Doddridge County
Turned 179 Years Old
Part 2 of 3
Last week we covered the formation and some of the early founders of Doddridge County. We didn’t discuss what kind of environment they survived in and indeed, many thrived in. What are the geographical and physical characteristics of our county? What of Lewisport and our county seat, West Union? What was the first religious meeting like? Did you ever hear of the great fire of 1858 in West Union, or the disastrous tornado of 1833? This is a brief description due to the lack of space for in-depth details. For more details, check your local library or search the internet. The stories of limitless, it would seem.
questions. Let’s dig into that.
The story goes that Lewisport was located on the east side of the old, covered bridge, across Middle Island Creek. After more and more homes began to be built on the west side of the bridge, in what is now considered West Union Proper, a disagreement arose between the two settlements. The citizens of the west side (West Union) were unhappy with the name Lewisport. The reason for their dissatisfaction is not known, but they assembled and agreed to call the settlement West Union. Considering that it was the uniting of these two settlements, it was a fitting name for the new consolidated town.
The first blacksmith was Ephraim Bee. The first hotel was opened in the summer of 1839 by Lawson B. Maulsby. He and Silas B. Ogdon established the first tannery on the banks of Middle Island Creek. The town was laid out by Ethelbert Bond. The first school was taught by Henry Miller of Clarksburg.
The coming of the railroad in 1856 was probably one of the most instrumental factors in the development of this county. It allowed farmers to drive their cattle and other livestock to local stockyards and ship them many hundred miles to eastern markets which required many weeks of hard travel and labor.
The cattle market, as well as the manufacture of cross ties and other products of the virgin forests became very profitable and was one of the principal industries up until the time of the oil and gas industry.
The first glass factory, known as the Ideal Glass Factory, was established just east of West Union in 1906. It was followed by the Doddridge County Window Glass Factory. The businesses remained in operation for about fifteen years. The businesses were a result of the natural gas business since it required huge quantities of natural gas for the operation of a glass factory. The glass factories employed surplus labor. After the industry had ceased to be profitable, due to changes in the method of the manufacture of plate glass, many of the people who had come to Doddridge County to work in the factories remained here and established homes within our county and pursued other lines of work.
During the winter of 1846, the Rev. Samuel Archbold, a Methodist minister, and Jacob Yeater, of the Christian Church, met here and decided to hold a series of union meetings. Josiah H. Bee was said to have come forward and asked to be baptized. Through the snow and 12” of ice, Bee was baptized in Middle Island Creek. He is credited to have been the first citizen to be baptized in West Union.
On June 3, 1833, a tornado tore a path from Sistersville in Tyler County and then made its way through Doddridge, Lewis, Upshur, and Randolph Counties. The trees were uprooted, and many buildings were scattered. Doddridge County’s Joseph Davis was killed when his home was struck.
On March 27, 1858, while many of the citizens were attending court in Clarksburg, a fire burned through most of the town of West Union. The town worked together and rebuilt even better than before.
Then, in January of 1907, the Castlebrook Carbon Black Co. burned resulting in $50,000 in damages. Again in 1922, yet another devastating fire tore through West Union’s business section.
Of course, in our lifetime, we remember the great death and devastation brought by the 1950 flood. Smithburg and West Union were the greatest impacted, but the flood brought great devastation to Doddridge, Harrison, Lewis, Ritchie, and Tyler along with other counties caught up in its path.
Doddridge County is often referred to as “the historic little town in a bottle” and “the town that never changes”. It has been both a gift and a curse. Today, our officials struggle with the need for modernization and expansion versus the importance of maintaining our heritage. The right and the wrong of each will be left to better minds than mine. The best we can do is to continue to support our opinions on the matter and to remember that the level ground is the fact that we all love Doddridge County and want what is best for it.
Let us remember history teaches us that there is no undoing of some of the actions taking place right now. We can only hope that the choices our officeholders are making are the correct ones for our future and for our past.
God Bless
Patricia Richards Harris
Doddridge County Historical Society