Our family in the American Civil War

Lots of trees to any American family.  Ours is diverse, but most were on the Gray side of things.

Confederates:
William Wirt Allen, BG, CSA Cavalry
Benjamin Irwin Allen, Co A, 6th Alabama Infantry, CSA
George Washington Tingler, Co K, 22nd Virginia Infantry, CSA
George Washington Reid, 22nd Virginia Infantry, CSA
Henry Johnson, CSA, died of tuberculosis at Petersburg, 1865
Perryman, CSA, killed at Battle of Atlanta, 1864

Union:
Edward Linville Bias, 3rd WV Cavalry, USA

Samuel Boehm 1715-1797

They called them "Palatines."  They spoke mostly the German of their Swiss ancestors mixed with the English needed for commerce and trade.  They were Mennonites and lived together on the largely wild frontier of the American colonies ordering their society in accordance with their understanding of the Bible.  They lived apart from the society around them, seeking to be self-sufficient and self-sustaining so they could live according to God's word.

Samuel Boehme was probably born in 1715 into one of the Mennonite communities in the Rhineland Palatinate, where they had fled from Catholic oppression in Switzerland.  There was a large Mennonite community in Kircheimbolanden, north of Mannheim in modern Germany.  Was Samuel born there?  Did his journey to America start there and pass through Holland?  Likely as it may be, records available to us today cannot confirm all the details for us.

At any rate, Samuel was the first "American" of our family, having arrived in Philadelphia on a Dutch ship from Rotterdam on October 27, 1738, in the company of many others likely to have come from Mennonite communites in Germany.  However, arriving in the British colony of Pennsylvania, a youth of 23, he was sure to have found food, shelter, and work in the Mennonite communities of the colony centered around Lancaster.  But since we know he had a family in the community that lived in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia by no later than 1750, we know he moved on quickly, like so many immigrants, seeking his own fortune in the new lands.

Samuel was married to Elizabeth Funk, the daughter of the elected leader and minister of the 40-or-so family Mennonite community that moved into the valley of the Southern Fork of the Shenandoah river.  I haven't yet found record of their date of marriage, but the advent of their first offspring, Magdalena, in 1742, seems to indicate a marriage by 1741 if not before.  Did Samuel accompany the Mennonite band from Lancaster into Virginia as a single man, or had he already met and courted Elizabeth by then?  I'm still looking for the details.

Between 1742 and 1758, Samuel and Elizabeth established a farm on the land he had purchased along the East Hawkbill Creek, near the present day town of Ida in Page County, Virginia.  While raising crops and animals, hunting and fishing for their own subsistence, they brought into the world the first six of their children.  After Magdalena in 1742, Jacob was born in 1745, Reuben in 1748, Mary in 1750, Elizabeth in 1753, Barbara in 1755, and Daniel in 1758.  Throughout this time, they struggled at first to live with Indians in the area, then to fight them off, before ultimately pushing them out. 

The politics of the world swirling around them were as challenging as anything we see today.  Alternately, the French, occupying the Mississippi Valley and the territories to the north and west of Virginia, and then the British, allied with various of the Indian tribes to attack colonial settlements in "the west," of their day.  Many pioneer families were attacked and often wiped out by Indian raids.  The history of the era is full of violence, and no doubt the men and boys of the community were handy with musket and tomahawk as a matter of survival.  It was in the midst of these frequent conflicts that Samuel and Elizabeth strove to raise a family and establish a farm and their fortune.

By 1758, the Indian raids became so bad that the entire Mennonite colony decided to remove to Lancaster and ask for help.  In this same era, the Governor of Virginia sent out expedition after expedition to drive back and ultimately defeat the Indian tribes in the region and beyond.  A notable event of this period was the commission of one George Washington for his first military endeavors to combat the Indians raiding colonial settlements.  We know Samuel and family were among the group that returned to Lancaster to avoid Indian attacks after the murder by Indians of the Haldeman family in the Shenandoah Valley, because of his signature on a letter to the Mennonite community in Holland asking for help in the face of this challenge.

Samuel and Elizabeth had their last two children, Martin, born in 1762 in Frederick, and Regina, born in 1767 in Strasburg.  By then the family had lived in Maryland for a time while the Indian problem was dealt with, and moved to new lands west of Strasburg when they returned to the Valley.  It appears that the family's homestead around Ida passed into the hands of Samuel's sons Jacob and Daniel when the family returned to Virginia or shortly thereafter.  The two of them are shown in land records and further dealings related to the first farm the family established.

Samuel died in 1797 and is likely buried in the Boehm Cemetery along Route 55 between Strasburg and Lebanon Church, although there is no marker identifying his grave.  Elizabeth died in 1803 and is buried in the oldest grave in the Boehm Cemetery (photo to follow).  This means they were in their 60s as the American Revolution was in progress. 

I don't know that Samuel and Elizabeth were among the "Patriots," the "Tories," or among the 'indifferent' that just wanted to be left alone.  But they were born subjects of a German prince in the Palatinate, lived much of their lives as British subjects in a remote colony, and died free citizens of the American Republic.  I do know that Samuel voted for George Washington for the Virginia House of Burgesses in 1758.  So I like to think of him as a Patriot.

Minnie Daisy Chitty Allen 1878-1937

She was born on January 10, 1878 on her family's plantation in Shorterville, Alabama, along the Chattahoochee River, and died on February 2, 1937 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  She was married on November 10, 1896 to Charles Pollard Allen, also originally from Alabama (buried next to her).  She was the child of agricultural Southerners with a heritage leading back before the Civil War and the American Revolution to immigrants from England.  She lived through the conquest of the West, the advent of industrialization, the Spanish-American War, World War I, and the Great Depression and died in the industrial north at 59.  She was born just 13 days after her husband, and died 7 months before him.  They are buried together in West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala-Cynwyd, PA, just outside of Philadelphia (gravesites 1038 for those wishing to visit).

Minnie had seven children, including our grandfather, William Joseph Allen, but only five survived into adulthood.  Her first born, Vallie Chitty Allen, died at 2 months and 15 days, and her fourth, Irwin, died at one year, five months and 16 days.  Even if this was not so uncommon in the era she lived in, the loss of a child at any age surely affected the lives of everyone in her family.

By 1930, Minnie and Charles lived in Haverford, Delaware and Petersburg, Virginia when he spent 12 years working with DuPont Company in chemical and explosives , as well as with the Panama Canal Company.  The chemical explosives industry that the DuPont's were extensively involved in was tied to the mining industry both in the US and world wide.  Explosives and mining seem to go hand in hand, and as the digging and expansion of the Panama Canal involved extensive earth moving, it was a natural tie for the Allen's to be involved in.

It was likely while the family was in Virginia that Minnie's son, William Joseph Allen, my wife's grandfather, met and married his wife, Rosa Kimbrough Vaughan.

Minnie was the fifth child of Benjamin Irwin Chitty and Sarah Emmaline Hall who grew up in south east Alabama along the Chattahoochie river.  Benjamin had been a Lieutenant in the 6th Alabama Infantry, CSA, and fought mainly in the Western theater.  Sarah, while born in Georgia, is identified with "Hall's Landing," an agricultural property along the river, which likely indicates agriculture--meaning cotton.  How and why the family got up to Sheffield in north west Alabama by the time Minnie was born is unknown at this time.

Interestingly, Minnie's husband Charles was descended from William Wirt Allen, a Brigadier General in the Confederate Army, as well as brother-in-law of the Governor of Alabama during the Civil War.  His monument is located in a cemetery in Florence, Alabama, just across the river from her birthplace.

Garland Estes Vaughan 1870-1926

Let me introduce my wife's great grandfather in an unusual way, by showing you his obituary:

Garland Vaughan Shoots Himself; His Burial Today (handwritten July 1926)

Funeral

Will Take Place

From Home And Interment Made In Spring Hill

Funeral services for Garland E. Vaughan, who was found dead in his home Sunday afternoon, with a bullet wound, self-inflicted, through his heart, will be held at the residence, 2123 Rivermont Avenue this morning at 11:00 o’clock with interment in Spring Hill cemetery.  Dr. James D. Paxton, pastor of First Presbyterian Church, of which Mr. Vaughan was a member, a deacon, and a member of the choir, will conduct the services.

Mr. Vaughan, prominent in banking circles and also widely connected with the coal industry, had been told recently that he was suffering with heart and kidney troubles, and this is thought to have contributed to the depression which led to his death.  He stated (sic) at home from church Sunday morning, telling his son, Garland, Jr., to attend services and that he would try to meet him at lunch with his sister, Mrs. David H. Howard.  When he did not come to lunch, the family became uneasy and shortly after 2 o’clock his son and other members of his family drove to the home to find if he was there, telephone calls having been unanswered.  He was found dead on the floor of the guest chamber.

Mr. Vaughan was born in Lynchburg 56 years ago last April (1870).  He entered the People’s Nat’l Bank in 1891, working up to be cashier, from which position he retired seven years ago.  He was later vice-president and director and maintained an active interest in its affairs until his death.  He was a former president of the Virginia Bankers’ Association and was elected to represent that body in the American Bankers’ Association when the Virginia bankers met recently in Roanoke.  He was director in several large coal companies and interested in civic and church life of the city.

He was a member of the Lynchburg school board, the Rotary Club and of it’s male quartet, and was president of the Elks Glee Club.  Some time ago, he presented an organ to Randolph-Macon Women’s College as a memorial to his first wife, who was before her marriage, Miss Marion Jackson, daughter of D.C. Jackson.  They were married in April, 1902 and she died July 10, 1916.

In June, 1924, he was married to Mrs. Elizabeth Penn Seay, who survives him, together with three children by his first wife, Mrs. Joseph C. Allen of Petersburg, Garland E. Vaughan, Jr., and Marian Vaughan, both of Lynchburg.  He leaves also his mother, two sisters, Mrs. D.H. Howard and Mrs. Janie Vaughan Hudson; and two brothers, Estes Vaughan of Lexington and Oscar Vaughan of Atlanta.

Mrs. Vaughan and Marion (sic) were in Washington on their way home from a stay of two weeks in Atlantic City when Mr. Vaughan’s death occurred.  The arrived at 9:10 o’clock Sunday night, Estes Vaughan of Lexington and Mr. and Mrs. Allen of Petersburg, driving through the country by automobile, arriving also about 9 o’clock Sunday evening.

Members of the Elks Glee Club will assemble at the cemetery at 11:30 o’clock to sing at Mr. Vaughan’s funeral, and members of the school board will attend the funeral in a body.

----------------

GARLAND VAUGHAN DIES BY OWN HAND

(handwritten July 18, 1926)

Well Known Banker Kills Self In Home Sunday While There Alone

DID NOT KEEP ENGAGEMENT

Then Relatives Went To His Home To Find Him Lying Dead On Floor

Garland E. Vaughan, 56 years of age, took his own life Sunday morning at his home, 2123 Rivermont avenue (sic), by shooting himself in the heart.  He was found several hours later by members of his family.  At that time an attending physician said Mr. Vaughan had been dead several hours.  No reason was given by Mr. Vaughan for his act, though it was known by members of his family that his physician recently advised him that he was suffering from heart and kidney troubles.

Mrs. Vaughan and the youngest daughter of Mr. Vaughan, Marion (sic), were in Atlantic City at the time and the arrived home last night at 9:10 o’clock, having left Atlantic City, apparently about the time Mr. Vaughan killed himself.

Did Not Go To Church

Although habitual in his attendance upon Sunday school and other services at the First Presbyterian church, of which he was a deacon, treasurer and choir member, Mr. Vaughan told only his son, Garland E. Vaughan, Jr., Sunday morning that he was not feeling well and would not go to Sunday school.  He added that probably he would not attend church service.  Young Mr. Vaughan left home for Sunday school, especting to meet his father for dinner at the home of his aunt, Mrs. D.H. Howard, where he had accepted an invitation to dine with is sister, Mrs. Howard and brother Oscar Vaughan, of Atlanta, Ga., who had come here to visit his mother, Mrs. Lucy G. Vaughan, who recently celebrated the 92^nd anniversary of her birth.

After church services young Mr. Vaughan went to the home of his aunt and later, when his father did not keep his engagement for dinner, he and several members of the family went to the Rivermont avenue (sic) home, where they found Mr. Vaughan lying dead upon the floor of the guest chamber.

Mr. Vaughan was a native of Lynchburg.  He entered the force of the Peoples National Bank in 1891 and worked himself up to the position of cashier, from which he retired seven years ago.  Following that he was elected vice president and a director of that bank and maintained an active interest in its affairs up to his death.

In Bankers Association

At the recent annual convention of the Virginia State Bankers Association at Roanoke, Mr. Vaughan was elected the Virginia representative of the American Bankers Association.  He was a member of the Rotary club and of its male quartet; president of the Elks Glee club and a large holder of coal interests.  He was director of a number of coal companies and was formerly president of the Virginia State Bankers Association.  Several years ago, Mr. Vaughan gave a pipe organ to Randolph-Macon Woman’s College in memory of his first wife.

Mr. Vaughan was keenly interested in the moral and industrial progress of his home city.  He always gave of his time and energy in public spirited movements and drives and, while he made no show of it he was know to his close friends as a man who was given to charity and kindly deeds.

Mr. Vaughan had been very active in building up the public school system as a member of the city school board, of which he had been a member for ten or more years.

Mr. Vaughan is survived by his wife; a son, Garland E. Vaughan, Jr., of this city, and two daughters, Mrs. Joseph C. Allen of Petersburg and Marion (sic) Vaughan of this city; by his mother, Mrs. Lucy G. Vaughan, widow of E.G. Vaughan, two sisters, Mrs. D.H. Howard, of this city and two brothers, Estes Vaughan, of Lexington, and Oscar Vaughan, of Atlanta, Ga.

-------------------------------

OBITUARY

(handwritten July 1926)

Guneral (sic) for G.E. Vaughan.

Funeral services for Garland E. Vaughan, which were held at 11 o’clock this morning from his late home, 2123 Rivermont avenue, were largely attended, a large number of automobiles filled with friends accompany the body to Spring Hill cemetery, where the interment took place.  The floral tributes were unusual in their number.

The services at the home and at the grave were conducted by Rev. Dr. James D. Paxton, pastor of First Presbyterian church.

Dr. Paxton read at the home, by request, the hymn, “Rock of Ages.”  The Elks Glee Club, of which the deceased was president, numbering forty men’s voices, sang “Nearer My God, To Thee,” at the cemetery.

The honorary pallbearers were:  S.D. Ferguson, of Roanoke; E.B. Spencer of Roanoke; W.W. Wood, of Bluefield, W. Va., and A.M. Campbell, R.T. Watts, Jr., E.C. Ivey; W.E. Graves, H.A. Allen; C.S. Nelson; John W. Craddock, Y.P. Marshall, A.P. Craddock, S. P. Craighill, O.B. Barker, R.C. Blackford, Dr. W.B. Thornhill, Dr. George M. Preston, Dr. H. B. Spencer, F. M Dunnington, Charles E. Burks, Thomas S. Kirkpatrick, Giles H.Miller, A. S. White, Richard Hancock, Dr. James Morrison, Dr. Dice R. Anderson, Dr. E.C. Glass, Senator Carter Glass, R. L. Massie, C.S. Adams, C.W. Gooch, N. B. Handy, J.R. Gilliam, Jr., Volney E. Howard, Judge F.W. Whitaker, R.O. Horton, T.G. Hobbs, John T. Morton, A.B. Percey, Dr. A.W. Terrell, George H. Cosby, R. J. Hancock, James E. Cleland, William T. Macleod, J. D. Owen, Julien Addison, Floyd L. Knight, E.E. Rucker, G.D. Moore, W.M. Black, James A. Scott, W.B. Montgomery, J.M Long and J.R. Kyle.

The active pallbearers were:  D.A. Payne, John Victor, James O. Watts, D.M. Pennick, T.P. Jackson and M.K. Duerson.

Flower bearers were:  John L. Caskie, R.C. Watts, W.W. Dickerson, H.L. Campbell, D.L. Lavinder, H. T. Nicholas, W. F. Harwood, Walker Pettyjohn, W.P.Tams, Thomas B. McAdams, Meade Addison, H.H. Harris and E.P. Miller

--------------------------------

Tribute of Respect

At a special meeting of the Board of Deacons of the First Presbyterian Church of Lynchburg, Virginia, held on Friday, the 23^rd day of July 1926, the burden of consideration by the Board and the prayer that we made to Almighty God was for guidance and assistance from Him in our efforts to serve His cause in our efforts since the irreparable loss that has come to this Board and to each individual member of it in the death of Garland E. Vaughan, the Beloved Secretary of this Board and Treasurer of our Church, which occurred on Sunday, July 18^th, 1926.

In attempting to give proper expression of our grief and a statement of our feelings, the following resolutions were unanimously adopted:

WHEREAS, Garland E. Vaughan, during the larger part of his life was an esteemed member of the First Presbyterian Church and was also a most efficient and faithful officer, serving for a number of years as Chairman of this Board, and subsequently for several years also as Church Treasurer, and

WHEREAS, Mr. Vaughan was one who had always at heart a deep interest in the welfare of this Church, was always alert and anxious to serve its interests, was unstinting in his charity towards this Church, giving liberally of his means for its support, of his time and his talents for its advancement and of his prayers for the upbuilding of the kingdom of God in this community and was also a valued member of the Church Choir, and

WHEREAS, Mr. Vaughan was constantly most genial in his disposition and courteous in his treatment of all with whom he came in contact and was beloved by the members of this Church at large,

THEREFORE, Be it resolved by the Board of Deacons of the First Presbyterian Church:

FIRST, That the Board as such and each of its members as individual feels a most profound sense of its loss in the death of Mr. Vaughan as a co-laborer and a leader in the cause which we are striving to serve and that we have lost a close personal friend in whom we had unbounded confidence and for whom our hearts were filled with love.

SECOND, That we desire thus to give to his family and to the public a statement in as simple language as possible, but nevertheless, as full as words will express, of our feeling of sincere sorrow in the loss that has come to each of us.

THIRD, That these resolutions are intended to carry to those bereaved and loved ones at his home a full expression of our sympathy and of the distress that is ours which, because of our close association with him and of the deep affection that we felt for him, we believe will at least approximate their own feelings at this time.

FOURTH, That a copy of these resolutions be presented to his family and that a copy be also published in the Lynchburg Daily News and further that a copy be spread in full on the Minutes of this meeting as a part of the official acts of this Board.

Signed:            FLOYD L. KNIGHT, G.E. CASKIE, JR., Committee     

0000000000000

After reading those details, you know a lot about the man.  He was a great success in life, as far as the standards of earthy success go, and as sad as his end was, it was only one of the many great sadnesses for his family.  His first wife, the love of his life, and my wife's great grandmother, Marian Yancey Jackson, died in 1916 giving birth to a daugther, also named Marian, the namesake of my wife's mother and our daughter.  Not long after his death, his son, Garland, Jr., died tragically in an automobile accident returning home after graduating from college and becoming newly engaged to be married.

Garland was clearly in the financial and social upper crust of the Lynchburg area and probably Virginia as a whole.  One of the evidences of how well to do he and his family were is the large number of quality photos of them.  We have formal wedding portraits of Garland and Marian as well as portraits of all the family members and many informal pictures of children, servants, the home and family members.  By way of remembrances, we also have the diamond brooch that Marian wore on her wedding day as well as the top hat worn by Garland.  Their home on Rivermont Avenue in Lynchburg was clearly the upper crust place to live.  And the resting place he shares with his wife and now daughter in Spring Hill Cemetery in Lynchburg is one of the more prominent and elaborate in the field.  The list of dignitaries in attendance at and participating in the funeral activities is another indicator that this man was considered one of the first citizens of the Central Virginia.  What is amazing is how quickly that status and position in life evaporated for the rest of the family.

The times in which he lived were tumultuous to be sure.  The 1890s saw ups and downs in the banking industry as well as the rapid growth and expansion of the coal industry in Virginia and West Virginia as the industrialization of the United States expanded inexhorably.  He lived through World War I, too old and too involved in the economy to serve personally, not to mention having a family and losing his wife as war approached.  The demand for coal and the resulting financial activity no doubt kept him busily engaged for years after the war. 

Garland lived through the advent of progressivism as one of the staunch members of the capitalist status quo and clearly found himself on the opposite side of labor disputes from others of our ancestors.  He lived through the formation of unions, coal strikes and the Battle of Blair Mountain in the early 20s and no doubt followed developments with intense if not personal interest in the outcome of every question.

Luvina "Vena" Bias 1869-1947

Luvina "Vena" Bias was born in 1869 (some records say 1872) in Cabell County, West Virginia to Evermont James Bias and Eliza F. McComas.  It is through her parents that we are connected to the McComas's who were the first Virginia settlers in the Mud River Valley.  Eliza's grandparents came into the valley in the 1780s and were a part of the conquest of the land from the Iroquios Confederation.  Luvina was also a granddaughter of Hiram Curry, who was also her husband, Ira's, grandfather.

On November 24, 1895, Luvina married Ira G. Bias, her first cousin, and was an old bride for the period at 23 or 26 years of age.  Conflicting data is available on how many children they had, but it was likely that she had 10, including her second, my grandfather Arnold Bias, who was born in 1899.  Though first cousin marriage is now illegal in West Virginia and 23 other states, in the 19th century, the relative isolation of small communities in the draws and valleys of that mountainous region made it much more common.

Luvina died at home in Accoville, Logan County, West Virginia on October 17, 1947 and was buried the next day in Curry Cemetery, Lincoln County, WV.

I don't have firm information, but my suspicion is that Luvina and her husband moved the family to Accoville in Logan County for mining work, possibly as soon as they were married.  My grandfather, Arnold Bias, was born in Buffalo, a village along Buffalo Creek just next to Accoville in 1899 so we know they were in the area by then.  Among the sadnesses in her life were the loss of two of her sons in World War II.  Her son Ray died at Fort Polk, Louisiana of dysentery, and her youngest son Leslie was killed in action on Bouganville in the Marshall Islands fighting the Japanese.  These losses came not long after the 1941 death of her husband, Ira.

If Luvina and her family were in Buffalo Creek/Accoville anytime between 1900 and 1930 they lived in one of the repressive company towns, endured the hardships of coal mine life and lived through the terror of the Battle of Blair Mountain in which hundreds of miners were killed in open combat with strike breakers, deputies, and ultimately federal troops.  The more I read about the times in which they lived, the more amazed I am that they got through it all.

Joressia Dovie Reid Jamison 1866-1943

Joressia Dovie Reid (some listings show the first and middle names reversed), my great grandmother, was born March 28, 1866 in Rich Patch, Virgina, lived her life with her husband and family on their farm on Potts Creek in Alleghany County, Virginia, and died December 20, 1943.  Her father, George Washington Reid and mother Virginia Crush, raised her in the Rich Patch region, the village of Paint Bank.

At 19, she married James Henry Jamison, a 26-year-old farmer and together they had nine children, including my grandmother, Lillie Mae Jamison Tingler, born on the farm in 1888.  Lillie Mae was born second, but was their first child to live beyond infancy.  When her first child died at birth on April 2, 1887, the doctor told Dovie she would not be able to have any more children.  Thankfully that judgment proved to be incorrect as she became the mother of eight more lives.

Dovie, as we're told she preferred to be called, was a great home maker and farm wife.  She was a strong believer in Christ and with her husband James Henry, members and regular participants in the Old Order Dunkard Bretheren church.  Her husband often sermonized at their local congregation in the absence of the circuit riding preacher that served it.  The children they raised report that they were loving but strict in their discipline and that they established high standards.

We know a lot about Dovie because of a pair of excellent articles published in the 1990s by Covington's Virginian Review.  The column titled, "Another View with Leonard Jamison," gives a very comprehensive account of Dovie's wedding, her life on the farm and her philosophies of life, as well as a wistful nostalgic view of her life and extended family.  I will email copies of the two articles I have, dated November 12, 1990 and January 10, 1996, to anyone interested.

A brief extract of the 1990 article:  "Grandma put in as many hours as Grandpa.  In addition to the numerous chores, she did everything from making soap and crocheting bedspreads to organizing quilting bees.  For relaxation, she sat at her little secretariat in the evening, hummed church tunes and wrote letters...."

She participated in the farm work, planting a garden, raising chickens, gathering eggs produce for sale in nearby Covington, milking cows, canning and preserving fruits and vegetables, making whatever was needed around the house and farm.  It seems she never learned to drive, though they had their first car, a Model T Ford, while she was young enough to do so. 

Dovie is buried in a family cemetery across the road from the old family farm on Potts Creek Road, Route 18, south of Covington.

Farming,.. craftsmen,... tradesmen,... and entrepeneurs.

The main focus of this blog is individual members of a typical American family of European immigrants.  However where individual stories are often thin the farther back you go, a much about their lives can be concluded by looking a the society in which they lived.  So from time to time I'm going to include some basic historical information on the times in which family members lived that can give us a better window into their lives.

One thing that struck me on reviewing birth, death and marriage records, census data, and other information is this: almost all of my ancestors prior to 1900 are listed as "farmers."  I realize this kind of generic term would have been widely understood or the census takers wouldn't have used it.  We don't find much in the way of descriptors, such as "tobacco farmer," or the like.  So occupations often have to be guessed at from clues one can pick up on.

Several of our ancestors lived in Shenandoah County, Virginia and the surrounding counties.  This probably indicates that they were largely subsistence farmers, meaning they grew or raised everything they needed to feed their own families, but that many probably raised grain (wheat, oats, barley) for sale.  Throughout the 19th century, the Shenandoah  Valley was such a prolific source of grains for human and animal consumption that it was known as the 'granary' of the South. 

Growing wheat was so widespread that it was in the Valley where Cyrus McCormick developed his famous reaping machine (actually at Steele's Tavern in Rockbridge County).

The region had been dominated by tobacco farming in the 17th and 18th centuries, but methods used at the time required tobacco farmers to constantly find new land since this valuable cash crop quickly exhausted lands it was raised on.

Because of these factors, I suspect that even if our earliest ancestors in America were tobacco farmers, they switched over to other principal crops by the 19th century.

Many of the family farmers moved from northwestern Virgina and southern Maryland into mid- and western West Virginia prior to or around the time of the Civil War.

What skills would a 'farmer' of the 19th century have had.  Obviously the skills to till the soil, plant and harvest crops, probably buying, raising, breeding, slaughtering and processing farm animals such as cows, pigs, goats and sheep, likely the purchase, breeding, and using horses and oxen for farm work and transportation--all of these were needed.  We live in an age where specialization usually divides the various tasks associated into trades or service categories, but it's likely that most everyone had to have basic knowledge and skill in every area, and real specialists were few and far between.

Even lumbering and carpentry, early mineral extraction and blacksmithing were probably much more familiar to all men, though the expense of tools and resources, and the efficiency of specialists caused these areas to specialize earlier than others.

By the mid- to late-19th century, my ancestors were often identified by profession, e.g. carpenter, miner, etc.  Many were still 'farm laborer,' or simply 'laborer.'  Others found the mines of West Virginia a place to earn a living as this industry got started and grew.  West Virginia archives indicate that life and work in the mines was horrifically hard and dangerous.  It's been said that during World War I, U.S. soldiers had better odds of surviving on the front lines than miners did in West Virginia coal mines.  Mine disasters were frequent; hazardous conditions were the norm. In 1907, the Monongah mine explosion claimed the lives of 361 West Virginia miners.  Day-to-day life often resembled serfdom, with management controlling vast swaths of the miners' lives.  

Given that kind of record, it’s not hard to understand my grandfather’s aversion to working in the mines, not to mention the family’s strong pro-union sympathies.  (He was 22 and working in the mines in the 1920s when the Battle of Blair Mountain took place killing hundreds of miners in open warfare.)  Interestingly even today, long after unions have ceased to be needed, many in our family hold these sympathies despite living lives totally different from those of early miners and laborers.  (By the way, mining today is NOTHING like what it used to be--today it's much, much, much safer and as technology dependent as every other form of manufacturing today.)

The advent of the industrial revolution in America came with the expansion of economic activity from the self-sufficient farm to more broadly organized production and exchange of goods and services.  This brought rise to the entrepeurial opportunity on a scale previously uncommon.

Looking at my ancestors career choices, many appear to have done whatever they could to find a better source of income and a better way of life.  In some cases, this meant moving into the exchange market.  My grandfather's roots in Hamlin, West Virginia no doubt saw him grow up in a world of farm work--lots and lots of farm work--until he got old enough to get a job in the mines.  But he and his relatives were widely dissatisfied with the hardships of mine work, so he embarked on an entrepeneurial life in a variety of avenues.  At one time he bought trucks and started a trucking company.  Later he returned to farm life, but with a clear entrepeneurial slant to it as he produced milk for sale to dairies, beef cattle for sale and even other produce for sale from time to time.  I'm still looking for other information on family members participating in entrepeneurial activities but the spirit of the age seems to indicate that many must have.