Charleston WV – The following events happened on these dates in West Virginia history. To read more, go to e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia at www.wvencyclopedia.org.
Feb. 4, 1845: Doddridge County was formed from parts of Harrison, Lewis, Ritchie and Tyler counties. It was named for Philip Doddridge, a Western Virginia congressman, state legislator and member of the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1829–30.
Feb. 4, 1945: The hotel at Minnehaha Springs was destroyed by fire. Built in 1914, it was the first facility in Pocahontas County built strictly for the tourist business and was a forerunner of today’s local tourism economy.
Feb. 4, 1948: Contemporary artist Charles Jupiter Hamilton was born in New Jersey. He moved to West Virginia in 1977. His artwork was exhibited in New York, Miami, Boston, Atlanta, Washington D.C., and the West Virginia State Museum. One of his last works, a large street mural, is on Charleston’s West Side on a street that bears his name.
Feb. 5, 1784: Nancy Hanks (Lincoln), the mother of Abraham Lincoln, was likely born in Hampshire County, Virginia, on Mikes Run at the bottom of New Creek Mountain in what is now Mineral County, although historical records of her early life do not exist.
Feb. 5, 1889: Fiddler and self-taught physician James Franklin “Doc” White was born near Ivydale, Clay County. White served the community as doctor, dentist and midwife, delivering more than 1,800 babies.
Feb. 5, 1890: Coach Eli Camden “Cam” Henderson was born in Joetown, Marion County. He is a revered figure in Marshall University sports history.
Feb. 5, 1941: Actor David Lynn Selby was born in Morgantown. His stage and screen credits include the outdoor drama Honey in the Rock, and the television shows Falcon Crest and Dark Shadows.
Feb. 6, 1732: Revolutionary War general Charles Lee was born in England. Late in his life, during the war, he moved to what is now Jefferson County.
Feb. 6, 1882: Poet Anne Spencer was born Annie Bethel Bannister in Henry County, Virginia. In 1886, she and her mother moved to Bramwell, where she spent most of her childhood and adolescent years.
Feb. 6, 2007: Selva Lewis “Lew” Burdette, a native of Nitro, died in Florida. Burdette was an outstanding major league baseball pitcher who spent most of his career with the Milwaukee Braves. In 18 major league seasons, he won 203 games and lost 144. He was MVP of the 1957 World Series.
Feb. 7, 1867: West Virginia University was established by an act of the West Virginia legislature. The college, originally called the Agricultural College of West Virginia, opened its doors in September 1867.
Feb. 7, 1889: Nell Elizabeth “Pistol Nell” Walker was born at Sewell Mountain. Known as the “First Lady” of Fayette County, she served 12 terms as a member of the House of Delegates.
Feb. 8, 1892: Cartoonist Irvin Dugan was born in Huntington. For many years, his “Adam” cartoon character was a feature on the editorial pages of the Herald-Dispatch.
Feb. 8, 1915: Photographer Volkmar Kurt Wentzel was born in Dresden, Germany. He immigrated with his family to the United States at age 11. As a teenager in West Virginia, Wentzel took up with an eclectic group of people who had retreated to Youghiogheny Forest, a Preston County artists colony.
Feb. 8, 1918: Medal of Honor recipient Herbert Joseph Thomas Jr. was born. He excelled as a football halfback at South Charleston High School, and Herbert J. Thomas Memorial Hospital (now part of WVU Medicine) in South Charleston is named for him.
Feb. 9, 1843: Republican leader Nathan Goff Jr. was born in Clarksburg. In 1888, Goff lost West Virginia’s most controversial gubernatorial election to A. B. Fleming. Goff ’s initial 106-vote majority was challenged by Fleming, and both men were sworn in on inauguration day. The case dragged on until 1890, when Fleming was determined to be the rightful winner.
Feb. 9, 1900: “Aunt Jennie” Wilson was born near Henlawson. Wilson was a Logan County traditional musician, considered a master of clawhammer-style banjo playing.
Feb. 9, 1950: U.S. Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy’s speech to a group of Wheeling Republicans launched the 1950s red scare. McCarthy, a Wisconsin Republican, claimed in his speech to have a list of 205 communists who worked in the U.S. State Department.
Feb. 10, 1904: Jay Legg was shot and killed by his wife, Sarah Ann, in their home in Clay County. The trial, conviction, appeal and acquittal of Sarah Ann led to a popular West Virginia folk ballad, “The Murder of Jay Legg.”
Feb. 10, 2010: Frederick Appleton “Fred” Schaus, West Virginia University basketball All-American, coach, and athletic director, died at age 84 in Morgantown. Schaus coached WVU, 1954-1960, to a 146-37 record, and lost by one point in the 1959 national championship game.
e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia is a project of the West Virginia Humanities Council. For more information contact the West Virginia Humanities Council, 1310 Kanawha Blvd. E., Charleston, WV 25301; (304) 346-8500; or visit e-WV at www.wvencyclopedia.org.
