Story of Origin:
My immigrant ancestors, Rhinehart Dumire (Tomire) and his wife Louisa (?) immigrated to America in 1799 along with their young son John, whose line from which I am descended. They settled in Funkstown, MD for one year prior to moving to Tucker County in 1800 at the top of Location Road on Stemple Ridge between St. George and Aurora. Rhinehart, who had been a whaler from the Palatinate Region of Germany became a farmer. Rhinehart and Louisa are buried in a small cemetery right beside Location Road on the land now owned by the Pifer family.
Rhinehart’s son Daniel J. continued to operate the farm while his brother John started his own farm on Minear’s Mill Run in St. George where his log home still stands. It is the oldest standing house in Tucker County. John’s son Daniel continued to farm on Mill Run and was followed by his son, my grandfather Wilson, until he decided to give up farming and moved to Thomas in the early 1930’s with his daughter Ethel who taught at the former Central School across from The Davis Coal & Coke Co. Administrative Office.
Wilson had my father, Paul Dyhre Dumire who started working for Davis Coal & Coke out of the Administrative Office as a civil engineer. He lived to see the mergers and name changes of the company during his time being: Western Maryland Railway Field Office, then Chessie System, then CSX and finally CSX Transportation. Father worked his way up in the company and ended his career as the last Administrator of the Thomas railway office before it closed in 1985. Mother worked in the audit department of the central Buxton & Landstreet Co. Store until she became pregnant with my older sister.
I graduated from Mountaineer High School in 1970 and then went on for a higher education at WVU. My first job was at Canaan Valley State Part at the golf course during the summer and as manager of the ski shop during the winter. At this point I spent forty years away having spent twenty years in commercial banking and twenty more in the housing industry. Upon retirement I moved back to Thomas and purchased a house down the street from where I grew up and began spending my time volunteering for non-profit organizations and working in the garden. I have also successfully done the work of placing the Buxton & Landstreet Co. Store, and the National Bank of Davis on the National Register of Historic Places.
Oppose or Support the Ridgeline Project:
I adamantly oppose the Ridgeline Project. I reject the cloud of secrecy that has surrounded the project from the beginning. This causes fear of the true intentions of the developers and the true impact on our beautiful county. I reject the significant air pollution Ridgeline will bring, the negative impact of Walmart type lighting on our dark skies initiative, the noise pollution created by the constant humming sound, the massive water use when we don’t have the capacity to locally provide that amount of water especially considering the drought of the past two years, the potential for leaking valves from the oil storage tanks, and the size of the operation considering 10,000 acres equals 15.625 square miles. Approximately 140-150 years later we are still paying for the damage caused by coal mines which produced acid mine drainage, and ground collapses due to failing mine voids. Let’s not allow something similar to happen with Ridgeline. Buyer beware.
Other Thoughts:
Having grown up in Thomas, I learned early on to appreciate our crystal-clear trout streams, safe drinking water, the beauty of our dense forests and abundant wildlife, the comfort of our mountain climate, the ability to hike in our beautiful forests, and the intimacy and caring of our small communities.
The State and Federal government are both doing a good job of taking away our rights as American citizens to determine our own destiny and forcing their desires down our throats instead of listening to the voice of the people. They are destroying environmental regulations which protect not only the local environment but also the world environment. They are taking away our right to freedom of speech. They are seizing our land for projects we don’t want. They are taking away our right to vote. They are destroying Democracy. This is scary. I sincerely fear we are headed to a dictatorship in this country. God help us all.
Others to Speak With:
Friends of Blackwater, West Virginia Rivers Coalition, Friends of Cheat, Sierra Club, West Virginia Highlands Conservancy.
Joseph Wilson Dumire
Thomas
