek?
Who put the bull in Bulltown?
Who put the salt in Salt Lick?

Who put the gas in Gassaway?
Who put the devil in old Nick?
Who put the rose in Rosedale?
Who put the granny in Grannys Creek?

Who put the frame in Frametown?
Who put the land in Orlando?
Who put the buzz in Buzzardtown?
And the buff in Buffalo?

Who put the brine in O'Briens Fork?
Who put the oil in Oil Creek?
Who put the wheel in Wheeling?
And the turkey in Turkey Lick?

Who put the hell in Hellmick?
And the ten in Tennessee?
Who put the hen in Henline?
And the bum in Bumblebee?

Who put the water in Waterloo?
And the moonshine in the jug?
Who put the heat in Heater?
And the light in lightning bug?

Who put the stink in the polecat?
And the kick in the reckless mule?
Who put the butt in the billy goat?
Uncle Zeke, the blamed old fool.

Peter Newton Blake of Posey Run wrote as "Uncle Zeke." See more of Uncle Zeke at
Dec. 20, '06 Trouble At Uncle Zeek's House
Nov. 29, '06 Uncle Zeke's ABCs
Oct. 27, '06 Uncle Zeke From Buzzard Town
November 11, 2006 Nicknames

The Blue Goose

In 1959 my mother took my brother & me on the Greyhound bus to see Grandma in Orlando. From Detroit we changed busses in Pittsburgh. In Weston we got off the Greyhound bus and boarded the Blue Goose. It was shorter than a school bus and it was, of course, blue. The road from Weston climbs the divide between the watersheds of the Left Fork of the Monongahela and Oil Creek , which flows into the Little Kanawha, so the road winds back and forth up the hill and then back down. It was a bumpy ride in those days, all the more so in this little bus. Even after the hours we'd spent confined on the bus trip from Detroit it was an adventure to ride that little Blue Goose up and down the hills to Grandma’s.

Davide Parmer tells us that for 15 years Paul Knight drove the Blue Goose, winding up and down the hills between Orlando and Weston, and jogging back and forth across the railroad tracks as it followed Oil Creek into Burnsville. Paul Knight not only got folks where they needed to go, he helped out small farmers along the route by taking their cream to the creamery in Weston, and helped many families along the line by doing little errands in Weston for them.

David Parmer tells us how the Blue Goose came to be, and how it ended.

The Blue Goose – The History of the Weston – Burnsville Bus Line
In October 1948, Clavel Stilwell, a native of Burnsville, but living in Marmet in Kanawha County , petitioned the West Virginia Public Service Commission, for a certificate of authority to operate a bus line between Burnsville and Weston, the route to go through Orlando and Goosepen.

Stilwell proposed to the Public Service Commission that he anticipated perhaps three round trips per day, and that he would use a 1940 Chevrolet limousine, twelve passenger vehicle as the means of conveyance. The Public Service Commission heard from various witnesses as to the need of the bus line. Among those speaking in favor of the new service was Clarence Finster, Claude Waugh, Charles Hudson, Alton Heath, Ralph Riffle and Clavel Stilwell. Most of the witnesses lived on the Goosepen part of the bus service.

Stilwell proposed a fare of three cents per mile for the 22 mile trip from Burnsville to Weston. The Public Service Commission which approved the certificate to operate and set the fare at 75 cents from Burnsville to Weston, 50 cents from Orlando to Weston, and 25 cents from Aspinall (known sometimes as Shanty Town) to Weston.

Stilwell was a full time employee of the Atlantic Greyhound Corporation as a bus driver so he did not become actively involved in the day to day operation of the bus line. The first driver for the bus line was Walter Scarff , originally from Orlando but living in Burnsville . The service commenced immediately with two round trips daily to Weston.

In December 1949, after about a year of operation, Stilwell petitioned the Public Service Commission to allow him to suspend operations. The reason given by Stilwell to suspend service was because of the deteriorated road conditions. Many people opposed the suspension of service. Among those signing the petition in opposition were many Orlando residents, including O. L. Stutler, Pete Henline, D. Skinner, Benjamin Mitchell, Necie McNemar, Marie Barnett, Lona Gibson, John Gibson, C. M. Mick, E. G. Riffle, Mrs. E. G. Riffle, Virginia Riffle, N. J. Henline, Rosemary Riffle, W. E. Beckner, Josie Beckner, Naomi Parrish, Charles Parrish, Orena Thomas, Arden Thomas, B. C. Godfrey, Tom Godfrey, C. A. Tully, Ernestine Tully, George Heater, Mary Heater, Evelyn Wimer, Ida Wimer, Dora Wimer, Nellie Casto, Mr. and Mrs. E. E. Riffle, A. Heater, Addie Dolan, John Dolan, Clyde Hoover, Ralph Thompson, Mayme Davis, Harley Pumphrey, Shirley Davis, John Davis, Junie Riffle, Patty Jean Riffle, Frank Dolan, Ann Dolan, Sue Dolan, Violet Townsend, Hubert Townsend, Bertha Townsend, Ruby Townsend, Ramona Townsend, Mamie Ables, Mary Ables, John Harris, Jane Ables, Iva Ables, Earl Radcliff, Fred Jeffries, J. W. Queen, Irene ______, Henry _______, Frank Skinner, Vernon Skinner, Eugene Skinner, Betty Barnett, H. C. Skinner, Rena Skinner, Dorothy Gay, W. D. Barnett, W. E. Skinner, Fred Bee, E. G. Riffle, Denzil Skinner, Billy Nixon, Pete Wimer, Maxine Freeman, _____Freeman, S. W. Mitchell, and approximately two dozen more signatures which were smudged and illegible. Apparently Stilwell had a change of heart about ceasing operations and his petition to suspend operations was withdrawn, and the bus line continued to operate.

A few months later, in March 1950 Stilwell petitioned the Public Service Commission to transfer the certificate of authority to O. R.”Ray” Crutchfield Sr of Burnsville. Ray Crutchfield, a long time resident of Burnsville, owned and operated the mop factory in Burnsville, was a school bus driver and also the father of Paul Crutchfield, a recent graduate of Burnsville High School, who was not yet twenty one years of age and therefore not of legal age. The certificate to operate therefore had to be requested in the name of Ray Crutchfield although Paul Crutchfield was to be the actual owner when he became twenty one years of age. The Public Service Commission approved the transfer of the certificate for the stated consideration of $600 for the 1940 Chevrolet limousine and $100 for the certificate. Paul Crutchfield added a 1948 Ford, 21 passenger bus, to the bus service and also a 1942 Pontiac 12 passenger limousine. Because Paul was not yet 21 years of age, Jerry Brooks Sr of Burnsville was the driver of the bus, until Paul turned 21 years of age at which time he began service as the bus driver.

During the Crutchfield ownership of the Blue Goose line, fare increases were approved by the Public Service Commission by a quarter to the existing fares. Fares from Burnsville to Weston increased from 75 cents to $1.00, from 50 cents to 75 cents from Orlando, and from 25 cents to fifty cents from Aspinall.


The Burnsville end of the Blue Goose's line was here at the taxi stand where a hungry traveler could dine on "the finest hot dogs in the state of West Virginia," according to our Anonymous Gourmet.

Ray Crutchfield died in 1950, and in 1952 Paul Crutchfield was called to service in the U. S. Army and it became necessary for Paul Crutchfield to divest himself of the Blue Goose line. A petition was filed in March 1952 with the Public Service Commission to sell the bus line to Dora Price of Weston. Mrs. Price had recently sold the taxi business she operated in Weston and decided she would purchase the bus line. The Public Service Commission approved the transfer of the bus line to Price for the consideration of $2000.

Mike Price, son of Dora Price, was the operating manager of the Blue Goose line briefly when the bus line was again transferred with Public Service Commission approval to John R. Lynch and Blair Winans. Lynch and Winans also operated the bus line only briefly when it was again transferred to L. T. Mick. Mick also found something he would rather do than operate the bus line and he transferred the certificate of authority to Paul Knight of Burnsville in May 1953.

Paul Knight, the new owner of the bus service, provided continued service of the Blue Goose line from 1953 until 1967 when economic conditions and more people owning automobiles spelled the end of the Blue Goose line. Knight operated the bus line longer than all of the other owners put together and was much appreciated by the riders of the Blue Goose line. Knight helped out small farmers along the route by taking their cream to the creamery in Weston, and helped many families along the line by doing little errands in Weston for them. As it became more difficult to operate the bus line given the costly repairs that became necessary to keep the aging bus in service, in November 1967 the public service commission approved the suspension of the Blue Goose bus line. During the Knight ownership of the Weston – Burnsville Bus Line the Public Service Commission approved a change of route from Burnsville to Weston from the Goosepen Road to the Roanoke Road . Upon petitioning to terminate service, several residents of the Roanoke area opposed the suspension. Among those objecting were Nellie Puffenbarger, Blanche Riffle, Ronna Riffle, Eugene Riffle, L. H. Groves, Sylvia Groves, Lillie Posey, Ruth Conrad, Barbara Posey, Virgil Conrad, Ruby Hitt, Willard Hitt, James R. Brown, Harry Puffenbarger, Laura Gay, Hulda Cosner, Robert Cosner, Roy Skinner, Lynn Foster, Pauline Burkhammer, Franklin Burkhammer, Gerald Gay, Dorothy Gay, Janet Smarr, Bill Smarr, Macel Foster, John Foster, and Delma Skinner. In pleading his case to the Public Service Commission Paul Knight told the court that his bus “was worn out, and was a fugitive from the junk yard” and he just could not continue the operation as much as he would like to continue it. The Commission agreed to allow the suspension and the Blue Goose line was no more.

Some people may wonder where the term “Blue Goose” originated. Robert Knight of Burnsville advises that Lee Coberly, a Burnsville resident who lived on Oil Creek just above its mouth, would often ask small children if they had seen the “old blue goose”. All of the early buses of the Weston – Burnsville Bus line were blue in color, and apparently when the strange looking buses would pass them by, the children would say there is the “old Blue Goose”. The name “Blue Goose” was synonymous with the bus line from its inception. Everyone was sorry to see it end, particularly the steady patrons from Orlando.

Grandma Lena's House on Oil Creek

Dave Hyre was kind enough to share his memories of visiting his grandmother's place on Oil Creek in the 1950s. His grandmother was the widow first of Dave's grandfather Frank Lake and then the widow of Frank Fisher. For the memories others have of this time and place, go to Five Remembrances of Orlando, WV

I remember staying a summer with Grandma Lena Gay Fisher's house after [her second and last husband] Frank Fisher’s death . . . what can I say other than “Rail Side Shanty?” It sat on stone piers with a crawl way beneath. I am sure that was a purposeful design for when Oil Creek overflowed it’s banks. It had a front porch, with rocking chairs and chain suspended slat settee swing for two. My sister and I would sit there and watch the never ending coal trains rumble by just yards away.

Thanks to Jim Reese for permisssion to use the photo below. The description accompanying this photo reads, "In the days before AC locomotives, the Chessie System often relied on several six and four axle units on the Burnsville Helper. Just east of Orlando, Western Maryland GP40 #3798 is the trailing unit in the helper as it shoves a loaded drag upgrade in the summer of 1985."

Grandmother Lena lived in an asphalt shingle sided house about a half mile downstream from downtown Orlando. To get to the house, one walked down a dirt road, and crossed over the B&O tracks, stepped down the rail embankment stile (steps) to a house lot eight feet below the tracks and the house 20 feet from the tracks. Huge mile long coal trains would rumble past. Indoor water was a kitchen sink mounted manual pump. The water smelled of sulphur. Baths were heated pots of that smelly water on a kerosene stove. Sixty feet back was the two hole outhouse sitting on the edge of Oil Creek. And yes, it had a Sear's Roebuck catalogue for paper!! Hey, EPA was 45 years away into the future. I would prowl the creek catching crawdads, never considering the outhouse issue!!

Inside was a modest sized living room, eat-in kitchen and two bed rooms. No closets, just free standing wardrobes. The beds were crude but comfortable, hand stuffed sack mattresses, sitting on bare wire spring sets on wood slatted cast iron frames with cast iron head boards. Linens were fresh and hand sewn quilts topped the beds. Washing was in a tub. Stove heated water from a hand pump....Saturday was “Bath Night” and Monday was “Laundry Day” with tub and scrub board.

Furniture in general was modest and typical of period. I do remember the enamel/ceramic topped kitchen table with red trim about the edges. First time ever experiencing grits and hominy for breakfast. Heat was a coal stove in the living room. Plenty of shake loose coal along the tracks to guarantee a ready supply . The kitchen stove was kerosene. Refill of the kerosene dispenser can came from a hand cranked Bung Hole pump mounted on a 55 gallon drum to the side of the house. A delivery man refilled that drum with jerry cans. Small back porch, utilitarian to descend to back yard area and outhouse back by creek.

It also had storage area for mops and brooms and was covered in Morning Glory vines. Gardens provided vegetables, corn, tomatoes, greens, onions, beans, radishes, squash and carrots.

I learned about canning from grandma Lena. Hey I was a city kid from Boston, vegetables came in a can from the A&P Market!! How the hell did they grow those cans in the ground?? I learned to use Mason Jars steaming on a stove to preserve garden harvest. Still do it today, My grown children laugh at me for all the trouble, but still line up for their share when the canning is done.

The photo of the Western Maryland engine above was taken in 1985 just east of the Route 5 crossing in Burnsville (near the old Sugar Shack) where the helpers tie onto loaded trains.

For more on the railroad, see the Northern West Virginia Railroads site, particularly the section on the Cowen Subdivision.
Thanks to Brad Moyers for identifying Jim Reese's photo and assisting us in obtaining permission from WVRailFans to use it.

Mary Lucille's Quilt

Dave Hyre sends this quilt which was made for his mother, Mary Lucille (Lake) Hyre. She was born and raised on Oil Creek. It now belongs to his youngest granddaughter in California.

"Lena created it for the birth of [her daughter] my mom (Mary Lucille) born 1925. It is all cotton, from feed sacks and printed cotton fabric. The backside is plain off-white muslin fabric. The embossment stitchery is carried through the reverse side. It is all hand sewn. Batting is feathers and down ! Size, 3 feet by 5 feet to fit an infant's bed or cradle."

Dave speaks about more ordinary quilts as well.
"I just remembered something unique about the handed down patchwork quilts used when I was a youngster. They had large amounts of green felt swatches [in with the pieces of old men's pants and] were darted with orange yarn!! Good grief, It never before dawned on me to link that quilting oddity of green felt to the fact that Grandpa Victor Hyre owned the pool hall in Burnsville. Thrify is what Thrifty does!!!"

"They were true 'Crazy Quilts' with no pattern, just stitched together. They weighed a ton, one could barely move under their weight. Local Boston area dry cleaners refused to take them for cleaning due to the weight!! My dad used to drive 50 miles to Plymouth twice a year to have them cleaned. They were all hand sewn. These old quilts just plain wore out mid 1960's. They had seen 50+ years of use."

An Early Gas Well Drill

In this photo a 1917 Sears and Roebuck auto sits in front of a steam powered gas well drilling rig. Bailey Knight and Bub Heater pose with their machinery.

David Parmer's research tells us that Bub Heater and Bailey Knight were from the Posey Run area, probably to the north toward Indian Fork. Bailey Knight bought the 1917 Sears & Roebuck auto from its first owner, Charley Killingsworth of Burnsville. Legend has it that this was the first auto in the area.

David Parmer also tells us that the steam operated drilling rig belonged to Bub Heater. The Heater family was involved in the oil and gas business from its beginnings in central West Virginia.

To the right is a very fuzzy closeup of Bub Heater and Bailey Knight.

Christmas in Confluence

See also April 09, '06 Oil Creek Christmas 1938

In 1910 this Sears Roebuck Catalog would have been in every home in Confluence, as with any place in rural America.

Oil Creek had been settled for nearly 100 years by this time and, about 20 years earlier, enough of a community had gathered at the confluence of the forks of Oil Creek that the community gave itself the name of Confluence. Our town's name had been officially changed to Orlando in 1907 for commercial reasons1, but it would be another five years or so before "Confluence" would fade from common usage.

In 1910 Confluence was both an established community a growing boom town with railroad construction continuing. William Howard Taft was President. Our oldsters were the Civil War vets and our children would grow up to fight in the War To End All Wars.

Confluence had several congregations that hristmas in 1910. Mt. Zion Methodist Protestant (attributed jointly to brothers Alexander Skinner and Alfred Posey) and the Evangelical United Brethern congregations were both established and growing. Methodist church records indicate both congregations would probably have been too large to meet in homes. Still, the white frame buildings we know of had not been built yet. See the May '07
entries Camp Meetings & the U. B. Church and The History of Orlando's United Brethern Church.

Mission 1930 of the Re-organized Latter Day Saints that had been started by William Otto Skinner, son of Alexander & Phoebe (Conrad) Skinner, but the church building a couple miles west of downtown Orlando near Posey Run, was probably not built yet.

St. Michael's Roman Catholic, under the care of Fr. Thomas Quirk was newly moved from the Griffin farm on Flesher Run to the new building in the Rusmisell & Fury Addition on the hill. Its bells may have been the only ones chiming out in celebration that Christmas.

A couple miles east of downtown was Clover Fork Methodist Protestant in the still busy community of Blake on Clover Fork.

The Sears Roebuck catalog was part of the household economy and ecology in a variety of ways. One graphic example of this is that long after Christmas you would have found what was left of this catalog in most of the outhouses of Confluence.

Click on the photo of sheep on Clover Fork to enlarge the scene. The photo is current, taken on Kilmarnock Farm, but I doubt sheep looked much different in 1910.

Above is the 2nd building of the St. Michael parish, the one that sat on the hill just across Oil Creek Road from where the brick church would be built.

1. It has been suggested that the name was changed to "Orlando" because "Confluence" was being confused with Confluence, PA

Hogs & Piglets

From Dave Hyre: "Couple of Hyre kids here raised on lower Oil Creek at Burnsville! (about 1920) This photo is displayed in my office. I often hear comments, "Aren't they cute"? I always ask, "Which two'?"

Dave Hyre shares the following two stories about hogs:

"I remember my grandma Lena telling me how the hog drives filled the main road alongside the tracks. It seems that an overland hog drive to market at Weston was still cheaper early 1900 's than the available railroad focused on serving the coal industry."

"Mom told me about the family slaughtering hogs each year, hanging them from a teepee shaped tripod in the farmyard. They would skin and butcher them from that position. She spoke of large vats of boiling water as part of that and how there was a terrible stench to the process. The boiling water was used to soak skins to remove boar bristle by scraping with sharp knives. A peddler man with a wagon mounted grinding stone went farm to farm to sharpen scrapers and knives during the fall butchering time."

Trouble At Uncle Zeek's House

The typewritten page to the right is from Patrick Newton "Uncle Zeek" Blake's files. It tells of some mighty strange goings on at Uncle Zeek's place. Click on it to enlarge it for reading.

This page was given to David Parmer by the author's granddaughter. She found it among his papers. She had little knowledge about her grandfather to share except a few photographs, and the "poem", as she put it. Photo to the left is, of course, P.N. Blake, "Zeek".

David Parmer tells us that P.N. Blake "was far more than just a humorous story teller. His stories, with the background and knowledge within them, indicate that he was a reader and a thinker, and indicate a man of innate intelligence. In the 1920s he made an unsuccessful run for the West Virginia Legislature, which in addition to a lot of gumption and self confidence, would have required communication skills, and indeed far greater than you would expect of a railroad worker of the early 20th century. He was an exceptional man, and given different circumstances in life, could have been a man of note."

Orlando From Henline Hill

From David Parmer:
"This is Orlando as it was seen about 1920 from Henline Hill looking toward the Catholic Church. The structure beside the church I believe was the Rush Hotel. I'm not quite sure about that. At any rate my father-in-law Coleman Jeffries bought that lot and buildings, tore the buildings down in the early 1950s and used some of the lumber to build his house on Oil Creek. There was also a mantel piece from the old hotel building which was used in my in-laws' house.

"The Charlie Knight Store is the large building in the right center of the photo although he was a later owner of the store.

"The Skinner cemetery is in the top center of the photo. Note the cleared fields at the top of the large hill. Heater Henline told me that crops of wheat and other grains were grown at the top of that hill. When it was harvested and put into small shocks it would be taken off the hill by a system of wires on which the shocks would be hung and the shocks would slide down the wire to the bottom of the hill. Also note the large tree in the cemetery. I'm sure that is the large oak tree still standing in the middle of the cemetery. And note the cemetery has not expanded toward the top of the hill as it is now."

Frank and Lena Lake Moved to Orlando

Photo to the right is Franklin Orlando and Lena Gaye (Potters) Lake with older daughters Ellen Vienna (Peggy), born in 1915 and Genevieve (Jim) born about 1917. Youngest daughter, Mary Lucille (Lucille) would be born in 1925.

Frank and Lena (Potters) Lake, from the Falls Mills area, moved to Oil Creek after their marriage in 1913.

When Frank Lake registered for the draft in 1917 there was no mention of sight problems but by the time this photo was made, 1920, maybe, Frank was blind.

Dave Hyre never met his grandfather but his mom told stories about her dad. "He was blind and crawled on his hands and knees to attend to the gardens. He would feel his way along to raise food for the family.

"Mom told me that grandpa Frank hired regular local labor to help run the farm and that they had "large" corn fields. I guess that is a relative term "Large", could mean 1/2 acre or 20 acres, who knows, but it fed their hogs. Mom always told me it was subsistence, just getting by, nothing for extras. As a teen, Mom worked as household help nearby. She told me how it was hard work, and how she would be scolded for trivial mistakes."

Frank Lake died from a stroke in 1943 at the age of 50. Lena re-married to Frank Fisher. He was a farmer, grew corn and potatoes, had chickens and cows. Frank Fisher died after 1950.

Dave Hyre remembers that "Grandmother Lena grew Blue Morning Glorys on the back porch to remember Frank Lake. I grow them still today here in Massachusetts for my grandpa Frank. It is something that I have passed down to my own grandaughter!! My Mom always spoke lovingly of her dad, Frank Lake, and she passed down his legacy by giving me the middle name "Frank", I carried on that legacy by giving my youngest son the middle name "Frank". Hopefully, there is another "Frank" in line soon!"

Fried Fish

In her memories of her uncle, Barbara (Jeffries) Parmer told us "on heat-shimmery summer afternoons he'd take his fishing pole in hand and say 'Think I’ll go up the crick'. After awhile, he would return with what he called 'a mess of fish'—suckers and 'baccer boxes'—which my aunt or grandmother would fix for breakfast the next day."

Upper right is a mess of sunfish ( The pan fish which Heaterhuck Henline called "'baccer boxes," because they were as small a Prince Albert tobacco tin).

I doubt there was any question, in any kitchen in Orlando, about how fish would be prepared. Baked? Broiled? Maybe poached, then tossed in a salad, with a light vinaigrette? No. Not even smoked, although the homestead probably had a smokehouse. Fish was caught nearby, cleaned and pan fried. I've asked folks how their grandmothers fixed fish. They've explained as best they could, but in each case I've gotten the impression that it was as if I'd asked how you drink a glass of water. Still, if you weren't raised with iron skillets and grease cans on the stove, additional information may be in order.

First, for a sound primer for this discussion see Angela Gillaspie's Ode to Bacon Grease.

Now this, to the best of my knowledge, is the way fish was cooked in Orlando (and probably everywhere else in the region) when cornmeal was a staple and folks ate slab bacon most every day. If your family did it differently, please let us know.

Clean the fish. Remove the innards, head, scales and (maybe) skin so that each fish yields two fillets, strips of meat, one from each side of the fish.

Bread the fillets with cornmeal by dipping them first into milk or a beaten egg, then into cornmeal seasoned with salt and maybe pepper.

Heat the big iron skillet pretty hot and spoon a couple or three serving spoons of bacon drippings into the pan.1

Lay the breaded fillets in the hot skillet and fry until a crispy, brown crust forms. Then flip the fish and fry the other side. Add more bacon grease as needed.

See the entries for
Dec 10, '06 My Great-Uncle Heater Henline
Dec 12, '06: Fishing In Oil Creek

1. Bacon drippings was the standard cooking fat, like olive oil or butter might be in other cultures. After cooking the morning's bacon, or anything else with good flavored fat, like steak or pork chops, whatever fat was left in the pan was poured into a container kept on or near the stove for that purpose. The container could have been as simple as an old coffee can, but in the 1950s and '60s (I can't speak to what was used earlier) we used store-bought metal containers designed for the purpose. This "Fryer's Friend Grease Keeper " is the closest to a grease can I could find on the internet.

Three Henline Brothers In WWII

Newt and Dora (Posey) Henline's three boys, Ben, Pete and Hollis Henline, served during World War II. They grew up on Oil Creek, just downstream (west) of downtown.

The Clarksburg newpaper clipping shows, left to right, Hollis, Ben and Pete.

Ben was held prisoner in a German prison camp. He never married. We understand Hollis married a English girl he met during the war, but the war time romance didn't last and they divorced. (There may have been a child from that marriage who lives in England.) Both Ben and Hollis lived in Clarksburg after the war. Hollis married Clarksburg girl, Lucille Minardi. Hollis worked for Brockway Glass in Clarksburg for over 30 years.

Pete Henline returned from the service to live in Orlando. He was Orlando's postmaster for a long time. (Pete was an central figure in Orlando in his time. We'll add more about him ASAP.)

The boys' dad, Newton Henline, was the son of John Henline, one of Beham's brothers, Their mom, Dora, was the daughter of Perry Scott and Lucy Almira (Skinner) Posey. Newt and Dora also two daughters, Evelyn and Mazel, pictured to the right and a boy, Hubert, who died as a child, pictured to the left with his younger sister Mazel.

Appalachia: The Map

This is a map of the Appalachian States. Note that Appalachia runs through most of Pennsylvania and up into New York, goes well into Mississippi but barely into Virginia or the Carolinas.
Also, note that West Virginia is the only state that is 100% Appalachian.


For more on West Virginia Geography see the March 14, '06 entry Geography Primer for Flatlanders

Confederate Sympathizers

Some of the grandfathers of Orlando folks who we've identifed among the accused:

Anthony R Blake
B S Blake *
W A Blake
Stewart Blake *

Evan Cooper
Nimrod B Foster
Martin Fox
Walter Fox

Benoni Mitchell
Joseph Mitchell *
Samuel Posey
T S Posey *
E Riffle
John Scott Riffle *
Alexander Skinner *
Draper John Skinner
Granville B Skinner *
* indicates those found guilty


Horrible things happened during the Civil War and they happened all around Clover Fork and Oil Creek. It wasn't all "heros fallen in honorable battle."

A couple of men decapitated a boy & buried him in a shallow grave of rocks.

Confederate officers stopped farmers, even Confederate supporters, as they plowed their fields and took the plowhorses, their means of feeding their families.

John [William Riffle] died in 1861 during the Civil War when Federals captured him in Weston and tied him to the back of their wagon making him walk as they traveled. Eventually they shot and killed him and left him for dead by the side of the road. His body was moved more than once before he was finally at rest.


We are told that the north and south quickly put the war behind and united to move forward, as the sketch to the right illustrates1. The Disenfranchisement of Confederate Sympathizers discussed here is one of the indications that the healing may have been far slower than we would have wished1.

DISENFRANCHISEMENT XI/2/111

Communities, particularly in Collins Settlement, where southern sentiment ran high were still divided. There was some bitterness between the factions. Although the general population seemed to believe that it was best to forget the war & get down to the business at hand, there were some who would not.

On October 4, 1869, the Lewis County Registration Board gave notice that open sessions would be held concerning charges that certain residents were or had been sympathetic to the Confederate States. All that was required for an individual to be charged was for someone to "think" that the person was a southern sympathizers. It was up to the person charged with the crime to prove his innocence, but the Registration Board could disallow any or all testimony that it wanted. An individual found guilty lost all civil rights & was not considered a citizen of the state. There was no appeal to any court over the decision of the appointed board.

Three members of this board were James McCorley, his son-in-law James Coonrod, & Dr. W. H. Hall. Shortly after the hearings started, Dr. Hall resigned. He declared that his conscience & the oath he had taken would not allow him to be a part of this travesty of justice. When the notices were sent to the individual charged, they were told that they would need two witnesses to testify on their behalf. Once the hearings began, however, they were informed that they had to have four witnesses and no time would be allowed to obtain additional witnesses. The persons charged by this board were:


1. John G Arnold
2. Philip E Barb *
3. Z Curtis
4. Minter B Dennison [b.1828]
5. Joseph Bennet *
6. Joseph D Bennet
6. Marcelles Bennet
7. Anthony R Blake
8. B S Blake *
9. W A Blake
10. Stewart Blake *
11. J A Craig *
12. Salathiel Craig *
13. W W Craig *
14. Robert Crawford *
15. C D Curtis
16. J C Jenkins
17. Evan Cooper *
18. Joseph Hall
19. Nimrod B Foster
20. Martin Fox
21. Walter Fox
22. William F Heetor *
23. James M Heflin *
24. George A Hoover
25. P A Larentz
26. Jonathan Lewis *
27. Henry McCally
28. R B McCutchin *
29. J W D McCutchin
30. Benoni Mitchell
31. Joseph Mitchell *
32. Samuel Posey
33. T S Posey *
34. E Riffle
35. J S Riffle *
36. H H Rittenhouse *
37. John Scott
38. Thomas Scott *
39. John Sims *
40. Alexander Skinner *
41. D J Skinner
42. G B Skinner *
43. Joseph B Wallace *

* indicates those found guilty

The War Between the States was a very personal and passionate war in Confluence (Orlando). So far I’m pretty sure of nine boys and men from Confluence who fought and all supported for the Confederacy:
7, 10. "Anthony Blake and Stewart McClung Blake were mustered into the 125th West Virginia State Militia in 1860. However, they were later found guilty, with other relatives, of being Southern sympathizers and were disenfranchised in 1869, in a Lewis County Court.2 " We don’t know the story behind their Confederate status. Stewart was 25 and Anthony was 30 in 1860.The boys had moved to Confluence with the folks, John Burton and Abigail (Crissmor) Blake when they were infants/toddlers. Anthony Blake married Rebecca Posey and Stewart married Lucinda Posey

19. Nimrod Brandon Foster b.1831, married Mary Elizabeth Dawson in Albemarle County, VA.

40, 41, 42. Alexander Skinner, Draper John Skinner, Granville B. Skinner. Three Skinners are listed in an article about the disenfranchisement of Confederate sympathizers: Alexander, D J and G B Skinner. I believe these were Jackson’s brothers Draper and Granville and their father Alexander. Alexander was 57 in 1860, Draper and Granville were in their late 20s.

8 John Scott Riffle (pictured at right.) J.S. Riffle is also listed in the article about disenfranchised Confederates. I believe this would be John Scott Riffle, even though he would have only been 12 in 1860. He married Granville Skinner’s daughter, Mary Ann.

8 Calvin Skinner was a private in the Confederate Army and deserted in the summer of 1863 according to Ron Skinner. Released and sent north via New Creek, WV 10/12/1863. 4

Confederate Veterans Not Accussed
We know of several veterans who were not mentioned
"Michael Dexter Posey served with Co. G, 62nd Regiment, Virginia Mounted Infantry2." Michael Dexter Posey was about 17 in 1860. He and Jackson McWhorter Skinner were both grandsons of Catherine (Scott) Skinner Posey and served in the same unit.

8 Jackson McWhorter Skinner was also 17 in 1860 and served with Co. G, 62nd Regiment, Virginia Mounted Infantry. He was wounded at New Market. He was one of the disenfranchised, although his name is not listed. (See the Feb 27 entry) Jackson and Patience (Duvall) Skinner are my grandmother’s paternal grandparents. The drawing at the right is Jackson in later years.

1. The sketch was done by Joseph Diss Debarr, an immigrant from the Alsace (France) who settled in Doddridge County.

Clover Fork Cemetery

The following on Clover Fork Cemetery comes from a web page belonging to Don Riffle of West Milford, WV.

"Cemetery is located just on the Lewis County side of the creek. A couple of stones in this cemetery were unreadable and many graves did not have stones. Due to carelessness, some stones have been moved over the years and replaced as near as possible. A lady living nearby is said to oversee the cemetery. She is said to have a cemetery plat.

Tombstone Readings

Jefferson Riffle
Died April 1, 1898
Aged 87 y 9 m 23 d
Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord

(Jefferson Conrad Riffle Son of Francis Riffle and Elizabeth Conrad, per Darrell Groves)

Elizabeth Ripple
Died Sept 1 1892Aged 60 yrs(.......)
Saints with Christ in Heaven.
Elizabeth "Eliza" (Heater) Riffle, Jefferson's wife and daughter of William L. Heater and Mary Cogar, per Darrell Groves.)

N.B. Foster
Mar 3, 1831 Sep 23, 1915

(Nimrod Brandon Foster, son of Thomas Foster and Elizabeth Browing, 3rd husband of Amanda "Mandy" Riffle, per Darrell Groves.)

Amanda
Wife of N.B. Foster
1846 - 1919A
Tender Mother and a Faithful Friend

(Amanda "Mandy" Riffle. Daughter of Jefferson and Elizabeth Heater Riffle.
Wife of Samuel Sands, Selden Harness Groves and Nimrod Brandon Foster. Nimrod and Amanda had 26 children in their combined families, per Darrell Groves.)

Nimrod Lee Foster
Born Feb 29, 1868Died Mar 5, 1893
(this stone is beside N.B.Foster)
(Nimrod Sr.'s son with 1st wife Mary Elizabeth Dawson per Darrell Groves.)

A different Nimrod Foster and Family follows
Nimrod Foster
son of J.S. & Lousia Foster
Jan 30 1884
Jan 9 1909

(Nimrod J. Foster the son of John Stephen Foster and Louisa Riffle, Grandson of Nimrod Brandon Foster and Mary Elizabeth Dawson...and Jefferson Conrad Riffle and Wife Elizabeth Heater, per Darrell Groves.)

John S. Foster
Born Aug 13, 1861
Died Oct 3, 1898

John Stephen Foster, son of Nimrod Brandon Foster and Mary Elizabeth Dawson, per Darrell Groves.)

Louisa Foster
Wife of John Foster
Aug 16, 1861Nov 27, 1910

Louisa Riffle- Daughter of Jefferson and Elizabeth Heater Riffle, per Darrell Groves).

Clell V.
son of J.S. and L.F. Foster
Died Jul 27, 1895
Aged 4y 6m 2d

(Cell Vaden Foster, son of John Stephen Foster and Louisa Riffle, per Darrell Groves.)

Icy C
daughter of J.S. & L.F. Foster
Born Nov 26, 1888Died March 11, 1895

Icy Colista Foster, daughter of John Stephen Foster and Louisa Riffle, per Darrell Groves.

Elsewhere in cemetery are theses stones.
Hattie A Foster
Born June 30 1908
Died Feb 15, 1913

Francis J. Foster
1864 - 1934
(Francis Julian Foster, son of Nimrod Brandon Foster and Mary Elizabeth Dawson, per Darrell Groves.)

Marsha G.
1867 - (no death date given)

(Marsha Columbia Groves, wife of Francis Julian Foster, daughter of Amanda Riffle-Sands-Groves-Foster and Selden Harness Groves. Born Oct 24, 1868, died Sep 01, 1961, per Darrell Groves.)

Homer G. Foster
1887 - 1966
by his wife Rosella Foster

(Homer Granville Foster, son of Nimrod Brandon Foster and Amanda Rif.fle-Sands-Groves-Foster. "by his wife Rosella Foster" puzzles me, his wife was Ocie Bennett, per Darrell Groves.)

Fletcher Blane Foster
Aug 29, 1926 Jan 5, 1927
(was Homer Granville Foster and Ocie Bennett's son, per Darrell Groves).

Walter C. Foster
Mar 31, 1905Jan 5, 1974

Walter Clarence Foster, son of Marsha Columbia Groves andFrancis Julian Foster. He was maried to Pauline Julia Gay.

Charles J. Foster
Dec 24, 1926Dec 23, 1963
WV PFC HQ Co 18 Infantry WWII

The following is not a stone (yet). It is me.
Don Riffle
West Milford, WV
http://www.iolinc.net/dlrif

Homer Mitchell's Family

Homer Mitchell was the son of Rev Alonzo "Lon", and Samantha, "Mant," (Riffle) Mitchell. He was raised on Clover Fork. Homer was one of the few Orlando men who worked in coal mining. He worked throughout central West Virginia, including Webster, Braxton and Gilmer Counties.

To the left are Homer and Lula (Henline) Mitchell.

Homer married Lula Henline, daughter of Beham and Semantha Henline. They had only two children, both boys, Nelson, the older, and Stanley, his kid brother. See the boys with the fish tha t didn't get away in the entry dated Dec 12 '06 Fishing In Oil Creek.

Homer Mitchell was well respected by all who knew him. He was a kind and friendly man. In 1966, at the age of 74, he died of a heart attack sitting in his car across Oil Creek by the foot bridge from the Henline homeplace. His wife, Lula, died 28 years later, in 1993 at the age of 98. Check out entry Dec 10 '06 My Great-Uncle Heater Henline for a photo of Lula and her brother Heater mugging for the camera on Oil Creek.

Nelson worked at the Equitable Gas pumping station at Burnsville. He was married to Frances Hamrick of Webster County.

Left is Nelson sitting at the top of hill in Webster County. To the right is Nelson's wife Frances (Hamrick) Mitchell and teir baby Gary are to the right.



Stanley was career Air Force. He retired after over 20 years in the Air Force to Buckhannon but lived only a short time thereafter and died at the age of 47 in 1973. He married an Orlando girl, Louise Heater, one of Bee and Genevieve (Skinner) Heater’s girls.

To the right is Stanley in his Air Force uniform.

Fishing In Oil Creek

To the right is a photo from the early 1930s with Nelson and Stanley Mitchell (Homer and Lula (Henline) Mitchell 's boys) showing a fish they caught in Oil Creek.

This photo was a surprise to me because, since Oil Creek sometimes drys up, I didn't think fish would live there. David and Barbara (Jeffries) Parmer assure me that is not the case.

David says, "I have fished Oil Creek many times particularly when my in laws still owned the farm on Oil Creek above Orlando. I often fished Oil Creek right in Orlando and had good luck each time I fished it. You would be surprised what you can catch from such a little creek. I recall fishing one night by the light of a burning tire on Oil Creek and caught several catfish and assorted other fish. At the bend in Oil Creek just past the trestle I caught a bass which was perhaps 17 inches long. I considered fishing a great success that day. "

In an earlier entry about Heater Henline Barbara (Jeffries) Parmer remembered "on heat-shimmery summer afternoons he'd take his fishing pole in hand and say “Think I’ll go up the crick”. After awhile, he would return with what he called “a mess of fish”—suckers and “baccer boxes1”—which my aunt or grandmother would fix for breakfast the next day.

Dave Hyre also remembers fishing on Oil Creek. "My first fishing experience was along Oil Creek a Burnsville, I loved it! I had no reel, just a thin bamboo pole with a stung line, hook, and plastic bobber. Bait was worms. Murky water, but the excitement of that bamboo pole bending to the tug of a bite was magic. Cat fish and "bacca boxes" were a typical day's excitment.

1. Sunfish were called "baccer boxs" because there are about the size of a tobacco box. See the entry on March 12 '06 Prince Albert in the Can

My Great-Uncle Heater Henline

An Affectionate Remembrance of my Great-Uncle Ernest Roy “Heater Huck” Henline
by Barbara (Jeffries) Parmer

From the rambling, bittersweet paths that lead through my early life, I summon a well-remembered image, a beloved figure… bent, worn, stooped with age, but not slouch-weary. Reserved, patient, stubborn—proud, loving. He comes closer in my mind’s telescopic view and I can see him clearly now…small and bent, wearing a battered, sweat-stained old hat and his ever-present galluses and khaki work clothes, walking with his work-worn hands clasped behind his back.

He was the family bachelor to whom all turned for help; he lent money and gave advice. Many times he would say “’Pon my word, what are these young people coming to ?” I believe he had a clear view of what he wished for me to “come to”, a squalling, squirming infant great-niece who had come into his life after he had already passed sixty birthdays. I was to become a happy and successful young lady and I was to be loved unreservedly. He “spoiled” me terribly, my mother says. He would come home from his job on the B& O Railroad and looking for an excuse to pick me up, he’d say “’Pon my word, I bet this baby has not been out of her playpen all day.” And he would pick me up and play with me. As I grew, he would always have money for the geegaws and folderols that kids love and later he helped indulge a teenage girl’s fancy for clothes.

He was a gentle man of few words and fewer harsh judgments. While others around him might lean toward stringent indictments of the faults of neighbors and relatives, he was more generous in his assessments. Although not a regular church-goer, he lived by the Biblical exhortations “Love thy neighbor” and “Judge not lest ye be judged”.

I have many vivid memories of him, particularly on heat-shimmery summer afternoons. He’d take his fishing pole in hand and say “Think I’ll go up the crick”. After awhile, he would return with what he called “a mess of fish”—suckers and “baccer boxes”—which my aunt or grandmother would fix for breakfast the next day. I also recall the summer hours when I sat with him on our side porch swing and looked at clouds and talked about their shapes and the animals they resembled.

Winter vignettes also come to mind—squirrel hunting with his old ’22, helping me memorize “The Night Before Christmas” and proudly listening as I recited it, teaching me old time sayings and nursery rhymes by the fire, playing checkers and letting me win because I cried when I lost. One special winter memory is of a doll bed fashioned by his hands in his secret Santa workshop, and waiting under the tree on Christmas morning. Other cherished remembrances crowd my mind—the Cinderella watch he bought me, the Christmas tree he annually cut and dragged off the hill, the vanilla ice cream which appeared in my sick room when I had the flu.

Those happy, busy years of my growing-up were short. He become lonely at the end of his life because those whom he had loved for so any years died or left the home place. I left for college and would go to see him on weekends in a lonely and empty house with only his dog and the TV set to keep him company. Physically, he began to fail. His body simply wore out and his ailments worsened and accumulated. I finished college and went to another state to live. And on a Thanksgiving Day, he died and left all of us who loved him with the emptiness one feels when a good man is not more. His community paid him a tribute in the county newspaper which is an appropriate epitaph for him. It said: “He was friendly, kind, a good neighbor, indeed a gentleman in every way.”

Rest in peace, Uncle Heater.
July 8, 1883-November 25, 1966

At the top of the page is the author Barbara (Jeffries) Parmer with her Uncle Heater and her brother Tom Jeffries.

Next to the left is the author Barbara Jeffries, looking like sugar & spice.
At the lower left is Heater Henline as a young man.
At the lower right is Heater and his sister Lula cutting up a bit for the camera.

Comments

comment 1 Bill Beckner
Heaterhook Henlein was an old guy when I was a kid. I used to go down and sit on the foot [swinging] bridge and watch him sitting on the bank of the creek just down in front of his place with big old wooden pole and he'd pull up suckers one after another. Took me a long time, 'cause when you're little, old people seem scary, but I finally got up the nerve to ask him how come he caught so many more fish than I did. He said "it's the 'baccer juice. I spit 'baccer juice on the worm. He pulled his line out of the water and spit a little tobacco juice on the worm to show me how it was done.

Left: Bill Beckner