Roanoke and Western Virginia: Glimpses of the Past

W. W. Otey and the Showalter Family

2012-02-08T08:21:00.000-08:00

William Wesley Otey’s mother was afirst cousin of Josiah Thomas Showalter. Her name was Sarah Ann Showalter(1832-1929). She was the daughter of Isaac Daniel Showalter (28 July 1806-7January 1837). He was apparently known as Daniel, and probably because of hisbrief life, he is sometimes omitted from Showalter family trees. He was,however, one of the more than ten children of Henry Garver Showalter(1766-1841) and Magdalena Halderman (c. 1765-c. 1818). Henry Garver Showalterwas born in Pennyslvania and moved to southwestern Virginia, settling for atime in the Roanoke Valley before moving a bit farther west. Another of hischildren was David Halderman Showalter (31 December 1801-12 April 1877), fatherof Josiah Thomas Showalter.

Daniel Showalter married in 1826Sarah Ann Griffith (1810-c. 1866). In the eleven years before his death, theyproduced five daughters and one son. One of the daughters was Sarah Ann; theonly son was Henry B. Showalter, born in 1831, who also plays a significantpart in this story. On 7 December 1853 Sarah Ann Showalter married Joshua Otey(1829-1918), who was born close to Snowville, Virginia. Joshua found itdifficult to earn a living; he worked for a time as a painter, tried carpentry,ran a sawmill and a grist mill, and fell back on farming, all without muchsuccess. He inherited a small parcel of land from his father, but sold it in1858 and never again owned any land. His son, W. W. Otey, said that he was “themost optimistic, hardest working, poorest manager that I have ever seen” (pp.18-19).

HenryB. and Elizabeth (Turpin) Showalter

Sarah Ann’s brother, Henry B. Showalter,came to Joshua Otey’s rescue. In 1884, he arranged for the struggling Oteyfamily to move onto his prosperous farm in Floyd County, Virginia. He needed some extra hands, and Otey had seven sons,including William Wesley (born 14 March 1867). Soon after his arrival at hisnew home, on 29 December 1884, W. W. Otey met his cousin Amanda Elizabeth“Minnie” Showalter and it was love at first sight. They were married onChristmas Eve 1885, and made a home for themselves on a tract of uncleared landher father gave them. The following year, Otey declared his wish to be baptizedin the Church of Christ, and Henry sent for his cousin, Josiah ThomasShowalter, at that time the best known of the active preachers in the area.Josiah not only baptized Otey, but also instructed him in leading worship andpreaching. Soon Otey had revived the congregation of the disused church in thecommunity of Showalter, Virginia, and begun his life’s work.

JosiahThomas Showalter, c. 1906

Josiah Thomas Showalter and hiscousin Henry had been in close contact long before Otey’s baptism. Josiah, hisbrother William, and their cousin Henry all enlisted together in theConfederate army. They joined the Floyd County Company, which became Company Aof the 54th Virginia Infantry. Their company was in fierce battles atChickamauga and Chattanooga, Tennessee, in September and November 1863; atnumerous battles in Georgia trying vainly to stop Sherman’s advance, includingat Atlanta in July 1864; and the company remained in service until April 1865,surrendering in North Carolina at the war’s end. Henry and William were frontline soldiers; Josiah’s job was to carry ammunition to the front lines. Henryreported that the fighting never became too rough for Josiah to supply adequateammunition. He also wrote to his wife, on 12 November 1863, between the battlesof Chicamauga and Chattanooga:

JosiahShowalter has been here to see me today... He is very religious. He has prayermeetings at his quarters frequently. He told me today he thought he ought topreach and wanted to know what I thought of it. I told him if that was hisfeelings that I could not see anything against it and that I thought it mightdo a great deal of good. He appears to be perfectly resigned to his fate. Lethim be where he may be, as much so as any man I ever saw reads his Bible andstudies it whenever he has a chance. He has written to [Chester] Bullard to seethe church asking if they think he ought to preach or not but has received noanswer yet. He is the most changed man you almost ever saw for five or sixmonths past and I hope he will hold on to the good way in which he has started.(p.8.)

By 1870, Josiah wasan elder of the Cypress Grove Church of Christ, in Snowville, and stronglyadvocated a pacifist resolution, which the elders passed in 1871, recommendingto members of their church “that they declare their determination, that underno circumstance will they bear arms, or engage in these wars” (p. 70).

As I have said in previous posts,Josiah took a very conservative stand on all the issues facing the church, andW. W. Otey seemed to be in complete accord with him. Both fulminated againstthe introduction of organs into the churches, and both opposed the creation ofmissionary societies to do the work of the church. Josiah wrote regulararticles under the heading “Jottings from Virginia” for a periodical called American Christian Review (which latermerged with the rival Octographic Reviewand took its name), the leading organ of the “anti” wing of the church. In1889, Otey also began to write for it, and formed close ties with its editor,Daniel Sommer. Josiah, meanwhile, was campaigning against Bible colleges andthe use of the name “Christian Church”.

When a person is convinced that heis speaking God’s truth, it is probably inevitable that conflicts will arisewith others who hold the same conviction. It was not long before Josiah and W.W. Otey clashed. In 1894, Josiah wrote in the Octographic Review that “Prof. C. D. M. Showalter had purchased aninterest in Milligan College,” and he urged readers “to send their childrenthere for a classical education, suggesting also that there their morals wouldbe ‘looked after’.” (p. 121.) Otey wrote a scathing reply: “That colleges havebeen a source from which evil has sprung among the disciples is a statementthat cannot be successfully denied. ... I believe Milligan College in Tennesseeto be in all probability the most dangerous among the disciples.” (p. 121.)Showalter responded in kind. Cecil Willis, the author of Otey, is naturally partial to his subject, whom he knew as a friendin his old age and who probably related this incident to him from his ownperspective. Willis does not quote enough of the debate to enable one to judgeit impartially. Apparently Otey disapproved of Milligan’s president, JosephusHopwood, because he supported the missionary societies. And the polemicist betrayedsomething Josiah Showalter had told him in confidence, namely, that Hopwood hadcalled Josiah Showalter “an extremist”.

C. D. M.Showalter holding the blogger, 1936

Willis was misinformed about some ofthe facts, however. He begins the story saying that “it was incorrectlyreported to Josiah that his son had purchased a part of Milligan College” (p.120). As I have documented in earlier posts, C. D. M. Showalter had in factbought the college, and was co-owner with his father-in-law, James LewisEnglish. The purchase was, however, intended to helpthe college through a financial crisis; President Hopwood retained control ofthe academic operation of the school, and the deed provided that the trusteescould repurchase the college, and they did so a year later. Willis reiterateshis error: “Otey’s criticism must have been especially stinging, sinceShowalter believed his son now owned part of the school. Actually J. T.Showalter had been misinformed. His son did not own part of Milligan College.”(p. 121.) If Josiah was stung, it may have been because he had several children,plus a son-in-law and a daughter-in-law, who were enrolled in, or graduates of,or teaching at, Milligan; but it was more probably because a kinsman heregarded as a friend and disciple had attacked him publicly and revealed asecret in doing so.

Otey and Josiah Showalter continuedto be friends after this quarrel, but the tension continued to simmer. In 1910,a new squabble erupted when G. H. P. Showalter (another of Josiah’ssons and another Milligan graduate) published a defense of schools. Oteyresponded, and Josiah chimed in with the argument that Otey was inconsistent,because he had sent two of his own daughters to Lynchburg College, whereJosephus Hopwood had gone after leaving Milligan. Willis interjects the misleadingnote that “Showalter’s son, C. D. M., had married the daughter of theowner of Milligan College, James L. English” (p. 220), to explain why Josiahwas still bothered by the conflict. He concedes that both Otey and theShowalters (Josiah and G. H. P.) were finding “petty faults” witheach other, and acknowledges that Josiah continued to praise and admire Otey.As in the earlier incident, not enough of the evidence is cited to permit afair evaluation; was it inaccurate to assume that Otey’s epithet “mostdangerous” applied to Hopwood as well as to the college? I can’t say, but thedebate sounds to me more like political candidates than a trio of churchmen.

From G. H. P. Showalter, Travel Talks (Austin, Texas: Firm Foundation, 1938), p. 18

There is no doubt that JosiahShowalter was a cantankerous man. He was dropped from the contributorial staffof the Octographic Review in 1901,apparently because he disagreed with the editor, Daniel Sommer, over pacifism.Afterwards, Josiah published mainly in the FirmFoundation, a periodical based in Austin, Texas, which his sonG. H. P. Showalter bought around 1907 and ran for 47 years. Josiahwas an old man by this time, however; he died in 1915. Most of his work andmost of his battles were behind him. Two of his sons became preachers, however,and one worked closely with W. W. Otey, as I will explain in the next post.

The Life of William Wesley Otey

2012-02-01T08:12:00.000-08:00

W.W. Otey, Contender for the Faith: A History of Controversies in the Church ofChrist from 1860-1960 (Akron, Ohio, 1964), published by the author, CecilWillis, is a very different sort of book from the one I talked about in my twoprevious blog posts. Otey, as I willabbreviate the title, is a biography, not a memoir. Moreover, it focusses on alimited aspect of its subject, as the subtitle suggests. William Wesley Oteywas a redoubtable debater; the author writes near the end, “It was extremelydifficult for Otey to stay out of a fight.” (p. 350) He debated Mormons,Primitive Baptists, Dunkards and the progressives and digressives of his ownchurch. He argued forcefully, always from the conservative side, in thecontroversies over instruments, societies, colleges, co-operation amongcongregations, evangelistic oversight, premillennialism, and church unity.

The cover of W. W. Otey, Contender for the Faith, byCecil Willis

Perhaps I am less informed than Iought to be, but I had no idea what most of these controversies were about. Andthe biographer does not offer much explanation; Willis was writing forinitiates, who were aware of these matters beforehand. In a nutshell, as Iunderstand it, all these controversies within the Church of Christ concernedthe mission to recreate the church as Christ had founded it – that is, nothingwould be allowed in the church for which there was no precedent in Scripture.According to Otey and other “Anti” evangelists, nothing in Scripture authorizesmusical instruments in church, or any delegation of the individualcongregation’s authority to a society of any sort. Add to the book’s narrowfocus the fact that “Otey was dead serious most of the time” (p. 280), andexcept for historians of religion, Oteyis not much fun to read.

The accounts of this argumentativeculture are nevertheless sometimes entertaining, and remind me a great deal ofthe Presidential debates of recent years. According to the biographer, 1908 wasthe most significant year in Otey’s life, because it was the date of the“famous Otey-Briney debate” (pp. 194-212). John Benton Briney was a “digressive”preacher in the Church of Christ, reputed to be a formidable debater, and hisparty issued the challenge. The two men agreed to argue two propositions: “Theuse of such organizations as the Illinois Christian Missionary Society, theForeign Christian Missionary Society, etc., is authorized in the New TestamentScriptures and acceptable to God,” and “The use of instrumental music inconnection with the songs sung by the church on the Lord’s day, when assembledfor edification and communion, is opposed to New Testament teaching andsinful.” Otey took the negative on the first and the affirmative on the second.

Shortly before the scheduledmeeting, however, Briney demanded a change of venue, which Otey arranged withsome difficulty, for a site in Louisville. Otey then tried to arrange aplanning meeting with Briney, who declined to come to a hotel and refused toallow Otey to bring his team to Briney’s home. Otey bargained to bring at leasta stenographer, but Briney would permit only Otey’s words to be recorded. ThenBriney refused to argue an affirmative version of his position on instrumentalmusic. When the event finally occurred, it was generally agreed that Otey won,and the printed account of the debate sold out quickly.

Not long afterward, anotheropponent, R. O. Rogers, resorted to personal attacks, calling Otey “a sort ofecclesiastical tramp” who deserted his wife and children for eight months ayear, leaving them “to shift for themselves on a fourteen-acre tract of themost sterile land that lay beneath ‘the shining canopy of God’s blue heaven.’”He charged that Otey had his own “Ladies Aid Society” in the form of his wifeand daughters, and that while the family fed “on the husks that the swine dideat,” the preacher was feasting on “floating islands and two story pies” (p.217). This debate concerned instrumental music again, and somewhere amidst theinvective Brother Rogers invoked 1 Corinthians 14 in support of it; butobservers considered it an easy win for Otey, despite the effort to Swift-Boathim.

I confess to a certain sympathy forRogers in my feelings about this biography. Otey’s family are virtually invisible.In the opening pages, the author quotes a moving passage Otey wrote in 1956 asan obituary tribute to his wife. It describes their first meeting: “Our eyesmet and held as if by magic for a moment,” and ends “I loved her more thanseventy years.” (p. 35). They had nine children, of whom seven were stillliving in 1956, along with fourteen grandchildren and four great-grandchildren(p. 358). There is almost no mention of them, though. We learn that his twoeldest daughters attended Lynchburg College, a fact which some critics foundinconsistent with Otey’s views on colleges and the Church of Christ (p. 220);and that his son Ray wanted to go to Abilene Christian College in 1929, butOtey moved to Rocky, Oklahoma – and Ray went instead to an osteopathy collegein Missouri (pp. 255-56).

W. W. Otey, his wifeMinnie, and their children, in 1920

Front: Joe, W. W.,Minnie, D. S.

Back: Ray, Ola, Bentley, Willie, Verna, Lucille

As related by Willis, Otey’s lifewas almost entirely made up of preaching, debating, leading church meetings, submittingarticles to church periodicals, and writing books. He began his career inwestern Floyd County, Virginia, in the corner formed by the borders withPulaski and Carroll Counties; the post office was called Showalter, Virginia,and it no longer exists, alas. Otey was baptized there in 1886 and began topreach in the late 1880s. Except for a few months in Ohio, he remained inwestern Virginia until 1904, when he moved to Indiana. After seven years there,he moved to Kansas in 1911, then to Oklahoma in 1929, to Texas in 1934, andback to Kansas in 1939, residing in Belle Plaine until his wife’s death, afterwhich he moved to Winfield, near his daughter’s home. He died there on 1November 1961, at the age of 94, justly honored for his lifetime of service tohis church.

Brotherand Sister Otey, 1950

I have omitted something up to thispoint, which will explain why I read this book and thought it was worth talkingabout in this blog. W. W. Otey’s mother was named Sarah Ann Showalter. The wifehe loved for seventy years was Amanda Elizabeth “Minnie” Showalter. He wasbaptized by Josiah Thomas Showalter. George Henry Pryor Showalter’s periodical Firm Foundation published 192 of Otey’sarticles between 1928 and 1954. Even though Cecil Willis devotes very littlespace to Otey’s family, he says a good deal about the connections with theShowalters and about the complicated relationships between Otey and hisShowalter kin. The next two posts will explore those topics.

Virginia Connections of the Maverick Family

2012-01-25T11:14:00.000-08:00

Carl Adams,the correspondent who guided me to the Memoirsof Mary Ann Maverick, was interested in the life of her father, WilliamLewis Adams, between 1800 and 1816, when the Adams family was in BotetourtCounty. (If any readers of this blog have information about this subject,please get in touch with him or me; his email address isspringgrovegarden@hotmail.com.) He had found in this blog the description of adocument in the Watts Collection of the Historical Society of Western Virginia,1998.26.015,which begins: “Deed made Oct 12th 1815 by Wm L. Adams & wife to EdwardWatts, conveying a certain tract or parcel of land lying & being in theCounty of Botetourt on Evans' Spring Branch including the greater part of theRound Hill and being the same tract on which the said Adams once lived.”

Deed made Oct 12th 1815 by Wm L. Adams &wife to Edward Watts, conveying a certain tract or parcel of land lying &being in the County of Botetourt on Evans' Spring Branch including the greaterpart of the Round Hill and being the same tract on which the said Adams oncelived, & is bounded as follows:

The sellers, he explained to me, were William Lewis Adamsand Agatha Strother (Lewis) Adams, the parents of Mary Ann Maverick. The tractof land they sold to Edward Watts in 1815 became the core of Oaklands. Moreover,the substantial addition that Watts later bought from the heirs of Andrew Lewis(not the famous general, but one of his grandsons), had belonged to cousins ofAgatha Strother Lewis (1998.26.31).

Then mycorrespondent very generously sent me a copy of a letter archived in theMaverick Family Papers at the University of Texas. It was addressed to Mary Ann Maverick, dated Beaverdam, 5 August 1857, and was written byLizzie Maverick (Houston) Allen. Samuel A. Maverick’s great-niece, Elizabeth M.Houston (1835-1919), married John James Allen Jr (1831-bet. 1880 and 1900) around1857. Mary Ann Maverick’s memoirs mention seeing her as a girl in San Antonioin 1855. In the letter, she is obviously newly wed, has not been away fromTexas very long, and is eager to return: “I like Virginia well enough,” shewrites, “ but I will be very glad to get back to Texas once more where I willbe sure to stay the rest of my days.”

She and her husband went back soon afterwards, and theirfirst two children were born in Texas in 1858 and 1859; but they returned toVirginia before 1861, and apparently remained near the Allen homestead inBotetourt County for the rest of their lives. Lizzie was still living there atthe time of the 1900 census, although she moved in with a married daughter inNew York City before 1910.

Lizzie’sletter also relates that her husband “wentyesterday to Oaklands (your father’s old home) to see his brother-in-law who issick.”

That brother-in-law was William Watts, who was the widowerof Mary Jane Allen, a sister of John James Allen Jr. William and Mary Jane(Allen) Watts’s son, John Allen Watts, who was only two years old at the timeof Lizzie’s letter, and at least two relatives of his generation, WilliamGordon Robertson and George W. Morris, became friends with yet another Maverickduring the college years. Albert Maverick (1854-1947) was the ninth of Mary Ann(Adams) Maverick’s ten children. His birth is described thus: “On Sunday, May7, 1854, was born our ninth child, Albert. I was very weak and did not havemilk enough for him.” As a young man, he seems to have cut a striking figure. WilliamRobertson wrote about him to John Allen Watts, who was at William and Mary:“Maverick is a club-mate of mine and is one of the best fellows I ever saw.When last heard from, he was in hot pursuit of buffaloes, and was in imminentdanger of being skalped by the Indians. He went home the middle of the session;he said he took ‘the wrong tickets’ and was doing nothing. He will come backnext year and take the Engineering course.” (2007.32.169, June 20 1874).

A year later, George Morris wrote: “A. Maverick Esq has goneto Indiana, but he told me before leaving that he would be at Oaklands thelatter part of August. I wish he would come sooner, he is one of the bestfriends I had in College.” (2007.32.178, July 16, 1875).

It soundsas though young Albert was a bit of a maverick, as befits the son of the manwho left his cattle unbranded and thereby made his name an eponym for anindependent and nonconformist person.

Mary Ann (Adams) Maverick

2012-01-18T07:36:00.000-08:00

Not longago, a correspondent recommended to me that I read The Memoirs of Mary A. Maverick: A Journal of Early Texas (SanAntonio: Maverick Publishing Co., 2005),and I am happy to pass along the suggestion with my endorsement. It’s a shortand very readable book, only about a hundred pages of text (includingillustrations), with a few more pages of front and back matter. This is thefourth version of the work: the first was the original manuscript, completed in1881, but known only to family members; the second was an edited version of themanuscript, prepared by one of the author’s sons, George Madison Maverick, andduplicated in a small number of copies in 1896; the third was prepared by RenaMaverick Green, a daughter of the first editor, and was privately published in1921; and the fourth, which I read, was edited by Maverick Fairchild Fisher, afifth-generation descendant of the author. Mr. Fisher has provided very helpfulillustrations, explanatory notes, and an index.

The book isabout Texas, but it has more to do with southwest Virginia than you mightsuppose, as will be clear in next week’s post. The story begins: “My maidenname was Mary Ann Adams. I was born March 16, 1818, in Tuskaloosa County,Alabama. My parents were William Lewis Adams of Lynchburg and his wife AgathaStrother Lewis of Botetourt County, both of the state of Virginia.” Mary AnnAdams was a great-granddaughter of General Andrew Lewis, an early settler inthe region and a military leader in the American Revolution. In my youth, hisname was attached to the Roanoke County High School in Salem, which now bearsthe ho-hum designation Salem High School. At least the local hero is still commemoratedin the name of Fort Lewis Mountain.

In theearly 1800s William and Agatha Adams moved to Alabama, where Mary Ann was bornand raised. She married Samuel Augustus Maverick on 4 August 1836 at herwidowed mother’s home near Tuscaloosa. Samuel was from South Carolina, but hadalready taken up residence in Texas; in fact, Mary Ann says that he had beenpresumed lost at the fall of the Alamo earlier in 1836. After the wedding, thecouple paid farewell visits to friends and family, including the groom’sfather, who tried in vain to persuade his son to settle in South Carolina. Theywere still in South Carolina when their first son was born, but set off on 7 December1837 for Texas. Their destination was San Antonio, where they arrived on 15 June1838.

Samuel Augustus Maverick

This wasvery much a frontier region, contested both by Indians and by Mexicans. In thelast stages of the journey, the travelers were accosted by a band of TonkawaIndians, who said, “Mucho amigo” but looked very menacing wearing war paint andcarrying Comanche scalps from a recent battle. The Comanches were still morethreatening, and harassed the community in raids and battles from 1838 until1842, when the Mavericks were forced to evacuate their home in San Antonio fora while. Mary Ann tells an amusing tale of meeting the Cherokee chief Bowls anddeclining his invitation to dance, and heart-rending stories of recoveringcaptive children from the Comanches after they had been tortured and mutilated.

It wasconflict with Mexico, however, that led the Mavericks to flee their home.Between its revolution against Mexican rule in 1836 and its annexation by theUnited States in 1845, Texas was in principle an independent republic. Mexico,however, continued to claim sovereignty, and periodically sent armed forcesinto Texas. One such invasion in March 1842 provoked the evacuation of manywomen and children; another in September 1842 resulted in the capture of SamuelMaverick and about fifty others. The prisoners were taken to Vera Cruz andMexico City, but ultimately released on 30 March 1843, after an intervention bythe American ambassador, General Waddy Thompson.

Mary Annand her children spent the first two years of their exile from San Antonio,1842-44, on a ranch near La Grange on the Colorado River, east of Austin. Theclimate seemed unhealthy, however, and after Samuel’s liberation they moved tothe Matagorda Peninsula on the Gulf Coast. They stayed three years on thecoast, but Samuel was spending more and more time in San Antonio on business,so they all moved back there in 1847. Texas had joined the United States, andsettlers were flocking to the state. One chapter of the memoir covers all theevents from 1847 to 1859, and both the Civil War and the death of Mary Ann’shusband Samuel in 1870 are dealt with in an epilogue.

Mary Ann (Adams) Maverick (center), c. 1852,

with her children, clockwise from the top left:

Sam, Lewis, William, Mary, and George

Obviously,the chaotic and often terrifying days of the early settlement of Texas mostinterested the memoirist. To a 21st-century reader, the ordinary hardships ofthe time, which also afflicted the friends and family left behind in civilizedVirginia, South Carolina, and Alabama, are just as difficult to imagine livingthrough. Between 1837 and 1857, Mary Ann Maverick bore ten children. Of herpregnancies and the deliveries, she says nothing; her account of herfirstborn’s arrival is typical: “Here on Sunday, May 14, 1837, was born our sonSam.” The list of diseases they suffered from or were threatened by, however, isgiven at appalling length – yellow fever, brain fever (meningitis), congestivechills (malaria), ague, whooping cough, measles, dysentery, bilious fever(typhoid), influenza, scarletina, cholera, smallpox, mumps – not to mentionaccidents like broken bones, blows to the head causing convulsions, andsnakebites. They were beset by floods, snowstorms and hurricanes. I supposethat children who survived into adulthood had to be hardy and resilient; Mary AnnMaverick certainly was, but even her sturdy health began to fail with her lastpregnancies, when she was weak, fainted, and could not nurse her newborninfants.

Shenonetheless lived on until 24 February 1898. During her last years, she donatedstained glass windows and other important items to Saint Mark’s EpiscopalChurch in San Antonio. She was also active in civic organizations, especially ahistorical society campaigning to preserve the Alamo church. When she died, alocal newspaper called her the city’s “best beloved friend”.

Watts Collection, documents 476-500

2012-01-11T07:19:00.000-08:00

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

This is a relatively ill-assorted group of documents. Theyrange in date from 1850 to 1853, and cover many different topics. The largestnumber (8) relate to various lawsuits inwhich William Watts was a lawyer or adviser. A small group (5) concerns theExchange Bank of Virginia; William Watts had just taken the presidency of thenewly founded Salem branch. Several documents (4) concern land sales, but withno relation to each other. Several (4) involve politics and public affairs. Afinal group (3) is made up of account statements and receipts. And one letteris a personal request for advice.

doc #

date

abstract

1998.26.476

December 24, 1850

Letter from JohnBenjamin Irwin Logan, in Norfolk, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick,Roanoke County, Virginia, announcing his resignation as cashier of the newSalem branch of the Exchange Bank of Virginia, which he has submitted toWilliam Willoughby Sharp

1998.26.477

December 26, 1850

Letter from JohnBenjamin Irwin Logan, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick,Roanoke County, Virginia, withdrawing his tender of resignation as cashier ofthe new Salem branch of the Exchange Bank of Virginia, and trying to arrange ameeting with Watts in Lynchburg, where the letter was postmarked four daysafter being written; an apparent postscript from the postmaster Armstead P.Neal seems to request that the meeting be in Salem, Virginia

1998.26.478

December 27, 1850

Letter from JohnBenjamin Irwin Logan, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick,Roanoke County, Virginia, trying to schedule a meeting with Watts either inLynchburg or in Richmond, Virginia

1998.26.479

December 31, 1850

Letter from John S.Wilson, in Buchanan, Virginia, to William Watts, in Roanoke County, Virginia,agreeing with Watts that the tolls are excessively high, given the condition ofthe road, and asking Watts to support Mr Boyd in Richmond in trying to havethem reduced

1998.26.480

March 13, 1851

Letter from WilliamWilson Corcoran, in Washington, DC, to Cary Breckinridge, in Fincastle,Virginia, asking for a reply to his offer to purchase lots in Washington, DC

I have therefore to ask an answer by returnmail, and if the price I offer is not satisfactory, state the lowest figure,& I will determine, at once, whether I will take them. Respectfully yrs, W.W. Corcoran

See myearlier post on James Breckinridge’s land holdings in Washington, DC.

1998.26.481

April 5, 1852

Letter from HenryScarsbrook Langhorne to William C. Langhorne, demanding that he produce aletter from William Watts referred to in a deposition by Morton, and notifyingWilliam that further depositions will be taken at the tavern house of WilliamTerry in Liberty (Bedford), Bedford County, Virginia

1998.26.482

April 7, 1852

Letter from WilliamC. Langhorne to William Watts, at Fincastle, Virginia, covering the return ofthe letter requested in 1998.26.481, suggesting that John A. Langhorne alsogive a deposition, reporting on his own ill health, noting that his brotherHenry Scarsbrook Langhorne has retained counsel, and touching on other aspectsof the lawsuit

1998.26.483

April 17, 1852

Letter from GustavusAdolphus Wingfield, in Liberty (Bedford), Virginia, to Alfred Terrell Dillard,proposing a compromise with John M. Patton regarding a fee and percentages of arecovery in the name of Dillard and Alexander Cabell

1998.26.484

May 26, 1851

Letter from RobertJamieson, in Alexandria, Virginia, to William Watts, in Richmond, Virginia,asking if Watts’s bank can supply Jamieson’s with some banknotes, because theyare pressed for currency; also regrets a difficulty in Norfolk, and predictsearnings of 5 percent for the past six months

We are at present so greatly pressed forcurrency, that I shall feel much obliged, if your bank can furnish us with aparcel of your notes in exchange for ours, and beg you will let me know if itis in your power to aid us. If you have any notes in Richmond to fill up, Iwill undertake to letter and number them as before, after your name isinserted. Please let me hear from you at your earliest leisure and Oblige yourObt Servt [Obedient Servant], Robt Jamieson

RobertJamieson was the son of a Scottish-born baker, who settled in Alexandria,Virginia, and founded a large bakery business there. Robert took over thedirection of the business in 1821 and continued to run it after he becamepresident of the Alexandria branch of the Exchange Bank of Virginia around1850. He was still president in 1861.

1998.26.485

June 24, 1851

Two separate butrelated documents are classified under this number. Letter from William M. Cookto William Watts, covering a copy of the record in a court case concerning aslave named Daniel, and sending snippets of news. Letter from William H.Richardson, secretary of the commonwealth of Virginia, to William M. Cook,concerning the payment due to Cook from the auditor of public accounts in thecase concerning the slave named Daniel.

1998.26.486

July 24, 1851

Letter from AndrewDannon, in Covington, Virginia, to an unnamed addressee, presumably WilliamWatts, objecting to a plan to combine Alleghany and Craig Counties in anelectoral district for a delegate to the state legislature, and appealing tothe addressee to have the Constitutional Convention reconsider the matter

1998.26.487

August 25, 1850

Letter from WilliamWatts, at home at Oaklands, Roanoke County, Virginia, to William C. Langhorne,at Cloverdale, Botetourt County, Virginia, giving his opinion that an effort byLanghorne’s brother Henry Scarsbrook Langhorne to compel someone to go onto William’s land has no legal basis andwill not be supported by the courts in Bedford and Botetourt Counties

1998.26.488

August 25, 1851

Letter from JohnRobin McDaniel, in Lynchburg, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, asking him to name a price for lots he owns in Lynchburg

1998.26.489

September 2, 1851

Letter from CharlesScott Carrington, at Halifax Court House, Virginia, to William Watts, in BigLick (Roanoke), Virginia, asking whether Big Lick would be a suitable place forhis brother Paul Scott Carrington to practice medicine

Please remember me to my cousins, your lady& the family at Oaklands. Shall we not have the pleasure of seeing all ofyou in Halifax this fall? Very truly yours, Chas. S. Carrington

Charles ScottCarrington(1820-1891) lived at Mildendo in Halifax County, Virginia. He graduated fromHampden-Sydney College in 1839 and practiced law. William Watts and his siblings were second cousins ofCharles Carrington, as follows: Charles Carrington was a son of William AllenCarrington and Sara Embra Scott; Sara Embra Scott was a daughter of CharlesTomkies Scott and Priscilla Read; Charles Tomkies Scott was a brother of Mary(Scott) Watts, grandmother of William Watts.

1998.26.490

September 6, 1851

Letter from WilliamRansom Johnson, in Petersburg, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, RoanokeCounty, Virginia, asking Watts to take depositions from Yelverton Neal Oliverfor a case pending in the chancery court of Louisville, Kentucky

1998.26.491

November 17, 1851

Letter from SamuelC. Robinson, in Lexington, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, asking him to send the power of attorney to vote the shares of hisfather Edward Watts at a stockholders’ meeting of the James River and KanawhaCanal Company to Dr Archibald Graham, whose presence in Richmond, Virginia,would be more certain

Lexington 17th Nov 1851

Dear Watts, Please enclose to Dr Graham inRichmond the letter of attorney (which you promised me), to act as yourfather’s proxy in the meeting of the James River Company.

SamuelC. Robinson (c. 1815-aft. 1870) owned iron furnaces in Botetourt County,Virginia; by 1860, he had moved to Richmond, Virginia, where he was recorded inthe census as lumber merchant (1860) and a merchant in iron works (1870). Hemarried in 1849 in Rockbridge County, Virginia, Margaret A. Graham (c. 1825-aft.1870); she was a daughter of Dr Archibald Graham (c. 1794-aft. 1860), who livedin Lexington, Virginia.

According to Langhorne Gibson, Jr,in Cabell’s Canal: The Story of the JamesRiver and Kanawha (Richmond, Virginia: The Commodore Press, 2000), thecompany formed to construct a canal linking the James River with the KanawhaRiver was formed in 1785. It would have built and operated a waterway linkingthe mid-Atlantic cities of Richmond and Norfolk with the Ohio River in theMiddle West. It was completed as far as Lynchburg in 1840, and was extended toBuchanan in 1851. Improvements to the North (Maury) River were to linkLexington to the network of waterways. The project had met constant financialdifficulties, however, and by 1851 many of the backers wanted to turn thecompany over to the state. The development of railroads offered viablecompetition, and recurrent floods made the canal system unreliable. It wasnever completed west of Buchanan, and ceased to function in 1880.

1998.26.492

November 26, 1851

Letter from George PlaterTayloe, at his home Buena Vista in Roanoke County, Virginia, to William Watts,at his home Oaklands in Roanoke County, Virginia, discussing plans for Tayloe’selectoral campaign for a seat in the Virginia House of Delegates; mentionsseveral Whig allies—Dr John Hook Griffin, Henry E. Blair, and James Kyle—andhis Democratic opponent, Robert Craig, and several regions in RoanokeCounty—Stoner’s Store (Bonsack), Salem, Big Lick (Roanoke City), Catawba,Botetourt Springs (Hollins)

1998.26.493

July 24, 1852

Bill and receiptfrom Adolphus E. Huff, signed by Thomas Baylor, to Edward Watts, by his agentW. M. Burks, for $6.50 paid cash in full for 39 yards of laid linen

1998.26.494

August 14, 1852

Copy of a noticefrom John M. Patton to Alfred T. Dillard, demanding a copy of an earlier letterfrom the same to the same, regarding Dillard’s engaging Patton as his attorneyin the case of Cabell vs Dillard, which Patton wants produced as evidence inthe case Patton vs Dillard, pending in the Roanoke County Circuit Court

1998.26.495

March 25, 1852

Plat and survey byJohn Snyder, surveyor of Roanoke County, Virginia, made for Charles Houts, of114 acres of land, which Houts bought from Berryman Stoutmyer, part of thetract of Gasper Stoutmyer deceased, located in Roanoke County adjacent to landsof Edward Watts and Urias Powers, including a portion of Evans Spring Branch(Lick Run), and bounded in part by Cove Road and the Turnpike (Orange Avenue)

Surveyed for Charles Houts 114 acres of Landwhich he has bought of Berryman Stoutmyer, the S[ai]d 114 Acres is part of theTract of Gasper Stoutmyer Deceased & is lying in the County of Roanoke andis bounded as followeth, Beginning on the East Side of Evans Spring Branchopposite a white oak corner to the land of General Edward Watts and UriasPowers at 1

CharlesHoutz (c. 1826-1857) was born in Salem, Virginia, and died in Johnson County,Missouri. Berryman Stoutmyer (1822-1900) was born in Botetourt (now Roanoke)County and died in Clinton County, Missouri. His father Gaspar Stoutmyer (1787-1822)died in Botetourt (now Roanoke) County. These names, both first and last, arespelled variously.

Thetracts belonging to Caspar Stoutamire and Uriah Powers are shown approximatelyin this detail of a map of “Roanoke County Farms 1825 to 1875” by J. R.Hildebrand.

1998.26.496

September 1, 1852

Copy of a deedbetween Berryman Stoutamier and Elizabeth (Pettit) Stoutamier his wife of theone part, and Charles Houtz of the second part, for the sale to Houtz of atract of 114 acres of land in Roanoke County, Virginia, adjacent to lands ofEdward Watts and Urias Powers, including a portion of Evans Spring Branch (LickRun), and bounded in part by Cove Road and the Turnpike (Orange Avenue)

1998.26.497

October 18, 1852

Receipt signed byThomas G. Huff to Hugh M. Burks for payment a note on John Bushong, executor,to Edward Watts

1998.26.498

March 24, 1852

Receipt signed byWilliam Moncure Woodson for $247.28 to Edward Watts in payment of all accounts,with Woodson accepting responsibility for paying a bill to Dr Thomas Goode forattending Hector

1998.26.499

January 7, 1853

Letter from Harris,Turner & Hale, druggists in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to William Watts,in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, asking Watts to send a draft or check for theproceeds of their account against Dr John McChesney

1998.26.500

May 31, 1853

Receipt from JohnBenjamin Irwin Logan, cashier of the Exchange Bank of Virginia, Salem, for twothousand dollars in notes received from Wright Southgate, cashier of theExchange Bank of Virginia, Norfolk, by the hands of William Watts

Watts Collection, documents 451-475

2012-01-04T07:16:00.000-08:00

Checklist of documents in the Watts Collection at theHistorical Society of Western Virginia, Roanoke, Virginia. To consult these documents,go to http://www.vahistorymuseum.org/ and move the cursor to the “VirtualMuseum” tile at the top. Then click “Virtual Collections” on the menu thatappears. The documents can be found by a keyword search, or by catalog numberusing “Click and Search”. Some or all of the documents described here may notyet be available online, but all may be consulted on site.

This set of documents is relatively coherentchronologically, but reflects the diversity of William Watts’s activities. Thegroup begins with 4 documents from 1847, the first of which accompanied thelast letter in the previous group, and the other three of which relate toFleming James and his long-standing affairs. The next item, 1998.26.455, infact contains 20 documents, all of them brief account statements from localsheriffs, relating to law cases handled by the Wattses in the 1840s. The nextitem, 1998.26.456, is an account statement prepared by Edward Watts regardingthe administration of the estate of his father, William Watts, who died in1797. The remaining 19 items are letters from almost as many different writers,involving legal business like giving and taking depositions; family business,like the sale of James Breckinridge’s lots in Washington, DC; the opening abranch of the Exchange Bank of Virginia in Salem, of which William Watts waspresident; William Watts’s absence during the fall for the VirginiaConstitutional Convention of 1850-51; and requests from recommendations andadvice.

doc #

date

abstract

1998.26.451

August 30, 1847

Copy of an accountstatement of the debts of James McClanahan to Harrison Carter France and EdmundThomas Starling of $198 and $74.51 respectively, sent by William Watts to JamesMoss Smith with 1998.26.450

1998.26.452

October 12, 1847

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County,Virginia, explaining that he has delayed his trip to Roanoke County toaccommodate Landon Cabell Read, but will depart soon and be at Stoner’s Storein six days; asking Watts to collect debts from Captain Nelmes and AbrahamCarney, and have his account of charges against James ready to be settled;giving news of Alice Matilda Watts

1998.26.453

December 7, 1847

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County,Virginia, lamenting the lack of a letter from Watts for the past month andasking for news about rents owed by William C. Langhorne and William McDermid;also sending news of William’s sisters Alice Watts and Ann Selden (Watts)Holcombe, Thomas Philemon Holcombe and William J. Holcombe, called Willie,saying that the Holcombes have gone to Charleston, South Carolina

1998.26.454

August 24, 1847

Account statementfrom Jeremiah Kyle Pitzer, deputy sheriff of Roanoke County of the claims of David Gish, James Howell andothers against Fleming James and William McDermid, showing an initial debt of$197.36, with interest, costs, and commissions bringing the total to $270.17,and credits for payments by to Hiram Haydon, by McDermid, and by William Wattsto Gish leaving $70.19 due to Howell

1998.26.455

1842-1848

Twenty accountstatements from sheriffs and clerks of courts in Bedford, Franklin, and RoanokeCounties, for charges related to executions of court orders in the 1840s, allpresumably involving William Watts as lawyer although he is not alwaysmentioned. Names of the court officers include Green B. Board, Moses Greer Carper, M. Davis, John HookGriffin, Frederick Johnston, James Kyle, Nathaniel J. Manson, Armistead Otey,Jeremiah Kyle Pitzer, John R. Steptoe, and Caleb Tate. Names of parties includeNathaniel Burwell, Thomas Saunders Gholson, William Gish, William R. Jones,James McClanahan, William S. Minor, Maclin S. Stith, Samuel Stoner, John W.Thompson, Thomas S. Walton, John E. Watkins, Hugh A. Watt, John F. J. White,Joseph Wilson, and the firms Eskridge and Holcombe, Gaynor Wood and Company,and Peck White and Company.

1998.26.456

about 1849

Account statement ofthe estate of William Watts, prepared by Edward Watts, showing amounts paid anddue to himself and to his sisters, Anna Maria (Watts) Gwathmey, Mary (Watts)Morris, Martha Watts, Alice (Watts) Saunders, Elizabeth (Watts) Brown, or totheir heirs and representatives; among the latter, Robert Carter Gwathmey,William Watts Gwathmey, and P. B. Winston are mentioned by name.

Statement of my account with the estate of WmWatts

Assetsreceivd on account of land 3078.

deductfor commissions _153.90

subject to distribution 2924.10

Havingno interests in this fund each share one fifth is 584.82

ofthe above R. C. and W. W. Gwathmey have receivd in advance 980. excess 395.18

Theheirs of Mrs Morris through P. B. Winston 480.def 104.82

MrsBrown has recd 550.def 34.82

Tobe paid to the committee of Martha Watts 584.82

Tobe settled with F. Saunders on account of his land _584.82

3179.64

deduct excess to Gwathmeys _395.18

2784.46

add deficiency to Mrs M. & MrsB. _139.64

2924.10

Thisaccount, presumably prepared by Edward Watts to be copied and circulated to theother heirs, must have been prepared in early 1849, soon after the death on 26December 1848 of Temple Gwathmey, whose two surviving sons – Robert CarterGwathmey and William Watts Gwathmey – are listed among the heirs. William Wattsdied 20 December 1797, leaving six children: one son, Edward; and fivedaughters: Elizabeth (c.1781-1843), married Preston W. Brown; Martha (1783-1853), never married; Mary (1784-1835),married Richard Morris; Alice (c. 1793-1867), married Fleming Saunders; and Anna Maria (1794-1819),married Temple Gwathmey.

1998.26.457

April 18, 1850

Letter from H. G.Richardson, in Farmville, Virginia, to William Watts and Edward Watts Saunders,at Big Lick, Virginia, stating that he will pay a bond within the next three months

1998.26.458

September 25, 1850

Letter from GustavusAdolphus Wingfield in Liberty (Bedford), Virginia, to Edward Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, making arrangements to take a deposition from Watts andproviding a letter for him to communicate to William Madison Peyton, who was aparty to the suit

1998.26.459

September 25, 1850

Letter from GustavusAdolphus Wingfield in Liberty (Bedford), Virginia, to Edward Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, explaining why his client Matthew Pate wishes to obtain adeposition from Watts in the case of Peyton and Bailey, claiming under McClure,versus Pate, regarding a marshal’s sale of land in Big Lick belonging to JohnPate and Edmund Pate in 1826, in which both Watts and James Breckinridge playeda part; the letter is extremely deferential, and asks Watts as a personal favorto find it convenient to attend the taking of the deposition at Neal’s Tavernat the Lick on October 3

1998.26.460

October 12, 1850

Letter from AbrahamHupp, in Salem, Virginia, to William Watts, in Richmond, Virginia, informinghim that he has been appointed to represent the Light Infantry Grays at aconvention in Richmond, and asking him to attend

Salem Va Oct 12th 1850

Dear Sir, Our company the “Light Infantry Grays”at the Sept muster appointed you among other members to attend a volunteerconvention to be held in Richmond I believe the 17th inst. Believing that youhave not been informed of the fact, and that none of the other membersappointed will attend, I take the liberty of writing to you, and at the sametime insist on your representing us in that convention, and go for anythingthat will be of interest to volunteer companies.

Abraham Hupp (1826-1864)ran a tin shop in Salem, VA; he organized the first volunteer military companyin Roanoke County, Virginia, in the early 1840s, “The Yellow Jackets”; after itdisbanded, he organized the “Salem Light Infantry Grays”, which disbanded aftera few years. Following John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry in 1859, he organizedthe “Salem Flying Artillery” which fought throughout the Civil War. Hupphimself became ill in 1862 and had to return home, where he died of cancer.

1998.26.461

October 26, 1850

Letter from WilliamRichard Galt, in Norfolk, Virginia, to William Watts, in Richmond, Virginia, atthe Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1850, asking permission to use hisname as a reference in a prospectus for a new school in Buchanan, Virginia; hecites his own references as William Willoughby Sharp, president of the ExchangeBank of Virginia in Norfolk; Jordan Anthony, who forwarded Sharp’s letter toWatts; and Tazewell Taylor, a Norfolk delegate to the convention. He alsoinvokes a slight acquaintance with Watts when they were students at theUniversity of Virginia around 1840, mentioning that he has recommendations fromthe faculty there

Norfolk, Oct 26, 1850

Dear Sir, I take the liberty of addressingyou on a subject of much importance to myself, and in which you can be ofessential service to me. About two months since I was in the town of Buchanan,Botetourt Co. endeavoring to ascertain what prospects there were of mysucceeding in opening a male boarding-school there.

WilliamRichard Galt (1818-1892) was a noted educator. He came from a distinguishedfamily, originally from Williamsburg, Virginia. Watts’s favorable answer tothis letter, dated 31 October 1850, is in the Galt family papers in the specialcollections of the library at William and Mary University, along with copies ofthe recommendations from faculty and numerous other letters from individualsagreeing to serve as references. He published aprospectus for the “Mountain Home School”, and was living in Botetourt County,Virginia, at the 1860 census, so that one can assume that this project came tofruition. After 1860, however, the census located him in Norfolk, Virginia,where he became head of the Norfolk Academy.

1998.26.462

October 28, 1850

Letter from WilliamG. Peck, at Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, to William Watts, in Richmond,Virginia, giving news on the state of his farm under Walker’s supervision, onhis father Edward Watts’s hunting trip to Greasy Creek, on the deer killed byColonel Oliver, A. White and John Lewis, on preparations for a wedding atColonel Peyton’s; wishing Watts and his new wife happiness and asking for newsabout the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1850

1998.26.463

October 28, 1850

Letter from PhilipJ. Ellicott, in Baltimore, Maryland, to William Watts, in Big Lick, RoanokeCounty, Virginia (forwarded to Richmond, Virginia), asking about progress in aneffort to recover a debt from Oliver, who failed to appear in court inWashington in a case in which Ellicott had stood as his security

1998.26.464

November 4, 1850

Circular letter fromWilliam Willoughby Sharp, president of the Exchange Bank of Virginia, atNorfolk, Virginia, to William Watts, George W. Shanks, Powell A. Huff, AbramHupp, Charles L. Snyder, Robert Craig, and George Plater Tayloe, directors ofthe branch of the Exchange Bank of Virginia at Salem, Virginia, stating thatthe stock subscription for the Salem branch of the bank has been fulfilled, andgiving instructions for putting the branch into operation

Exchange Bank of Virg[ini]a, November 4, 1850

Messrs Wm Watts, Geo. W. Shanks, Powell A.Huff, Abram Hupp, Chs L. Snyder, Robert Craig, & G. P. Tayloe, DirectorsBr. Exch. Bank Va at Salem

Gentlemen, The amount of stock subscribedhere and at other points, together with the subscriptions reported by you onthe 4th ulto being nearly equal to your proposed capital, it is proper thatarrangements be made, without further delay, to put your Branch into operation.

WilliamWilloughby Sharp (1801-1871) lived in Norfolk, Virginia, where he was head ofthe Exchange Bank of Virginia. It was organized in 1837 and had branches inRichmond and Lynchburg. William Watts served as the first president of thenewly organized Salem branch of the bank, which was authorized by an act of theGeneral Assembly of Virginia on 15 March 1849. The other addressees of theletter, who were directors of the bank, were among the leading businessmen ofthe region: George W. Shanks (1809-1876) was a merchant; Powell A. Huff owned ahat factory; Abram Hupp (1826-1864) ran a tin shop; Charles L. Snyder (c.1815-1863) was a tanner and farmer; Robert Craig (1792-1852) was a planter andhad served in the Virginia House of Delegates and the U. S. House ofRepresentatives; George Plater Tayloe (1804-1897) was a major landowner andbusinessman.

1998.26.465

November 12, 1850

Letter from Morrisand Brother, booksellers, signed by A. Morris, in Richmond, Virginia, toWilliam Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, informing him that the$10 note on the Bank of Virginia with which he paid for two copies of HughAlfred Garland’s The Life of JohnRandolph of Roanoke, for himself and for James Philemon Holcombe, was acounterfeit, and giving details about the appearance of the note and the way inwhich the forgery was discovered

1998.26.466

November 15, 1850

Letter from John T.Anderson, in Fincastle, Virginia, to William Watts, at Oaklands, in RoanokeCounty, Virginia, saying that he has $2450 to pay off a bond on James Shanks,which he had hoped to give Watts when he passed through Fincastle returningfrom Richmond, but now knows that Watts returned by Lynchburg and so heproposes to bring or send the money to Salem, Virginia; also expresses a wishto change the date of the case of Francis vs White in Roanoke County Court

1998.26.467

November 29, 1850

Letter from WalterS. Leon to Cary Breckinridge, in Fincastle, Virginia, repeating an offer fromMr Corcoran to buy lots

1998.26.468

December 6, 1850

Letter from WilliamRansom Johnson Jr, in Petersburg, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick,Roanoke County, Virginia, expressing satisfaction that Watts has sold a slavemother and child and adding his confirmation to the sale; also congratulatingWatts on recent honors

1998.26.469

December 10, 1850

Letter from JordanAnthony, at the Bank of Virginia in Buchanan, Virginia, to William Watts,presumably at home in Big Lick, Roanoke County, Virginia, transferring hismoney to the new Exchange Bank of Virginia branch in Salem, Virginia

Office Bank of Virginia, Buchanan Dec 10th1850

Dear Sir, I have received your favor of the9th instant. There is a balance of $1053.30 standing to the credit of youraccount on the Books of this Office. I am happy to hear you have been placed atthe head of the Banking institution to be put in operation in Salem. We mustwhen necessary confer with each other and harmonize.

JordanAnthony (1788-after 1866) was a cashier at the Bank of Virginia branch atBuchanan, Virginia; his niece Julia Anthony Breckinridge married Peachy GilmerBreckinridge, an attorney and a cousin of William Watts. In the 1860 census,Julia and her husband were living in her uncle’s household.

1998.26.470

December 13, 1850

Letter from GreenJames, in Fincastle, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, asking him for a letter of introduction to assist in his applicationto obtain the advertising of the United States mail routes in Virginia for hisnewspaper, the Valley Whig; he explains that he does not know the PostmasterGeneral Nathan Kelsey Hall or any other member of the Cabinet, but knows thatWatts is acquainted with Alexander Hugh Holmes Stuart, Secretary of theInterior; he notes further that General Augustus Alexandria Chapman gained thecontract for the Fincastle Democrat under the previous presidency, and hopesthat the current administration (under Millard Fillmore) will be favorable to aWhig editor

1998.26.471

December 14, 1850

Letter from JohnThomas Anderson, in Fincastle, Virginia, to William Watts, in Salem, RoanokeCounty, Virginia, asking Watts to attend, on behalf of client Noah S. Brown, tothe taking of depositions from Roberts and Ballard by Alfred Terrell Dillard;Anderson thinks both deponents are interested in the outcome of the suit andtherefore incompetent to give testimony; he also says that he will leave forRichmond on January 2, 1851, traveling by way of Lynchburg, and hopes to haveWatts’s company

1998.26.472

December 13, 1850

Letter from WilliamColeman Campbell, in Salem, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, requesting a letter of recommendation from Watts in support of hisapplication to the Virginia Military Institute, on which he has sought advicefrom John William Tayloe, Madison Pitzer, and Benjamin Harrison Smith

Salem Dec 13th 1850

Mr Wm Watts

Dear Sir, In accordance with your suggestion,I wrote to Mr J. W. Tayloe of the V. M. I. in relation to the appointment ofState Cadets, and recei[ve]d an answer on the 10th inst stating, that there wasa vacancy in this Gen[era]l District, and advising me to send on myrecommendations immediately.

WilliamColeman Campbell (1832-1873) was a Salem, Virginia, native; he graduated fromV.M.I. in the class of 1855, never married, made his career in mining andwriting for newspapers. He died inSalt Lake City, Utah. John William Tayloe (1831-1904) was born in Big Lick(Roanoke). He entered V.M.I. in 1849 as a member of the class of 1852, butresigned in 1851. He moved to Alabama, where he enlisted as an officer in theConfederate army in 1861. After the war, he moved to Birmingham, Alabama, wherehe died. Further information on both men may be found in the online archives of V.M.I.

1998.26.473

December 16, 1850

Letter from Kent,Kendall & Atwater, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, presumably athome in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, discussing options for recovering a debtfrom George Callaway Langhorne, for which Tayloe has proposed notes from SamuelP. Holt which he, Tayloe, will endorse, this arrangement being contingent onthe sale of property by Langhorne to Holt; otherwise Watts is to have theexecution against Langhorne levied; Rass will carry the letter to Watts, andconsult with him about Langhorne, and about a debt of Edmund Penn White

1998.26.474

December 19, 1850

Letter from WilliamLanghorne, at Cloverdale, Virginia, to William Watts, at home (at Oaklands,Roanoke County, Virginia), asking to be excused from attending a taking ofdepositions at Bedford County Court because of his rheumatism, and givingadvice about points on which to question others who may attend, mentioning his son George CallawayLanghorne and brothers Maurice Langhorne and Henry Scarsbrook Langhorne, MrTompkins, Mr Otey, Mr Radford, and Dad Hanes

1998.26.475

December 24, 1850

Letter from WilliamWilloughby Sharp, in Norfolk, Virginia, to William Watts, in Salem, RoanokeCounty, Virginia, informing him that John Benjamin Irwin Logan has resigned ascashier of the planned Salem branch of the Exchange Bank of Virginia, andsuggesting Robert McCandlish as a replacement; mentioning also the problem ofany delay because the stock has already been issued

Watts Collection, documents 426-450

2011-12-28T11:27:00.000-08:00

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

doc #

date

abstract

1998.26.426

March-April 1846

Account statement ofFleming 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 FlemingJames in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, answeringwith some delay a letter from Watts; notes actions taken in regard to BenjaminFranklin Moomaw, Catharine (Ammen) Stoner, and William McDermid; questions acharge for hauling plaster for William C. Langhorne; complains of delay inreceiving flour shipped by Landon Cabell Read; says that he was deceived byDaniel Ammen about the money needed to clear Mrs Stoner’s title, but sends acheck to pay Alexander P. Eskridge, with instructions to Watts; gives anaccount of the credit of Gordon and Skinker, endorsers of the note he plans tooffer Eskridge as security; boasts of the good name of F. & J. S. James& Co.

1998.26.428

October 26, 1846

Letter from AbrahamCarney at Stoner’s Store, Virginia, to Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia,notifying James, his landlord, that he intends to stay another year as a tenantfarmer, stating that no one, including William Watts, James’s agent, has givenhim notice; also mentions that he has been ill with a fever for six weeks

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

The spelling in this letter isphonetic. Here is a translation into standard English:

October 26, 1846, Dear Sir, I mustinform 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 willhold the land another year on the same terms. I have been confined to my bedfor six weeks with the fever, and can’t at this time get out of the house, andyou nor any person gave me any notice that you wanted the land [or] that youintend 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 youhave failed to do so, I must continue. If I had any notice by you or youragent, I would give possession without a word, for I want to live in peace withall persons on earth.

Abraham (or Abram) Carney 1820-1911) was a life-long resident of the Bedford-Botetourt-RoanokeCounty area. He appears in census reports in 1860, 1870, 1880, 1900 and 1910, afarmer living at Lisbon, Bedford County, Virginia, farmer; Lisbon is a “lostvillage”, which lay along the Lynchburg-Salem Pike, about 9 miles east of theBonsack-Coyner’s Spring area where Fleming James’s land lay. According toonline family trees, Carney was married three times and left issue by his firstwife.

1998.26.429

January 9, 1847

Letter from J.Sibley of Buck & Potter in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to William Watts, inBig Lick, Virginia, sending an account statement of their claim against G. W.Anderson, showing an original debt of $392.74, with interest added and partialpayment deducted, leaving $334.37 before deducting Watts’s commission, andasking Watts to remit approximately $303.50 by check on Philadelphia or NewYork

1998.26.430

January 20, 1847

Letter from ThomasS. Gholson, in Petersburg, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia,acknowledging receipt of a check for $300 and requesting a full statement whenthe balance is sent, to enable settlement with N. S. Freeman to whom the debtwas due

1998.26.431

January 28, 1847

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County,Virginia, expressing pleasure at Watts’s return to health; describing hisagreement with William McDermid regarding the rental of James’s land foranother year, the purchase of his crop of clover seed and other matters to bearranged with James’s manager Benjamin Perkins; telling of plans to send thedeed for the Coyner property; authorizing Watts to employ help in dealing withlawsuits involving Daniel Stoner, John Stoner, Samuel Stoner, William S. Minor,William McDermid, and St Clair; stating that John Stoner is pressing Perkins tovacate the house, because of an agreement with William Langhorne, while Jameswants 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 forthe balance of the debt of George W. Anderson

1998.26.433

February 16, 1847

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

1998.26.434

February 22, 1847

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

1998.26.436

March 11, 1847

Letter from FlemingJames, 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 WilliamMcDermid, and to urge McDermid to deliver the clover seed to James’s managerBenjamin Perkins; also asking Watts to assist Perkins, and obtain aid fromWilliam 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 RoanokeCounty, Virginia, and inquiring in general about the status of his lawsuits inRoanoke and Botetourt Counties

1998.26.437

March 25, 1847

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County,Virginia, expressing displeasure at not finding a letter from Watts on hisarrival in Richmond and repeating urgent requests for action and informationabout Mary (Dagen) Stoner’s dower; telling of Peachy Ridgway Grattan’s adviceto cede possession of the house and dower land to John Stoner but to retain thestore and other buildings on the road; asking Watts to meet him at WilliamLanghorne’s home in Roanoke County on March 31 and accompany him to Fincastlefor the court session; sending greetings from his family and news of AliceWatts

1998.26.438

April 5, 1847

Letter from FlemingJames, 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 FlemingJames, 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 betaken in their case against Daniel Stoner, Matilda Stoner, Clack R. Campbell,Jacob Frantz, and William Noffsinger, trustee for Matilda Stoner; James’sletter asks Watts to attend the taking of depositions and represent James’sinterests; also notes that John Stoner has asked James’s manager BenjaminPerkins to hand over the keys to the house, which James has told Perkins not todo and asks Watts to advise Perkins; and concludes noting with pleasurepolitical gains by the Whigs

1998.26.440

April 20, 1847

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County,Virginia, replying to a letter from Watts bringing the good news that James’smanager Benjamin Perkins has full possession of the Stoners’ store and lumberyard, asking Watts to substitute F. & J. S. James & Co. as defendant incase Perkins is sued by John Stoner, and thanking both William and his fatherEdward Watts for their help; also asking about taking depositions in the Stonercase from Mr Parker and from Fleming’s son John Quarles James, and aboutexecuting a bond against A. A. Boyd in time for the September session of theBotetourt County Superior Court

1998.26.441

April 28, 1847

Receipt from theBank of Virginia to R. C. Gwathmey & Co. for a deposit of $1200 to thecredit of Edward Watts; receipt signed by John Hunter Hatcher, assistant teller

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

1998.26.442

May 11, 1847

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

1998.26.443

May 13, 1847

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County,Virginia, covering a copy of the bill of injunction prepared by Peachy RidgwayGrattan and granted by Judge Clopton; giving Grattan’s opinion about Mary(Dagen) Stoner’s rights and James’s likelihood of winning his cases against herand John Stoner; informing Watts that depositions will be taken from AlexanderK. Parker, Robert L. Brooke, John W. Boyd and John Quarles James in Grattan’soffice in June; stating that James will order an execution of fieri faciasagainst 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 andclover seed, about which James’s estate manager Benjamin Perkins will providedetails; 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, perhapstwo, & maybe some hogs, but Mr Perkins will inform you precisely. Chargeyour commission of 5 pr Ct on both years rent when the balance is realized& settle with McDermid as soon as you can.

Ithas been raining more or less for 4 or 5 days past, extending as I learn beyondthe mountains. I hope Roanoke has had enough. John & Mrs James unite withme in friendly sa[lutations] to [your father,] mother & family.

This documentshows damage done by rodents. Benjamin Perkins (1793-1852) had worked forFleming James on properties in Louisa County, Virginia, before James broughthim to Roanoke County to manage his new land there, mainly acquired from theStoner family; Perkins appears in the 1850 census in Roanoke County as“manager for James”. He was married and had children; after his death, hiswife, née Eliza A. Sanders or Saunders, returned with the children to live withher 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 FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County,Virginia, acknowledging receipt of a letter and enclosures, and enclosing theindemnifying bond from Gordon addressed to Frederick Johnston, clerk of thecourt; also informing Watts of progress in taking depositions from John QuarlesJames, John W. Boyd and Alexander K. Parker; and expressing regret over thepoor wheat crop in the Roanoke area

1998.26.445

June 15, 1847

Letter from FlemingJames, 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 PeachyRidgway Grattan as lawyer, had been sent by Samuel T. Pulliam, the magistratewho sat for them, to the clerk of the Superior Court of Law & Chancery forRoanoke County in Salem, Virginia; also urging Watts to clear the docket of allof James’s cases at the next session; and sending news of Watt’s sister AliceMatilda Watts, who has been riding with her cousin Mary Ann Breckinridge andJames’s wife Mary (Armstrong) James

1998.26.446

August 23, 1847

Letter from FlemingJames, in Saratoga Springs, New York, to William Watts, in Big Lick, RoanokeCounty, Virginia, saying that he has instructed his estate manager, BenjaminPerkins, to apply to Watts for assistance with his crops, and with makingarrangements with his tenants William McDermid and William S. Minor;apologizing for burdening Watts with these tasks and hoping for success intheir upcoming cases before the Roanoke County Superior Court

Saratoga Springs,August 23rd, 1847

Wm Watts Esqr, BigLick Va

Dear Sir, I havedirected Mr Perkins, our manager in Roanoke, to apply to you to assist him insecuring his growing crop & in preparing for & seeding a large Crop ofwheat the coming fall. I have also requested him to get your aid in arrangingwith Mr McDermid to seed a crop of wheat on the land he now occupies with a viewto my bargaining directly or through you with Mr McDermid about staying on theplace another year.

Theink has bled through the page of this letter, making it difficult to read. OnBenjamin 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 anexecution against William McDermid in favor of David Gish, James Howell, andHiram Haydon, this payment being the balance in full of Howell’s portion

1998.26.448

September 6, 1847

Letter from FlemingJames, 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 inRoanoke County in thirty or forty days; replying with satisfaction to a letterannouncing victory in the suit against John Stoner and promising to pay $300 tothe Donnans to settle a suit over the Coiner land; asking Watts to talk toJames’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 amill dam; expressing surprise that Captain Nelmes had not yet sold his tobaccoand 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 arenow 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 ThomasW. Brockenbrough, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick,Virginia, acknowledging receipt of $167.26 deposited in the Bank of Virginia atBuchanan, collected as a debt from Goode

1998.26.450

September 14, 1847

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

Watts Collection, documents 401-425

2011-12-21T13:07:00.000-08:00

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

doc #

date

abstract

1998.26.401

September 11, 1851

Copy of records in acause heard in the Circuit Superior Court of Law and Chancery in RoanokeCounty, Virginia, in the case of Wiley P. Wood and Joseph Rives, plaintiffs,against Charles Pinckard and Tyree Glenn Newbill, defendants; Newbill failingto appear, Pinckard is the sole defendant; document includes copies of thedecree of the Roanoke County court of 26 August 1846, a commissioner’s reportby Frederick Johnston with statements by the two parties of 10 June 1847, asecond decree by the Roanoke County court of 27 March 1848, a secondcommissioner’s report by Johnston of 28 June 1848, a third decree by theRoanoke County court on 26 August 1848, and a decree of the Virginia Court ofAppeals meeting at Lewisburg, Virginia (now West Virginia), with Pinckard asappellant, finding in favor of the appellees Wood and Rives, on 11 September1851. The case arose because Newbill, who was one of the legatees and theadministrator of an estate, mismanaged it, apparently because his own affairs werein disarray. In an effort to solve his own problems, he sold some of the assetsof the estate at sacrifice prices to Pinckard, but later filed an oath ofinsolvency and left the area. Wood and Rives had been his sureties; when otherlegatees and creditors sued the estate, they had to pay. They then suedPinckard and Newbill; in the latter’s absence, only Pinckard’s situation isexposed, and the argument was that he knew, or should have known, that he waspurchasing 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’sappeal, the Virginia Court of Appeals sustained the decision.

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

At a Circuit Circuit Superior Court of Law andChancery 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 & CatharinePhillips 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 theplaintiffs as the security of the said Tyree G. Newbill as therein stated. Andthereupon the cause came on to be heard upon the Bill, answer, replicationthereto, exhibits, examinations of witnesses, and the order of publication awardedin 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 bylaw, and was argued by counsel. Upon consideration [continues for 24 pages]

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

1998.26.402

May 9, 1846

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County,Virginia, covering a deed to Moomaw, requesting that the money be delivered assoon as possible by a bank draft from Buchanan, Virginia; discussing animpending banking crisis and the current shortage of money; expressing hisimpatience with delays in his case against Daniel, John and Samuel Stoner;asking for information about crops on the Stoner land, in particular whetherthey have been affected by Hessian Fly infestation

1998.26.403

October 29, 1846

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County,Virginia, enclosing an advertisement to be published in Big Lick, Fincastle, atthe Stoners’ property, and in the Valley Whig newspaper, for a sale, probablyof the property of the Stoner family from whom James had been trying to collecta debt owed to his company, F. & J. S. James & Co; also mentioning MrLanghorne, who was planting fields of wheat, corn, and tobacco on behalf ofJames

1998.26.404

December 9, 1846

Letter from FlemingJames, at Stoners Store, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County,Virginia, reporting the arrangements he has made regarding the sale of theStoner property, and other arrangements, with requests for Watts to obtainwritten final agreements; he has purchased the Coiner land, and rented it toWilliam S. Minor’s father for one year; he wishes Watts to settle a land matterquickly with St Clair; he has rented a place to young Carney, whose father isposting bond, the contract to be drawn up by Landon Cabell Read; he has boughtWilliam McDermid’s crop of clover seed and received assurances that McDermidwill pay off his debts by Christmas; he has obtained a secret agreement withJohn Stoner that John will persuade his mother to sell her dower rights; he hasalso purchased four horses and wagon gear from William S. Minor

1998.26.405

January 15, 1846

Letter from JohnQuarles James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, RoanokeCounty, Virginia, sending the price – $425 – paid for a slave named Baldy Jimand inquiring about some groceries sent to Edward Watts, which may have beenlost because of problems in transportation at Lynchburg

1998.26.406

January 14, 1846

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County,Virginia, replying to one from Watts, agreeing to his proposal to sell land toMoomaw, giving Watts carte blanche to deal with Baldy Jim, enclosing copies ofjudgments against Samuel Stoner, asking Watts to examine the Donnans’ claimagainst the Coiner land, expressing pleasure that matters have been settledwith Landon Cabell Read, hoping that other matters involving Nelmes, Moomaw andMcDermid will be settled soon, asking Watts to collect back rents from Martinfor a mill, inquiring about crops from Barnes, and repeating his strong wish tohave all his affairs settled quickly

1998.26.407

October 12, 1846

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Roanoke County,Virginia, expressing his surprise that Langhorne has refused to seed wheat forhim, as he had previously promised, except on condition that his lease of theland be extended another year, which James cannot do without breaking hiscommitment to Perkins and Dabney, his managers; he outlines the offer he hadmade, granting Langhorne the right to seed the lands of Nelmes, Carney, WilliamS. Minor, and Mary (Dagen) Stoner, with his share of the profit to be adjudgedby Edward Watts and William Madison Peyton; he has recently seen Peyton, whoencouraged him to have William Watts get it done, and James pleads with toagree

1998.26.408

April 16, 1846

Letter from JudahMyers, 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 ZachariahS. Robinson that a check for $172.60 was mailed on 29 April 1846

The closing line ofthe letter with the signature of Judah Myers,

followed by the endorsement andsignature of John E. Watkins

The object therefore of the present is to saythat you will please forward to money to me as Trustee for J. E. Watkins. YoursRespy [Respectfully], Judah Myers

Dear Sir, The above statement made by MrMyers is correct and you will please pay the Money over to him. Yours veryRespectfully, J. E. Watkins

Judah Myerswas 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 21Feb 1855 in Ampthill, Chesterfield County, Virginia; he lived and was buried inAmpthill Plantation. He married Judith Eveline Watkins (1794-1872), and theyhad many children.

1998.26.409

February 16, 1846

Executor’s receiptfrom 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. Jeffressand John Shirey in the Circuit Superior Court of Roanoke; with interests andcosts the final amount paid was $148.30

1998.26.410

1846

Receipt from theSheriff’s office of Roanoke County, Virginia, signed by J. K. Pitzer,deputy sheriff, to Edward Watts fortaxes paid for 1846, amounting to $158.16½, the largest items being 1 white and81 black tithes, 98 slaves, and 2250 acres of land

Receipt from theSheriff’s office of Roanoke County, Virginia, to Edward Watts, for taxes paidin 1846

Edward Watts D^r

1846 ToRoanoke 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, toWilliam Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, regarding the collection of a claimagainst George W. Anderson; Watts has written that he has received $123.62 onthe account, and is asked to forward a check for the amount; document includescertification by the postmaster Zachariah S. Robinson that the check, drawn bySamuel Mead, cashier of the Bank of Virginia, Richmond, has been mailed

Postmaster’scertification

Dec9th 1846

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

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

1998.26.412

May 4, 1846

Letter from JudahMyers, trustee for John E. Watkins, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, inBig Lick, Virginia, acknowledging receipt of a check for $172.60 on the Bank ofVirginia in payment of a claim against S. S. P. Thompson

1998.26.413

May 1, 1846

Letter from EzekielHunn of Hunn and Remington, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to William Watts, inBig Lick, Virginia, authorizing the transfer of money collected from DavidFenton Kent and giving instructions; he expresses his outrage at Kent’sbehavior, 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 FlemingJames in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, coveringnotice of the taking of a deposition from Jeremiah Kyle Pitzer in the caseagainst Alexander P. Eskridge as trustee for Samuel Stoner; also inquiringabout earlier letters sent, and requesting a memo regarding those named inStoner’s deed of trust, especially the Donnans, who are making a claim on theCoyner land; saying that his son John Quarles James has sent the last of thecontested acceptances of Daniel Stoner

1998.26.415

December 31, 1845

Copy of the noticeof the taking of a deposition from Jeremiah Kyle Pitzer and others in theCircuit Superior Court of Law and Chancery in Roanoke County, Virginia, in thecase of Fleming James and Edwin James, merchants and partners trading under thefirm and style of F. and J. S. James and Company, plaintiffs against AlexanderP. Eskridge, trustee, and others, including Hubbard, Gardner and Company, whichinitiated 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 FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia,discussing his plans to travel to Roanoke County in December for the sale ofthe Coiner land, noting the possibility that he will stay the first night withWilliam C. Langhorne and stating that he will be extremely busy setting up hisestate with his estate managers and his slaves, who will be escorted from GreenSprings and Lynchburg, Virginia, by his son John Quarles James; he also saysthat 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 leftblank; he mentions at the end that he is sending a bale of blankets from TempleGwathmey to Edward Watts, to the care of Richard Tyree in Lynchburg; and heurgently wants William to reply by return mail

1998.26.417

September 17, 1846

Letter from FlemingJames, 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 inLouisa County, Virginia; he sends condolences on the recent death of William’sbrother, James Breckinridge Watts; then takes up several business matters,including the final stages of the lawsuit against the Stoner family, involvingMary (Dagen) Stoner, Alexander P. Eskridge, and a farmer named Carney; thepossible sale of the Coiner property to William S. Minor, if he can persuadePolly (Huckstep) Coiner to reduce the price; the state of William C.Langhorne’s corn crop, in which James has an interest, but cannot understandwhat Langhorne writes to him; a shipment of flour from Landon Cabell Read, withsome from William McDermid that was rejected; and a requested delay in paymentof a debt from James S. Walrond and his partner Boyd, merchants near Buchananin Botetourt County, Virginia

1998.26.418

May 2, 1846

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia,enclosing a power of attorney enabling Watts to provide indemnifying bonds inJames’s case against Daniel Stoner; he also responds to Watts’s letterdescribing the condition of James’s land in Roanoke County, under themanagement of William Langhorne, and deals with matters concerning othertenants on his land William C. McDermid, Carney, Nelmes, and Landon CabellRead; 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 FlemingJames, in New York, New York, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia,enclosing a (missing) document answering a bill by David Gish, and acceptingWatts’s reasons for not dining with him the previous day; James also reviewsvarious business matters pending in Roanoke County, Virginia, asking Watts tosettle them as fast as possible – these include wheat from William McDermid,flour from Landon Cabell Read, a deed for Moomaw, differing recollections ofJeremiah Whitten, Elijah McClanahan and William Madison Peyton who werecommissioners to determine Catherine (Ammen) Stoner’s dower rights, William C.Langhorne’s lease and an opinion of Edward Watts thereon, and a negotiationwith Mary (Dagen) Stoner about the sale of her dower; the letter concludes withpromises 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 FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Langhorne, at Stoner’s Store, RoanokeCounty, Virginia, acknowledging receipt of a letter about their joint crop ofwheat, described as fair rather than good, but now secured against rust, andother crops of corn, oats, tobacco and clover. James gives details of hisplanned trip to Roanoke County, by way of Louisa, Albemarle, Nelson and AmherstCounties, and Lynchburg, Virginia. He also discusses the sale of a house toYelverton Oliver, and asking Langhorne to forward the letter to William Watts,who will play a part in selling the house, and acknowledging Watts’s letterabout Mrs Stoner.

1998.26.421

March 28, 1846

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, sayingthat he has returned from New York, whence he sent a document to Watts, withhis signature certified by commissioner Mason; asks about progress on Moomaw’sdeed and urges prompt action, saying that he wishes to finish this business;raises an issue about payment of $120 to William C. Langhorne for boardingJames’s negroes for a year, and cites his responsibility as a trustee andguardian for refusing to pay the lump sum in advance; gives news from New Yorkof Watts’s mother Elizabeth (Breckinridge) Watts, who was well, and brotherJames Breckinridge Watts, who was recovering and should return to the healthierclimate of Virginia, in James’s opinion

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

I called to see your brother James & yourexcellent mother just before I left New York. James was mending, & so wellthat your mother, at his instance, had gone out to return the calls or visitsof friends, which deprived me of the pleasure of seeing her. She was howeververy well. Have James brought back to good old Va. The New Yk climate willdestroy him if he remains there. Present me kindly to your father & family& believe me with all respect, Yr obt sert [Your obedient servant], FlemingJames

PS Pleaseinform me what Mr Lang[hor]ne has done with the [boy] or young fellow Will[iamI] sent to him. F. J.

FlemingJames was a dry goods merchant based in Richmond, Virginia, who often traveledto New York on business. James Breckinridge Watts, William’s older brother, hadgone to New York to attempt to practice law there. He fell ill, probably withtuberculosis, and died on 20 Aug 1846, at Red Sulphur Springs, Virginia (nowWest Virginia). See the blog posting for the previous set of Watts Collectiondocuments.

1998.26.422

October 24, 1846

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

1998.26.423

October 3, 1846

Letter from FlemingJames, 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 mailcaused by a breach in the canal along the James River; reluctantly providingthe 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 forEdward Watts to report on William C. Langhorne’s crops, and withdrawing therequest; discussing at length the payment due from Carney’s purchase of someland; explaining that news from Europe indicates a sharp rise in the price ofwheat, and so he wishes to Langhorne to plant wheat on all available land; endssaying he hopes to see William Watts’s sister Anne (Watts) Holcombe on herjourney to Cincinnati

1998.26.424

April 21, 1846

Copy of a letter(1998.26.421) from Fleming James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, inBig Lick, Virginia, saying that he has returned from New York, whence he sent adocument to Watts; asks about progress on Moomaw’s deed and urges promptaction; raises an issue about payments to William C. Langhorne for boardingJames’s negroes for a year; gives news of Watts’s mother Elizabeth(Breckinridge) Watts and brother James Breckinridge Watts in New York. Theduplicate is followed by a new letter, from the same to the same, explainingthat a delay in receiving a reply has led him to resend the letter; makingarrangements 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 takeaction in the lawsuit against Daniel, John, and Samuel Stoner, and expressingdistrust of Joseph Kyle Pitzer of the Botetourt County sheriff’s office; andasking for a report on Langhorne’s crops.

1998.26.425

August 1, 1846

Letter from FlemingJames in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts in Big Lick, Virginia, enclosinga copy of the statement of Alexander P. Eskridge of Fincastle concerning thedebts of Mrs Catharine Stoner to him as trustee, with instructions on giving anannexed negotiable note to Mrs Stoner; reports that McClanahan & Co have atlast delivered 11 barrels of flour sent by Landon Cabell Read, who has changedStoner’s brand to his own name and displeased James; moreover the flour iscondemned as funky and short, and is sold for much less than what Jamesexpected, and he thinks Read should make good the loss; asks Watts to helppersuade William C. Langhorne to seed a crop of wheat; sends thanks from MrsJames for hospitality during her recent visit to the Valley of Virginia

Staples Family Graves in Fair View Cemetery, part 2

2011-12-14T18:57:00.000-08:00

My previous post included thegravestones in Fair View Cemetery of three generations of the Staples family,from Samuel Granville Staples to Abram Penn Staples (III), plus two sons of thelatter. Abram Penn Staples (III) and Jean Duncan Watts were the couple whosemarriage was described three posts ago, which his parents, Abram Penn Staples(II) and Sallie Clement (Hunt) Staples attended. The first generation, SamuelGranville Staples and Caroline Harris (DeJarnette) Staples, had already diedbefore 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 arealso buried at Fair View Cemetery. They are listed here in the chronologicalorder 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 tobaccomanufacturing business; at the time of the 1900 census, he and his wife wereliving in Martinsville, Virginia. He apparently died before 1910.

Gravestone of Samuel Granville Staples Jr

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

Samuel Granville Staples was the sonof Samuel Granville Staples and Caroline (DeJarnette) Staples. He became aphysician, and married on 19 Nov 1902 at Biloxi, Mississippi, DouglasMaryon, born 18 Jul 1884 at Savannah, Georgia.

Gravestone of Samuel Hunt Staples

Inscription: SAMUELHUNT 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 ofAbram Penn Staples (II) and Sallie (Hunt) Staples. He served in the AmericanExpeditionary Force in Europe in World War I and died unmarried.

Gravestone of Waller Redd Staples

Inscription: WALLERREDD STAPLES / 1871-1927

Waller Redd Staples was a son ofSamuel Granville Staples and Caroline (DeJarnette) Staples. He married OliviaBenson Trout, whose gravestone is shown below. After spending his earlyyears at the family home in Patrick County, Virginia, he was educated atWashington and Lee University and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.He was engaged in engineering work with the U. S. government for some years, partof which was in the Land Office in Washington, DC. While there, he studied lawat the National University and was admitted to the Virginia Bar in 1899. Afterpracticing a few years in Lynchburg, Va. and at Marysville, W. Va. he moved toRoanoke City and formed a law partnership with A. B. Hunt in 1905. Three yearslater, he was elected to the Corporation Court Judgeship, in Roanoke City, fromwhich office he resigned in 1914 to resume his private practice. While on thebench, 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 Courtat Hillsville were shot to death in the Court Room itself, by members of thenotorious Allen gang. Under the conditions that existed, the appointment to trythese cases was a high and dangerous compliment. By his conduct of the Allentrials, Judge Staples won extensive commendation, not only in Virginia but inthe press of many other localities. From 1922 until his death, Judge Stapleswas 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 adeputy clerk of the courts in Roanoke, Virginia, at the time of his death. Heand Mary (Waugh) Staples had three children.

Gravestone of Olivia Benson Staples

Inscription: OLIVIAB. STAPLES / 1879-1969

Olivia Benson Trout was born 25 Oct1879 and died in Oct 1969. She married on 21 Jan 1901 at Staunton, VA, WallerRedd Staples whose gravestone is shown above.

***

In addition to those who attendedthe wedding, three members of the Staples family who died too early to bepresent were also buried at Fair View, as well as one who was probably notpresent because he was too young.

Gravestone of Lucy Hampton Staples

Inscription: LUCYHAMPTON / 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 Hostsin that day / when I make up my jewels. [Malachi 3:17]

Lucy Hampton Staples died theearliest of the Staples family interred at Fair View. Her death date was infact three years earlier than the date of the founding of the cemetery, andearlier 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 COURTHOUSE, VIRGINIA / ON THE 24TH DAY OF FEBRUARY 1826 / AND DIED ATCHRISTIANSBURG, VIRGINIA / ON THE 20TH DAY OF AUGUST 1897 / THE MEMORY OF THEJUST IS BLESSED [Proverbs 10:7] / IT WAS THE MIND WHICH MADE THE MAN / BUT HISVIGOR WAS IN HIS IMMORTAL SOUL / STAPLES

Waller ReddStaples was the son of Abram Penn Staples and Mary (Penn) Staples. He waseducated 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, ofChristiansburg, who was afterwards Secretary of the Navy under President Tyler.Waller Staples served as representative from Montgomery County in the VirginiaHouse 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 newconstitution, and served on the Court, 1871-1882, After retiring from thisposition, he formed a partnership with Beverly B. Munford of Richmond, andthere remained until his death. In 1887, Judge Staples, Judge Edward C. Burksand John W. Riely revised the Code of Virginia.

Gravestone of Mary Huldah (Staples) Moir

Inscription: MARYHULDAH 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-lineinscription, probably from the Bible or a religious poem, follows; it isprobably readable in the cemetery, but it has weathered too much to be legiblein the photo.]

Mary Huldah Staples was the daughterof Samuel Granville Staples and Caroline (DeJarnette) Staples. Her husband,Edwin L. Moir, was a wholesale merchant. They had five children. After MaryHuldah’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 arenumerous gravestones of the Moir and Maryon families in Fair View Cemetery.

Gravestone of William D. Staples

Inscription: WILLIAMD. STAPLES / 1907-1959

William D. Staples was the son of WallerRedd Staples and Olivia (Trout) Staples.He returned from Europe in 24 Oct 1945 as a Major in the U. S. Army. On 17 May1931, he returned from Cherbourg, France, and gave his address as Scarsdale,New York. He married 23 Nov 1937 at Roanoke, Virginia, Mary ElizabethMcDowell, but the family records have no further information about him or hisfamily.

Staples Family Graves in Fair View Cemetery, part 1

2011-12-07T14:07:00.001-08:00

Fair View Cemetery in Roanoke, Virginia, was established in1890. It is a large cemetery, with 20,000 persons interred there, and thecapacity for 30,000 more. As explained in an earlier post, the small privateWatts graveyard was moved to Fair View in 1976. The Staplesfamily came to Roanoke as urbanites, and so did not own a large tract of landon which to establish a family burying ground. They were among the earlypersons interred at Fair View, since Caroline Harris (DeJarnette) Staples wasburied there in 1892, and her husband Samuel Granville Staples in 1895. Thispost will show pictures of the gravestones of the three generations of theStaples family and their wives, in the direct line from Samuel Granville Staplesto Abram Penn Staples (III), and of the two sons of the latter who are buriedat Fair View.

The gravestone ofSamuel Granville Staples and Caroline Harris (DeJarnette) Staples

Inscription: STAPLES/ Sacred To The Memory Of / [left side] Samuel Granville / Staples / Born atPatrick 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 SpringGrove, 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 ofAbram Penn Staples (II) and Sallie Clement (Hunt) Staples

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

The gravestone ofAbram Penn Staples (III)

Inscription: ABRAMPENN STAPLES / 1885 – 1951

The gravestone ofJean Duncan (Watts) Staples

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

The gravestone ofAllen Watts Staples

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

The gravestone ofHelen Elizabeth (Brodin) Staples

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

The gravestone ofAbram Penn Staples (IV)

Inscription: ABRAMPENN STAPLES, Jr / 1915 – 1952

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

Wedding Guests from the Staples Family

2011-11-30T12:39:00.001-08:00

Abram Penn Staples (III), c. 1913, with his first child, Jean Lee Staples, the blogger's mother

In the previous post I reprinted thearticle describing the wedding of my grandfather, Abram Penn Staples (III), andgrandmother, Jean Duncan Watts. The ceremony took place on 5 January 1910, inRoanoke, Virginia. I also identified the guests listed as relatives of thebride, whose families had already been mentioned in this blog – the Wattses, ofcourse, and also the Breckinridges and the Allens. It is now time to identifythe relatives of the groom, whose family and its relations are still largelyunknown.

The first Staples whose presence inAmerica can be documented and whose lineage can be traced to my family is John Staples, who patented land inAlbemarle County, Virginia, in 1752. This land lay on the south side of theJames River, and was in the section of Albemarle cut off to form BuckinghamCounty in 1761. John Staples married Kiziah Norman, and among their childrenwas Samuel Staples, born in 1762 inBuckingham County. Afterwards he moved to Henry County, where on 30 December1790 he married Lucinda Penn, daughter of Col. Abram Penn and his wife, néeRuth Stovall. In 1791, he played a leading role in bringing about theseparation of the western part of Henry County to form Patrick County, where helived until his death on 23 March 1825. One of the children of Samuel andLucinda (Penn) Staples was Abram PennStaples (I), who was born 9 March 1793 in Patrick County and died there 26April 1856. He married on 23 October 1820 in Henry County his first cousin,Mary Stovall Penn.

Among the children of Abram Penn andMary (Penn) Staples (I) was SamuelGranville Staples, born 29 November 1821 in Patrick County, died 6 August1895 in Roanoke, Virginia. He married 12 June 1855 in Caroline County,Virginia, Caroline Harris DeJarnette, born 4 March 1833 in CarolineCounty, and died 1 Jan 1892 in Roanoke.Around 1890 Samuel G. Staples moved from Patrick County to Roanoke, whereseveral of his children already lived. Among them was Abram Penn Staples (II), who was born 14 August 1858 in PatrickCounty and died 30 September 1913 in Roanoke. He married on 18 September 1884in Chatham, Pittsylvania County, Virginia, Sallie Clement Hunt, who was born10 May 1864 and died 2 December 1934. They were the parents of the groom, Abram Penn Staples (III).

Portrait of Abram Penn Staples (II)

Theconvergence of families like the Staples from surrounding counties on RoanokeCity reflects an important historical movement. In 1881 the decision was madeto locate a major railroad junction in what was then Big Lick, a small villagein Roanoke County. It connected the long-established east-west rail line fromNorfolk to Tennessee and west, with the new north-south line down theShenandoah Valley. By the 1890s, Big Lick had been renamed Roanoke and hadbecome a boom town; the population surged from 669 in 1880 to 21,495 in 1900and 38,874 in 1910.

Here, then,is the list of guests who were relatives of the groom, with identifications.They are presented here in the order in which they appear in the article.Following the list, they will be shown in tables of family relationships.

Mr. A. P.Staples and wife, mother and father of the groom, that is, Abram Penn Staples(II) (1858-1913) and his wife, née Sallie Clement Hunt (1864-1934); he hadpracticed law in Martinsville, VA, then in Roanoke, VA, and then became aprofessor of law at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, VA.

Miss Harris DeJarnetteStaples (1896-1958) of Lexington, VA, a sister of the groom.

Mr. Samuel HuntStaples (1887-1919) of Petersburg, VA, a brother of the groom and best man; heattended Washington and Lee and served as an engineer with the AmericanExpeditionary Force in France in 1918.

Samuel Hunt Staples, c. 1908, best man

Photo from the same group photo as the one of his brother in the preceding post

Judge and Mrs.W. R. Staples, that is, Waller Redd Staples (1871-1927), an uncle of the groom,and his wife, née Olivia Benson Trout (1879-1969). He was a judge of theCorporation Court in Roanoke.

Mrs. D. DeJ.Staples, that is, Mary Rebecca Waugh (1858-aft. 1930), widow of DanielDeJarnette Staples (1856-1908), an uncle of the groom.

Miss OliviaBenson Staples (1903-1974), daughter of Judge Waller Redd Staples (above).

Mr. and Mrs. D.W. Persinger, that is, David W. Persinger (1880-1967) and his wife, née LillianDeJarnette Staples (1882-1950). She was a daughter of Mrs. Daniel DeJarnetteStaples (above), and a first cousin of the groom. David W. Persinger was a realestate agent.

Mr. and Mrs. E.L. Moir, that is, Edwin L. Moir (1866-1925) and his second wife, née KathleenMaryon (1869-1950); his first wife was Mary Huldah Staples (1864-1897), an auntof the groom; he was a wholesale merchant in Roanoke.

Misses WallaceMoir (1892-1977) and Dorothy Staples Moir (1897-1980), daughters of Edwin L.Moir and Mary Huldah (Staples) Moir (above); they were first cousins of the groom.

Mrs. CallieStaples Daniel and daughter, Miss Hilda Daniel, that is, Caroline DeJarnette(Staples) Daniel (1869-1916), an aunt of the groom and widow of Joel Daniel,and their daughter, Huldah Staples Daniel (1898-1983).

Mr. and Mrs. S.H. Hoge, that is, Samuel Harris Hoge (1860-1947), and his wife, née CatherineCraig “Kate” Taylor (1870-1956). He was a son of Mary Anne Hawes “Nicey”(DeJarnette) and Daniel Howe Hoge (1811-1867). Nicey (DeJarnette) Hoge(1824-1876) was a sister of Caroline (DeJarnette) Staples, and her son SamuelHarris Hoge was thus a first cousin of the groom’s father. He was a lawyer inRoanoke, VA.

Miss Kitty Hogewas Catherine “Kittie” DeJarnette Hoge (1890-1927), a daughter of Samuel HarrisHoge (above)

Mrs. AlicePenn, that is, Mary Alice Howe Hoge (1848-1914), a sister of Samuel Harris Hoge(above) and a first cousin of the groom; she married John Edmund Penn (1837-1897)

Mrs. ErnestPenn, that is, Anne Hawes Penn (1873-1960), a daughter of Alice (Hoge) Penn(above). She married Ernest G. Penn (1871-1946), who was her first cousin.

Mrs. I. E.Warren, that is, Mrs. Isaac Michael Warren, née Lucy DeJarnette Penn (1875-aft.1930), a daughter of Alice (Hoge) Penn (above).

Mrs. CharlesMoir, that is, Susan A. Penn (1877-1963), a daughter of Alice (Hoge) Penn(above). Charles Moir was a brother of Edwin L. Moir (above).

Mrs. S. D.Shackleford; Samuel D. Shackelford (c. 1873-aft. 1930) was a lawyer in Roanoke,VA, whose name appears in the 1920 and 1930 census; he appears also in the 1880census, living with his parents in Fauquier Co, VA. His wife was named Ida P.Shackelford, b. c. 1884, d. aft. 1930; they were married c. 1910, and by the1930 census had four children. It is my hypothesis that Ida’s maiden name wasPenn, and that she was a daughter of Alice (Hoge) Penn (above); the family treeon ancestry.com lists a daughter named Ida, but says that she died before 1880.This might be a second daughter named to honor the deceased first one, or thetree may be inaccurate about her birth and death dates.

Miss WilliePenn, that is, Willie Edmundson Penn (1888- aft. 1930), a daughter of Alice(Hoge) Penn (above).

Mr. G. H. Penn,that is, Gabriel H. Penn (1870-aft. 1920) a son of Alice (Hoge) Penn (above);he was a lawyer in Roanoke.

Judge and Mrs.N. H. Hairston, that is, Nicholas Hardyman Hairston (1852-1927) and his wife,née Elizabeth Seawell Hairston (1855-1945), his first cousin; he was a lawyerand sometime judge from Patrick Co, VA, who moved to Roanoke c. 1900. She was agreat-granddaughter of Abram Penn (1743-1801); the groom was hisgreat-great-great-grandson.

MissesElizabeth and Mary Hairston, that is, Elizabeth Seawell Hairston (1890-1982)and Mary Matilda Hairston (1895-1972), daughters of Nicholas H. and ElizabethS. Hairston (above).

Mr. D. R. Hunt,that is, Daniel Robert Hunt (1876-1944), uncle of the groom; at the time of hisdraft registration for WWI, he was working in Roanoke as a commissioner ofrevenue, and had previously been a clerk for the Norfolk & Western Railroad.

Mr. H. D.Vickers and family, that is, Harry Davis Vickers (1876-aft. 1930) and his wife,née Sallie Penn (c. 1877-aft. 1930).Sallie Penn was a great-granddaughter of Abram Penn (1743-1801) and a firstcousin of Elizabeth Seawell (Hairston) Hairston (above). The family may haveincluded her mother, Ruth (Shelton) Penn (c. 1841-aft. 1920), who was livingwith the Vickers household in Roanoke at the 1920 census. The couple had a son,Joseph Penn Vickers (1907-1973), but he was probably too young to be invited tothe wedding. Harry D. Vickers was an officer of the Roanoke Street RailwayCompany.

Mr. and Mrs. A.M. Nelson, that is, Alexander Montgomery Nelson (1859-aft. 1920) and his wife,née Sallie Lewis Hart (1866-aft. 1920); he was an important businessman inRoanoke, the founder of Nelson Hardware Company and a director of the FirstNational Bank. I can find no link to the families of the marriage, however, andtheir inclusion was probably an editorial slip.

Miss EmmaMebane Staples (1888-1953), an aunt of the groom.

Mr. SamStaples, that is, Samuel Granville Staples Jr (1862-1917), an uncle of thegroom; he was a doctor.

Mr. and Mrs. S.H. Hairston, probably Samuel William Hairston (1881-1944) and his wife, néeLetitia Richardson Smith (1880-1944); he was a son of Nicholas H. and ElizabethS. Hairston (above). He was a lawyer, living in Roanoke.

Mr. and Mrs. A.B. Hunt, that is, Alexander Bruce Hunt (1866-1931), an uncle of the groom, andhis wife, née Mary Staples Kellogg (1872-1915). He was a lawyer, who built ahome in Roanoke, “Shadelands”, on land purchased from the bride’s family’sestate. She was a granddaughter of Abram Penn Staples (I), and therefore afirst cousin of the groom’s father.

Miss BertieHunt, that is, Roberta Ward Hunt (1881-1976), an aunt of the groom.

The followingcondensed family trees show only those who attended the wedding, or who werefamilial links but were deceased or absent. Names in italics were not present.There are four tables, the first headed by Abram Penn Staples I (1793-1856),the second by Abram Penn (1743-1801), the third by Daniel DeJarnette(1783-1850), and the fourth by Daniel R. Hunt (1829-1910). Names underlinedappear in more than one table. The plus sign indicates a marriage. Successivegenerations are marked by hyphens and indentation.

Abram Penn Staples I + Mary Penn

- SamuelGranville Staples + Caroline H. DeJarnette

- - Daniel DeJ. Staples + Mary Waugh

- - - Lillian DeJ. Staples + David W.Persinger

- - AbramPenn Staples II + Sallie Clement Hunt

- - - Abram Penn Staples III (groom) + JeanDuncan Watts

- - - Samuel Hunt Staples

- - - Emma Mebane Staples

- - - Harris DeJarnette Staples

- - SamuelGranville Staples Jr

- - Mary Huldah Staples + Edwin L. Moir +Kathleen Maryon

- - - Wallace Moir

- - - Dorothy Moir

- - CarolineDeJ. Staples + Joel Daniel

- - - Huldah Staples Daniel

- - WallerRedd Staples + Olivia B. Trout

- - - Olivia B. Staples

- MaryPenn Staples + Henry G. Kellogg

- - MaryStaples Kellogg + Alexander B. Hunt

Abram Penn + Ruth Stovall

- GreenvillePenn + Nancy Leath

- - Mary Penn + Abram Penn Staples I

- - - SamuelGranville Staples + Caroline DeJarnette

- - Gabriel Penn + Susan Frantz

- - - JohnEdmund Penn + Alice Hoge

- - - - GabrielH. Penn

- - - - AnneH. Penn + Ernest G. Penn (as below)

- - - - LucyDeJarnette Penn + Isaac M. Warren

- - - - SusanPenn + Charles Moir

- - - - WilliePenn

- - - - IdaPenn? + Samuel D. Shackelford

- - - WilliamL. Penn + Priscilla Jane Tatum

- - - - Ernest G. Penn + Anne H. Penn (as above)

- - Thomas Penn + unknown

- - - ElizabethPenn + Samuel William Hairston

- - - - ElizabethSeawell Hairston + Nicholas H. Hairston

- - - - - Samuel W. Hairston + Letitia R. Smith

- - - - - Elizabeth S. Hairston

- - - - - Mary M. Hairston

- - - JosephPenn + Ruth Shelton

- - - - SalliePenn + Harry D. Vickers

Daniel DeJarnette + Huldah Coleman

- MaryHawes “Nicey” DeJarnette + Daniel H. Hoge

- - AliceHoge + John Edmund Penn

- - SamuelH. Hoge + Kate Taylor

- - - Kitty Hoge

- Caroline H. DeJarnette + Samuel Granville Staples

Daniel R. Hunt + Emma Pleasants Mebane

- Sallie Clement Hunt + Abram PennStaples II

- Alexander Bruce Hunt + Mary PennStaples

- Daniel R. Hunt

- Roberta Ward Hunt

Almost all the guests at the weddinglived in Roanoke or very close by. By the time I was born, twenty-five yearslater, although the family had begun to disperse, my mother still maintainedcontact with several of the people mentioned here, and I remember meeting themor hearing about them. My sister and I no longer live in Roanoke, and even ourfirst cousins are scattered over many states, so that we seldom see each other.A gathering such as this wedding is hard to imagine in our times.

The Wedding of Abram Penn Staples and Jean Duncan Watts

2011-11-23T12:16:00.001-08:00

Jean Duncan Watts, my grandmother,married Abram Penn Staples (III) on 5 January 1910, in Roanoke, Virginia. Thusthe Watts family, about whom I have written many times in this blog, was joinedto the Staples family, about whom I have so far written very little. Thewedding seems a logical place to begin remedying the imbalance. The localnewspaper devoted a long article to it the same day.

Society page articleon the Staples-Watts wedding (top)

Text of the article:

STAPLES-WATTS

Themarriage of Miss Jean Duncan Watts to Mr. Abram Penn Staples, Jr., which wascelebrated this afternoon at 4:30 o'clock in the home of the bride on 9thavenue, s.e., was of unusual interest on account of the popularity of thecontracting parties and the social prominence of both families. Although thewedding was a quiet home affair, it was exquisite in its appointments. Greatmasses of mistletoe tied with broad red satin streamers, holly, evergreens inChristmas effect were used in the wide-entrance hall. The stairway wasinterwoven with evergreens and holly. The same color scheme of adornment wasused in the library. In the dining-room, the red carnations, smylax, candelabrawith red lighted candles were most attractively arranged. The dining-roon tablewith its huge wedding cake, red carnations, cut glass and bon bons all added tothe beautiful effect. The parlor which was the scene of the wedding was in thebride's color of white and green. The tropical potted palms were in profusion.On the mantel was banked smylax and growing narcissus white candles tied withlove knots of white tulle. The chandelier was also beautiful with smylax andwhite tulle but the central feature of beauty was the improvised altar ofpalms, growing narcissus, tied with the love knots of white tulle all of whichformed a background for the altar. On each side were tall palms and altarsconces with white tapers and with white tulle.

Atthe appointed hour, to the strains of Tannhauser's "Wedding March"played by Mrs. Lamar Lipscombe of Washington, DC, the bridal party entered theparlor.

Mrs.William Watts the bride's sister was the attractive matron of honor who wore animported white chiffon embroidered in silver and carrying La France roses,preceded the bride, who entered on the arm of her brother, Mr. William Watts.Her bridal dress was an exquisitely tailored brown suit with brown furs, hat,gloves and shoes to match. Her ornaments were pearls, which had been worn byher mother and grandmother at their marriages and she carried a shower bouquetof lillies of the valley. The groom entered with his best man, his brother, Mr.Hunt Staples of Petersburg and received the bride at the altar, where thebeautiful solemn ring ceremony was performed by the bride's pastor, Rev. CanteyJ. W. Johnson, rector of St. John's church.

Duringthe ceremony, Mrs. Lipscombe played "Believe Me If All Those EndearingYoung Charms".

Followingthe wedding the guests enjoyed an informal reception.

Adelicious emperor's guard punch was served in the library by Mrs Lucien Cockeand Mrs. Lamar Lipscombe. The guests were invited into the dining room wherethe bride's cake was cut and wine and other delicacies were served.

Theyoung ladies assisting were: Mrs. DeMoss Taylor, Misses Mary Peyton ofCharlottesville, Luie Dillard of Rocky Mount, VA, Sarah Cox, Mary Churchill andMary Stuart Cocke.

Thebride is the daughter of Mrs. J. Allen Watts and Mr. J. Allen Watts deceased,also the granddaughter of the late Colonel William Watts, one of the bravestand most distinguished officers of the Confederacy and she is one of Roanoke'smost attractive and accomplished young ladies. She is a favorite in socialcircles and has a host of friends. Mrs. A. P. Staples, Jr., was born atOaklands, Roanoke County, the old family homestead, and was educated at HollinsInstitute, Stuart Hall, Staunton, and New York city.

Thegroom is the son of Prof. and Mrs. A. P. Staples of Washington and LeeUniversity at Lexington of which he is a graduate in law and is one of he mostpopular and promising young lawyers at the bar in this city. His father wasformerly a very prominent lawyer of this city of the firm of Scott and Staples.

Thecouple were the recipient of many magnificent presents. Mr. and Mrs. Staplesleft this afternoon on the Memphis special for New York and will be at home ontheir return at Judge and Mrs. Waller Staples on 13th avenue.

Onlythe relatives of the contracting parties and a few intimate friends [were]present at the ceremony. Relatives of the bride at the wedding were her mother,Mrs. J. Allen Watts, Mr. and Mrs. William Watts, Judge E. W. Robertson, Dr.Francis Sorrell, Mrs. John H. Parrott, Mrs. Rockingham, Paul, Miss PeachyRobinson, Mr. Wm. Robertson, Miss Eliza Breckenridge, Mrs. Julia Breckenridge,Miss Rosa Breckenridge, Mr. John Breckenridge, Miss Minnie Bowyer, Mrs. JosephE. Hunter, Jr., Mrs. Elizabeth Guerrard of Savannah, GA, Mrs. Harry Latane,Buchanan; Miss Annie Allen of Buchanan.

Thegroom's relatives who attended the wedding were: Mr. A. P. Staples and wife,mother and father of the groom, Miss Harris Staples of Lexington; Mr. HuntStaples of Petersburg; Judge and Mrs. W. R. Staples, Mrs. D. DeJ. Staples, MissOlivia Staples, Mr. and Mrs. D. W. Persinger, Mr. and Mrs. E. L. Moir, MissesWallace Moir and Dorothy Moir, Mrs. Callie Staples, Daniel and daughter, MissHilda Daniel, Mr. and Mrs. S. H. Hoge, Miss Kitty Hoge, Mrs. Alice Penn, Mrs.Ernest Penn, Mrs. I. E. Warren, Mrs. Charles Moir, Mrs. S. D. Shackleford, MissWillie Penn, Mr. G. H. Penn, Judge and Mrs. N. H. Hairston, Misses Elizabethand Mary Hairston, Mr. D. R. Hunt, Mr. H. D. Vickers and family, Mr. and Mrs.A. M. Nelson, Miss Emma Staples, Mr. Sam Staples, Mr. and Mrs. S. H. Hairston,Mr. and Mrs. A. B. Hunt, Miss Bertie Hunt, Charlottesville.

Otherinvited guests were: Mrs. P. H. Trout, Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Trout, Dr. GeorgeLawson, Mrs. Jane Monsarrat of Baltimore; Mrs. Bettie Massie, Mr. J. J.Watkins, Charlotte Court House; Mr. and Mrs. Lucian Cocke, Mrs. Frances Cocke,Miss Mary Stuart Cocke, Mrs. and Mrs. Joseph Coxe, Mrs. and Mrs. Joseph Coxe[sic], Miss Sarah Coxe, Mr. and Mrs. W. W. Coxe, Mr. and Mrs. C. S. Churchill,Miss Mary Churchill, Mrs. D. J. Breslin, Mrs. Everett Perkins, Mr. and Mrs.DeMoss Taylor, Mrs. Fred Foster, Miss Nonie Reed, Mr. Frank Reed, Miss MaryRogers, Judge Beverly Berkley, Mr. R. Quarles Mosely, Miss Mary Peyton ofCharlottesville; Miss Luie Dillard of Rocky Mount; Mrs. Lamar Lipscombe ofWashington, DC, Mr. Marvine Altizer, Mr. Paul V. Littlejohn, Mr. and Mrs.DeMoss Taylor.

Although the article describes theevent as “a quiet home affair,” there were about a hundred people there. Oddly,no photograph appeared with the article, and no wedding portraits have survivedamong the family papers known to me. Here, instead, are pictures of each of thetwo from shortly before their marriage.

Abram Penn Staples(III), c. 1908

This photo is excerpted from a groupphoto of fifteen young men, all formally dressed with jackets and bow ties,except for A. P. Staples, who has a normal tie. It was probably taken around1908 at Washington and Lee College, and must be a club of some kind. Abram PennStaples is called “Junior” in this article; his father had the same name, butin fact the groom was the third member of the family to bear the name, and twomore followed. For clarity, they are referred to by Roman numerals I to V, inparentheses.

Jean Duncan Watts, 1906

This photo was published in theRichmond Times-Dispatch on 22 April 1906, with the following text in thecaption: “Miss Jean Watts, sponsor for Second Brigade, U.C.V. of Virginia, atNew Orleans reunion, April 25th-27th, is a daughter of the late Senator J.Allen Watts. Miss Watts is one of the prettiest and most attractive youngladies of Roanoke's younger set. Her mother is president of ‘William Watts’chapter, U.D.C.”

The Wattsside of the family invited fewer than half as many guests as the Staples side.There were few of them remaining in the Roanoke area. Most of their guests werefrom the Allen family, kin through the bride’s grandmother, Mary Jane (Allen)Watts (1825-1855); from the Breckinridge family, kin through the bride’sgreat-grandmother, Elizabeth (Breckinridge) Watts (1794-1862); and from theRobertson family, kin through the bride’s grandfather’s sister, Alice (Watts)Robertson (1832-1914).

Mrs. J. AllenWatts, née Gertrude Lee (1862-1953), was the bride’s mother.

William Watts(1882-1932) was the bride’s brother; his wife of two years was Ellen (Catogni)Watts (1889-1972).

Judge Edward WattsRobertson (1868-1921) was a first cousin of the bride’s father; he was the sonof Alice (Watts) and William Joseph Robertson.

Dr. FrancisSorrel (1827-1916) was the widower of Letitia (Watts) Sorrel, a sister of thebride’s grandfather.

Mrs. John H.Parrott has not been identified.

Mrs. Paul Rockinghamhas not been identified.

Miss PeachyRobinson was probably Peachy Gilmer Breckinridge Robertson (1894-1976), adaughter of William Gordon Robertson (below) and Anne Anthony Breckinridge.

Mr. WilliamGordon Robertson (1856-1910) was a son of William Joseph Robertson by his firstmarriage; although not related by blood to the Watts family, he was married toa Breckinridge cousin, lived in Roanoke and had close ties to the Watts family.He died just a few months after this wedding. This guest was perhaps his son,William Gordon Robertson Jr (1895-1958).

Miss ElizaBreckenridge was probably Eliza Watts Breckinridge (1841-1928), a daughter ofCary Breckinridge and a first cousin of the bride’s grandfather.

Mrs. JuliaBreckenridge was probably the widow, née Julia Anthony (1833-1917), of PeachyGilmer Breckinridge, the second son of Cary Breckinridge; her late husband wasa first cousin of the bride’s grandfather. But the guest may have been JuliaBreckinridge Robertson (1884-1916), granddaughter of the preceding, who wasmarried to Maurice Anthony Breckinridge.

Miss Rosa(Rose) Breckenridge (1885-unknown) was a daughter of George WilliamBreckinridge, and a granddaughter of Cary Breckinridge; she was a second cousinof the bride’s father.

Mr. John Breckenridge(1887-unknown) was a son of George William Breckinridge, and a grandson of CaryBreckinridge; he was a second cousin of the bride’s father

Miss MinnieBowyer (dates unknown); Matilda Breckinridge, a sister of the bride’sgreat-grandmother, married Henry Winston Bowyer, and they had several children.Minnie was no doubt one of the descendants of that union, but she isunidentified.

Mrs. Joseph E.Hunter Jr has not been identified.

Mrs. Elizabeth(Allen) Guerard (1875-aft. 1910) of Savannah, GA; she was a sister of Julia(Allen) Latane (below), and in 1910 a widow, living in Buchanan, VA, with hersister and brother-in-law’s family; her late husband, Joseph Guerard, was adoctor in Savannah.

Mrs. HarryLatane of Buchanan, was born Julia Gatewood Allen (1871-bet. 1912 and 1920).

Miss AnnieAllen (c. 1884-aft. 1930) of Buchanan was a first cousin of the bride’s father.

In the nextposting, I will identify the guests from the Staples side of the family, andprovide a genealogical chart.

Watts Collection, documents 376-400

2011-11-16T06:56:00.001-08:00

Checklist ofdocuments in the Watts Collection at the Historical Society of WesternVirginia, 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 akeyword search, or by catalog number using “Click and Search”.

This set of documents can be divided into three groups. Thefirst eight, all dated October to December 1845, are letters from Fleming Jamesto William Watts, related primarily to his efforts to win his lawsuit againstthe Stoners. The next six, mostly from 1845, relate to William Watts’s lawpractice, notably collecting debts. The last eleven all date from August 1846,and are bills, receipts, or account statements linked to the death of JamesBreckinridge Watts at Red Sulphur Springs, Virginia (now West Virginia). Jameshad fallen ill in New York, where he was trying to establish a law practice. Hewas brought back to Virginia by his family, and taken to a spa for rest andmedical treatment, which proved to be in vain. While he was there, he wasattended by his father, Edward Watts; his sister, Ann Selden (Watts) Holcombe;his brother, William Watts; and his cousin, William Watts Gwathmey, as well asby two doctors. As these homely and trivial financial documents suggest,James’s body was placed in a coffin and brought home to Oaklands, where he wasburied.

doc #

date

abstract

1998.26.376

October 20, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, giving consent for the trustee of Samuel Stoner’s estate, AlexanderP. Eskridge, to sell the perishable property, such as livestock, crops,furnishings and utensils, but excluding the slaves, with proper safeguards forpayment within six months; he asks Watts to check whether Stoner’s trust deedguarantees real or fraudulent debts; he describes a new reason for seeking toadminister on Stoner’s estate, namely, an old judgment in Stoner’s favor for$2000 against a man named Cofer, currently being appealed, with Sidney SmithBaxter representing Stoner’s case

1998.26.377

October 24, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, confirming his instructions about the sale of Samuel Stoner’s estateas stated in his previous letter of October 20, permitting the sale ofperishable property for secured bonds but refusing permission to sell theslaves; discussing his plans to buy Stoner’s widow’s dower right and sell theland and the slaves, expressing gratification that the widow is disposed tosell her dower; approving the appointment of Jeremiah Kyle Pitzer asadministrator of the estate, and enclosing papers to be served on Pitzerreviving all of James’s firm’s judgments against him; and making travel plansto go to Roanoke County in November

1998.26.378

November 24, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, written on his return from a trip to Roanoke County, saying thatPeachy Ridgway Grattan approves of the actions taken to settle his affairs withSamuel Stoner’s heirs although a problem remains with the lease of a mill;saying that an advertisement for the sale of Stoner’s land has been placed innewspapers in Lynchburg, Virginia, and Fincastle, Virginia; and asking abouthis share of grain crops from William McDermid’s land, because of reports offamine in Europe (the Great Famine, or Irish Potato Famine) have reached theUnited States, and suggest an imminent rise in prices

I hope you have been able to recieve my shareof the wheat, corn, oats &c made at McDermid’s last year. This has becomequite an important matter from the fact that all kinds of breadstuffs haveexperienced another great rise under the influence of the accounts (almostalarming in their character) brought by the Steamer Britannica just arrived atBoston. These accts have caused much anxiety throughout the Land as to the verygreat suffering likely to be endured by many of the Irish, English & Scotchpeople, as well as by many of the other inhabitants of Europe. There willbeyond doubt be a very great deficiency in the grain, bean & potato Crops,whereby the grain warehouses of Europe will soon be exhausted, and when onceexhausted it will require several good crops to replenish them. I am thereforedecidedly of opinion, that prices of wheat, flour &c are to rule high forat least two years to come & most likely much longer, and as it cannot bedoubted that the British corn laws will give way under the state of starvationwhich will soon exist, the benefits likely to flow to the UStates from thepresent state of things, can scarcely be estimated.

Thisis an early report of the Great Famine or Irish Potato Famine, which resultedfrom the failure of the potato crop in 1845 and lasted until 1852;approximately one million Irish people emigrated to America in this period, andthe mortality from starvation among those who stayed behind was about the same.

1998.26.379

November 10, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, announcing his plan to travel to Roanoke County in two days andasking Watts to meet him on his arrival, to coordinate their activities,because James cannot remain away from his business for long; he apologizes forbeing a “troublesome client”

1998.26.380

November 28, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, enclosing an authorization to proceed with laying off the dower ofSamuel Stoner’s widow, and the opinion of Peachy Ridgway Grattan concerning amill leased by Samuel Stoner to a man named Martin and later conveyed to DanielStoner, Samuel’s brother; Grattan believes that the lease may be valid, but theconveyance void; James insists that Moomaw pay the outstanding debt beforereceiving a deed, and he argues against postponing the sale of the estatebecause it would invite further complications

1998.26.381

December 4, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, discussing the dower rights of Polly (Huckstep) Koiner (or Coyner)and of Mary (Dagen) Stoner, mother of Samuel Stoner, who co-signed her husbandDaniel Stoner’s deed to Samuel and therefore is dowerless; James asks Watts tosecure copies of Samuel Stoner’s deed from his parents, and on the advice ofPeachy Ridgway Grattan, of other deeds to Samuel Stoner from Noffsinger andfrom William Woodson

1998.26.382

December 13, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, saying that Moomaw must pay F. & J. S. James & Co for fortyacres of land he bought, and explaining that Peachy Ridgway Grattan had seenall of Samuel Stoner’s deeds when he drew up the trust deed from Stoner toJames’s firm and did not recall any provision for dower rights for Stoner’smother. James approves the sale of corn from William McDermid’s farm and givesinstructions for the wheat crop to be milled. He announces his and Grattan’splan to travel to Roanoke County by canal boat if the canal has not frozen, orby stage otherwise. Finally he reports on meetings of the stockholders of theJames River and Kanawha Company, which he views favorably, if the legislaturecan be persuaded to act

1998.26.383

December 31, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, asking about his previous letter, written December 25 while at theLanghorne household in Lynchburg, Virginia, in which he asked to have a leasefor the mill executed to Landon Read; part of the letter was composed ofreceipts to Gaynor, Wood and Company, and to Otey and Cottrell, but thesereceipts have been cut off

1998.26.384

December 20, 1843

Receipt from JamesBreckinridge Watts in Roanoke County, Virginia, to Thomas S. Gholson, for threebonds submitted for suit and collection, executed by Edmund P. White, AlexanderWhite, Bernard Pitzer and Madison Pitzer, one to Gholson for $462.00 withinterest, and two to the Reverend George W. Freeman for $4480.00 each, with anopinion signed by Watts and his father Edward Watts that the parties are goodfor thirty thousand dollars

1998.26.385

May 24, 1845

Letter from Drinker& Morris, stationers in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, acknowledging receipt of a check for $45.65 in payment ofthe debt of William S. Minor, and mentioning an expected settlement of a debtfrom Samuel Stoner

1998.26.386

November 7, 1845

Letter from CharlesS. Boker, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to William Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, acknowledging receipt of a draft for $91.33 in payment ofdebt from Henry Hance, and promising to remember Watts if he should havebusiness in the county again

Yours of 31st is at hand & Enclosed drftfor $91.33 being in full for my claim agt H. Hance collected by you & forthe same please accept my thanks with our assurances that if we have businessin your county to be attended to, you will be remembered. Yours truly, C. S.Boker, by Boker & Brothers, 82 Market St

CharlesS. Boker (1797-1858) was a banker in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. “Boker Brothers & Jones, Boots,Shoes, and Bonnets. Importers and Dealers in British, French, Italian, andDomestic Straw Goods, Trimmings, &c, No. 82 Market Street, fourth housebelow Third” is a listing in Philadelphia as it is, a directory published in 1852, available online. HenryHance (or Hanse) (1781- 1850) was born in Montgomery County, Virginia, and diedin Pulaski County, Virginia.

1998.26.387

October 1, 1845

Letter from Hunn& Remington, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to William Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, authorizing John G. Cecil, sheriff of Pulaski County,Virginia, to pay debts collected from David Fenton Kent by his deputy, James W.Shields, to Dr Henry Moss Bentley, and requesting Watts to send a check for theamount to Hunn & Remington; the writer protests about the unfairness of thesituation, and objects to Watts’s fee; the document includes the certification by Thomas W. Micou, postmasterof Big Lick, that the check on the Bank of Virginia has been mailed forclearance at the Farmers and Mechanics Bank of Philadelphia

1998.26.388

October 31, 1845

Letter from H. B.& W. A. Richards, in Lynchburg, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, refusing a request from a debtor named Bullitt, apparentlyto allow him more time to pay

1998.26.389

October 2, 1845

Letter from CharlesS. Boker, of Boker & Brothers, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to WilliamWatts, in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, giving authorization to transmit $91collected from Henry Hance; the document also includes the certificate ofThomas W. Micou, postmaster of Big Lick, that a draft for $71.33 drawn by theBank of Virginia at Lynchburg, Virginia, and signed by John Matthew Otey on theFarmers and Mechanics Bank in Philadelphia, dated October 30 1845 and payableto Boker, has been mailed

1998.26.390

August 1846

Five receipts fromRed Sulphur Springs, Virginia (now West Virginia), for board, servants, horsesand other items, for William Watts, James Breckinridge Watts, Dr Coats, WilliamWatts Gwathmey and Ann Selden (Watts) Holcombe, for stays ranging from 8⅔ to26⅔ days, during the final illness of James Breckinridge Watts

Wm Watts

14⅔ days $21.00

1 Horse 7.50

Bar a/c 4.13

32.63

Alex Dunlap

Augst 14

Mrs Holcomb

self 8⅔ days $12.38

1 servant 6.19

18.57

A. Dunlap

Augst26

Theseare the receipts for William Watts and his sister Ann Selden (Watts) Holcombe. Alexander Dunlap, Jr (1812-1855) wasthe proprietor of the hotel at Red Sulphur Springs.

1998.26.391

August 21, 1846

Account statementand receipt from Thomas J. Burke to Edward Watts for $50 for medical attendanceupon James Breckinridge Watts in his final illness

Genl Watts

1846 ToThomas J. Burke Dr

July 31st ToMedical attendance upon

Son from date up to 20th August $50.00

Recdpayment

ThomasJ. Burke

Augt21st 1846

ThomasJ. Burke has not been identified.

1998.26.392

August 21, 1846

Account statementfrom John M. Hutchison to Edward Watts for making a coffin for JamesBreckinridge Watts in his final illness, and an extra box; with receipt for $9,paid by William Watts Gwathmey

Genl Watts

1846 ToJohn M. Hutchison Dr

Augt 21st To Making Coffin & Extra Box $50.00

Recdpayment

fromWm W. Gwathmey

JohnM. Hutchison

JohnM. Hutchison has not been identified.

1998.26.393

August 21, 1846

Account statementand receipt from James Harvey to Edward Watts for $11.75 for board and care offour horses and one servant during the final illness of James BreckinridgeWatts

1998.26.394

August 22, 1846

Account statementfrom John Dickson, presumably to Edward Watts, for $3.00 for board and care ofgentlemen, horses and servants

1998.26.395

August 21, 1846

Account statementand receipt from James E. Howell to William Watts Gwathmey, for the account ofEdward Watts, for preparing the coffin of James Breckinridge Watts fortransportation

1998.26.396

probably c. August 22, 1846

Account statementfrom William Scott to Gofney (William Watts Gwathmey) for $4.50 for food,lodging and care of horses

1998.26.397

August 21, 1846

Account statementand receipt from Jacob Carper to William Watts Gwathmey for the account ofEdward Watts, for $10 for bearing an express to Blacksburg, Virginia, and Union,Virginia (now West Virginia)

1998.26.398

August 20, 1846

Account statement fromAlexander Dunlap to Edward Watts for $5.51 for cloth, gloves and sewing items,like thread, tape and ribbon

1998.26.399

August 21, 1846

Account statementand receipt from Alexander Dunlap to William Watts for his boarding at RedSulphur Springs, Virginia (now West Virginia) and miscellaneous expenses, suchas goods at the store, planks for the coffin, charcoal and candles, as well asthe bills for Dr Coates, Mrs Ann Scott (Watts) Holcombe and William WattsGwathmey, the total being $162.29

1998.26.400

August 1846

Fragment of anaccount statement related to Edward Watts’s stay at Red Sulphur Springs,Virginia (now West Virginia), to attend to his dying son, James BreckinridgeWatts

Watts Collection, documents 351-375

2011-11-09T13:39:00.000-08:00

Checklist ofdocuments 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 “VirtualCollections” on the menu that appears. The documents can be found by a keywordsearch, or by catalog number using “Click and Search”.

This is an extremely coherent set of documents, all of themdating from June to October 1845 and relating to the law practice of WilliamWatts, with the one exception of 1998.26.357, a sheriff’s bill dated 1843,relating to a case concluded in 1844. The first item is a long letter from JohnQuarles James, mainly about the Stoner family’s debts, and there are twelvemore similar letters from his father, Fleming James, on the same subject, andthree other items also related to the Stoners.

doc #

date

abstract

1998.26.351

June 24, 1845

Letter from JohnQuarles James, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, sending a receipt from John Thompson and Company for $819.58collected on a bond of Samuel Stoner, indicating a possible error in theaccounting, mentioning a pending claim against William S. Minor et al.,reporting on prices of a buggy and bolting cloths, giving news of TempleGwathmey and the tobacco market with reference to Edward Watts’s crop, andsending greetings to the Holcombe and Watts families and friends

Remember me very kindly & gratefully toyour Father & Mother & family and give my very best love to JudgeWillie Holcombe. Say to Mrs H. that I shall always be too happy to executethose wedding orders concerning which mention was made the evening passed withher. Accept for yourself the assurance of my very high regard & believe mevery sincerely & faithfully, Yrs Jno. Q. James

JohnQuarles James (c. 1821-1850) was in the wholesale dry goods business like hisfather and other members of the family. “Judge Willie Holcombe” is probably ajocular name for William James Holcombe, born c. 1843, the first son of AnneSelden (Watts) Holcombe (“Mrs. H.”) and James Philemon Holcombe. The “weddingorders” referred to were probably a plan to marry Willie Holcombe with JohnQuarles James’s daughter, Ella St. Clair James, born c. 1842.

1998.26.352

June 22, 1845

Letter from J. B.Alexander in Newbern, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, stating that Henry Homer is not at home but that the money to pay hisbond is ready, and requesting Watts to send the bond at the first opportunity

1998.26.353

June 13, 1845

Letter from WilliamWatts, in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, to S. Simpson, in Milton, NorthCarolina, explaining the status of David Fenton Kent’s note to Thomas A.Griffin, which Griffin had signed over to Simpson, who had given it to ColonelG. Towns to collect for him, and Towns had sent it to Watts

1998.26.354

June 19, 1845

Letter from MichaelHart, in Lynchburg, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, stating his intention to bring suit against Samuel Stoner and DanielStoner in Roanoke County for failure to pay their debts, and also against JohnStoner and Albert G. Williams; he urges that there be no delay in filing,because he suspects of Williams of trying to stall

As Mr Saml Stoner has not come down toarrange the several debts I have agt him, I have determined to bring suitforthwith agt him & Danl Stoner in Roanoke Cty, also agt Albert G. Williams& John Stoner in Bedford, and I beg that you will not loose any time inbringing the suit agt Williams as I think he is trying to amuse me to gain aterm so don’t let rule day pass. Respectfully your Obedt Sert, Micl Hart

AlbertG. Williams was married to Samuel, Daniel, and John Stoner’s sister Matilda.

1998.26.355

June 20, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, regarding efforts to collect a debt from William S. Minor, withoutforcing Minor to collect his own obligations from the Stoner family, who alsoowe money to James; he discusses the possibility of accepting bonds, and thepossible sale of a piece of land acquired from William McDermid, in order toraise money promptly

1998.26.356

June 26, 1845

Letter from MichaelHart, in Lynchburg, Virginia, to William Watts, in Salem, Virginia, statingthat Albert G. Williams has confessed judgment in the superior court ofLynchburg, and asking to have the suit against him in Bedford County, Virginia,withdrawn

1998.26.357

July 1843

Account statement ofO. A. Strecker of Richmond, Virginia, with the sheriff of Botetourt County,Virginia, for $1.26 for a capias against Housman and Stair

1998.26.358

July 7, 1845

Letter from Hunn andRemington, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to William Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, responding to his letter of May 20, and protesting aboutthe delay in receiving payment from David Fenton Kent, asking for information,and requesting Watts to seek damages

1998.26.359

July 11, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, regarding efforts to collect debts from the Stoner family, giving hisaccount of the debts of Samuel Stoner, Daniel Stoner, and John Stoner to hisfirm amounting to more than $11,000; asking for William Watts and his fatherEdward Watts to provide estimates of the value of Samuel Stoner’s landholdings; estimating the value of Stoner’s other assets, including negroes,cattle, furniture, inventory of goods, and accounts receivable; it enclosescertified copies of Stoner’s confessions of judgment; and it gives conditionalconsent to leasing a farm to William McDermid

Thisis a typical page 4 of a letter from Fleming James to William Watts. On thefirst page, he says typically, “I will reply as particularly & as much inorder, as my many pressing engagements will allow” and then writes four pages,using every available space. He underlines frequently, and finds his ideas ashe writes, so that he discusses pros and cons of various courses of action, andoften adds a post scriptum. At the end of page 3, again in typical style, hewrites, “Be good enough, however, to ascertain all about this matter also,& inform me without delay.” The case was complicated. The Stoners hadoutstanding debts to many creditors, and many members of the family had aninterest in their property, mainly land, which had been pledged as surety.James eventually prevailed in his suit, and took possession of a large tract ofland east of present Roanoke City, near Bonsack. See the plat in 1998.26.123.

1998.26.360

July 5, 1845

Letter from ThomasS. Gholson, in Petersburg, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, concerning payments from bonds of S. P. White, and statements ofcharges by William Watts and James Breckinridge Watts, citing possible errorsby the sheriff and instructions for payment; includes a postal receipt signedby Thomas W. Micou, postmaster of Big Lick, for mailing a check for $2250.92

1998.26.361

July 7, 1845

Letter from Drinkerand Morris, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, acknowledging receipt of the statement of settlement of part of theirclaim of debt with John Stoner, on which they have drawn $144.72

1998.26.362

July 7, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, replying to a recent letter from Watts, which reported that SamuelStoner was near insolvency. James expresses his surprise, and reports whatStoner had told him about his slave holdings and personal property. He asks formore information about Stoner’s assets and liabilities, including real estate.He explains the status of Stoner’s confession of judgment, and says that hehopes to be paid separately by William S. Minor. He sends copies of documentsrelating to a shipment of goods to Stoner, which was apparently delayed becauseit was delivered by the boatman, Daniel Howell, in Lynchburg, Virginia, to D.B. Phelps rather than to McClanahan Crenshaw and Company for reshipment. Theletter was carried by John N. Gordon, whom James recommends to Watts

1998.26.363

no date

same as 1998.26.361;scanned twice by mistake

1998.26.364

July 2, 1845

Letter from Beersand Poindexter, merchant tailor in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in BigLick (Roanoke), Virginia, regarding the breast and waist measurements needed tomake clothes for him, and inviting him to place an order

1998.26.365

July 18, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, discussing legal procedures to be used to recover debts from SamuelStoner and others in his family, including his brothers Daniel Stoner and JohnStoner, his brother-in-law Albert G. Williams, and also William S. Minor. Jamesmakes an assessment of Samuel Stoner’s ability to pay, using informationprovided by his son, John Quarles James, and evaluating the possibility thatStoner had conveyed title to some property, including twelve slaves, to avoidpaying his debt, and that he had manufactured debts fraudulently. James alsonotes that James Philemon Holcombe’s claim against Stoner has been settled. Heexpresses the desire to maintain good relations with the Stoners, and hispreference not to resort to a writ of capias ad satisfaciendem, which wouldimprison Stoner until the debt was paid

1998.26.366

August 4, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in New York, New York, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, hastily replying to a letter from Watts, promising to visit RoanokeCounty in the autumn and asking Watts to prevent Samuel Stoner from renting orleasing his property and asking for information about the projected sale ofStoner’s personal property, including his negroes

1998.26.367

July 21, 1845

Letter from Beersand Poindexter, merchant tailor in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in BigLick (Roanoke), Virginia, regarding the delivery of a suit of clothes Watts hadordered; Watts’s letter having arrived too late to send the suit by hisbrother, James Breckinridge Watts, it will be sent by packet boat to Crenshaw& McClanahan & Co, Lynchburg, Virginia, for delivery

The Suit of Clothes which you ordered will befinished on Thursday next. We will send them by the Packet Boat on that day tothe Care of Messrs Crenshaw & McClanahan & Co, Lynchburg. Hoping theywill reach you safe & in due time, We Remn Mo Respy yr Obt Servts [remainmost respectfully your obedient servants], Beers & Poindexter, Jean Lambert

Beers& Poindexter was a merchant tailor in Richmond, Virginia, which was inbusiness from c. 1838 to c. 1860; one of principals was William Beers (1801-1870),who was born in Connecticut; a house at 1228 E. Broad St, Richmond, VA, knownas William Beers House, is on the National Register of Historic Places. Beersand his family are in the census in 1850 and 1860, his profession given astailor. The reading of the name of the employee who wrote and signed the letteris not certain, and he has not been identified.

1998.26.368

August 5, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in New York, New York, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, regarding the next steps to be taken to recover money owed by SamuelStoner; complications include Stoner’s wife’s dower, his mother’s interest, andprior claims by others

1998.26.369

August 6, 1845

Account statementand receipt from John H. Gibb of White Sulphur Springs, Virginia (now WestVirginia) to William Watts for $32.18 for three weeks and one day of supportand lodging

1998.26.370

September 8, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in New York, New York, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, reacting to the news of the death of Samuel Stoner and discussing theconsequences for his efforts to recover money owed by Stoner. Samuel’s brotherJohn Stoner has laid claim to part of the land, apparently 171 acres thought tohave been conveyed to William McDermid. Samuel’s mother and his widow arepresumed to have dower rights in the land. James asks Watts to consult with hisfather, Edward Watts, about the effect of these claims on the value of theproperty, and to take whatever steps are necessary to prevent the land beingsold or conveyed. He asserts that his claim for a debt of $25000 should havepriority because the confession of judgment was registered first, and that thevalue of the property should exceed $35000

New York 8th Sept 1845

Wm Watts Esqr, Big Lick, Roanoke County, Va

Dear Sir, I am somewhat startled by thecontents of your letter of the 1st inst, which has just reached me under coverof one from my son. Your letter announces the sad intelligence of the death ofSaml Stoner, & the effect which that event is likely to have upon ourinterests, as it invests his wife, comparatively a young woman, with right ofdower in all his landed interest.

The Stoner family were part of thelarge German migration southward down the Shenandoah Valley. The first toarrive in the Roanoke area was Daniel Stoner Sr (1770-1838), who was born inMaryland, where he married in 1792 Mary Dagen (1774-1858). They had tenchildren: John, (1793-1887), who married Elizabeth Gish; Anna (1796-1871), whomarried William McDermid; Rebecca (1797-1867), who married Jonathan Hardy andmoved to Indiana; Mary “Polly” (1800-1866), who married Benjamin Crumpacker andmoved to Indiana; Susannah (born 1804), who married David S. Nininger; Samuel(1805-1845), who married Catherine Ammen; Eliza (born 1810), who marriedCharles H. Carper; Daniel Jr (1811-1888), who married Matilda Campbell; Matilda(born 1815), who married Albert G. Williams; Lucinda (1820-after 1880), whomarried William S. Minor.

John, Samuel and Daniel Jr were tosome degree partners, but Samuel appears to have been the dominant brother. The1840 census shows him living in Roanoke and owner of 35 slaves, a number thattends to confirm Fleming James’ high estimate of his wealth. Besides their landand farming, they operated a store. Besides the three brothers, threebrothers-in-law – William McDermid, Albert G. Williams, and William S. Minor –lived and farmed in the same neighborhood, probably on land obtained throughtheir wives.

In the early 1840s, signs of the Stoners’financial distress begin to appear the Watts papers. One online family treespeculates that business worries and the threat of bankruptcy hastened Samuel’searly death in August 1845; it is equally plausible that failing healthcontributed to the decline of his business. In this letter, James puts Stoner’sdebt to his firm at $28,000; an equivalent figure in 2010 would lie somewherebetween $833,000 and $14,000,000.

It took two years for the case to bedecided, because there were other creditors, whose claims also had to beadjudicated, and because the Stoners argued that the interests of certain heirsand wives were not legally pledged as security for the debts. Samuel Stonerleft a widow and eight living children, including a daughter born posthumously;and the widow of Daniel Stoner Sr was still alive. In the end, Fleming Jameswon the title to most, if not all, the Stoners’ land. The last of many letterson the subject will be 1998.26.448, dated 6 September 1847, in which Jamespraises William Watts for defeating John Stoner’s claim to 171 acres of theland, thanks him for his services, and asks him to send a bill for everythinghe is owed.

1998.26.371

September 9, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in New York, New York, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, discussing arguments against John Stoner’s claim to a property deededby Samuel Stoner, deceased, to James’s firm, relying mainly on the fact thatJohn had not contested Samuel’s ownership for more than twenty years. He alsoinquires about the views of Samuel Stoner’s widow, who he thinks might like toown some property in fee simple. He asks what Stoner’s mother’s opinion is. Hesuggests that an additional lawyer be employed, because of Watts’s uncertainhealth, and mentions Alexander P. Eskridge and James Foote Johnson

1998.26.372

September 17, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, including a copy of a subpoena from the Roanoke County Court, datedAugust 30, 1845, signed by the clerk of the court, Frederick Johnston, toanswer a charge brought by James Howel, David Gish, and Hiram Haden. Jamesstates that he does not know these men, except for Gish, and therefore does notknow what the charges relate to, but concludes that it must concern the tractof land bought by James’s firm from William McDermid, but held in FlemingJames’s name. James also reports the opinion of Peachy Ridgway Grattan thatJohn Stoner’s claim to a tract of land sold by Samuel Stoner to James’s firm isworthless, but the advice that Watts should nonetheless gather supportingevidence. James further discusses plans for this land, suggesting that thewidow of Samuel Stoner should be encouraged to plant a crop of wheat, whichwill enhance the value of the property

1998.26.373

September 22, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, outlining his proposal to have Catherine Ammen Stoner, widow of SamuelStoner, continue to farm her late husband’s land, pending a determination ofher dower rights, or else to buy the rights from her for cash, and suggesting amethod for determining the value. He also discusses further efforts to preventJohn Stoner from disposing of any property of Samuel Stoner, deceased, untilJames’s rights can be legally established; James reports that his Richmondlawyers, Peachy Ridgway Grattan and Conway Robinson, think John Stoner’srecordation is valid, but James continues to think it could be challenged. Heauthorizes Watts to engage Alexander P. Eskridge and Gustavus A. Wingfield toassist in presenting the case in Botetourt and Roanoke Counties, Virginia. Hediscusses the pros and cons of letting William McDermid rent the land he soldto James. Finally he asks a number of questions about the value of land sold toHannah, and of other land belonging to Samuel Stoner, and about the sale of hispersonal property

1998.26.374

October 8, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, complaining about the slowness of communications and suggesting thatWatts ask his post office about it, announcing plans to be in Roanoke Countyfor Samuel Stoner’s estate sale unless Watts has obtained a postponement, andasking for news of the intentions of the two Mrs Stoners, widow and mother,regarding their dower rights

1998.26.375

October 10, 1845

Letter from FlemingJames, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia,enclosing an injunction signed by Judge Philip Norborne Nicholas to stop thesale of Samuel Stoner’s estate; discussing the bond needed for the injunctionto be issued which has been provided by John N. Gordon but James asks Watts toprovide it if need be; outlining a plan suggested by a friend to administrateon Stoner’s estate; commenting on relations with the widow of Samuel Stoner andwith William McDermid (Stoner’s brother-in-law); and commenting on James’seventual trip to Roanoke to be present at the Stoner’s estate sale

Watts Collection, documents 326-350

2011-11-02T09:05:00.000-07:00

Checklist ofdocuments in the Watts Collection at the Historical Society of WesternVirginia, Roanoke, Virginia. To consult these documents, go to http://www.vahistorymuseum.org/and click on “Visit HMWV's Virtual Collection!” The documents can befound by a keyword search, or by catalog number using “Click and Search”.

This is a very homogeneous set of documents. All but 4 datefrom 1845; those 4 date from 1844, and were apparently unfinished bits of legalbusiness from James Breckinridge Watts’s practice, which he left to his brotherWilliam when he went to New York. Virtually all the documents concern debtcollections – a major part of the law practice – or receipts for items liketailoring, stationery, or medical services. Only one item differs markedly,1998.24.346, a letter from James Lawrence Cabell concerning his campaign toobtain the professorship of moral philosophy at the University of Virginia.

doc #

date

abstract

1998.26.326

February 5, 1845

Letter from Beersand Poindexter, merchant tailors in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, inBig Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, acknowledging receipt of a check for $35.75 in full payment of his account

1998.26.327

about April 1845

Account statementfrom the clerk of Botetourt Superior Court, Virginia, Henry Winston Bowyer, toEdward Watts, for expenses of $3.67 in the case of Brown and Switzer inFebruary, March and April 1845

1998.26.328

February 24, 1845

Receipt from Drinkerand Morris, stationers in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, for $62.44, full payment of the account of William S.Minor

1998.26.329

March 11, 1845

Letter from ThomasS. Gholson, in Petersburg, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, regarding suits and judgments, including the case of George W.Freeman against S. P. White, which had originally been entrusted to JamesBreckinridge Watts, who moved to New York and left his pending business withhis brother William; Gholson believes that the judgment should have beenexecuted by this time, and wants the money as soon as possible

Will you do me the favor to inform me thestate of the matter & when I may calculate on receiving the balance. I wishthe money pade [=paid] as soon as it can be in the regular course of Law. I donot know, however, the custom & habits of your sheffs [=sheriffs] &c.& at what time your executions are made returnable. I believe your courtsits during the present month. In haste &c Very Respectfully, Yr obt svt[your obedient servant], Thos S. Gholson

ThomasSaunders Gholson (1808-1868) was a judge, and took an active part in Episcopalchurch affairs; he served as a Virginia representative to the ConfederateCongress.

1998.26.330

February 12, 1845

Payment order andreceipt, from Jacob H. Eversole in Roanoke County, Virginia, to Edward Watts,to pay Jeremiah Kyle Pitzer $8.71, with receipt from Pitzer and further receiptfrom Eversole that Watts has paid his account in full

1998.26.331

March 5, 1845

Letter from Drinkerand Morris, stationers in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, acknowledging receipt of $62.44 from Watts, delivered byA. Carlton, collected from William S. Minor, approved by Drinker and Morris aspayment in full of Minor’s account

1998.26.332

March 4, 1845

Letter from DavidFenton Kent, in Pulaski County, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, promising to pay a bond he executed to T. A. Griffin atthe May or June court in Roanoke County, Virginia, saying that he failed to doso earlier because of his late return home from the North, but will send themoney by J. Logan for the May or June court session

I have a large sum of money to pay in a shorttime. I will certainly send it to you by J. Logan at your May or June Court.Very Respectfully, Your Obt Svt [obedient servant], David F. Kent

DavidFenton Kent (1807-1850) was a prominent citizen of Pulaski County, Virginia. Hemarried in 1834 Elizabeth Cloyd, of another prominent family, and lived atSpringfield, a Cloyd estate on Back Creek. He was present at the election ofPulaski County Court officers in 1846 and was in business with Thomas Miller.He apparently had financial difficulties, however; see the next item,1998.26.333.

1998.26.333

March 18, 1845

Letter from EzekielHunn of Hunn and Remington, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to William Watts, inBig Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, following receipt of a letter from JamesBreckinridge Watts; Hunn asks about the money owed by David Fenton Kent,expressing his outrage at Kent’s subterfuges, threats and scurrilous behavior,and presses Watts to seek full payment of damages

I have just recd a letter from your BrotherJ. B. Watts of New York informing me that you had recd through him forattention and collection the claim of Hunn etc. against David Kent. I hope youunderstand thouroughly the transaction for if you do I think you with me willadmit that it is outrageous that a man owing a claim for which he has recd fullvalue and amt [amount], able to pay, still resorts to all the subterfuges inhis power to prevent payment. Your Brother writes me that the penalty is suchcases is 5pc a month but can be released by the Court. But there is no reasonin Kent’s case why they should release and that he will write you to insist onthe full amt of Damages. I hope you will use every exertion to obtain it forhis conduct has been infamous. Indeed sometime back he threatened me personalinjury in the Valley where I met him for simply asking him for the money andafter free indulgence writting me the most scurrilous letters.

EzekielHunn (1810-1902) was a Quaker businessman in Philadelphia; his family was amongthe first English settlers in the Delaware area, and they were prominent insupporting the abolition of slavery and the underground railroad. Kent stalledso long on paying this debt that Hunn felt that he had been a victim ofinjustice.

1998.26.334

after March 11, 1845

Draft of a legalpleading of non assumpsit in the case of Ground vs Smith (probably GeorgeGround and John H. Smith) in the Roanoke County Court, Virginia, regarding analleged debt resulting from a land sale by Ground to Smith, which Smith refusedto pay, claiming that the acreage was less than stated in the agreement

1998.26.335

August 1845

Account statement ofEdward Watts with the clerk of Roanoke County Court, Virginia, William M. Cook,for 75 cents for legal procedures in a case involving the Evans heirs

1998.26.336

April 9, 1844

Letter from DrJosiah L. P. Woods, in Rocky Mount, Virginia, to James Breckinridge Watts, inBig Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, regarding an overdue account with R. Stabler& Co., explaining that he had only just seen the letter because it had beenmisfiled by servants in his absence, and stating that he had already written toStabler and would pay as soon as he had funds

1998.26.337

April 29, 1845

Letter from anunknown person in Floyd County, Virginia, to William Hill, in Wythe County,Virginia, asking his advice about responding to an order from Hill’sstepmother, now a widow, to lay off Jack Henderson’s land in her dower; thewriter hopes to compromise and avoid a lawsuit

1998.26.338

April 28, 1845

Letter from ThomasShanks, in Fincastle, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, concerning a claim by Mr Denby against Captain J. M. Harvey asexecutor of the estate of his father, Colonel Harvey; Shanks explains that anoffer had been made to Denby, which was declined, and asks Watts to delay goingto court in the hope of negotiating a settlement

If these difficulties can be removed, I wouldpromptly enter upon a negotiation for the satisfactory discharge of the claim. Inmuch haste I am, Very Respectfully, Yr obt svt [Your obedient servant], ThosShanks

1998.26.339

April 18, 1845

Letter from Drinkerand Morris, stationers in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, enclosing a note on William S. Minor, due for collection;it explains that the note was endorsed by John Stoner and has an additionalcharge for toll and drayage, and asks about a debt collected from Samuel Stoner

1998.26.340

April 1, 1844

Account statement ofD. R. Shectner with James Breckinridge Watts for a case against Housman andStair, showing a balance due Shectner of $87.22 from a judgment in BotetourtSuperior Court, Virginia

1998.26.341

April 1844

Account statement ofA. A. Shectner with the sheriff of Botetourt County, Virginia, for services inhis case against Housman et al, and receipt for payment of $7.38 signed by R.Pitzer, deputy sheriff, for Henry Walker, sheriff

1998.26.342

April 1, 1844

Account calculationsfor A. A. Shectner in his successful lawsuit versus Housman and Stair

1998.26.343

May 24, 1845

Letter from CharlesS. Boker, of Boker and Brothers in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to JamesBreckinridge Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, asking for news aboutcollecting a note from Henry Hause, which had been sent June 22, 1844

1998.26.344

June 9, 1845

Letter from S.Simpson in Milton, North Carolina, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, asking for news about collecting a note signed by Thomas A. Griffin,originally given to Col G. Towns for collection, forwarded by him to Watts;with a separate sheet used as an envelope

1998.26.345

June 9, 1845

Sheet used as anenvelope in 1998.26.344

1998.26.346

June 13, 1845

Letter from JamesLawrence Cabell, at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, toWilliam Watts at Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, asking for help in securingCabell’s nomination to the professorship of moral philosophy at the University,by writing a testimonial as to his good reputation, and asking otherinfluential men of the area, like his father Edward Watts and William MadisonPeyton, to write as well; mentions that Bishop William Meade has alreadywritten on his behalf

Now, my dear Sir, can you serve me so far asto send me a testimonial from yourself & to communicate to your father& any other influential gentleman in your neighborhood, as Mr Wm M. Peyton,for example, any favorable opinion you may have of my claim so that if theyshould be satisfied they may feel themselves free to write in such atestimonial as would indicate the fact of my having been recommended to them bypersons in whom they confided. If you can conveniently procure suchtestimonials I will be greatly indebted to you & will thank you to transmitthem to me by mail before the end of this month. I remain, my dear Sir, Respectfully& truly yours, J. L. Cabell

JamesLawrence Cabell (1813-1889)was a distinguished doctor; he studied at the University of Virginia, the Universityof Maryland, in Philadelphia, and in Paris, France. He was appointed professorof anatomy, surgery, and physiology at the University of Virginia in 1837, apost he retained until his death. He was chief surgeon of Confederate hospitalsat Charlottesville from July 1861 until the end of the Civil War. In 1876, hewas president of the Medical Society of Virginia, he was president of the NationalBoard of Health, 1879-84, and for one year he was president of the AmericanPublic Health Association. He did not obtain the professorship of moral philosophy,which was awarded to William Holmes McGuffey (1800-1873), famous for thereaders he edited for schoolchildren; McGuffey held the post from 1845 untilhis death.

1998.26.347

January 23, 1845

Receipt from WilliamW. Lewis to Edward Watts for $150 payment toward his medical account

1998.26.348

June 27, 1845

Letter from Hugh A.Watts, in Richmond, Virginia, written on the recommendation of John QuarlesJames, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, sending a bond ofWilliam Gish of Bedford Crossroads, Virginia, for collection

1998.26.349

June 25, 1845

Letter from ThomasS. Gholson, in Petersburg, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, concerning the collection of a debt from the sale of a property,which has been postponed; Gholson held a judgment against George W. Freeman andS. P. White, and was surprised to learn that the sheriff had returned theproperty to the court

1998.26.350

June 25, 1845

Letter from Henry B.Richards and William A. Richards, in Lynchburg, Virginia, to William Watts, inBig Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, enclosing a bond of George Rusinger for $48.56for collection; the bond had been given to Thomas F. Taylor, by Taylor to Hill,and by Hill to the Richardses

Watts Collection, documents 301-325

2011-10-26T09:22:00.000-07:00

Checklist ofdocuments in the Watts Collection at the Historical Society of WesternVirginia, Roanoke, Virginia. To consult these documents, go to http://www.vahistorymuseum.org/ and click on “Visit HMWV's Virtual Collection!” The documents can befound by a keyword search, or by catalog number using “Click and Search”.

This group of documents dates from 1844 and early 1845, withonly two partial exceptions: document 311 involves a court case that began in1844 and continued into the late 1840s, and 316 is a collection of receiptsdating from 1839 to 1846. Most of the documents concern the law practice ofEdward Watts and his sons James Breckinridge Watts and William Watts; and muchof that practice involved collecting debts on behalf of distant creditors,notably in New York, Philadelphia and Richmond. One name recurs withsignificant frequency: Stoner (301, 311, 321, 323, and 324); the settlement oftheir affairs will be a frequent topic in the Watts papers for several years.Some documents involve routine business matters, like the hiring of slaves to aneighbor (309), tax payments (317), payments to court clerks (318-320). Some ofthe more interesting and exceptional items include a list of subscribers to theRichmond Whig newspaper (303); a receipt from the professor who taught music tothe Watts girls (304); a letter from the Gwathmeys, in part about tobacco andwheat sales, but also about family news (305); a plat and survey of land at theconfluence of Glade and Tinker Creeks (307); and a letter from Henry CoalterCabell to William Watts, seeking his support for a candidate applying to becomeprofessor of moral philosophy at the University of Virginia (325).

doc #

date

abstract

1998.26.301

July 10, 1844

Letter from JohnQuarles James in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, whom he had recently met, requesting information about the trust deedmade by Samuel Stoner to Edward Watts, James Breckinridge Watts and PeachyRidgway Grattan, in particular whether the deed had been recorded by the courtclerk

1998.26.302

May 9, 1844

Receipt from JosephKyle Pitzer by M. Leftwich, in Buchanan, Virginia, to Edward Watts, for 1679pounds of tobacco, to be settled for according to contract

1998.26.303

January 17, 1844

Payment order fromThomas W. Micou in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, to Edward Watts, to deliverpayments for several subscriptions to the Weekly Whig (Richmond Whig and Advertiser) on behalf of himself, D. Lewis, JamesEddington, Landon Cabell Read and Solomon Slusher, all residents of Roanoke orFloyd Counties, Virginia, and to deliver a letter to Kent, Kendall and Atwater,a Richmond dry goods dealer; the paymentreceipted by Newton Hill

Genl Edward Watts

Willplease pay the Editors of the Weekly Whig for the following subscriptions

{viz D. Lewis Big Lick Va

{ James Eddington Do [ditto]

3$ sent { Edward Watts Do [ditto]

{ Landon C. Read Stoners Store

{ Solomon Slusher Greazy Creek Floyd CoVa

and put the Letter to Kent, Kendall &Atwater in the Office if he can’t see them personally

obligeyrs &c

ThosW. Micou

Big Lick Jany 17 1844

[receipted acrossthe text] Received the above amount ofFive Dollars / Newton Hill / Jan 22/44

ThomasW. Micou was postmaster in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, in the 1840s. He wasmarried to a daughter of Elijah McClanahan and had children. He died in 1846 atthe Western Asylum in Staunton, Virginia. TheRichmond Whig and Public Advertiser; was a weekly newspaper; although thename varied, it began publication in the 1820s and continued into the 1870s.

1998.26.304

January 30, 1844

Account statement ofEdward Watts with Gennaro F. Bozzaotra, professor of music, for instruction ofhis daughters, Letitia Gamble Watts and Alice Matilda Watts in 1843 and 1844

1998.26.305

October 18, 1844

Letter from TempleGwathmey in Richmond, Virginia, acting for his brother Robert Gwathmey, toEdward Watts in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, enclosing an account statementfor tobacco and flour sold for Watts; statement includes names of buyers andidentifications of lots, prices and deductions for expenses, with a total of$999.54 due for the tobacco and $449.87 for the flour; letter discusses pricesof tobacco and flour and gives advice to improve chances of sale in the future,such as not drying the tobacco too much and using cleaner barrels; letter alsoincludes news of the Gwathmey family

1998.26.306

July 20, 1844

Letter from R.Kingsland & Co in New York to William Watts in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia,asking for a duplicate check to be sent, to replace one sent by JamesBreckinridge Watts and apparently lost in the mail or stolen

1998.26.307

December 26, 1844

Survey and plat byAndrew Reynolds for George Ground of 271 acres of land in Roanoke County,Virginia, lying on Tinker and Glade Creeks, which Ground sold to John H. Smith;the survey mentions boundaries shared with property belonging to Edward Watts,the Vinyard family, the heirs of Robert Filson, the McDermid family, and DavidGish

Surveyed for George Ground 271 acres of Landwhich he sold to John H. Smith Lying in Roanoke County on Tinker and GladeCreeks, branches of Roanoke River and bounded as follows to wit, Beginning attwo white oaks at 1, corner to Vineyard thence S51°E 24 poles to a stake in aflat at 2, corner to the land of the heirs of Robert Filson; and with the sameS58°W 38 poles to a rock pile on a branch at 3. S28°W 63 poles to a persimmontree at 4. S43°W 62 poles to the (NE) bank of Tinker Creek at 5, thence ...

Detailof “Roanoke County Farms 1825-1875” by J. R. Hildebrand, showing the tractbought by John H. Smith and adjoining tracts owned by Filson, Gish, McDermid,Vinyard and Watts. The Watts land is shown as belonging to James Philemon Holcombe,husband of Anne Watts, and to Emma G. (Watts) Carr, who inherited the property.

1998.26.308

May 20, 1844

Receipt for depositby James Philemon Holcombe of $1000 to the account of Edward Watts in the Bankof Virginia, Lynchburg, Virginia, signed by W. B. Averett, teller

1998.26.309

January 17, 1844

Account statement ofThomas Tosh with Edward Watts for hire of two slaves, Jabet and Peyton, withitemized additions and deductions

1998.26.310

May 23, 1844

Letter from Thomas& Charles Ellis in Richmond, Virginia, to James Breckinridge Watts, in BigLick, Virginia, sending a check signed by W. B. Averett of the Bank of Virginiafor $919.88, for the account of Townsend Sharpless of Philadelphia,Pennsylvania

1998.26.311

1847 or 1848

Bill from William S.Donnan & John Donnan, merchants, to Edward Johnston, judge of the CircuitSuperior Court of Law and Chancery for the County of Roanoke, asking for a writto be issued against William S. Minor, the heirs of Samuel Stoner, and JohnStoner, and many others, who were heirs of the Stoners, who held deeds of trustfor them, or who purchased property from them, or who did business with them,for recovery of a debt; the bill includes copies of writs from 1844 and 1845,and the defendants’ confession of the obligations, which however had not beenpaid and the debtors had subsequently sold their property and declaredinsolvency. The following individuals and companies are named, in addition tothe plaintiffs, judge, and primary defendants: John Bonsack; Edward C. Burks;William Bush; Robert Campbell; Isaac Davenport, Jr.; Henry Davis, executor ofDavid Palmer, deceased; Robert Edmond; Alexander P. Eskridge; John Gaynor;Gaynor, Wood & Co.; John O. L. Goggin, administrator for Stephen Goggin,deceased; Peachy Ridgway Grattan; Edwin James; F. & J. S. James & Co.;Fleming James; John Quarles James; James F. Johnson; Frederick Johnston; David W. Moon; Alexander K. Packer orParker; M. A. Painter; J. K. Pitzer, administrator of Samuel Stoner, deceased;John H. Seay; Edward D. Steptoe; Elizabeth “Eliza” Virginia Stoner; Emiline Stoner;Frances Stoner; John Stoner, Jr.; Kenton Ballard Stoner; Lavinia Stoner; LenoraAnn Stoner; Louisa C. Stoner; Osborne Stoner; John W. Thompson, administratorof William Woodson, deceased; William H. Watson; Edward Watts; JamesBreckinridge Watts; William Watts; George A. Williams; Samuel Williams; Joseph Wilson;Jackson B. Wood; Peter M. Wright, administrator for Matthew Wright, deceased

1998.26.312

December 12, 1844

Letter from Buck& Potter, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, signed by J. Sibley, to JamesBreckinridge Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, asking for his services tocollect a debt of $392.74 from George W. Anderson of Christiansburg, Virginia;they write on the recommendation of Col. W. M. Lambert

1998.26.313

November 16, 1844

Letter from DrRobert Johnston, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Salem, Virginia,asking his help in obtaining payment of $20 for assistance rendered at WhiteSulphur Springs, probably in Montgomery County, Virginia, in the birth of achild born to a slave belonging to Col Thomas Burwell, and adding a lengthypolitical diatribe lamenting the results of the 1844 election, expressingdisillusionment with the idea of government by the people

I really do consider that the experiment offree government has failed with us. We are clearly under the dominion of a mob,who set all law, order and moral obligation at defiance, and are prepared atany moment to trample under foot the most sacred institutions of the country,should they appear to be in the way of any of their favourite schemes ormaxims. I believe the experiment will always fail of giving to the people,their own government; the intelligence suffused by education is disproportionalto the actual power given them, it is not possible to equalise these twoelements.

DrRobert Johnston (1803-1847) is buried in Shockoe Cemetery in Richmond,Virginia.

1998.26.314

June 21, 1844

Letter from O. A.Strecker, in Richmond, Virginia, to James Breckinridge Watts, in RoanokeCounty, Virginia, asking him to collect money from a bond of $91.88 of DrThomas Goode of Hot Springs, Virginia

1998.26.315

March 2, 1844

Letter from TownsendSharpless & Sons, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to James Breckinridge Watts,in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, inquiring about progress on collecting a debtfrom David Fenton Kent

1998.26.316

1839-46

Wrapper and eightbrief documents relating to debts owed by or to James Breckinridge Watts orWilliam Watts, including receipts for payment, accounts, bonds and bad debts;people named include Edward Watts, Christian Bowen, John Steele, J. Robertson,Harry P. Taylor, David Gish, L. Brockenbrough, W. B. Peck, Elisabeth Bradley,N. P. Dillard, William Nelms, and others

1998.26.317

1845

Account statement ofEdward Watts for taxes paid to the sheriff of Roanoke County, Virginia, in1845, itemized, including 1 white and 80 black tithes, 98 slaves, 50 horses, 1carriage, 2 gold watches, 2 pianos, silver plate and 2250 acres of land

1998.26.318

1844

Account statement ofEdward Watts for fees owed to the clerk of Montgomery County Court, Virginia,in 1844, showing charges in a case involving Deaton and Leahy, signed by R. D.Montague, clerk

1998.26.319

April 1844

Account statement ofEdward Watts for fees owed to the clerk of Bedford County Court, Virginia, inApril 1844 for a writ of capias against Gish, Ground and Taylor, and otheractions involved in these cases, costing a total of $5.12

1998.26.320

1845

Account statement ofEdward Watts for fees owed to the commissioner of Roanoke County, Virginia, in1845 for a land transfer to his sons James Breckinridge Watts and William Watts

1998.26.321

January 15, 1845

Letter from JordanAnthony, cashier of the Bank of Virginia, in Buchanan, Virginia, to WilliamWatts, at Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, forwarding a note for $500 from SamuelStoner to James Philemon Holcombe, with advice about Holcombe’s intention ifthe note was not paid at maturity

I have received your favour of the 13th instand here enclose you S. Stoner’s note to J. P. Holcombe $500 & charges ofprotest 2 20/100. In the event of this note not being paid at maturity I thinkit was Mr Holcombe’s intention to have an execution issued for a much largeramount. I am very respectfully yours, J. Anthony C. [Cashier]

JordanAnthony (1788-after 1866) appears in the census reports of 1850 and 1860 as abank cashier, living in Botetourt County, Virginia. In 1860, his householdincluded his niece, Julia Anthony, who was married to Peachy Gilmer Breckinridge (1835-1864), afirst cousin of William Watts. James Philemon Holcombe was William Watts’sbrother-in-law. Samuel Stoner’s debts are a recurrent subject in thesedocuments.

1998.26.322

January 16, 1845

Letter from HenryHomer, in Newbern, Virginia, to James Breckinridge Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, concerning a debt, unpaid because Homer has not yetreceived money from a sale of bottles from Alexander and Harness, who sold thebottles in Baltimore, Maryland

1998.26.323

January 16, 1845

Letter from Drinkerand Morris, stationers in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, asking Watts to collect debts from William S. Minor andJohn Stoner, the latter resident in Bedford County, Virginia; to the former,whose note is not due, they propose to offer reduced terms; as to the latter,who signed an acceptance but gave a draft that was refused, they plan to filesuit

Thiscalendar was printed on the stationery.

1998.26.324

January 25, 1845

Letter from John G.McClanahan and Elijah G. McClanahan, in Lynchburg, Virginia, to William Watts,in Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, explaining that they refused to pay a draftfor Samuel Stoner because he had not met his obligations, and they had notifiedhim to return or destroy it

1998.26.325

January 19, 1845

Letter from HenryCoalter Cabell, in Richmond, Virginia, to William Watts, in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, asking his help in having a kinsman, James Lawrence Cabell, appointedprofessor of moral philosophy at the University of Virginia, to succeed GeorgeTucker; he says that Benjamin Franklin Minor and other faculty are supportinghim, and hopes that Watts will use his influence to secure support from SenatorWilliam Cabell Rives, his cousin William Ballard Preston, and hisbrother-in-law James Philemon Holcombe

If you could write a letter to Mr Preston,speaking in such terms as I hope you would feel yourself authorized to use, heprobably would have no difficulty upon your statement in giving thisrecommendation. Holcombe, if with you, I am sure would join in such letter. Ihope you will use your discretion and act promptly in this matter. It is now asubject near his heart to succeed in this application and I hope he may not bedisappointed. I write in great haste. Your friend, Henry C. Cabell

HenryCoalter Cabell (1820-1889) had known William Watts as a student at theUniversity of Virginia. James Philemon Holcombe was William Watts’sbrother-in-law and a professor at the University of Virginia. William BallardPreston(1805-1862) attended Hampden-Sydney College and studied law at the Universityof Virginia. He served in the Virginia House of Delegates 1830-32, 1844-45, inthe state Senate 1840-44, and in the U. S. House of Representatives 1847-49.Under President Zachary Taylor, he served as Secretary of the Navy, thenretired from political life and practiced law. He went to France in late 1850sas a negotiator, but returned as the Civil War grew imminent. He was a memberof Virginia's secessionist convention in 1861, wrote the act which declaredVirginia's secession; he also served in the Confederate Congress. JamesLawrence Cabell was not successful in his campaign to obtain this appointment;see 1998.26.346.

Portrait of Caroline Harris DeJarnette

2011-10-19T11:29:00.000-07:00

Portrait of Caroline(DeJarnette) Staples, with (left to right) hergreat-great-granddaughter-in-law, her great-great-great-granddaughter, and hergreat-granddaughter Jean (Staples) Showalter, 1975

Caroline Harris DeJarnette wasmy great-great-grandmother. She wasborn in Caroline County, Virginia, 4 March 1833; she died in Roanoke, Virginia,15 January 1892. She married on 12 June 1855, in Caroline County, SamuelGranville Staples. He was born 29 November 1821, in Patrick County, Virginia,and died 6 August 1895, in Roanoke, Virginia. They are buried in FairviewCemetery, Roanoke, Virginia.

Grave marker of Samuel Granville Staples and Caroline (DeJarnette) Staples

CarolineDeJarnette and Samuel Granville Stapleswere the parents of Abram Penn Staples Sr. (1858-1913); his son Abram PennStaples Jr. (1885-1951) was the father of Jean Lee Staples (1912-2004), who wasmy mother. The Staples family produced a number of distinguished lawyers, ofwhom Samuel Granville Staples was one. His son Abram Penn Staples wrote a briefaccount of his life in a family Bible now in the Virginia Room of the RoanokePublic Library, which my grandmother revised and amplified in a document shecalled “Staples Memoranda”. These documents are the basis of this shortbiography:

First page of the Staples family Bible

Samuel Granville Staples studied at RandolphMacon, the University of Virginia, and William and Mary College (1840-41) wherehe completed his law course and took his degree. He was clerk of the superiorcourt in Patrick County, served in the Virginia legislature in the 1850s, andwas a delegate to the Virginia constitutional convention of 1860-61 where heopposed secession as long as possible. While serving as a legislator, he metand married Caroline DeJarnette. They made their home at Stonewall, in PatrickCounty, where Mr. Staples practiced law. At the start of the Civil War hevolunteered, and served as a captain on the staff of J. E. B. Stuart.After only one year in the army, he was seriously injured and obliged to retirefrom active duty. At the close of the war, he found himself wrecked in healthand fortune, but returned to the practice of law and in 1869 was elected Judgeof the Patrick County Court, an office he occupied until the Re-adjuster partysecured control of the state in the 1880s and he declined on principle to runagain. He then retired to a farm near Stuart, seat of Patrick County, moved toRoanoke in 1890, and after his wife's death lived in Roanoke with his son,Abram Penn Staples.

Stonewall, the Staples home in Stuart, Patrick County, Virginia

The familyBible says of Caroline Harris DeJarnette:

“She was adaughter of Col. Daniel DeJarnette of Caroline County. She was married atHampton, residence of her uncle, John Hampton DeJarnette, in Caroline County.She was born at her father's residence at Spring Grove in Caroline County, anddied at the home of her son Daniel DeJarnette Staples in Roanoke.”

TheDeJarnette family were of Huguenot origin. Details of the family’s earlyhistory are uncertain; accounts vary widely and few genealogies citeauthoritative sources. Most versions of the story state that the first member ofthe family to settle in Virginia was Jean (John) de Jarnat, born around 1680 nearLa Rochelle, a major port on the west coast of France in a region that was heavilyProtestant at the time. With the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685,withdrawing the rights previously accorded to Protestants, a mass emigrationbegan, of which de Jarnat was a part. He went first to England, and sailed fromthere to Virginia in 1700, in a group of Huguenots whose support in Britain hadbecome too costly for the British crown. Four ships apparently transportedthese settlers. Alas, no records exist of the third ship to sail, not even itsname, but it is presumed to have brought De Jarnat to America. Click here for ahistory of the family’s immigration to Virginia, with many specifics althoughno sources.

Daniel DeJarnette household, 1850 census

Jean deJarnat settled in Gloucester County, Virginia, where he married Mary Mumford ofAbingdon Parish in the same county, about 1703. She was the daughter ofEdward and Mary (Watkins) Mumford, born, according to a deposition, in 1683.The Abingdon Parish register lists six children of Jean and Mary de Jarnat,among them Joseph de Jarnat, baptized 3 February 1716. Joseph marriedabout 1739 Mary Pemberton, and among their children was Joseph DeJarnette, Jr.– the spelling of the name had changed – who was born 9 October 1747 andmarried Mary Hampton about 1775. Joseph Jr. lived at his estate Spring Grove,in Caroline County, where he died 31 July 1824. His son Daniel was born there 9October 1783 and died there 22 September 1850. Daniel married twice, first on25 December 1808 to Jane T. Coleman, and second on 21 December 1817 to hersister Huldah Hawes Coleman. Caroline Harris DeJarnette, the sitter for theportrait, was a child of the second marriage.

Spring Grove, Caroline County, Virginia, c. 1900

Spring Grove, Caroline County, Virginia, c. 1937

By theearly nineteenth century, the DeJarnettes were well established among the leadingfamilies of the region. Caroline’s father and brothers owned large plantations.In 1850, according to the census, her father Daniel owned real estate worth$25,000 and 100 slaves, while her uncle Elliott (1788-1857) held the sameamount of real estate and 57 slaves at his estate “Pine Forest” in neighboringSpotsylvania County. Calculating the equivalent dollar figure in 2011 dependson what measure one uses; roughly speaking, using the consumer price indexgives a figure 30 times higher, using the unskilled wage about 200 timeshigher, and using the share of gross domestic product about 400 times higher.For more precise figures and explanations, see the “Measuring Worth” website.

DeJarnette reunion at Pine Forest, c. 1937

The five people in the front row on the right end aredescendants of Caroline DeJarnette and Samuel Granville Staples: (left to right) Huldah StaplesDaniel, William Hunt Staples, Harris (Staples) Brown, Julie Bagby (Epes)Staples, Allen Watts Staples. The photo and identifications come from an online genealogy.

In 1860, Caroline’shalf-brother Robert Elliott DeJarnette (1812-1876) owned personal and realproperty worth $56,000 and 26 slaves; another brother, John Hampton DeJarnette(1818-1897), owned personal and real property worth $133,000 and 71 slaves; anda third brother, Daniel Coleman DeJarnette (1822-1881) owned property valued at$131,000 and 65 slaves. John Hampton built a handsome house on his estate, nowcalled Hampton Manor, where Caroline was married. It is said to have beendesigned by Thomas Jefferson, and in the 1940s belonged to Caresse Crosby; ifthat name means nothing to you, click her name to read the Wikipedia entry. See also this article on the house.

Hampton

DanielColeman DeJarnette served in the Virginia state house ofrepresentatives 1853-1858; he was a colleague there of Samuel G. Staples, andno doubt facilitated the introduction to his sister. At about the same time, hebuilt the house at Spring Grove that still stands. DeJarnette was elected tothe U. S. House of Representatives and served 1859-1861; he was re-elected, butdid not present his credentials and served instead in the First and SecondConfederate Congresses 1862-1865. Before leaving Washington, on 14 February1861, he made an impassioned “state of the union” speech, in which he defended slavery as a bulwark protecting freelabor. After the war, he was a member of the commission to determine theboundary line between Virginia and Maryland, along with William Watts; see aletter on the subject in the Watts Collection 1998.26.240.

Theportrait of Caroline DeJarnette was painted by James Westhall Ford, the sameartist who painted Michael Vaden, as described in my previous post. This portrait may not seem at first glance tobear much resemblance to the Vaden portrait, but it has several featurescharacteristic of Ford’s works. As in all the Ford portraits on the web, thesitter is at the viewer’s right, facing to the viewer’s left. The backgroundson the right are dark and looming; in this case, it looks like a paintedbackdrop, which performs the same function as the tree in the Vaden and Watkinsportraits. On the left, where the space opens out more, there are vignettes, avase of flowers in this painting. And finally, the treatment of the hands isrelatively crude.

Portrait of Caroline Harris DeJarnette by James Westhall Ford

Thesesimilarities would not prove much, but according to R. Lewis Wright’s Artists in Virginia, “from 1851 to 1853[Ford] lived with the DeJarnett family in Spotsylvania County and is said tohave painted more than twenty portraits during this period” (p. 56). AlexanderWilbourne Weddell, in Portraiture in theVirginia Historical Society, notes that “Ford is known to have also painteda number of other members of the deJarnette family [Weddell mentions RobertdeJarnette, and Dr. Joseph Spencer deJarnette and his wife]. A fire in Richmondis said to have destroyed a number of these and other canvases which were thenon exhibition” (p. 150-51). Caroline DeJarnette presumably brought the portraitwith her when she married Samuel Granville Staples. Like many ante-bellumSouthern portraits, it was said to have been slashed by a Yankee soldier,although he must have been an very inept swordsman to have left such a small mark. Caroline and her husbandmoved to Roanoke in their last years, and left the portrait to theirdescendants who already lived there, one of whom was my grandfather. After mygrandparents’ death, it hung for many years in a place of honor in my mother’s house.

Portrait of Michael Vaden

2011-10-12T12:39:00.000-07:00

Portrait of Michael Vaden

To be completely accurate, the imageabove is a photo of a photographic reproduction of a portrait of Michael Vaden,my great-great-grandfather. The first time I knew such a picture existed was in2007, when a cousin I met on the internet sent me a black-and-white copy,tentatively identified as a portrait of Josiah Thomas Showalter. A few monthslater, I found a document in my father's files that correctly identified the sitter, andprovided a good deal more information about the origins of the painting. Laterstill, I met a cousin who owned one of several reproductions made a few decadesago, and she let me photograph her copy. Ever since I have been trying toidentify the artist.

Michael Vaden (c. 1790-1881) was thefather of Sarah Catherine Vaden (1842-1922), wife of Josiah Thomas Showalter (1839-1915). Michael was a colorful character, whooutlived two wives. He had six children with the first, Prudence Worsham, andfour with the second, Catherine Rowlett, of whom Sarah Catherine was theyoungest. In his youth, he was wild and undisciplined, and addicted to hunting,especially deer. As he matured, he took up more serious callings. He practicedmedicine with apparent success, although he had no university degree in thefield, and he preached in the Methodist church near his home at Winterpock,Chesterfield County, Virginia.

His portrait was commissioned by hisfriend and employer, Judge James Henry Cox (1810-1877), who lived on a largeestate named Clover Hill in the same area. The Cox family owned and operatedcoal mines in Chesterfield County, employing several hundred miners, andMichael Vaden provided medical services to them.

Portrait of James Henry Cox from an online family tree

Much of my information about Michael Vaden and his portrait comes from a memoir by Judge Cox’s daughter, Kate Virginia (Cox) Logan (1840-1915), My Confederate Girlhood, posthumously published in 1932. Here is the key passage:

This tree had figured in a picture when the portrait painterhad come to paint the family. At the same time a unique portrait was made. Thesitter was a protégé, who was much beloved by all. He had been a wild youngman, addicted to hunting and sports in general, being especially skilled in thedeer chase. Deer abounded then in that neighborhood. As this sportive youth ripenedinto manhood, he put aside these things and took up more serious thoughts. Heeven became a Methodist minister, combining with this sacred calling asmattering of medicine, for which he had a decided talent. He was a mostefficient nurse, and had a hand of silk, which could discern each beat of the pulse. He did notfancy strenuous work, so preaching and amateur doctoring suited him exactly.Father took great delight in directing these tendencies of Uncle Mike. He loved his folk,and to have Uncle Mike pose in all his "characters" to the portraitpainter pleased him much, even if it did cost a pretty penny. He designed thesketch in this wise: the handsome old man, who looked like an apostle, wasplaced in a big chair and the house was glimpsed in the distance. Under thelocust tree was placed a candle stand, a small round table supported on apedestal of wood, with three legs branching from it. On the table were placed alarge Bible, some pill boxes and other medical properties. Against the tree, afine deer gun rested, while in the distance could be seen a large stag. Lyingat the old man's feet was his hunting hound, Dan. This picture was charming andfor its originality alone it was worth possessing. I wanted it for myself, butfather gave it to Uncle Mike's daughter, and this chef-d'oeuvre was lost to the family.

Clover Hill

Thatdaughter was, of course, Sarah Catherine Vaden, who married Josiah ThomasShowalter. This reference came to me via a cousin from an earlier generation,who met a grandson of James Henry Cox, Judge Edwin Piper Cox (1870-1938) and corresponded with him aboutthe portrait in 1936. The second Judge Cox copied out the passage from thebook, and added this commentary:

Thus wrote my Aunt, Mrs. Logan, about sixty years after theportrait was painted from her recollection. I can not give you the exact timewhen this was painted but from other portraits of the family, I have seen, itwas in the early fifties. There are no portraits of my father, Captain H. W. Cox,and Uncle Edwin and at this time they were off at school, my father, H. W. Cox,at the Virginia Military Institute and my Uncle Edwin at the University ofVirginia. The portraits of my Uncle Willie and Uncle John were painted aboutthis date. The father referred to was Judge James H. Cox. The place is CloverHill House at Winterpock, Chesterfield County. Clover Hill passed by mygrandfather's will in 1877 to Uncle John H. Cox who died in 1893. His widowsubsequently married P. H. Fowlkes and she with her children resided there, untilher death in 1917 and in 1924 the place was sold to Mr. Chalkley who livesthere now. Mr. Michael Vaden had charge of the hospital at the Clover Hill coalmines which were opened and developed by my grandfather. There were severalhundred employees, so Mr. Vaden had no easy work. He was looked upon with greatrespect and admiration by the people generally, and was a true Virginiagentleman of whom anyone might be glad to claim descent. His last home was aplace called "Tin Top" on the old Sapony road in Chesterfield.

Dust jacket of My Confederate Girlhood, by Kate Virginia (Cox) Logan

Judge Cox’sguess about the date was surely correct, if his account of the portrait sessionis accurate, because his father, Henry Winston Cox, was in the class of 1855 atV.M.I. Nothing in the documents I have clearly indicates when the photographiccopies were made. Copies of letters from another cousin, dated 1940, show thatthe Showalter family was then actively pursuing contacts with the Vaden family, manyof whom still lived in Chesterfield County. Probably the war intervened and disrupted the quest. Anotherpair of letters from 1989 mention Judge Cox’s letter, which was transcribed atthat time, and various family photos were copied and sent to the Showaltercousins. Around 1989 seems the likeliest time for the portrait to have beenphotographed as well.

Equippedwith the foregoing information, I wrote to the National Portrait Gallery, andquickly received a suggestion for a possible artist. He turned out not to bethe right one, but in looking for facts to confirm or disprove the attribution,I came across another painting, which seemed to me very similar.

Portrait of Peter Wilson Watkins, from the Tennessee Portrait Project website

I was struck by the parallels in composition and pose, theuse of a large old tree on the right, a pink and blue sky in the upperbackground, and a small symbolic scene in the lower left background. It is hardto see in the miniaturized image, but there is a plowman behind a horse in theWatkins portrait.

The painterof the Watkins portrait was James Westhall Ford (c. 1806-c. 1868). Abiographical note in a 1945 catalogue titled Portraiture in the Virginia Historical Society, prepared byAlexander Wilbourne Weddell describes Ford as “a baffling and elusive fellow”(p. 149). An example of his elusiveness may be the dates of his birth anddeath. A recent book, A CapitalCollection: Virginia’s Artistic Inheritance, by Barbara C. Batson and TacyL. Kamerer (Richmond: The Library of Virginia, 2005) says he was born inPennsylvania in 1806 and died in Philadelphia on 27 December 1868. A website ofThe Thomas Jefferson Encyclopedia gives 1866 as the year of his death. An earlier work, R. Lewis Wright’s Artists in Virginia Before 1900(Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1983) says “b. Philadelphia,1805 / d. Philadelphia, 1866” (p. 56). The askart website gives his dates as 1794 to 1866.

I am in noposition to resolve those uncertainties. Ford seems to have first become knownwhen Thomas Jefferson invited him to Monticello to paint his sister Martha. Theletter of invitation was dated 1 September 1823, and the painting was done bythe end of the month. Jefferson’s recommendation led to further commissions. IfFord was born in 1806, he was no more than 17 years old at the time, an agethat seems young to me, but not impossible.

In anycase, Ford is said to have “worked chiefly in Philadelphia”, but many of hisbest-known paintings were done in Virginia. According to Wright, he came toRichmond in 1829 at the time of the constitutional convention, and did a numberof portraits of delegates. He made other trips to Richmond in the 1830s, 1840s,and 1850s, and on one of them painted John Marshall in 1835. Besides theportrait of Martha Jefferson, probably his best-known works were three portraits of chief Black Hawk and other native Americans, painted in 1833. According to Weddell, he was listed in Richmond directories in 1850, 1852, and1855. Weddell also quotes Ford’s advertisement in the Richmond Whig, 18 March and 23 May 1851:“painting members of the Convention; and has portraits of members of the oldConvention” (p. 150) – that is, the two Virginia Constitutional Conventions of1850-51 and 1829-30.

JamesWesthall Ford certainly was in the right place at the right time to havepainted the portrait of Michael Vaden, but it remained to find a strong link. Ifound it in the Papers of James Westhall Ford, Accession #6073, SpecialCollections, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville, Va. From Clover Hill on 17 October 1854, James Henry Cox wrote a letter ofrecommendation for Ford, addressed to members of the agricultural club: “Mr. Ford proposes to sketch the heads of theclub, for his own use. I trust each member will find it convenient to give hima sitting. You will find Mr. F. a faithful artist, and an agreable companion.Any kindness you may be able to show him will be acceptable to him and gratefulto your humble servant.”

Brief as it is, this letterestablishes that James Henry Cox knew Ford, and was in a position to recommendhim as a portrait painter. It also proves that Ford was in Chesterfield County,or close by, in October 1854, a date that conforms to Edwin Piper Cox’srecollection. I feel very confident, then, that the portrait of Michael Vadenwas painted by James Westhall Ford in 1854, probably in September or October.

Portrait of General James Breckinridge

2011-10-05T19:04:00.000-07:00

James Breckinridge,engraving from a drawing by Saint-Mémin, 1808

James Breckinridge, as readers ofthis blog already know, was my four-great-grandfather. His grandfather,Alexander Breckinridge, immigrated from Ireland with his wife and sevenchildren, one of whom was Robert Breckinridge, James’s father. They took anoath on 22 May 1740 to qualify for the right to obtain land, and settled inwhat is now Botetourt County, Virginia. Robert had several sons from two marriages;all the brothers except James moved west, notably to Kentucky, where theyestablished a political dynasty.

James was born 7 March 1763 nearFincastle, the seat of Botetourt County, where he maintained his residence atGrove Hill until his death 13 May 1833. In 1781, at the age of 18, he joined a regimentheaded by his uncle, Colonel William Preston, and fought in the southerncampaigns of the Revolutionary War under General Nathaniel Greene. He graduatedfrom William and Mary College in 1785, then studied law, and began practicingin Fincastle. Even before that, on 13 June 1782, he was appointed deputy clerkof Botetourt County; he later became commonwealth’s attorney. He was firstelected to the Virginia house of delegates in 1789 and served continuouslyuntil 1802, and was returned for shorter terms 1806-1808, 1819-1821 and1823-1824. He served four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, from 1809to 1817, as a member of the Federalist party. He was commissioned brigadier general of the Virginia militia on 1February 1809 and served during the War of 1812 from 31 August 1812 to 30November 1814. Between 1814 and 1816, he served on a commission to studyVirginia’s rivers, and took a great interest in constructing canals along thePotomac and the James Rivers. In 1818 he was asked by Thomas Jefferson to helpplan the University of Virginia, and held a seat on the university’s board ofvisitors from 1819 to 1833. In short, for his entire adult life he was involvedin public service.

GroveHill, painting by Edward Beyer, 1854 in the Botetourt County History Museum,Fincastle, Virginia

James Breckinridge married AnnSelden on 1 January 1791 in Richmond, Virginia. She was from a family ofTidewater plantation owners, who settled at Buckroe in Elizabeth CityCounty (now part of Hampton City). Ann was born there around 1765 and died on 17 March 1843 atGrove Hill. They had ten children, of whom the second was ElizabethBreckinridge, who married Edward Watts. James Breckinridge can be found in thecensus of Botetourt County in 1810, 1820, and 1830. The early census reportsname only the heads of household, and enumerate others only by race, sex and inbroad age groups. There were 12 whiteresidents in 1810, 15 in 1820, and 5; in 1830; in the same years, there were109, 95 and 126 slaves, figures that mark Grove Hill as one of the largest andwealthiest plantations of the region.

The portrait of James Beckinridgewas taken in 1808 in Richmond, Virginia, by the French artist Charles Balthazar Julien Févret deSaint-Mémin (1770–1852). He was a French nobleman, who like many youngmen of his class had been destined for a military career. When the FrenchRevolution broke out in 1789, his family had to flee for their lives, and heeventually made his way to New York in 1793. Penniless, he turned to a talenthe had shown in his youth, drawing. He adopted a device called a physiognotrace(or physionotrace, the French spelling), which mechanically drew silhouettes. The artist then filled in the outlineby crayon, and from the final drawing engraved a copper plate, from which multiplecopies could be printed. The illustration at the left shows a self-portrait of Saint-Mémin on the dust jacket of the definitive study of his work, Ellen G. Miles, Saint-Mémin and the Neoclassical Profile Portrait in America (National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian Institution Press, 1994).

The physiognotracewas invented by another Frenchman named Gilles-Louis Chrétien in 1783-84, tofacilitate the making of silhouettes, which were at the time the principalinexpensive way to create a portrait. The outline image as a portrait form hadexisted from prehistory, but the word “silhouette” comes from the name of stillanother Frenchman, Étienne de Silhouette (1709-1767), who was the controllergeneral of finances in France under Louis XV for a few unhappy months in 1759.He was given the unpopular task of trimming the budget during the Seven Years’War, and his name came to signify “doing things cheaply”. It is said thatSilhouette himself dabbled in shadow outline portraiture; in any case, the namestuck as a designation of such portraits.

A physiognotrace

For an interactive version of this image with an explanation of its operation, click here. For an article with more illustrations and an explanation of different versions of the machine, click here.

Saint-Méminnever had any formal training in art, and had to teach himself how to engraveon copper plates. Moreover, because he needed to earn his living, he worked asfast as possible, and succeeded in reducing the time required to produce theportrait and engravings to three days. An essay accompanying an exhibit of hiswork at the National Portrait Gallery quotes an advertisement he placed inPhiladelphia newspapers in 1801 and 1802:

"The original portrait, plate and twelve impressions,shall be delivered for the moderate price of twenty five dollars for gentlemen,and thirty five dollars for ladies; the portrait without engraving may be hadfor 8 dollars."

The essay observes that women’s clothing and hair requiredmore work than men’s; hence the higher price. The artist often provided frames,which were gilded and included a glass decorated with black paint and goldleaf.

Saint-Mémin stayed in America from1793 until 1810, returned briefly to France, but came to America again from1812 to 1814. He then moved permanently back to France, his family’s estatehaving been restored to him after the Restoration of the monarchy, and he livedout his days as director of the art museum in his native Dijon. While inAmerica, he produced almost a thousand portraits, including likenesses of manyof the most famous men of the era, including John Adams, DeWitt Clinton, WilliamHenry Harrison, Thomas Jefferson, Meriwether Lewis, John Marshall, Charles WillsonPeale, Paul Revere, Benjamin Rush, and George Washington. He kept copies of theengravings for himself, and produced several albums, the most complete of whichare at the Corcoran Gallery, the Grolier Library, and the National PortraitGallery.

The portrait of James Breckinridgebecame part of the inheritance of the Watts family, descendants of Elizabeth(Breckinridge) Watts. In 1904, William J. Campbell, an expert on Saint-Méminwho was compiling a definitive catalogue of his portraits (which was never completed),wrote to my great-grandmother, Gertrude (Lee) Watts to ask about it. AlthoughCampbell’s papers are now in the American Philosophical Society’s library inPhiladelphia, they do not have Mrs. Watts’s reply to the inquiry.

James Breckinridge

As was typical, theprofile in the drawing faces the opposite direction from the engraving.

In this photo, the original portraitcan be seen, with its original gilded frame and the painted glass mat. Theglass was restored at an unknown date in the past, and the portrait as well asthe frame had conservation work done in 1989. The portrait will become part ofthe collections of the newly refurbished History Museum of Western Virginiawhen it reopens in 2012.

Old Photos of G. H. P. and Lena (Honea) Showalter?

2011-09-28T06:55:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, a thoughtfulstranger emailed me to say that photographs of George Henry Pryor Showalter asa baby and of his wife Lena Estelle Honea as a girl were offered for sale oneBay. I was sure from the images on eBay that the infant was not G. H.P. Showalter, but the pictures were in a very beautiful case, and I was curiousabout the identification, so I bought them anyway.

The identification of the subjects wasbased on two slips of paper, tucked in behind one of the photos.

The information, initself and as far as it goes, is accurate. Lena Honea was born 24 August1879, in Johnson County, Texas, and died 25 June 1943, in Austin Texas. Shemarried G. H. P. Showalter on 1 August 1900. It is obvious, however, thatthe identification must have been supplied long after the pictures were taken,some time after 17 October 1954.

It is alsoobvious that this picture of an infant cannot be George Henry Pryor Showalter,because the subject is a girl. She is wearing a dress anda bow in her hair, and appears to be aboutone year old, able to sit up, although a supporting adult hand is visible onthe left. The photo is printed on paper, a process that was not common in 1880,when Lena Honea would have been the age of the subject, so I doubt that she wasthe sitter either.

Lena Honea and Ann Dixon (Poole) Honea

The pictureof the two women is a ferrotype, a photographic print made on a thin sheet ofiron, often inaccurately called a tintype. Ferrotypes were the predominant formof photography for most of the late 1800s. In the 1860s they replaceddaguerrotypes and ambrotypes, which were similar in that in all three apositive image was produced onto a rigid plate of metal or glass. Ferrotypeswere less expensive and less fragile, however, and faster to produce, qualitiesthat made the process very suitable for professional portrait photographers.

The youngerwoman in the picture appears to be six to eight years old. If it is Lena Honea,the picture would have been taken in the mid 1880s, a plausible date. The otherwoman is probably her mother, Ann Dixon Poole, born 9 July 1859, died 30November 1924; on 22 April 1877 shemarried Thomas Jefferson Honea, born 23 July 1854, died 15 February 1941.Lena was the couple’s first child, of nine. Click to see a genealogy of the Honea family.

George Henry Pryor Showalter and Lena (Honea) Showalter

This photo shows G. H. P. Showalter and Lena Honea in 1900,around the time of their wedding. She looks to me like the same person as the girl in theferrotype of the two women, so I think the identification was at least partly right.

Union Case, "Beehive, Grain and Farm Tools" design

The case inwhich the pictures are mounted is called a Union Case. Union Cases were firstintroduced in 1853, and were intended to protect daguerrotypes, which were easilybroken, as were ambrotypes. The cases were made of a thermoplastic compound,containing gum shellac and woodfibres. The substance was heated and thenmolded, and it hardened into a rigid and very durable material.

Themanufacturer’s name is printed inside, behind one of the pictures. Littlefield,Parsons & Company was in business from 1858 to 1866. It was formed by themerger of earlier companies and continued its operations after 1866 under a newname. According to Paul K. Berg’s “History of the Miniature Case”, 1,179 different Union Case models have been recorded, of which 390 wereproduced by Littlefield, Parsons & Company. This design is known as “Beehive,Grain and Farm Tools”. By 1866, however, ferrotypes had largely replaced theearlier photographic techniques, and demand for Union Cases declined sharply.

The firstowners, probably the Honea family, must have removed the original pictures fromthis case, and replaced them with later ones. There was, in fact, a thirdpicture in the case, hidden behind the infant picture.

It is another ferrotype, in very poor condition, with partsof the plate broken off, and the image itself very dim. One can nonethelessdistinguish the picture of an infant in a white baby dress, no more than sixmonths old, posed before a backdrop of cloths with floral patterns. It seemsvery likely that this infant was Lena Honea, and that the photograph was madein late 1879 or early 1880.

Who then is the infant on the paperprint? My guess is that she is Thelma Showalter, born 18 September 1904,died 4 June 1995. She was the second child and first daughter of George HenryPryor and Lena Estelle (Honea) Showalter.

The eBayseller could not tell me anything about the provenance of these pictures. Myhypothetical history is that the case first contained two daguerrotypes orambrotypes of the Honea or the Poole family, made between 1858 and 1866. AfterThomas Jefferson Honea married Ann Dixon Poole in 1877, the couple reused thecase, replacing the older pictures with ferrotypes of their daughter Lena.After Lena’s marriage to G. H. P. Showalter in 1900, the case was again reused,and Lena’s baby picture was replaced by her child Thelma’s picture. The olderpicture was perhaps damaged in making the change, or was perhaps already inpoor condition. After Lena’s death in 1943, her husband lived for another elevenyears. Because his death date is recorded but not hers on the identificationslips, it seems probable that he kept the case and pictures. He remarried in1945 to Mrs. Winifred Moore, born 14 Feb 1885, died 9 Apr 1956, who had beentwice widowed in previous marriages. She would have inherited his personaleffects on his death in 1954, but she might not have known the history of thesepictures. G. H. P. and Lena Showalter had six children, all of whom were livingwhen their stepmother died in 1956; but the youngest was 40 years old, and itis probable that they no longer recalled the details of these old familyphotos.

Lena Honeaand G. H. P. Showalter had at least a dozen grandchildren, many of whom arestill living, and some have grandchildren of their own by now. I hope that perhapsone of the descendants will recognize these pictures, and provide moreauthoritative information about their history.

Watts Collection, documents 281-300

2011-09-21T06:57:00.000-07:00

Checklist ofdocuments in the Watts Collection at the Historical Society of WesternVirginia, Roanoke, Virginia. To consult these documents, go to http://www.vahistorymuseum.org/ and click on “Visit HMWV's Virtual Collection!” The documents can befound by a keyword search, or by catalog number using “Click and Search”.

The 20 documents in this group all date from 1839 to 1843.The first two, dated 1840, pertain to the estate of James Breckinridge, whichhas been a recurrent topic. Most of the others are routine items of legalbusiness, many addressed to James Breckinridge Watts, who was practicing law inRoanoke at this time. A few are account statements or receipts for householdpurchases from local merchants, or sales statements for products like tobacco.Three items stand out as exceptions: two garrulous letters, dated 1839 and1840, from Edward Watts’s brother-in-law Fleming Saunders, with family news andstrong opinions on politics and other matters; and a letter of condolence toEdward Watts following the death of his daughter Elizabeth in 1843, at the ageof 20 or 21, less than six months after her marriage to Thomas Lewis Preston.

doc #

date

abstract

1998.26.281

December 1, 1840

Statement of the account of Cary Breckinridge, executor ofthe estate of James Breckinridge, with the legatees, who were Cary Breckinridgeand John Selden Breckinridge, sons of the deceased; Edward Watts and HenryWinston Bowyer, husbands of Elizabeth Breckinridge and Matilda Breckinridgerespectively, daughters of the deceased, and Letitia (Breckinridge) Gamble,daughter of the deceased; the account itemizes the assets, notably the land andslaves, the amounts already paid to each legatee, and the amount still due tothem or from them

1998.26.282

November 18, 1840

Letter from JohnRoote Thornton in Paris, Kentucky, to Cary Breckinridge in Fincastle, Virginia,regarding the collection of a note on Robert Trabue, deceased; the debt wasowed to James Breckinridge, deceased, of whose estate Cary Breckinridge wasexecutor. He had written to Thomas Towles Thornton, also recently deceased,nephew of John Roote Thornton, seeking to collect the debt. The letter explainsthat the Trabue heirs are contesting the claim, but the case against them issolid, except that in the delay rats have destroyed some of the documents,which must be sent again

I find among Thos. T.Thornton's papers a record of your qualification regularly done, but he left itin his office untill the case was to come on and owing to his death and othercircumstances, it has been exposed and the rats have so injured the paper, thatthe name of the clerk and date and some material words are obliterated or eatout. You will therefore have to supply it. You ought to enclose to me also tendollars to defray costs, because some are already due and I shall have to gothe security for costs. T. T. Thornton was security but now additional securitywill be required. Whether you ever left anything with T. T. T. or not I do notknow. The heirs of Robert Trabue are good. I hope to hear from you very soon.Yours respectfully, Jno R. Thornton

John RooteThornton (1786-1873) was born in Caroline County, Virginia, and died in BourbonCounty, Kentucky; his nephew Thomas Towles Thornton (1812-1839) was born anddied in Bourbon County.

1998.26.283

January 5, 1840

Letter from Fleming Saunders at Flat Creek, Campbell County,Virginia, to Edward Watts at Oaklands, Roanoke County, Virginia, hoping toarrange a meeting, but reporting a delay caused by sickness in his brotherSamuel's household in Franklin County, Virginia; expressing strong opinionsabout the death of a woman because of ill treatment, leading him to argueagainst hiring out unneeded slaves and separating their families; expressingdisgust about the upcoming election, especially John Tyler and the Whig party,for whom he will nonetheless vote, and contempt for Congress. There is also abrief note from his wife, Alice (Watts) Saunders, sister of the addressee,asking for a copy of a medical manual

I shall vote the Whig ticket, butthe pill is a disagreeable one, particularly as to Tyler, who is too fond ofthat slang which is destroying all respect for office and law. I cannot bear tohear so much boasting of the freedom of the people, when I know the English tobe that the people won't be governed. Look to the freedom of Congress. Whatmust be the contempt felt by foreign nations, and by all orderly and moralpeople among us, for the members of Congress. The people ought never to elect a[man] who is given to drink, or who has not the feelings, fully of a Gent andof correct manners. Remember me to your family, all & individually. I am yrfriend, Fleming Saunders

[in another handwriting] Please send us one volume of Ewel, if youhave it to spare. Your affectionate Sister.

Fleming Saunders (1778-1858), ajudge and farmer, married Alice Watts (c. 1793-1867), a sister of Edward Watts;they lived at Flat Creek in Campbell County, Virginia, which had been the homeof William Watts. Alice wrote the post script to this letter, asking for a copyof James Ewell’s The medical companion,or family physician.

John Tyler (1790-1862) was electedvice president as a Whig in 1840, after having been a Democrat. He succeeded tothe presidency in 1841 on William Henry Harrison's death after only a month inoffice. Tyler served as president from 1841 to 1845. The legitimacy of hisadministration was questioned, because the Constitution was unclear about therole of the vice president; and he clashed with the great Whig senator HenryClay over many issues, notably the federal bank and the annexation of Texas.Tyler ran unsuccessfully for the presidency in 1844 on a third-party ticket.

1998.26.284

February 1840

Account statement of Isaac Hudson with the clerk of BedfordCounty, Virginia, for 75 cents, for documents relating to the estate of GabrielMiner

1998.26.285

October 4, 1841

Receipt to William Watts for Cheltenham fabric and trimmingbought from John Cochran for $10.12, receipt signed by William H. Patterson

1998.26.286

August 22, 1841

Letter to James Breckinridge Watts at Salem, Virginia, fromN. Taliaferro at Rocky Mount, Virginia, regretting that he cannot come on avisit to Roanoke because the judge in Franklin County, Virginia, has orderedhim to attend a court session in Floyd County, Virginia, involving acounterfeiter named Stuart and two attorneys, John Preston Phlegar andEdmundson; also mentions some current news topics

1998.26.287

February 10, 1840

Order from the County Court of Roanoke, Virginia, to theSheriff of Roanoke County, Elijah McClanahan, to summon Marcus D. Blankenshipand Pleasant Blankenship to appear as witnesses in a case between theCommonwealth of Virginia, plaintiff, represented by James Breckinridge Watts,and Thomas Golden, defendant

JamesBreckinridge Watts (1812-1846), a son of Edward Watts, was commonwealth'sattorney for Roanoke County from 24 May 1838 to 20 Jan 1845. The witnesses anddefendant have not been identified.

1998.26.288

August 13, 1839

Letter from Fleming Saunders at Flat Creek, Campbell County,to Edward Watts at Oaklands, Roanoke County, sending news of weather and crops– rain has ended a drought, expected corn, oat and tobacco crops; his healthand that of others in the family – he has asthma, his brother Samuel very ill;a lawsuit brought by a would-be overseer; travel plans – friends are en routefrom Flat Creek to Oaklands, Fleming would like to go but must visit hisbrother in Franklin County, Virginia, possible hunting trip to Greasy Creek,Floyd County, Virginia, in the fall; comments probably relating to the estateof Mary (Scott) Watts; and general family news

I hear from myBrother, he is quite sick, very feeble and suffers much. I am as anxious to seehim, and so soon as I can leave home, I will visit him. I do not know atpresent whether I can later the usual hunt this fall. Will you go? I want to doso very much. I think [some] of the young people will [go] to Greasy. I havethe asthma [every] day, the paroxism not as [violent?] as formerly, I feel some[stronger?] and I have some more flesh upon my bones. I have been sued by amost worthless fellow ...

On FlemingSaunders, see 1998.26.283 above. On the depredation of documents by rodents,see 1998.26.282 above. Fleming’s brother Samuel Saunders (1783-1852) lived inFranklin County, Virginia.

1998.26.289

May 18, 1842

Letter from LewisRogers, in Richmond, Virginia, to Edward Watts, in Big Lick, Virginia, seekingan arrangement about a property conveyed to Rogers by Temple Gwathmey, uponwhich Watts has a prior lien, pointing out that the property has no value toeither of them unless it can be rented or sold

1998.26.290

March 31, 1842

Account statement ofEdward Watts with Powell H. and A. E. Huff for purchases of dry goods,including cloth, sewing materials and some clothing, with a total value of$189.90

1998.26.291

1842

Account statement ofsales of the home crop of tobacco for Edward Watts by Richard Tyree inLynchburg, Virginia, and Robert Gwathmey in Richmond, Virginia, for $2068.98after deducting expenses

1998.26.292

May 5, 1842

Letter from ThomasH. Ellis, in Richmond, Virginia, to James Breckinridge Watts, in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, regarding a claim of the estate of Charles Ellis,deceased, against Samuel Stoner, and a suit filed by Watts which Ellisapproves; also mentions other claims by Stoner, and bonds of Dr Thomas Goodeand Dr John B. Lewis, and sends thanks for kindness in the case of Nininger

Dr Sir: Your favor of the 19th ulto.,advising me that you had brought suit at common law on our claims vs SamuelStoner, one of $335.43 and the other of $230, has been recd, and theproceeding, under the circumstances stated by you, meets our entire approbation.

Thisletter suggests that Samuel Stoner was in financial difficulty some time beforehis death in 1845; see 1998.26.280.

1998.26.293

May 22, 1842

Draft of a letterfrom Edward Watts, in Roanoke County, Virginia, to Lewis Rogers, in Richmond,Virginia, replying to a letter (1998.26.289) concerning deeds of trust on a property belonging to TempleGwathmey, stating that Watts has no intention of letting his prior deed serveas a shield to prevent Rogers from collecting a just debt, noting that Gwathmeyhas other debts to Watts and has given him as security a deed on a bond of hisson William Watts Gwathmey, and asking Rogers to decide whether to haveGwathmey pay rent or compel him to sell the property

The debts secured by this deed of trust arenot all Mr G. owed me. He assignd to me in December so much of a deed executedby his son Wm W. for his benefit as would pay me $3000, the remainder I inferdfrom what he said he intended to assign to you. Very respectfully, Your mo[st]ob[edien]t &c, Edwd Watts

Letter to Lewis Rogers corrected a little butsubstantially the same sent to him

Deedsof trust were used to convey the right to sell property used as collateral.Temple Gwathmey had apparently signed two deeds of trust on the same property,one to his brother-in-law Edward Watts, the other to Lewis Rogers, a prominentNew York merchant.

1998.26.294

December 9, 1843

Letter from TownsendSharpless and Sons, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to James Breckinridge Watts,in Roanoke County, Virginia, forwarding a transfer dated February 22, 1843, ofa claim by Hunn and Remington against David Fenton Kent of New Bern, Virginia,and asking for collection and payment of the proceeds; Watts noted that heanswered the letter on December 20, 1843, but neither the amount nor the natureof the claim is specified

James B. Watts Esqr, Va

Dear Sir, You will please pay the proceeds ofour Judgment (when obtained) against D. F. Kent, of Newbern to T. Sharpless& Sons or their order. Yours Resp[ectfull]y, Hunn & Remington

Philadelphia, 22 Feb[ruar]y 1843

TownsendSharpless (1793-1863) was a prominent Quaker and merchant in Philadelphia. Hissons were Samuel Jones Sharpless (1816-1904) and Charles Leeds Sharpless(1821-1882). His daughter, Lydia Jones Sharpless (1818-1911), married in 1836Ezekiel Hunn (1810-1902), one of the partners in Hunn and Remington. The Hunnswere also Quakers, and very active in the abolitionist movement. David FentonKent (1807-1850) was a prominent and respected businessman in Pulaski County,Virginia, but this debt proved very difficult to collect, and correspondenceabout it continued until 1846.

1998.26.295

April 4, 1844

Account statement ofEdward Watts with J. Bonsack for services provided in production of cloth and clothing,receipted as paid in full for $8.30

1998.26.296

November 22, 1843

Account statement ofEdward Watts in Big Lick (Roanoke), Roanoke County, Virginia, with RichardTyree, merchant in Lynchburg, Virginia, for services provided in the sale andshipment of tobacco, including to Robert Gwathmey; for various purchases,including nails, cloth, clothes, and sugar; and for money transfers to others,including a doctor, a saddle maker, a beer seller, and a millstone supplier.Includes a letter explaining the charges, and quoting prices on flour, wheat,tobacco and pork

1998.26.297

December 28, 1843

Letter from Bouldinand Yancey in Lynchburg, Virginia, to James Breckinridge Watts in Big Lick(Roanoke), Virginia, informing him that they have collected and deposited tohis credit $30.50 from an execution of Tosh and McClanahan against EdwinMatthews, and declining to accept any fee for their services

1998.26.298

March 4, 1843

Letter from ThomasAtkinson in Lynchburg, Virginia, to Edward Watts in Big Lick (Roanoke),Virginia, expressing condolences for the death of his daughter Elizabeth(Watts) Preston, and urging him to turn to religion; he remarks on having seenthe deceased, and discussed religion with her, and passes along comments byBishop William Reade, who had also known her

On the morning we left Abingdon, Bishop Meadehad a long and interesting conversation with Miss Preston of Montgomery andherself and told me that he hoped soon to see them both professing their faithin Christ their Redeemer. I trust then that she whom you so loved is with abetter, a tenderer, even a heavenly Father. And now, my dear sir, will you notthink me presumng too much when I take the liberty of entreating you to directyour own thoughts more entirely in future towards God ...

Thewriter of this letter, Thomas Atkinson (1807-1881), practiced law for severalyears before becoming a priest. At this date, he was rector of St. Paul'sChurch in Lynchburg, Virginia; he was elected bishop of North Carolina in 1853. William Meade (1789-1862) becamebishop of Virginia in 1841. Elizabeth Watts (1822-1843), a daughter of Edward Watts, married on 13 September 1842 Thomas LewisPreston (1812-1903)of Abingdon, Virginia; she died unexpectedly less than six months later.

1998.26.299

December 19, 1843

Letter from TownsendSharpless and Sons in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to James Breckinridge Wattsin Big Lick (Roanoke), Virginia, asking about a recent letter enclosing atransfer of a claim by Hunn and Remington against David Fenton Kent; themissing letter is 1998.26.294

1998.26.300

December 19, 1843

Account statement ofJohn M. Petty with Edward Watts for 1835 to 1843, involving amounts paid andowed by both parties, mainly for beef, bacon and pork, but also other products,including flour, oats, tobacco and hemp; materials, including salt, timber andlime; articles including tilling hoes and equipment for horses; and services,including temporary hires; as well as sums paid to numerous third parties