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Mineral County History and Information

Mineral County Facts

See D.O.T. Maps for a Detailed County Map

Mineral County was created from Hampshire County by an act of the General Assembly on February 1, 1866. The county was named in honor of its abundant minerals.

County Seat - In 1752, Christopher Beelor purchased land, including a portion of present-day Keyser, from Lord Fairfax. He became the area's first, permanent English settler. However, a roving band of hostile Indians forced him to abandon the area in 1773. He died in 1774. His widow, Mary, inherited the land and soon returned to the area with her new husband, George Kyger. When he died in 1807, Mary sold her farm to James Mosley of Baltimore for 2,000 pounds. The other part of the land on which Keyser is currently located was originally owned by Abram Inskeep. He granted it Patrick McCarthy in 1802. McCarthy was one of the earliest settlers in the area, arriving in 1780. After he purchased the land, the area became known as Paddy's Town. The McCarthy family soon became the most prominent in the region, owning and operating the general store, several mills, and an iron foundry. In 1852, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad extended into the region and the town's name was changed to New Creek.

During the Civil War, Keyser served as a key supply point and reportedly changed hands fourteen times between 1861 and 1864. The town's name was changed to Keyser to honor William Keyser, vice-president of the railroad, when it was incorporated in 1874. J. T. Hoke was elected Keyser's first mayor. In 1913, Keyser and South Keyser were merged, creating the city of Keyser. Richard Welch won the city's first mayoral election.

Nancy Hanks, Abraham Lincoln's mother, was born on February 5, 1784 on the Doll farm on Mike's Run, near Keyser. She died on October 5, 1818, at the age of thrity-four, in Indiana.

See also Extended History for more historical details.

Areas adjacent to Mineral County are Allegany County, Maryland (north), Hampshire County (east), Grant County (south), Garrett County, Maryland (west). Mineral County Cities and Towns Include Burlington, Carpendale, Elk Garden, Fort Ashby, Keyser, New Creek, Piedmont, Ridgeley, Short Gap, Wiley Ford

Official County Government/ Community Website
Mineral County, West Virginia History Books at Amazon.com
Family History Library - The largest collection of free family history, family tree and genealogy records in the world.

Mineral County Court Records

See Also West Virginia Land Records, Marriage Records, Court & Probate Records

PLEASE READ!! Please call the clerk's department to confirm hours, mailing address, fees and other specifics before visiting or requesting information because of sometimes changing contact information.

Mineral County Clerk has Land Records from 1866, Marriage Records from 1866, Probate Records from 1866 and Birth & Death Records from 1866 -Present and is located at the Courthouse, 150 Armstrong Street, Keyser, WV 26726; 304-788-3924, Fax: 304-788-4109.
The County Clerk's many duties include some of the following: the issuance of marriage licenses, birth and death certificates, record births, marriages and deaths in the county, serve as the recorder of all documents, prepare and send to all heirs a Notice to Redeem and take care of publications, redemptions or recording deeds with regard to delinquent property, issue military service discharge records and probate wills and assist in administration of estates.

Mineral County Clerk of Circuit Court has Court Records from 1866 and is located at the Courthouse, 150 Armstrong Street, Keyser, WV 26726-3597; 304-788-1562, Fax: 304-788-4109.
The County Clerk of the Circuit Court's many duties include some of the following: Serve as the Clerk to the Circuit and Family Court, Issue mesne (during the progress of a case) process, Issue final process to enforce and execute judgements, Appoint guardian ad litem where required, Responsible for all papers filed in the office; serve as registrar, recorder and custodian for all pleadings, documents and funds pertaining to cases filed in circuit court and family court, Responsible for the administration and management of the petit and grand jury systems in the county.

Since West Virginia was part of Virginia prior to 1863, see Virginia Databases for all records before that date.

Click Here to Search West Virginia Court, Land, Wills & Financial Records! - Researchers often overlook the importance of court records, probate records, and land records as a source of family history information.

Below is a list of online resources for Mineral County Court Records. Email us with websites containing Mineral County Court Records by clicking the link below:

West Virginia Marriage Records, 1863-1900
Mineral County, West Virginia Court Books at Amazon.com
West Virginia Immigration & Emigration Records - Immigration records help the family historian to understand the movements of their ancestry as they relocated to different parts of the world.

Mineral County Vital Records

See Also Research In Tax Records

While people were taxed in Virginia prior to 1782, not many tax lists for that early period have survived, and the originals that have survived are at the Virginia State Library. Colonial period taxes were imposed on the personal property of males who were twenty-one and older, and called "tithables." While there is no comprehensive list or collection of early tax lists, many fragments are printed throughout Virginia genealogical literature

West Virginia has one of the most complete sets of old tax records in existence. Land tax records dating from 1782 to 1936 for all counties, with some through 1959, are available at the Archives and History Library in Charleston. Most county clerks have duplicate copies in their offices. As noted in the section on Virginia, the Virginia State Library has the original unindexed personal property tax records from 1782 to 1863.

Below is a list of online resources for Mineral County Tax Records. Email us with websites containing Mineral County Tax Records by clicking the link below:

Mineral County, West Virginia Tax Books at Amazon.com

Mineral County Genealogical Addresses

The Repositories in this section are Archives, Libraries, Museums, Genealogical and Historical Societies. Many County Historical and Genealogical Societies publish magazines and/or news letters on a monthly, quarterly, bi-annual or annual basis. Contacting the local societies should not be over looked. State Archives and Societies are usually much larger and better organized with much larger archived materials than their smaller county cousins but they can be more generalized and over look the smaller details that local societies tend to have. Libraries can also be a good place to look for local information. Some libraries have a genealogy section and may have some resources that are not located at archives or societies. Also, take a special look at any museums in the area. They sometimes have photos and items from years gone by as well as information of a genealogical interest. All these places are vitally important to the family genealogist and must not be passed over.

Below is a list of online resources for Mineral County Genealogical Addresses. Email us with websites containing Mineral County Genealogical Addresses by clicking the link below:

Mineral County Historical Society, Inc., P. O. Box 1325, Keyser, WV 26726
Mineral County Genealogical-Historical Society, 107 Orchard Street, Keyser, WV 26726
Local West Virginia Researchers, Find a local researcher or become a local researcher.
West Virginia Archives and History, The Cultural Center; 1900 Kanawha Boulevard, E.; Charleston, WV 25305-0300. Read here before requesting research
Publication: West Virginia History. This facility consists of the library, archives, and a museum containing materials from 1760 to present.
West Virginia Genealogical Society, Post Office Box 249, Elkview, West Virginia 25071
West Virginia Historical Society, PO Box 5220, Charleston, WV 25361
West Virginia Newspapers & Periodicals Records - Newspapers and periodicals are the diaries of local communities. They are excellent sources of family history details - often recorded nowhere else. Look for obituaries, marriages, legal notices, and more found in our Historical Newspaper Archives.
West Virginia Genealogical Society Books at Amazon.com

Mineral County Church & Cemeteries

Click Here to Search West Virginia Obituary Records! - This database is a compilation of obituaries published in U.S. newspapers, collected from various online sources. Obituaries can vary in the amount of information they contain, but many of them are genealogical goldmines, including information such as names, dates, places of birth and death, marriage information, and family relationships.

There are many churches and cemeteries in Mineral County. Some transcriptions are online. A great site is the Mineral County Tombstone Transcription Project.

Many religious groups have deposited their records at the West Virginia and Regional History Collection. Church record inventories compiled as part of the Historical Records Survey are available there and at the FHL. For a complete discussion of early church records, see Virginia-Church Records.

The most extensive collection of West Virginia tombstone inscriptions was compiled by the Historical Records Survey. Available at the West Virginia and Regional History Collection and on microfilm at the FHL, the collection includes inscriptions through 1939-40. The DAR and others have published volumes of cemetery records.

Below is a list of online resources for Mineral County Cemetery & Church Records. Email us with websites containing Mineral County Cemetery & Church Records by clicking the link below:

Find Obituaries in The World's Largest Newspaper Archive at NewpaperArchive.com! - Find thousands of West Virginia obituaries to help you research your family history. Search for a West Virginia newspaper obituary about your ancestor or a celebrity. Begin your search today and find death notices and funeral announcements printed in newspapers from West Virginia.
West Virginia Cemetery Readings, 1941
Mineral County, West Virginia Cemetery Books at Amazon.com
Mineral County, West Virginia Church Books at Amazon.com

Family Trees & Genealogy Tidbits

Click Here to Search West Virginia Family Tree Records! - The use of published genealogies, electronic files containing genealogical lineage, and other compiled sources can be of tremendous value to a researcher.

When view family trees online or not, be sure to only take the info at face value and always follow up with your own sources or verify the ones they provide. Below is a list of online resources for Mineral County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information. Email us with websites containing Mineral County Family Trees, web forums and other family type information by clicking the link below:

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Sites on USGenweb: [ Mineral County ] [ West Virginia ] [ Main Page ]
[GenForum Message Boards] [Rootsweb Message Boards]
Genealogy Encyclopedia: General Abbreviations, Early Illnesses, Nickname Meanings, Worldwide Epidemics, Early Occupations, Common Terms, Censuses Explained, Free Genealogical Forms
Nichols and Related Families of Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virgina.
West Virginia Family & Local History Records - The Family & Local Histories Collection lets you read journals, memoirs, and other first-hand historical narratives right on your computer. Gathered from some of the world's finest libraries, these materials may provide hard-to-find town, county, and state information; tax records and wills; military, church, and court records; as well as photographs, stories, and maps.
Genealogical Document Search and Retrieval Service
Mineral County, West Virginia Family Books at Amazon.com

County History

The First Settlers

The first native settlers in West Virginia's Potomac Highlands (Grant, Hampshire, Hardy, Mineral, Pendleton, Pocahontas, Randolph, and Tucker counties) were the Mound Builders, also known as the Adena people. Remnants of the Mound Builder's civilization have been found throughout West Virginia, with many artifacts found in the Northern Panhandle, especially in Marshall County.

The following is a brief history overview:

• Several thousand Hurons occupied present-day West Virginia during the late 1500s and early 1600s.
• During the 1600s, the Iroquois Confederacy (then consisting of the Mohawk, Onondaga, Cayuga, Oneida, and Seneca tribes) drove the Hurons from the state and used it primarily as a hunting ground.
• During the early 1700s, the Shawnee, Mingo, Delaware, and other Indian tribes also used present-day West Virginia as a hunting ground. West Virginia's Potomac Highlands was inhabited by the Tuscarora. They eventually migrated northward to New York and, in 1712, became the sixth nation to formally be admitted to the Iroquois Confederacy. The Cherokee Nation claimed southern West Virginia.
• In 1744, Virginia officials purchased the Iroquois title of ownership to West Virginia in the Treaty of Lancaster.
• The Delaware, Mingo, and Shawnee sided with the French during the French and Indian War (1755-1763). The Iroquois Confederacy officially remained neutral, but many in the Iroquois Confederacy allied with the French.
• When the French and Indian War was over, England's King George III feared that more tension between Native Americans and settlers was inevitable. In an attempt to avert further bloodshed, he issued the Proclamation of 1763, prohibiting settlement west of the Allegheny Mountains. The Proclamation was, for the most part, ignored.
• During the summer of 1763, Ottawa Chief Pontiac led raids on key British forts in the Great Lakes region. Shawnee Chief Keigh-tugh-qua, also known as Cornstalk, led similar raids on western Virginia settlements. The uprisings ended on August 6, 1763 when British forces, under the command of Colonel Henry Bouquet, defeated Delaware and Shawnee forces at Bushy Run in western Pennsylvania.
• In 1768, the Iroquois Confederacy (often called the Six Nations) and the Cherokee signed the Treaty of Hard Labour and the Treaty of Fort Stanwix, relinquishing their claims on the territory between the Ohio River and the Alleghenies to the British.
• In April 1774, the Yellow Creek Massacre took place near Wheeling. Among the dead were Mingo Chief Logan's brother and pregnant sister. Violence then escalated intoLord Dunmore's War.
• On October 10, 1774, Colonel Andrew Lewis and approximately 800 men defeated 1,200 Indian warriors led by Shawnee Chief Cornstalk at the Battle of Point Pleasant, ending Lord Dunmore's War.
• The Mingo and Shawnee allied with the British during the American Revolutionary War (1776-1783). One of the more notable battles occurred in 1777 when a war party of 350 Wyandot, Shawnee, and Mingo warriors, armed by the British, attacked Fort Henry, near present-day Wheeling. Nearly half of the Americans manning the fort were killed in the three-day assault. Following the war, the Mingo and Shawnee, once again allied with the losing side, returned to their homes in Ohio. As the number of settlers in the region grew, both the Mingo and the Shawnee move further inland, leaving western Virginia to the white settlers.

Mineral County's European Pioneers and Settlers

John Lederer, a German physician and explorer employed by Sir William Berkeley, colonial governor of Virginia, is believed to be the first Englishman to set foot in present-day Mineral County. He explored the area in 1669.

In 1736, Lord Fairfax sent a eight-man surveying party, under the leadership of Major William Mayo, to explore his land holdings. It is believed that Mayo traveled through present-day Mineral County. In 1746, Thomas Lewis led another surveying party, which included Peter Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson's father, into the Potomac Highlands to establish the boundaries of Lord Fairfax's land holdings. They also passed through present-day Mineral County.
One of the earliest settlers in Mineral County was a farmer named Brown. George Washington mentions Brown in his diary when he traveled through the county in 1748 as part of Thomas Lewis's survey team that was sent to the area to survey Lord Fairfax's land holdings.

Important Events in Mineral County during the 1700s and 1800s

In 1750, the Ohio Company, formed to secure British rights to the Ohio Valley, established a large storehouse in present-day Ridgeley. The Ohio Company's efforts to open trade with the Indians and encourage settlement in the Ohio Valley played a part in the outbreak of the French and Indian War (1754-1763).

Most of Mineral County's settlers left the area during the French and Indian War. In 1755, then-Colonel George Washington ordered the construction of a stockade and fort on the east side of Patterson's Creek in present-day Mineral County to protect any remaining settlers in the area from Indian attacks and the supply line between Fort Loudoun in Winchester, Virginia and Fort Cumberland. The Fort (later called Ashby's Fort, in honor of Colonel John Ashby who commanded the militia stationed there for many years) came under attack on April 15, 1756 by, in Ashby's words, a "vast number of Indians." The Indians tried to coax Ashby to leave the Fort and fight, but Ashby wisely refused to engage the Indians directly. Recognizing that they could not breech the Fort's walls, the Indians left the area. It is believed that these same Indians were the ones that three days later attacked and killed sixteen soldiers stationed at Fort Edwards, near present-day Capon Bridge in
Hampshire County.

Mineral County residents generally sided with the Confederacy during the Civil War, though there were pockets of Union support, especially New Creek and Piedmont.