The B & O track ran up between Charlie Knight's store and the Dolan Hotel and went on to Weston. The first stop north of Orlando was called Peterson's Siding. Virginia (McCord) Mitchell talks about life at Peterson's Siding. Virginia was the daughter of David and Annie (Myers) McCord.1
The McCord Farm
"I was born 20 Sept 1909. I grew up and have lived at the family farm on Oil Creek all my life. Our farm consisted of as many as four milk cows, lots of chickens and an apple orchard. As I was growing up, the railroad tracks ran from Weston to Orlando directly in front of our house. In order for me to attend high school, I rode the train to Burnsville every day.
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To the right is a photo of the McCord farm
Virginia Married Luther Mitchell
"On 10 April 1944, I married Luther Monroe Mitchell. I
can remember walking to Orlando, where we were to meet a man who was going to give us a ride to Buckhannon so we could get married. The man did not show up. so we took the train to Weston and another to Buckhannon. We went to the home of my brother, the Reverend Ralph McCord, who was a Methodist minister in Buckhannon. Well, he tried to talk us out of getting married because I was eleven years older than Luther. He was born 28 September 1920. I was 35 and he was 24. It did not work. By the time he got around to marrying us, it was nearly ten o'clock! We spent our first night together at my brother's house. The day after we returned home my sister Thelma, and some friends, serenaded us with singing and banging on tin cans.2 In the meantime my father returned home from Florida where he had spent the winter, not knowing that Luther and I had gotten married. He was not surprised and he was happy for us."
"On 10 April 1944, I married Luther Monroe Mitchell. I
can remember walking to Orlando, where we were to meet a man who was going to give us a ride to Buckhannon so we could get married. The man did not show up. so we took the train to Weston and another to Buckhannon. We went to the home of my brother, the Reverend Ralph McCord, who was a Methodist minister in Buckhannon. Well, he tried to talk us out of getting married because I was eleven years older than Luther. He was born 28 September 1920. I was 35 and he was 24. It did not work. By the time he got around to marrying us, it was nearly ten o'clock! We spent our first night together at my brother's house. The day after we returned home my sister Thelma, and some friends, serenaded us with singing and banging on tin cans.2 In the meantime my father returned home from Florida where he had spent the winter, not knowing that Luther and I had gotten married. He was not surprised and he was happy for us." .
Left is Luther & Virginia on their wedding day. 3
Virginia and Luther had five children, Robert, Thomas, Wanda, Gary and Stephen. Luther was a screen maker for the West Virginia Glass factory and died in 1985 of cancer at the age of 64. In the year 2000 (when Virginia and Amanda West's article was printed in Joy Gilchrist -Stalnaker's Lewis County book) Virginia was 91 years old.
Virginia and Luther had five children, Robert, Thomas, Wanda, Gary and Stephen. Luther was a screen maker for the West Virginia Glass factory and died in 1985 of cancer at the age of 64. In the year 2000 (when Virginia and Amanda West's article was printed in Joy Gilchrist -Stalnaker's Lewis County book) Virginia was 91 years old.
Virgina's Ancestors
Virginia has some interesting ancestors. Her 2g-grandfather James Norman was an English immigrant who was remembered as a man of deep faith.
To the right is Virginia's great-grandmother, Hannah McCartney (1808-1877). Hannah's parents, Thomas and Sarah (Bennett) McCartney, were original settlers of Walkersville. Hannah's grandfather Andrew McCartney fought in the Revolutionary War and her mother-in-law, Sarah Ann Price, was kidnapped and held captive by Indians.
Virginia has some interesting ancestors. Her 2g-grandfather James Norman was an English immigrant who was remembered as a man of deep faith.
To the right is Virginia's great-grandmother, Hannah McCartney (1808-1877). Hannah's parents, Thomas and Sarah (Bennett) McCartney, were original settlers of Walkersville. Hannah's grandfather Andrew McCartney fought in the Revolutionary War and her mother-in-law, Sarah Ann Price, was kidnapped and held captive by Indians.
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1 Immigrant James Norman, His Testimony 4
Virginia's 2g-grandfather, (Virginia McCord, David McCord, Malinda Norman, Felix Norman, the Immigrant James Norman)
"During the Summer of 1843, one Sunday at prayer meeting, which was being conducted at the residence of Wm. Boggs, James Norman, a man of devout mind and very reserved and timid, a gray haired pilgrim whose sands of time were nearly run, in the course of the services, arose and for the first time he was ever known to speak in public gave such a profound and convincing exhortation that all who were present were soul feelingly stirred and sensibly impressed. "I myself being so forcibly imbued and touched by Father Norman's appeal that not long after I joined the Church and was baptized in Steer Creek just below the forks of Steer Creek at Stumptown by the Rev. Carr Bailey who was pastor of Mt. Pisgah Church from 1842 to 1844 and was received into full fellowship and continued a member of the Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church at Stumptown, Gilmer County, then Virginia, now WV, over fourteen years."
2. Thomas McCartney, the Builder 5
Virginia's 2g-grandfather (Virginia McCord, David McCord, John McCord, Hannah McCartney, Thomas McCartney)
Thomas and Sarah (Bennett) McCartney came from Harrison Co. VA. about 1800 to settle at the confluence of the right and left hand forks of the West Fork of the Monongahela River. It is said that "Thomas hewed logs for houses that were so smooth they looked planed." In 1808 he built the first two-story house in the area for Sarah's brother, William Bennett Sr. on Bennett Run. The house burned in 1941 after being almost continuously occupied for 133 years.
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3. Immigrant Andrew McCartney, Veteran of War of Independence
Virginia's 3g-grandfather (Virginia McCord, David McCord, John McCord, Hannah McCartney, Thomas McCartney, Andrew McCartney)
Andrew was probably Scots Irish. He immigrated from Ireland in 1775. In 1778 he enlisted in the Colonial army in Pennsylvania and served two tours of duty:
~ Chester Co. Pennsylvania, 1st Regt. Foot, enlisted June 1, 1777.
~ 13th Pennsylvania Regt. enlisted May 27, 1778.
4. Sarah Ann Price, The Indian Captive 6
Virginia's 2g-grandmother (Virginia McCord, David McCord, John McCord, Aaron McCord, Sarah Ann Price)
Virginia's 3g-grandfather (Virginia McCord, David McCord, John McCord, Hannah McCartney, Thomas McCartney, Andrew McCartney)
Andrew was probably Scots Irish. He immigrated from Ireland in 1775. In 1778 he enlisted in the Colonial army in Pennsylvania and served two tours of duty:
~ Chester Co. Pennsylvania, 1st Regt. Foot, enlisted June 1, 1777.
~ 13th Pennsylvania Regt. enlisted May 27, 1778.
4. Sarah Ann Price, The Indian Captive 6
Virginia's 2g-grandmother (Virginia McCord, David McCord, John McCord, Aaron McCord, Sarah Ann Price)
In the fall of 1764, Col. Henry Bouquet of the Royal American Regiment, organized an expedition to the Ohio Country to demand a surrender of the tribes that participated in Pontiac's War during 1763 through the first half of 1764. With the call for surrender, he intended to, as a contingency for mercy, require the return of all captives taken since the outbreak of hostilities in 1754. Sarah Price is listed as a captive from Hampshire County, VA.
It is probable that Sarah Price was taken in one of several of the small raids that took place in the area during the spring through fall of 1757. Most of the raids involved small numbers of Indians and small numbers killed or taken away, but we don't have the details of any of those.
Footnotes
1. By Amanda S. West and Virginia D. (McCord) Mitchell and printed in
Lewis County, West Virginia: Her People and Places, pg 149. edited by Joy Gilchrist-Stalnaker. Photos of Virginia and Luther and of her grandmother Hannah McCartney are from this source, also.
1. By Amanda S. West and Virginia D. (McCord) Mitchell and printed in
Lewis County, West Virginia: Her People and Places, pg 149. edited by Joy Gilchrist-Stalnaker. Photos of Virginia and Luther and of her grandmother Hannah McCartney are from this source, also.
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2 The tradition of "serenading" the newlyweds goes back to frontier days of the mid 1700s. Read more about it in Dave Table's 'blog Appalachian History , the 18 June '07 entry, June bride? Time for a shivaree:
Rosa Walden, Pi Beta Phi Settlement School (Gatlinburg, TN) teacher and Tacoma, Washington native Ruth Sturley participated in a serenade in September 1919, and described the event in a letter to her family:
“One of my girls Flora Reagan has a sister who was married . . . and the young people got up the affair in their honor. Abbie [Runyan], Evelyn [Bishop] and I went with three of the school girls and a dozen more youths. Lillard Maples took us girls in his Ford three miles up to the Forks of the river [to the newlyweds’ home]. . . . We stopped and assembling our forces proceeded to march round and round shouting--blowing ox horns--ring cow bells--sheep bells and I know not what. My noise was produced by clapping together two tin pan covers--then some sticks of dynamite were set off--by this time strange to say the cabin was astir.”
“One of my girls Flora Reagan has a sister who was married . . . and the young people got up the affair in their honor. Abbie [Runyan], Evelyn [Bishop] and I went with three of the school girls and a dozen more youths. Lillard Maples took us girls in his Ford three miles up to the Forks of the river [to the newlyweds’ home]. . . . We stopped and assembling our forces proceeded to march round and round shouting--blowing ox horns--ring cow bells--sheep bells and I know not what. My noise was produced by clapping together two tin pan covers--then some sticks of dynamite were set off--by this time strange to say the cabin was astir.”
3. Photo belongs to Norah "Betty" Groves, submitted to the Braxton County RootsWeb message board by Darrell Groves.
4. From Betty Herrinigton's family tree at RootsWeb.com, Sept. 2005.
4. From Betty Herrinigton's family tree at RootsWeb.com, Sept. 2005.
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5. From an unknown source, printed in Don Norman's records
5. From an unknown source, printed in Don Norman's records
Hello, My name is Amanda S, West. I am Virginia (McCord) Mitchell's granddaughter. I want to make a correction. My name is incorrectly listed as Amanda (Mitchell) West. Virginia is my grandmother , my mother is Wanda (Mitchell) West Light. She remarried afer my father Russell A. West, Jr. past away.
ReplyDeleteThanks you, Amanda, for the correction. I have made the correction in the text. Please let me know if you would like to add or change anything else. I', so glad you wrote.
ReplyDelete