CAPEHART, James
, lawyer, jurist, congressman, was born on March 7, 1847, in Mason County,
Va. He was president of the county court "of Mason County in 1871-72 and in
1880-85. He was a delegate to the national democratic convention in 1888. In
1891-95 he was a representative from West Virginia
to the fifty-second and fifty-third congresses as a
democrat.
[Herringshaw’s National Library of
American Biography: Contains Thirty-five Thousand Biographies of the
Acknowledged Leaders of Life and Thought of the United States, by William
Herringshaw, 1909 – Transcribed by AFOFG]
Couch Family
George S. Couch, a well-known
citizen of Charleston and a prominent member of the Kanawha county bar, was born
in this city July 31, 1880, a son of George S.
and Laura (McMaster) Couch. He
is a descendant of Samuel Couch, born September 16, 1752, probably in
Pennsylvania and who at an early day was engaged in
tilling land that is now
the site of West Philadelphia. This early ancestor of our subject purchased
several thousand acres of land in Goochland county, Virginia, where he settled
in 1777. At that time he was a large slave holder,but subsequently becoming a
Quaker, he liberated all his slaves. He married, in the old Swedish church at
Philadelphia, Ann Quig, who was born at Mt. Holly, New Jersey, in October, 1754.
They both died in Virginia—possibly in Hanover county at an advanced age. Their
children were: Rebecca Webb, who married Anthony Robinson; Daniel, who is next
in the present line of descent; and Ann Woolston, who married Christopher
Anthony, of Virginia, who was an eminent lawyer. All the members of this family
were of the Quaker faith.
Daniel Couch, son of the
above mentioned Samuel, and great-grandfather qf the subject of this sketch, was
born in Hanover county, Virginia, April 9, 1782. He
there married Sarah
Richardson, who was born June 21, 1782, died November 16, 1852. After their
marriage they came to what is now Mason county, West Virginia,
settling on a
farm which formed a part of the land granted General Washington for his military
services, and lying on the Kanawha river. Here Daniel Couch
spent the rest of
his life engaged in tilling the soil. He was successful in his avocation and
became well known along the Kanawha valley. He died on his
plantation,
December 5, 1824.
James Henry Couch, son of Daniel
and Sarah Couch, and our subject's paternal grandfather, was born in Hanover
county, Virginia, on the old homestead known as
"French Hay," August 3, 1821.
After coming to the Kanawha valley with his father he resided on the farm or
plantation in Mason county, becoming a lawyer and a
man of great influence in
that section. He was a delegate to the secession convention at Richmond in 1861,
held to determine the question as to whether or not Virginia should go out of
the Union. He was opposed to secession, but seeing the tide setting strongly in
that direction, he withdrew before the vote. He died on his estate,
"Longmeadow," where he had spent the last thirty or forty years of his life,
November 24, 1899. Few citizens of Kanawha county were better known, none more
highly esteemed. In politics he was a strong Democrat. He married in Mason
county, Helen J. Waggener, who was born July 5, 1825, and who spent her life in
that county, passing from life's scenes April 25, 1901. She was a daughter of
Colonel Andrew Waggener, who was treacherously killed while riding a horse on
the highway, just after the battle of Point Pleasant, in the civil war. Her
mother, whose maiden name was Attara Bell, survived her husband some
years.
James Henry Couch and wife were the parents
of a large family of children, of whom there are six still living, as follows:
John, a farmer residing in Mason
county, who married a Miss Day, of that
county; George S. Sr., father of our subject: Charles B., an attorney of
Charleston, who married Rachel Brown, of Lewisburg, West Virginia; Samuel,
residing on a farm in Mason county, who married Sallie Miller; Margaret A., wife
of Edward M. Craig, a bookkeeper residing in Charleston, and whose children are
Edward M. J., and Helen Couch Craig; and Frederick A., a dentist practicing his
profession in Raleigh county, West Virginia, who is married and has a
family.
George S. Couch Sr. was
born on the family estate in Mason county, then Virginia, January 1, 1852.
Beginning his education in his native county, he later graduated from the
college at Marietta, Ohio. Subsequently taking up his residence in Charleston,
he was admitted to the bar and has since earned a reputation as an able lawyer.
He first formed a partnership with Charles Hedrick; this firm was later
dissolved and he then became the partner with Edward B. Knight, and for some
twelve or fifteen years thereafter the firm of Knight & Couch was recognized
as the leading law firm of the city. After the death of Mr. Knight, Mr. Couch
retired for a time from the practice of his profession, but later formed the
firm of Couch, Flournoy & Price, which did a good law business for some
years. Mr. Couch then - in 1905 - retired permanently from law practice, and is
now exclusively interested in his fine stock-farm and
plantation that has
come down to him from his father. He was the organizer and up to the time of his
retirement from business the president of the Kanawha National Bank. He is a
Democrat, but has always avoided active participation in politics. His religious
affiliations are with the Presbyterian church. George S. Couch Sr. was married
in Marietta, Ohio, to Laura McMaster, who was born in New York state, of Scotch
ancestry, and daughter of the Rev. James W. and Mary (Baker) McMaster. Her
father, who was a prominent Universalist minister, died in the old Couch home in
Mason county in 1910, being then eighty-nine years of age. His wife had preceded
him to the grave a few years previously. Mrs. Laura Couch received a careful
training and was given a good education by her parents. She is a member of the
Kanawha Presbyterian church. She and her husband have been the parents of three
children, namely: George S. Jr., whose name appears at the head of this sketch;
Mary McMaster, who was educated in the Peebles-Thompson school in New York City,
is the wife of Dr. H. H. Young, of Charleston, and has two children - Mazie
Hopple and William George; and Lucy Richardson, of New York, is the wife of
Henry Edmondson Payne, vice-president of the Payne Shoe Company, and has a son,
Henry E. Jr.
George S. Couch Jr.
was born in Charleston, West Virginia, July 31, 1880, as already noted, and
began his literary education in the city schools. He subsequently attended
school at Lawrenceville, New Jersey, and after graduating there, entered
Princeton University, from which he was graduated in the class of 1903. He then
began the study of law at the University of Virginia and after duly qualifying
himself, was admitted to the bar in 1905. He is now a member of the firm of
Brown, Jackson & Knight, which handles a large amount of important
litigation. In this connection Mr. Couch has proved himself to have a firm grasp
of his profession, and as he is a young man of energy, ability and ambition,
doubtless the future has much in store for him. He is well advanced in Masonry,
belonging to the various branches of the order, including Beni-Kedem Temple of
the Mystic Shrine. In politics he is a
Democrat.
Mr. Couch was married,
December 15, 1909, in Charleston, to Miss Keith Fontaine, who was born in this
city, March 18, 1884, and was here brought up and educated. Her father was Major
Peter Fontaine, who married Mrs. Lydia Laidley, née Whitaker. Both are now
deceased. By her first marriage Mrs. Lydia Fontaine had children. Her first
husband, Captain Richard Q. Laidley, served bravely in the Confederate army as
captain of Kanawha Riflemen, 22d Virginia Regiment. Of the marriage of our
subject and wife there are no children.
[West Virginia and its people, Volume 3 By Thomas Condit
Miller, Hu Maxwell -Transcribed by AFOFG]
English,
Judge John W., B.A.
The Hon. John Warth
English, the subject of this brief memoir, was the son of Job English, one of
the early salt manufacturers of the Great Kanawha Valley, was born in Jackson
County, Virginia, January 31, 1831. When he was four years of age his father
moved to Maiden, Kanawha County, where the son attended the common and select
schools of that locality until he was sixteen years of age, when he was sent to
Illinois College at Jacksonville, Illinois, where he took the complete academic
course, graduating with honors when he was twenty years of age with the degree
of Bachelor of Arts. When he returned home he assisted his father in his store
at the salt furnace for two or three years, while he was reading law under the
tutelage of his uncle, John A. Warth, and Judge George W. Summers, of
Charleston. After becoming qualified he passed the required examination, and in
1855 he was admitted to the Kanawha County Bar. A short time thereafter he
located at Point Pleasant in Mason County, formed a partnership with Henry J.
Fisher, the leading lawyer of that locality, and one of the best known attorneys
in that section of the State. The firm of Fisher and English carried on a very
large legal business not only in Mason County, but in all of the surrounding
counties, until the beginning of the Civil War, when Mr. Fisher went South and
remained until the close of hostilities. Mr. English, however, remained at home
and carried on an extensive practice in Mason and the adjoining counties, in
which he established a reputation as one of the leading lawyers of Western
Virginia. In his practice he was honest in his convictions, honest with the
courts before whom he appeared, and honest with his adversaries. He was an
upright man and was four-square in all of his acts and purposes. Such men are
always successful in their undertakings. Such was his character and reputation
during the many years he was engaged in active practice.
In 1888 he was
nominated by the Democratic party for a seat on the Supreme Court of Appeals of
West Virginia, and was elected by a large majority over the opposing candidate,
and served twelve years with great acceptability to both suitors and attorneys.
He was a man of quiet and retiring disposition and was exceedingly modest in his
demeanor. He engaged but little in the political controversies of the State,
preferring to devote his time and energies to the practice of his profession.
His literary education and studious habits fitted him especially for the
position of a judge. He was honest, industrious and painstaking in all the cases
that came before him during the twelve years he served on the Appellate Court.
Through his entire life his reputation for integrity was never
questioned.
Judge English was a man of marked personal appearance. He was six feet
tall, wore long whiskers, had strong features, a kindly disposition, and would
command attention in any audience. His career as a lawyer and judge was a record
of manliness, complete in every detail.
May 6, 1862, he was
united in marriage with Miss Fannie Lewis, a descendant of General Andrew and
Colonel Charles C. Lewis of the Continental Army, who commanded the American
troops in the historic battle of Point Pleasant against the Indians in 1774. At
this now prosperous town, at the confluence of the Great Kanawha with the Ohio
River, Judge English spent the greater portion of his honorable and
distinguished career, and where on the 18th of July, 1916, in the quietude of a
delightful home, respected by all the people, he disappeared into the "Great
Beyond." No cleaner and purer man ever donned the judicial ermine in this or any
other State. He was a faithful member of the Protestant Episcopal
Church.
[Bench and Bar of West Virginia by George Wesley Atkinson, 1919 -
Transcribed by AFOFG]
Lewis
Family
Andrew Lewis,
the first member of this family of whom we have definite information, lived in
Donegal, Ireland.
His ancestors had taken refuge in Ireland from the
persecution that followed the assassination of Henry IV. He married Mary
Calhoun. Children: Samuel, William, John, referred to below.
(II) John, son of Andrew and Mary (Calhoun) Lewis,
who was the founder of the family in this country, was born in 1673 in France.
He went to Ireland and took up a "freehold lease of three lives" in the county of Donegal, known as Campbell's Manor, belonging
to Sir Mingo Campbell, Lord of Clonmithgaun, a very dissipated man, who, when in
his cups, attempted, with an armed force, to eject Lewis. In the encounter Lewis
slew his landlord, making it necessary for him to flee the country. He went to
Portugal, and then came to America, landing first at Philadelphia, where his
family soon followed him. He moved to Lancaster, and then to Virginia, where he founded the town of Staunton. He
and his family became not only leaders themselves, but a distinguished progeny
perpetuate the name, Virginia's history being rich in stories of the valor of
the family. He married, in 1716, in Scotland, Margaret Lynn, daughter of the
Laird of Loch Lynn. Children: Samuel, born in 1716, unmarried; Thomas, 1718,
married, January 26, 1749, Jane Strother; Andrew, referred to below; William,
1724. married, April 8, 1754, Anne Montgomery; Margaret, 1726, unmarried; Annie,
1728, unmarried; Charles, 1736, married Sarah Murray, half-sister of Colonel
Carrieron of Bath
county.
(III) Andrew, son of John and Margaret (Lynn) Lewis, was born in 1720. He
became a famous general, and married, in 1747, Elizabeth Givens of Augusta county. Children: John, married Patsy Love, of
Alexandria, Virginia; Thomas, referred to below;
Samuel, married Catharine Whitley; Andrew, of the United States army, married
Eliza Madison; William M., April 8, 1754, married Annie
Montgomery.
(IV) Thomas, son of Andrew and Elizabeth
(Givens) Lewis, settled in Mason county, on lands
bequeathed to him in his father's will. He was killed by falling from a horse.
He married Sallie, daughter of George Thornton, and he and his wife were both
dead prior to a deed of the heirs of Thomas Lewis, dated April 24, 1830, of
record in Mason county (liber G. page 444), in
which the heirs of Thomas Lewis are named. Children of Thomas and Sallie
(Thornton) Lewis (from the deed of record in Kanawha county of date July 27, 1820): Thomas, married Eliza
Beale; Andrew, referred to below; William, married Penelope Lane: Evans, married
Delilah Amos; Samuel, married Katharine Wallace of Indiana, sister of General
Lew Wallace.
(V) Andrew, son of Thomas and Sallie
(Thornton) Lewis, married Jennie Boswell. Children: William, married Dianna
Flowers of Jackson county; Pallas S., referred to
below; Samuel, married Mary Greer, of Jackson county; Columbus, married Sarah Brown of Jackson
county.
(VI) Pallas S., son
of Andrew and Jennie (Boswell) Lewis, was born in 1823. He married, in 1848,
Hannah, daughter of William and Susie (Daughty) Barnett, who was born in 1831.
Children: Andrew Elsworth, 1?rn in 1849; William Edgar, 1852; now deceased;
James C., 1854: Henry Clay, 1858; John Frank, referred to below: Ñorah, now
deceased; Agnes, 1862, now deceased; Eva, 1865, now
deceased.
(VII) John Frank, son of Pallas S. and
Hannah (Barnett) Lewis, was born in Mason county, West
Virginia, January 26, 1860. He received his early education in the public
schools. He then took up farming and was deputy-sheriff and warden of Mason
county jail until 1904, when he was appointed
postmaster at Point Pleasant, which position he now holds. He is a Republican in
politics. He has been a member of the school board for eight years, and is a
member of the Knights of Pythias; the American Mechanics; Modern Woodmen of
America, and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He married, in 1890, in
Gallipolis, Ohio, Margaret M., daughter of Paul and Mary Schools, born in 1863.
Children: Mary; Hannah, now deceased; Harry; Sallie Barbee; Katie.
[West Virginia and its people, Volume 3 By
Thomas Condit Miller and Hu Maxwell - Transcribed by
AFOFG]
Moore,
Judge Charles Page Thomas, M.A.
The Supreme Court
Bench has had upon it few, if any, more gifted and popular wearers of the
judicial ermine than the one whose kindly eyes face this brief biographical
sketch. Since the early days of the State's existence, when party lines were
sponged out by the overshadowing issue of National preservation, has any party
candidate been more generally indorsed by the people than Judge Moore.
He was the youngest of
three children from the marriage of Thomas Moore and Augusta Delphia Page, both
of Shenandoah Valley, Virginia. His parents died when he was young. He was born
February 8, 1831, and was adopted by his uncle, George Moore, and was taken to
Mason County, on the Ohio River, who gave him a broad and liberal education. He
first attended Marshall College, Cabell County, Virginia; then at Jefferson
College, Pennsylvania, and at Union College, New York, graduating from the
latter in July, 1853, with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He afterwards took
the prescribed law course at the University of Virginia, and in 1856 he was
admitted to the Bar of Mason County Circuit Court. In 1858 he was elected
Prosecuting Attorney of that county, serving in that capacity until the
beginning of the Civil War. He vigorously opposed secession, although he was a
Democrat in his political affiliations. In 1868 he was a candidate for Congress,
but failed of election.
In 1870 he was elected
on the Democratic ticket as one of the judges of the Supremo Court of Appeals of
West Virginia for the term of twelve year's, but by the adoption of the State
Constitution of 1872 his term was made to expire December 31, 1872. He was
nominated for the same office at the following general election, and was
overwhelmingly re-elected by the people. In the allotment provided by the
Constitution of 1872, he drew the full term of twelve years. In 1881, owing to
failing health, and after having rendered most faithful and efficient service
for about ten years, he resigned from that high position, and thereafter adopted
the more quiet and congenial life of the farm left to him by his uncle near
Elwell, Mason County, in the splendid Ohio Valley, where he remained until his
death.
Judge
Moore wedded Miss Urilla K., daughter of Jacob A. Kline of Mason County, by whom
he had four daughters. He loved the people and they revere his memory. No taint
ever rested upon his private or public life. He was one of the most genial and
generous of men, and was a man of marked personal appearance.
[Bench
and Bar of West Virginia by George Wesley Atkinson, 1919 - Transcribed by
AFOFG]
POLSLEY, Daniel
Haymond
(1803—1877)
POLSLEY, Daniel Haymond, a Representative from West
Virginia; born at Palatine, near Fairmont, Va. (now West Virginia), November 28,
1803; attended the country schools; completed preparatory studies; studied law;
was admitted to the bar in 1827 and commenced practice in Wellsburg, Brooke
County, Va. (now West Virginia); edited the Western Transcript 1833-1845; moved
to Mason County in 1845 and engaged in agricultural pursuits and practiced law;
member of the Wheeling loyal conventions of May 13 and June 11, 1861; chosen
Lieutenant Governor of the "restored government" of the State of Virginia in
1861; judge of the seventh judicial district of West Virginia 1863-1866; elected
as a Republican to the Fortieth Congress (March 4, 1867-March 3, 1869); was not
a candidate for renomination in 1868; resumed the practice of his profession;
died in Point Pleasant, Mason County, W.Va., October 14, 1877; interment in Lone
Oak Cemetery.
[Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present -- Contributed
by Anna Newell]
Polsley, Judge
Daniel
Daniel Polsley,
Congressman, Judge, Lieutenant-Governor, was born at Palatine, Marion County,
Virginia, November 3, 1803. His father was of German descent, and his mother a
sister of the grandfather of Judge Alpheus F. Haymond, formerly a Judge of the
Supreme Court of West Virginia. His early education was obtained while assisting
in clearing and improving the farm. He studied law, and attended the lectures of
Judge Tucker, in Winchester, Virginia. After his father's death, he removed to
Wellsburg, in Brooke County, and soon gained an enviable reputation at the Bar.
In 1827, he wedded Eliza V. Brown, niece of the celebrated Philip Doddridge, and
granddaughter of Captain Oliver Brown, an officer in the Revolutionary War. In
connection with his profession, in 1833, he edited and published the "Western
Transcript," a Whig paper. This he continued until 1845, when he retired from
law practice, sold out his printing office, and moved to a 1,200-acre farm on
the Ohio river, opposite Racine, Ohio, engaging in agriculture, as more
congenial to his unpretentious nature. In the turbulent days of 1861, he was not
allowed to longer remain in quiet life, and was elected a member from Mason
County of the Wheeling Convention to Restore the State Government. Upon its
restoration, he was made Lieutenant-Governor. In 1862, he was chosen Judge of
the Seventh Circuit of Virginia, and over the same counties in West Virginia
afterwards, ably presiding until 1866, when he was elected to the Fortieth
Congress from the Third District. At the end of his term, he located at Point
Pleasant, where he died October 14, 1877. Unostentatious, yet able, honest, and
active, he was a force in the early days of our Statehood.
[Bench and Bar of
West Virginia by George Wesley Atkinson, 1919 - Transcribed by
AFOFG]
Withers, John
William
Ben Lomond, W.Va
Withers, John
William, educator, college president and author of St. Louis, Mo., was born
Sept. 23, 1868, in Ben Lomond, W.Va. Since 1905 he has been president of the St.
Louis teachers' college. He is the author of Euclid's Parallel
Postulate.
[Herringshaw's American Blue-Book of Biography by Thomas William
Herringshaw and American Publishers' Association, 1914, Transcribed by
AFOFG]
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