Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Watts Collection, documents 426-450



Checklist of documents in the Watts Collection at the Historical Society of Western Virginia, Roanoke, Virginia. To consult these documents, go to http://www.vahistorymuseum.org/ and move the cursor to the “Virtual Museum” tile at the top. Then click “Virtual Collections” on the menu that appears. The documents can be found by a keyword search, or by catalog number using “Click and Search”. Some or all of the documents described here may not yet be available online, but all may be consulted on site.

This is a very coherent set of 25 documents. The first 3 date from 1846 and relate to the affairs of Fleming James; the remaining 22 all date from January to September 1847, and they are almost in chronological order. Another 15 of these documents relate to the affairs of Fleming James. Of the remaining 7 documents, 6 concern typical business conducted by William Watts, mainly collecting debts due to clients. A single document, 1998.26.441, is a receipt to Edward Watts for money paid by R. C. Gwathmey & Co, probably for agricultural products sold on his behalf.

doc #
date
abstract

1998.26.426
March-April 1846
Account statement of Fleming James to William McDermid, including farm items like clover seed, horses and cows, and the assumption of a debt to John Sheridan

1998.26.427
June 30, 1846
Letter from Fleming James in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, answering with some delay a letter from Watts; notes actions taken in regard to Benjamin Franklin Moomaw, Catharine (Ammen) Stoner, and William McDermid; questions a charge for hauling plaster for William C. Langhorne; complains of delay in receiving flour shipped by Landon Cabell Read; says that he was deceived by Daniel Ammen about the money needed to clear Mrs Stoner’s title, but sends a check to pay Alexander P. Eskridge, with instructions to Watts; gives an account of the credit of Gordon and Skinker, endorsers of the note he plans to offer Eskridge as security; boasts of the good name of F. & J. S. James & Co.

1998.26.428
October 26, 1846
Letter from Abraham Carney at Stoner’s Store, Virginia, to Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, notifying James, his landlord, that he intends to stay another year as a tenant farmer, stating that no one, including William Watts, James’s agent, has given him notice; also mentions that he has been ill with a fever for six weeks


October tha 26 1846, Dear sur, I mus inform you that I cant wat any longer for a notis about tha place I live on I hav had notis from any purson an I hav comenced seedin an will hold tha land another year on tha same turmes I hav been confined to my bed for six weaks with tha fevour and cant at this time git out of the house and you nor any purson gave me any notis that you wonted tha land that you intend me to stay an I hav asertained that a land lord must giv a notis an that in time so that tha can look out in time to seed an as you have faild to do so I must continue if I had any notis by you or your agent I wold give posesion without a word for I wont to liv in pes with all pursons on Erth

The spelling in this letter is phonetic. Here is a translation into standard English:
October 26, 1846, Dear Sir, I must inform you that I can’t wait any longer for a notice about the place I live on. I have had [no] notice from any person and I have commenced seeding, and will hold the land another year on the same terms. I have been confined to my bed for six weeks with the fever, and can’t at this time get out of the house, and you nor any person gave me any notice that you wanted the land [or] that you intend me to stay, and I have ascertained that a landlord must give a notice, and that in time so that the [tenant] can look out in time to seed. And as you have failed to do so, I must continue. If I had any notice by you or your agent, I would give possession without a word, for I want to live in peace with all persons on earth.
            Abraham (or Abram) Carney  1820-1911) was a life-long resident of the Bedford-Botetourt-Roanoke County area. He appears in census reports in 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900 and 1910, a farmer living at Lisbon, Bedford County, Virginia, farmer; Lisbon is a “lost village”, which lay along the Lynchburg-Salem Pike, about 9 miles east of the Bonsack-Coyner’s Spring area where Fleming James’s land lay. According to online family trees, Carney was married three times and left issue by his first wife.

1998.26.429
January 9, 1847
Letter from J. Sibley of Buck & Potter in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, sending an account statement of their claim against G. W. Anderson, showing an original debt of $392.74, with interest added and partial payment deducted, leaving $334.37 before deducting Watts’s commission, and asking Watts to remit approximately $303.50 by check on Philadelphia or New York

1998.26.430
January 20, 1847
Letter from Thomas S. Gholson, in Petersburg, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, acknowledging receipt of a check for $300 and requesting a full statement when the balance is sent, to enable settlement with N. S. Freeman to whom the debt was due

1998.26.431
January 28, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, expressing pleasure at Watts’s return to health; describing his agreement with William McDermid regarding the rental of James’s land for another year, the purchase of his crop of clover seed and other matters to be arranged with James’s manager Benjamin Perkins; telling of plans to send the deed for the Coyner property; authorizing Watts to employ help in dealing with lawsuits involving Daniel Stoner, John Stoner, Samuel Stoner, William S. Minor, William McDermid, and St Clair; stating that John Stoner is pressing Perkins to vacate the house, because of an agreement with William Langhorne, while James wants to retain possession

1998.26.432
February 13, 1847
Letter from J. Sibley, of Buck & Potter in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, acknowledging receipt of a check of $303.05, payment for the balance of the debt of George W. Anderson

1998.26.433
February 16, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, covering the deed for the Coiner land, which James wants Edward Watts to sign and draw his commission for his work thereon, and for William Watts to have recorded; announcing his imminent departure for New York for a month, in care of Halsted, Haines & Co.

1998.26.434
February 22, 1847
Letter from Thomas S. Gholson, in Petersburg, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, acknowledging receipt of a statement and the balance of the debt vs Burwell, credited to Gholson’s account in the Bank of Virginia

1998.26.435
March 8, 1847
Letter from John Quarles James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, covering a copy of notice left for his father, Fleming James. The notice says that depositions will be taken from Henry A. Edmundson and others in Roanoke County, in a case in which F. & J. S. James & Co are plaintiff and Daniel Stoner, Matilda Stoner, William Noffsinger as trustee for Matilda Stoner, Clack B. Campbell and Jacob Frantz are defendants. John Quarles James says that he and his cousins have gone into business under the firm and style of H. & J. Q. James & Co, and solicits Watts’s  interest in recommending them.

1998.26.436
March 11, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in New York, New York, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, asking Watts to obtain security for rental of a farm from William McDermid, and to urge McDermid to deliver the clover seed to James’s manager Benjamin Perkins; also asking Watts to assist Perkins, and obtain aid from William C. Langhorne if necessary, to retain possession of the mansion house, which John Stoner is trying to get; outlining his travel plans to Boston, Massachusetts,  Richmond and Roanoke County, Virginia, and inquiring in general about the status of his lawsuits in Roanoke and Botetourt Counties

1998.26.437
March 25, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, expressing displeasure at not finding a letter from Watts on his arrival in Richmond and repeating urgent requests for action and information about Mary (Dagen) Stoner’s dower; telling of Peachy Ridgway Grattan’s advice to cede possession of the house and dower land to John Stoner but to retain the store and other buildings on the road; asking Watts to meet him at William Langhorne’s home in Roanoke County on March 31 and accompany him to Fincastle for the court session; sending greetings from his family and news of Alice Watts

1998.26.438
April 5, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in Liberty (now Bedford), Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, calling his attention to two letters addressed to him in Fincastle, Virginia, one concerning William Langhorne and both of important to F. & J. S. James & Co

1998.26.439
May 1, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, including a copy of a legal notice to himself and Edwin James, partners in the firm F. & J. S. James & Co., that depositions will be taken in their case against Daniel Stoner, Matilda Stoner, Clack R. Campbell, Jacob Frantz, and William Noffsinger, trustee for Matilda Stoner; James’s letter asks Watts to attend the taking of depositions and represent James’s interests; also notes that John Stoner has asked James’s manager Benjamin Perkins to hand over the keys to the house, which James has told Perkins not to do and asks Watts to advise Perkins; and concludes noting with pleasure political gains by the Whigs

1998.26.440
April 20, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, replying to a letter from Watts bringing the good news that James’s manager Benjamin Perkins has full possession of the Stoners’ store and lumber yard, asking Watts to substitute F. & J. S. James & Co. as defendant in case Perkins is sued by John Stoner, and thanking both William and his father Edward Watts for their help; also asking about taking depositions in the Stoner case from Mr Parker and from Fleming’s son John Quarles James, and about executing a bond against A. A. Boyd in time for the September session of the Botetourt County Superior Court

1998.26.441
April 28, 1847
Receipt from the Bank of Virginia to R. C. Gwathmey & Co. for a deposit of $1200 to the credit of Edward Watts; receipt signed by John Hunter Hatcher, assistant teller



John Hunter Hatcher (1813-1878) appears in the census in census 1850, 1860, and 1870 in Chesterfield County, Virginia, giving his profession as bank clerk. He was married twice and left issue by both marriages, according to an online familytree.

1998.26.442
May 11, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, describing his exhausting day riding horseback to inspect his estate in Louisa County, Virginia, then taking the “cars” (railroad train) to Richmond; promising to see Peachy Ridgway Grattan immediately about a bill of injunction, needed in case Mary (Dagen) Stoner obtains a judgment against James

1998.26.443
May 13, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, covering a copy of the bill of injunction prepared by Peachy Ridgway Grattan and granted by Judge Clopton; giving Grattan’s opinion about Mary (Dagen) Stoner’s rights and James’s likelihood of winning his cases against her and John Stoner; informing Watts that depositions will be taken from Alexander K. Parker, Robert L. Brooke, John W. Boyd and John Quarles James in Grattan’s office in June; stating that James will order an execution of fieri facias against A. A. Boyd; saying that he has written to Bonsack about selling land; explaining that William McDermid has paid his rent with horses, cows, hogs and clover seed, about which James’s estate manager Benjamin Perkins will provide details; and asking Watts to provide security for the bill of injunction


The Clover seed were to be at 6$ pr Bushel. There were two horses I believe at 50$ or upwards each, also a cow, perhaps two, & maybe some hogs, but Mr Perkins will inform you precisely. Charge your commission of 5 pr Ct on both years rent when the balance is realized & settle with McDermid as soon as you can.
            It has been raining more or less for 4 or 5 days past, extending as I learn beyond the mountains. I hope Roanoke has had enough. John & Mrs James unite with me in friendly sa[lutations] to [your father,] mother & family.

This document shows damage done by rodents. Benjamin Perkins (1793-1852) had worked for Fleming James on properties in Louisa County, Virginia, before James brought him to Roanoke County to manage his new land there, mainly acquired from the Stoner family; Perkins appears in the 1850 census in Roanoke County as “manager for James”. He was married and had children; after his death, his wife, née Eliza A. Sanders or Saunders, returned with the children to live with her parents near Trevilian Depot in Louisa County. William McDermid (c. 1791-1871) was married to Anna Stoner.

1998.26.444
June 10, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, acknowledging receipt of a letter and enclosures, and enclosing the indemnifying bond from Gordon addressed to Frederick Johnston, clerk of the court; also informing Watts of progress in taking depositions from John Quarles James, John W. Boyd and Alexander K. Parker; and expressing regret over the poor wheat crop in the Roanoke area

1998.26.445
June 15, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, announcing that the depositions in his case against John Stoner, given by John Quarles James, John W. Boyd, and Alexander K. Parker, with Peachy Ridgway Grattan as lawyer, had been sent by Samuel T. Pulliam, the magistrate who sat for them, to the clerk of the Superior Court of Law & Chancery for Roanoke County in Salem, Virginia; also urging Watts to clear the docket of all of James’s cases at the next session; and sending news of Watt’s sister Alice Matilda Watts, who has been riding with her cousin Mary Ann Breckinridge and James’s wife Mary (Armstrong) James

1998.26.446
August 23, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in Saratoga Springs, New York, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, saying that he has instructed his estate manager, Benjamin Perkins, to apply to Watts for assistance with his crops, and with making arrangements with his tenants William McDermid and William S. Minor; apologizing for burdening Watts with these tasks and hoping for success in their upcoming cases before the Roanoke County Superior Court


Saratoga Springs, August 23rd, 1847
Wm Watts Esqr, Big Lick Va
Dear Sir, I have directed Mr Perkins, our manager in Roanoke, to apply to you to assist him in securing his growing crop & in preparing for & seeding a large Crop of wheat the coming fall. I have also requested him to get your aid in arranging with Mr McDermid to seed a crop of wheat on the land he now occupies with a view to my bargaining directly or through you with Mr McDermid about staying on the place another year.

The ink has bled through the page of this letter, making it difficult to read. On Benjamin Perkins and William McDermid, see 1998.26.443 above.

1998.26.447
August 24, 1847
Receipt from J. K. Pitzer, deputy sheriff, for John H. Griffin, sheriff of Roanoke County, Virginia, to William Watts, agent for Fleming James and F. & J. S. James & Co., for  $70.19 in payment of an execution against William McDermid in favor of David Gish, James Howell, and Hiram Haydon, this payment being the balance in full of Howell’s portion

1998.26.448
September 6, 1847
Letter from Fleming James, in Baltimore, Maryland, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, saying that he expects to return home the next day, and to be in Roanoke County in thirty or forty days; replying with satisfaction to a letter announcing victory in the suit against John Stoner and promising to pay $300 to the Donnans to settle a suit over the Coiner land; asking Watts to talk to James’s estate manager Benjamin Perkins about settling with William McDermid, who may be needed as a witness in a suit to stop David Gish from building a mill dam; expressing surprise that Captain Nelmes had not yet sold his tobacco and paid Watts; saying that Landon Cabell Read also owes money for mill rent; proposing to pay Watts soon for all the work he has done on matters that are now settled, including those already mentioned and others with Samuel Stoner, Mrs Stoner, William C. Langhorne, William S. Minor, and Alexander P. Eskridge

1998.26.449
September 10, 1847
Letter from Thomas W. Brockenbrough, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, acknowledging receipt of $167.26 deposited in the Bank of Virginia at Buchanan, collected as a debt from Goode

1998.26.450
September 14, 1847
Letter from James Moss Smith, in Martinsville, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, giving directions for the disposition of debts collected for Harrison Carter France and Edmund Starling, the money to be sent to McCorkle & McDaniel of Lynchburg, Virginia, credited to William T. Clark, grocer, of Henry County, Virginia; the France debt belongs to John Cousins Traylor and the Starling debt to the writer, James Moss Smith

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Watts Collection, documents 401-425


Checklist of documents in the Watts Collection at the Historical Society of Western Virginia, Roanoke, Virginia. To consult these documents, go to http://www.vahistorymuseum.org/ and move the cursor to the “Virtual Museum” tile at the top. Then click “Virtual Collections” on the menu that appears. The documents can be found by a keyword search, or by catalog number using “Click and Search”.

This group of 25 documents is very coherent; all them date from 1846 and relate to the business and legal affairs of the Watts family. Sixteen are letters from Fleming James to William Watts, primarily about his ongoing case against the Stoner family; another is a letter from Fleming James’s son John Quarles James, and yet another is an enclosure sent with one of the letters. The seven remaining relate to legal business, mainly the collection of debts, but one is the receipt to Edward Watts for taxes paid on his estate, Oaklands, in 1846.

doc #
date
abstract

1998.26.401
September 11, 1851
Copy of records in a cause heard in the Circuit Superior Court of Law and Chancery in Roanoke County, Virginia, in the case of Wiley P. Wood and Joseph Rives, plaintiffs, against Charles Pinckard and Tyree Glenn Newbill, defendants; Newbill failing to appear, Pinckard is the sole defendant; document includes copies of the decree of the Roanoke County court of 26 August 1846, a commissioner’s report by Frederick Johnston with statements by the two parties of 10 June 1847, a second decree by the Roanoke County court of 27 March 1848, a second commissioner’s report by Johnston of 28 June 1848, a third decree by the Roanoke County court on 26 August 1848, and a decree of the Virginia Court of Appeals meeting at Lewisburg, Virginia (now West Virginia), with Pinckard as appellant, finding in favor of the appellees Wood and Rives, on 11 September 1851. The case arose because Newbill, who was one of the legatees and the administrator of an estate, mismanaged it, apparently because his own affairs were in disarray. In an effort to solve his own problems, he sold some of the assets of the estate at sacrifice prices to Pinckard, but later filed an oath of insolvency and left the area. Wood and Rives had been his sureties; when other legatees and creditors sued the estate, they had to pay. They then sued Pinckard and Newbill; in the latter’s absence, only Pinckard’s situation is exposed, and the argument was that he knew, or should have known, that he was purchasing bonds obtained fraudulently, and therefore had to return the money. The commissioner’s reports are efforts to clarify the accounting. In the end, the Roanoke County Court ruled in favor of Wood and Rives, and on Pinckard’s appeal, the Virginia Court of Appeals sustained the decision.


First page of the copy of records in the case of Wiley P. Wood and Joseph Rives, plaintiffs, against Charles Pinckard and Tyree Glenn Newbill, defendants, showing the red ribbon used to bind legal documents.

At a Circuit Circuit Superior Court of Law and Chancery held for the County of Roanoke on the 26th day of August 1846
            Wiley P. Woods & Joseph Rives                      Pffs      }
            against                                                                         } In Chancery
            Charles Pinckard and Tyree G. Newbill         Dfts      }
The parties in this cause, by their counsel, agree here in Court, that the Exhibit mentioned in the plaintiff’s Bill marked “F” purporting to be the receipt from the Counsel of Mary & Catharine Phillips to the plaintiffs, was executed by the Counsel for the said Mary & Catharine Phillips, and that the sum of money therein mentioned was paid by the plaintiffs as the security of the said Tyree G. Newbill as therein stated. And thereupon the cause came on to be heard upon the Bill, answer, replication thereto, exhibits, examinations of witnesses, and the order of publication awarded in this cause on the 3d day of December 1844 against the defendant Tyree G. Newbill, which appears to have been duly published in the mode prescribed by law, and was argued by counsel. Upon consideration [continues for 24 pages]

This case is described and explained in Virginia Reports Jefferson-33 Grattan 1730-1880, July term 1851, Lewisburg; it began with the death of Mary Crafton or Crampton in 1836; her will left half her estate to Tyree G. Newbill and the other half in equal shares to Mary and Catharine Phillips; Newbill was named administrator of her estate, and Wiley P. Woods and Joseph Rives were his surety; in November 1836 Newbill sold Crafton’s personal property and sold two slaves for $2450, paid for with bonds, which Newbill then sold to Charles Pinckard at a discount; c. 1840 Newbill became insolvent and left the region; the Phillips women, not having been paid, sued and won a decree in 1844, which was paid by Woods and Rives; they then sued to recover the value of the bonds from Pinckard, on the grounds that he had knowingly assisted in Newbill’s fraudulent misuse of the estate; and the courts concurred. It is not clear why this document is among the Watts papers; no one in the family is mentioned, and nothing indicates that they served as attorneys for any of the parties.

1998.26.402
May 9, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, covering a deed to Moomaw, requesting that the money be delivered as soon as possible by a bank draft from Buchanan, Virginia; discussing an impending banking crisis and the current shortage of money; expressing his impatience with delays in his case against Daniel, John and Samuel Stoner; asking for information about crops on the Stoner land, in particular whether they have been affected by Hessian Fly infestation

1998.26.403
October 29, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, enclosing an advertisement to be published in Big Lick, Fincastle, at the Stoners’ property, and in the Valley Whig newspaper, for a sale, probably of the property of the Stoner family from whom James had been trying to collect a debt owed to his company, F. & J. S. James & Co; also mentioning Mr Langhorne, who was planting fields of wheat, corn, and tobacco on behalf of James

1998.26.404
December 9, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, at Stoners Store, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, reporting the arrangements he has made regarding the sale of the Stoner property, and other arrangements, with requests for Watts to obtain written final agreements; he has purchased the Coiner land, and rented it to William S. Minor’s father for one year; he wishes Watts to settle a land matter quickly with St Clair; he has rented a place to young Carney, whose father is posting bond, the contract to be drawn up by Landon Cabell Read; he has bought William McDermid’s crop of clover seed and received assurances that McDermid will pay off his debts by Christmas; he has obtained a secret agreement with John Stoner that John will persuade his mother to sell her dower rights; he has also purchased four horses and wagon gear from William S. Minor

1998.26.405
January 15, 1846
Letter from John Quarles James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, sending the price – $425 – paid for a slave named Baldy Jim and inquiring about some groceries sent to Edward Watts, which may have been lost because of problems in transportation at Lynchburg

1998.26.406
January 14, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, replying to one from Watts, agreeing to his proposal to sell land to Moomaw, giving Watts carte blanche to deal with Baldy Jim, enclosing copies of judgments against Samuel Stoner, asking Watts to examine the Donnans’ claim against the Coiner land, expressing pleasure that matters have been settled with Landon Cabell Read, hoping that other matters involving Nelmes, Moomaw and McDermid will be settled soon, asking Watts to collect back rents from Martin for a mill, inquiring about crops from Barnes, and repeating his strong wish to have all his affairs settled quickly

1998.26.407
October 12, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, expressing his surprise that Langhorne has refused to seed wheat for him, as he had previously promised, except on condition that his lease of the land be extended another year, which James cannot do without breaking his commitment to Perkins and Dabney, his managers; he outlines the offer he had made, granting Langhorne the right to seed the lands of Nelmes, Carney, William S. Minor, and Mary (Dagen) Stoner, with his share of the profit to be adjudged by Edward Watts and William Madison Peyton; he has recently seen Peyton, who encouraged him to have William Watts get it done, and James pleads with to agree

1998.26.408
April 16, 1846
Letter from Judah Myers, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, requesting that Watts forward to him, as trustee for John E. Watkins, formerly a merchant in Richmond, money from a claim against S. P. Thompson; includes endorsement by Watkins and certification by the postmaster Zachariah S. Robinson that a check for $172.60 was mailed on 29 April 1846

The closing line of the letter with the signature of Judah Myers, 
followed by the endorsement and signature of John E. Watkins

The object therefore of the present is to say that you will please forward to money to me as Trustee for J. E. Watkins. Yours Respy [Respectfully], Judah Myers
Dear Sir, The above statement made by Mr Myers is correct and you will please pay the Money over to him. Yours very Respectfully, J. E. Watkins

Judah Myers was born 19 Mar 1807 in Richmond, Virginia, and died 1 Mar 1852 in Richmond, Virginia; he is buried in Shockoe Cemetery. John E. Watkins was born 28 Feb 1789 in Goochland County, Virginia, and died 21 Feb 1855 in Ampthill, Chesterfield County, Virginia; he lived and was buried in Ampthill Plantation. He married Judith Eveline Watkins (1794-1872), and they had many children.

1998.26.409
February 16, 1846
Executor’s receipt from Charles L. Mosby, executor of Thomas A. Holcombe, deceased, to William Watts, for payment of a court judgment for a debt of $109.92 against J. C. Jeffress and John Shirey in the Circuit Superior Court of Roanoke; with interests and costs the final amount paid was $148.30

1998.26.410
1846
Receipt from the Sheriff’s office of Roanoke County, Virginia, signed by J. K. Pitzer, deputy  sheriff, to Edward Watts for taxes paid for 1846, amounting to $158.16½, the largest items being 1 white and 81 black tithes, 98 slaves, and 2250 acres of land


Receipt from the Sheriff’s office of Roanoke County, Virginia, to Edward Watts, for taxes paid in 1846

Edward Watts                                                  Dr
1846                                        To Roanoke Sheriff
1  W & 81 B Tythes                         75         "  "            61.50
98  Slaves                                        32        31.36
1          Carriage                                            4.50
2          G watches                                         2.00
2          Pianoes                                             6.00
$140    Silver Plate                                        2.10
$161    Interest                                              2.41½
52        Horses                                               5.20         53.57½
2250    acres Land                                       "  "         _43.09
                        Recev payment                                  $158.16½
                                                J. K. Pitzer D. S.

1998.26.411
November 27, 1846
Letter from J. Sibley of the firm of Buck and Potter, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, regarding the collection of a claim against George W. Anderson; Watts has written that he has received $123.62 on the account, and is asked to forward a check for the amount; document includes certification by the postmaster Zachariah S. Robinson that the check, drawn by Samuel Mead, cashier of the Bank of Virginia, Richmond,  has been mailed


Postmaster’s certification

                                                                                                Dec 9th 1846
Wm Watts this day deposited in this Post Office a letter directed to Messrs Buck & Potter, Philadelphia, enclosing a draft drawn by Saml Mead, cashier of the Bank of Virginia, Richmond, on the Farmers & Merchs Bank, Philadelphia, dated “Richmond Nov 26th 1846” <in favor of Buck & Potter> payable to Buck & Potter or order for one hundred & twenty two dollars & fifty five cents ($122.55 cts) with direction to send said letter to Buck & Potter at Philadelphia. Z. S. Robinson, P.m. [postmaster] Big Lick Va

This note was written by William Watts and signed by Zachariah S. Robinson, who was born in 1806 and died in 1873; he married 14 Jun 1830 in Botetourt County, Virginia, Hannah Stover (1812-1886). Buck & Potter were silk merchants in Philadelphia.

1998.26.412
May 4, 1846
Letter from Judah Myers, trustee for John E. Watkins, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, acknowledging receipt of a check for $172.60 on the Bank of Virginia in payment of a claim against S. S. P. Thompson

1998.26.413
May 1, 1846
Letter from Ezekiel Hunn of Hunn and Remington, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, authorizing the transfer of money collected from David Fenton Kent and giving instructions; he expresses his outrage at Kent’s behavior, and urges Watts to pursue him for a fine as well as the debt, offering double commission on the fine

1998.26.414
January 6, 1846
Letter from Fleming James in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, covering notice of the taking of a deposition from Jeremiah Kyle Pitzer in the case against Alexander P. Eskridge as trustee for Samuel Stoner; also inquiring about earlier letters sent, and requesting a memo regarding those named in Stoner’s deed of trust, especially the Donnans, who are making a claim on the Coyner land; saying that his son John Quarles James has sent the last of the contested acceptances of Daniel Stoner

1998.26.415
December 31, 1845
Copy of the notice of the taking of a deposition from Jeremiah Kyle Pitzer and others in the Circuit Superior Court of Law and Chancery in Roanoke County, Virginia, in the case of Fleming James and Edwin James, merchants and partners trading under the firm and style of F. and J. S. James and Company, plaintiffs against Alexander P. Eskridge, trustee, and others, including Hubbard, Gardner and Company, which initiated the procedure; this copy was sent under cover of a letter, 1998.26.414; the suit involves the debts of Samuel Stoner

1998.26.416
November 24, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, discussing his plans to travel to Roanoke County in December for the sale of the Coiner land, noting the possibility that he will stay the first night with William C. Langhorne and stating that he will be extremely busy setting up his estate with his estate managers and his slaves, who will be escorted from Green Springs and Lynchburg, Virginia, by his son John Quarles James; he also says that he is counting on William’s father Edward Watts to assist him in the sale, and he asks William to evict Carney from the land and to  prepare a deed with the dates and bounds left blank; he mentions at the end that he is sending a bale of blankets from Temple Gwathmey to Edward Watts, to the care of Richard Tyree in Lynchburg; and he urgently wants William to reply by return mail

1998.26.417
September 17, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, describing a trip to the North during which he used the railroad; and complaining, as usual, of how busy he is, having had to deal with three estate managers in Louisa County, Virginia; he sends condolences on the recent death of William’s brother, James Breckinridge Watts; then takes up several business matters, including the final stages of the lawsuit against the Stoner family, involving Mary (Dagen) Stoner, Alexander P. Eskridge, and a farmer named Carney; the possible sale of the Coiner property to William S. Minor, if he can persuade Polly (Huckstep) Coiner to reduce the price; the state of William C. Langhorne’s corn crop, in which James has an interest, but cannot understand what Langhorne writes to him; a shipment of flour from Landon Cabell Read, with some from William McDermid that was rejected; and a requested delay in payment of a debt from James S. Walrond and his partner Boyd, merchants near Buchanan in Botetourt County, Virginia

1998.26.418
May 2, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, enclosing a power of attorney enabling Watts to provide indemnifying bonds in James’s case against Daniel Stoner; he also responds to Watts’s letter describing the condition of James’s land in Roanoke County, under the management of William Langhorne, and deals with matters concerning other tenants on his land William C. McDermid, Carney, Nelmes, and Landon Cabell Read; he expresses the hope that a business with Moomaw will be settled soon, and says that he would prefer not to bring suit against John Stoner

1998.26.419
March 11, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, in New York, New York, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, enclosing a (missing) document answering a bill by David Gish, and accepting Watts’s reasons for not dining with him the previous day; James also reviews various business matters pending in Roanoke County, Virginia, asking Watts to settle them as fast as possible – these include wheat from William McDermid, flour from Landon Cabell Read, a deed for Moomaw, differing recollections of Jeremiah Whitten, Elijah McClanahan and William Madison Peyton who were commissioners to determine Catherine (Ammen) Stoner’s dower rights, William C. Langhorne’s lease and an opinion of Edward Watts thereon, and a negotiation with Mary (Dagen) Stoner about the sale of her dower; the letter concludes with promises to visit Watts’s mother, Elizabeth (Breckinridge) Watts, and brother, James Breckinridge Watts, who were in New York because James was ill.

1998.26.420
June 27, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Langhorne, at Stoner’s Store, Roanoke County, Virginia, acknowledging receipt of a letter about their joint crop of wheat, described as fair rather than good, but now secured against rust, and other crops of corn, oats, tobacco and clover. James gives details of his planned trip to Roanoke County, by way of Louisa, Albemarle, Nelson and Amherst Counties, and Lynchburg, Virginia. He also discusses the sale of a house to Yelverton Oliver, and asking Langhorne to forward the letter to William Watts, who will play a part in selling the house, and acknowledging Watts’s letter about Mrs Stoner.

1998.26.421
March 28, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, saying that he has returned from New York, whence he sent a document to Watts, with his signature certified by commissioner Mason; asks about progress on Moomaw’s deed and urges prompt action, saying that he wishes to finish this business; raises an issue about payment of $120 to William C. Langhorne for boarding James’s negroes for a year, and cites his responsibility as a trustee and guardian for refusing to pay the lump sum in advance; gives news from New York of Watts’s mother Elizabeth (Breckinridge) Watts, who was well, and brother James Breckinridge Watts, who was recovering and should return to the healthier climate of Virginia, in James’s opinion

 

Fleming James’s report on his visit to James Breckinridge Watts in New York

I called to see your brother James & your excellent mother just before I left New York. James was mending, & so well that your mother, at his instance, had gone out to return the calls or visits of friends, which deprived me of the pleasure of seeing her. She was however very well. Have James brought back to good old Va. The New Yk climate will destroy him if he remains there. Present me kindly to your father & family & believe me with all respect, Yr obt sert [Your obedient servant], Fleming James
PS        Please inform me what Mr Lang[hor]ne has done with the [boy] or young fellow Will[iam I] sent to him. F. J.

Fleming James was a dry goods merchant based in Richmond, Virginia, who often traveled to New York on business. James Breckinridge Watts, William’s older brother, had gone to New York to attempt to practice law there. He fell ill, probably with tuberculosis, and died on 20 Aug 1846, at Red Sulphur Springs, Virginia (now West Virginia). See the blog posting for the previous set of Watts Collection documents.

1998.26.422
October 24, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, expressing pleasure at the news that William C. Langhorne has sowed wheat on land he farms for James, and suggesting more arrangements, such as that Langhorne rent Mary (Dagen) Stoner’s property, with an agreement that James will take the old houses and buildings off his hands, and further that Langhorne cultivate William McDermid’s place and the St Clair’s place; James also worries about where he will stay in Roanoke County, Virginia, and plans to take over the old mansion house on the land where Langhorne was living in a newer house; he presses Watts to make these arrangements; in closing, he asks if any of the Roanoke people will be at a Convention about to be held in Staunton, Virginia

1998.26.423
October 3, 1846
Letter from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, promising to return a bond in John Stoner’s case, after a delay in the mail caused by a breach in the canal along the James River; reluctantly providing the names of his deceased brother Joseph S. James’s children for a lawsuit; expressing a preference not to allow another division of the St Clair land, which might affect the Stoner and Coiner tracts; clarifying his request for Edward Watts to report on William C. Langhorne’s crops, and withdrawing the request; discussing at length the payment due from Carney’s purchase of some land; explaining that news from Europe indicates a sharp rise in the price of wheat, and so he wishes to Langhorne to plant wheat on all available land; ends saying he hopes to see William Watts’s sister Anne (Watts) Holcombe on her journey to Cincinnati

1998.26.424
April 21, 1846
Copy of a letter (1998.26.421) from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, saying that he has returned from New York, whence he sent a document to Watts; asks about progress on Moomaw’s deed and urges prompt action; raises an issue about payments to William C. Langhorne for boarding James’s negroes for a year; gives news of Watts’s mother Elizabeth (Breckinridge) Watts and brother James Breckinridge Watts in New York. The duplicate is followed by a new letter, from the same to the same, explaining that a delay in receiving a reply has led him to resend the letter; making arrangements about various pieces of business with people in the Roanoke area, including Moomaw, Nelmes, William McDermid, Langhorne, and Landon Cabell Read; asking about a shipment of plaster sent to Langhorne; urging Watts to take action in the lawsuit against Daniel, John, and Samuel Stoner, and expressing distrust of Joseph Kyle Pitzer of the Botetourt County sheriff’s office; and asking for a report on Langhorne’s crops.

1998.26.425
August 1, 1846
Letter from Fleming James in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts in Big Lick, Virginia, enclosing a copy of the statement of Alexander P. Eskridge of Fincastle concerning the debts of Mrs Catharine Stoner to him as trustee, with instructions on giving an annexed negotiable note to Mrs Stoner; reports that McClanahan & Co have at last delivered 11 barrels of flour sent by Landon Cabell Read, who has changed Stoner’s brand to his own name and displeased James; moreover the flour is condemned as funky and short, and is sold for much less than what James expected, and he thinks Read should make good the loss; asks Watts to help persuade William C. Langhorne to seed a crop of wheat; sends thanks from Mrs James for hospitality during her recent visit to the Valley of Virginia

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Staples Family Graves in Fair View Cemetery, part 2


            My previous post included the gravestones in Fair View Cemetery of three generations of the Staples family, from Samuel Granville Staples to Abram Penn Staples (III), plus two sons of the latter. Abram Penn Staples (III) and Jean Duncan Watts were the couple whose marriage was described three posts ago, which his parents, Abram Penn Staples (II) and Sallie Clement (Hunt) Staples attended. The first generation, Samuel Granville Staples and Caroline Harris (DeJarnette) Staples, had already died before the wedding, and the couple’s sons were not yet born. There were, however, a number of other Staples kin who attended the ceremony and who are also buried at Fair View Cemetery. They are listed here in the chronological order of the dates of their deaths.


Gravestone of Caroline DeJarnette (Staples) Daniel

Inscription: CAROLINE deJ. STAPLES / wife of JOEL W. DANIEL / MAR. 20, 1869 / AUG. 28, 1916

            Joel Daniel was in the tobacco manufacturing business; at the time of the 1900 census, he and his wife were living in Martinsville, Virginia. He apparently died before 1910.


Gravestone of Samuel Granville Staples Jr

Inscription: SAMUEL G. / STAPLES / JAN. 29, 1862 / AUG. 27, 1917

            Samuel Granville Staples was the son of Samuel Granville Staples and Caroline (DeJarnette) Staples. He became a physician, and married on 19 Nov 1902 at Biloxi, Mississippi, Douglas Maryon, born 18 Jul 1884 at Savannah, Georgia.


Gravestone of Samuel Hunt Staples

Inscription: SAMUEL HUNT STAPLES / MARCH 24, 1887 / NOVEMBER 4, 1918 / SECOND LIEUTENANT U. S. ARMY / HIS NAME IS NOW ON HONOR’S ROLL / AND HIS RECORD RESTS WITH GOD

            Samuel Hunt Staples was the son of Abram Penn Staples (II) and Sallie (Hunt) Staples. He served in the American Expeditionary Force in Europe in World War I and died unmarried.


Gravestone of Waller Redd Staples

Inscription: WALLER REDD STAPLES / 1871-1927

            Waller Redd Staples was a son of Samuel Granville Staples and Caroline (DeJarnette) Staples. He married Olivia Benson Trout, whose gravestone is shown below. After spending his early years at the family home in Patrick County, Virginia, he was educated at Washington and Lee University and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He was engaged in engineering work with the U. S. government for some years, part of which was in the Land Office in Washington, DC. While there, he studied law at the National University and was admitted to the Virginia Bar in 1899. After practicing a few years in Lynchburg, Va. and at Marysville, W. Va. he moved to Roanoke City and formed a law partnership with A. B. Hunt in 1905. Three years later, he was elected to the Corporation Court Judgeship, in Roanoke City, from which office he resigned in 1914 to resume his private practice. While on the bench, he was appointed by Gov. Mann to try the celebrated Allen murder cases in Hillsville. It was in March 1912 that Judge Thornton Massie and other officers of the Court at Hillsville were shot to death in the Court Room itself, by members of the notorious Allen gang. Under the conditions that existed, the appointment to try these cases was a high and dangerous compliment. By his conduct of the Allen trials, Judge Staples won extensive commendation, not only in Virginia but in the press of many other localities. From 1922 until his death, Judge Staples was the associate trial counsel of the N. & W. Railway.


Gravestone of Mary B. (Waugh) Staples (photo from www.findagrave.com)

Inscription: MARY B. WAUGH / WIFE OF / DANIEL D. STAPLES / APR. 22, 1853 / AUG. 23, 1938

            Daniel DeJarnette Staples was a deputy clerk of the courts in Roanoke, Virginia, at the time of his death. He and Mary (Waugh) Staples had three children.


Gravestone of Olivia Benson Staples

Inscription: OLIVIA B. STAPLES / 1879-1969

            Olivia Benson Trout was born 25 Oct 1879 and died in Oct 1969. She married on 21 Jan 1901 at Staunton, VA, Waller Redd Staples whose gravestone is shown above.

***

            In addition to those who attended the wedding, three members of the Staples family who died too early to be present were also buried at Fair View, as well as one who was probably not present because he was too young.


Gravestone of Lucy Hampton Staples

Inscription: LUCY HAMPTON / STAPLES / Daughter of / SAMUEL G. AND / C. HARRIS STAPLES / BORN AUG. 3, 1866 / DIED JUNE 16, 1887 / And they shall be mine saith / the Lord of Hosts in that day / when I make up my jewels. [Malachi 3:17]

            Lucy Hampton Staples died the earliest of the Staples family interred at Fair View. Her death date was in fact three years earlier than the date of the founding of the cemetery, and earlier than the approximate date for her parents’ move from Patrick County, Virginia, to Roanoke, Virginia.


Gravestone of Waller Redd Staples

Inscription: SACRED / TO THE MEMORY OF / WALLER REDD STAPLES / WHO WAS BORN AT / PATRICK COURT HOUSE, VIRGINIA / ON THE 24TH DAY OF FEBRUARY 1826 / AND DIED AT CHRISTIANSBURG, VIRGINIA / ON THE 20TH DAY OF AUGUST 1897 / THE MEMORY OF THE JUST IS BLESSED [Proverbs 10:7] / IT WAS THE MIND WHICH MADE THE MAN / BUT HIS VIGOR WAS IN HIS IMMORTAL SOUL / STAPLES

            Waller Redd Staples was the son of Abram Penn Staples and Mary (Penn) Staples. He was educated at the University of North Carolina, and at William and Mary College. For a short time he was in the law office of Judge Taliaferro, in Rocky Mount, after which he formed a partnership with William Ballard Preston, of Christiansburg, who was afterwards Secretary of the Navy under President Tyler. Waller Staples served as representative from Montgomery County in the Virginia House of Delegates, 1853-54, and was a member of the Confederate Congress. After the war, he was elected to the first Court of Appeals under the new constitution, and served on the Court, 1871-1882, After retiring from this position, he formed a partnership with Beverly B. Munford of Richmond, and there remained until his death. In 1887, Judge Staples, Judge Edward C. Burks and John W. Riely revised the Code of Virginia.


Gravestone of Mary Huldah (Staples) Moir

Inscription: MARY HULDAH STAPLES / WIFE OF / E. L. MOIR / BORN / AT PATRICK D. H. VA / SEPT. 14, 1864 / DEPARTED THIS LIFE / AT ROANOKE, VA / AUG. 1, 1897 / [A seven-line inscription, probably from the Bible or a religious poem, follows; it is probably readable in the cemetery, but it has weathered too much to be legible in the photo.]

            Mary Huldah Staples was the daughter of Samuel Granville Staples and Caroline (DeJarnette) Staples. Her husband, Edwin L. Moir, was a wholesale merchant. They had five children. After Mary Huldah’s death, Edwin remarried to Kathleen Maryon, a sister of Douglas Maryon, the wife of Samuel Granville Staples Jr, whose grave is shown above. There are numerous gravestones of the Moir and Maryon families in Fair View Cemetery.


Gravestone of William D. Staples

Inscription: WILLIAM D. STAPLES / 1907-1959

            William D. Staples was the son of Waller Redd Staples and Olivia (Trout) Staples. He returned from Europe in 24 Oct 1945 as a Major in the U. S. Army. On 17 May 1931, he returned from Cherbourg, France, and gave his address as Scarsdale, New York. He married 23 Nov 1937 at Roanoke, Virginia, Mary Elizabeth McDowell, but the family records have no further information about him or his family.

Wednesday, December 7, 2011

Staples Family Graves in Fair View Cemetery, part 1


            Fair View Cemetery in Roanoke, Virginia, was established in 1890. It is a large cemetery, with 20,000 persons interred there, and the capacity for 30,000 more. As explained in an earlier post, the small private Watts graveyard was moved to Fair View in 1976. The Staples family came to Roanoke as urbanites, and so did not own a large tract of land on which to establish a family burying ground. They were among the early persons interred at Fair View, since Caroline Harris (DeJarnette) Staples was buried there in 1892, and her husband Samuel Granville Staples in 1895. This post will show pictures of the gravestones of the three generations of the Staples family and their wives, in the direct line from Samuel Granville Staples to Abram Penn Staples (III), and of the two sons of the latter who are buried at Fair View.


The gravestone of Samuel Granville Staples and Caroline Harris (DeJarnette) Staples

Inscription: STAPLES / Sacred To The Memory Of / [left side] Samuel Granville / Staples / Born at Patrick Courthouse, Va. / Nov. 29, 1821 / Died at / Roanoke City / August 6, 1895 / His delight is in the law of / the Lord. [Psalms 1:2] / [right side] Caroline Harris / Dejarnette / Wife of / Samuel G. Staples / Born at Spring Grove, Caroline Co. / Va, March 4, 1833, Died at / Roanoke City, Jany 1, 1892. / Her children rise up and call / her blessed. [Proverbs 31:28]



The gravestone of Abram Penn Staples (II) and Sallie Clement (Hunt) Staples

Inscription: ABRAM PENN STAPLES / 1858 – 1913 / A powerful advocate, profound / lawyer, and beloved teacher of / the law, from a life of self- / sacrificing labor and generosity / to an eternity of rest. / His beloved wife / Sallie Hunt Staples / 1864 – 1934

 
The gravestone of Abram Penn Staples (III)

Inscription: ABRAM PENN STAPLES / 1885 – 1951



The gravestone of Jean Duncan (Watts) Staples

Inscription: JEAN WATTS STAPLES / WIFE OF / ABRAM P. STAPLES . 1886 – 1969



The gravestone of Allen Watts Staples

Inscription: ALLEN WATTS STAPLES / FEB. 23, 1914 / OCT. 19, 1977



The gravestone of Helen Elizabeth (Brodin) Staples

HELEN E. BRODIN / WIFE OF / ALLEN W. STAPLES / AUG. 22, 1911 / OCT. 2, 1975



The gravestone of Abram Penn Staples (IV)

Inscription: ABRAM PENN STAPLES, Jr / 1915 – 1952

Other members of the family buried at Fair View will be shown in the next post.