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.
- Jan. 15, 1799: Monroe County was established. It was named for James Monroe, the newly inaugurated governor of Virginia and later president of the United States.
- Jan. 15, 1836: Braxton County was created from Kanawha, Lewis, and Nicholas counties. It was named for Carter Braxton, a Virginia statesman and a signer of the Declaration of Independence.
- Jan. 15, 1848: Hancock County was established and named for statesman John Hancock.
- Jan. 16, 1850: Lawman Dan Cunningham was born in Jackson County. His remarkable career involved him in the Hatfield-McCoy Feud, the West Virginia Mine Wars, and the destruction of moonshine stills.
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Ephraim Franklin Morgan Jan. 16, 1869: Ephraim Franklin Morgan was born in Marion County. Morgan, a Republican, was governor during the tumultuous West Virginia Mine Wars.
- Jan. 17, 1956: Musician Blind Alfred Reed died. He was a street singer and fiddler from Pipestem, Summers County.
- Jan. 18, 1842: Wayne County was established from part of Cabell County. It was named for General ‘‘Mad Anthony’’ Wayne, a Revolutionary War hero who later defeated Ohio Indian tribes at the 1794 Battle of Fallen Timbers.
- Jan. 19, 1818: The Virginia General Assembly established Preston County from part of Monongalia County. The new county was named for James Patton Preston, then governor of Virginia.
- Jan. 19, 1844: The Virginia General Assembly established Taylor County from parts of Barbour, Harrison, and Marion counties. The county was named in honor of U.S. Sen. John Taylor, a soldier-statesman from Caroline County, Virginia.
- Jan. 19, 1848: Wirt County was created by the General Assembly of Virginia from portions of Wood and Jackson counties. It was named for William Wirt, Virginia statesman and a presidential candidate in 1832.
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Stonewall Jackson Jan. 20-21, 1824: West Virginia’s most famous soldier, Thomas Jonathan Jackson, was born near midnight in Clarksburg. When Virginia left the Union in 1861, Jackson dutifully went with his native state. He commanded the strategically important post at Harpers Ferry until being appointed a brigadier general of infantry. In the opening battle at Manassas on July 21, 1861, he won the name ‘‘Stonewall’’ for steadfastness at the critical point in the engagement.
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.