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I started my research when my brother got the internet and emailed a distant cousin on my mother's side. This cousin sent my brother the Maynor family research and my brother in turn sent it to me. I started going to our public library which has a great genealogy department. They have microfilm of censuses of all the southern states, which included West Virginia. I started tracing my lines back using those census records and going online. Some things I could not find here in Florida, so I decided I had to do court records research.
My mother, Jane, my sister, Pat and I left in August 2000 for my aunt's house in Montgomery Co., VA. It just so happened that she lived in the county where Jewells and Halls lived and next to the county (Floyd) where Epperlys and other lines had lived. The three of us did research at the courthouse in each county. We got quite a lot of information.
We then visited my mother's aunt, Shirley, who lives in Fayette County, WV. We spent a day in the courthouse there and a day in the Raleigh County courthouse.One day we took Shirley with us and went cemetery hunting. We found the Davis Cemetery where Shirley's grandparents are buried. These would be my great-greatgrandparents, Alexander and Isabel Craddock. I took us a while to find it. We also went to the cemetery that is above the old homeplace where my mom and Shirley grew up, the Maynor-Craddock Cemetery. Aunt Shirley said "I've lived here all my life and I've been places today I've never been to before!" Below are some pictures taken on that trip.
In August of 2001 my mom and I went to West Virginia and stayed with her Aunt Shirley. I decided I wanted to look for graves of some of my ancestors. Mom, Shirley and I started out in the morning looking for the Humphrey-Davis Cemetery on Knob Branch Rd. near Pax. We didn't think we would ever find it. I forgot my directions to the cemetery, so I had to ask people where it might be. We finally found the cemetery that had the graves of the Jarrell and Jane Humphreys, who are the parents of Isabel Humphrey Craddock. Below is a picture of that cemetery.
We also took a trip to the community of Kincaid, WV to locate the Johnson cemetery. I found this one a little easier. It's about 10 miles northwest of Oak Hill. The Johnsons are the parents and grandparents of Sarah Johnson Maynor, wife of George Washington Maynor. Here's a picture of the cemetery.
Another cemetery we visited was the Maynor cemetery. I believe there are two Maynor cemeteries in the area. This one is located in Raleigh County near Cirtsville on a road that used to be called Dark Hollow. The graves of George Washington Maynor's father and mother are in this cemetery. This is the area in which they settled. It is a pretty cemetery that is well kept. I think the graves are all facing east, which was a common practice. The headstones are all facing away from the entrance.
After our visit in West Virginia, my mom and I drive to Virginia to visit her sister. My Aunt Donna lives in Montgomery Co. which is where the Jewells lived before moving to WV. Also my mother and I looked for and found Zion Lutheran Church, in Floyd County, VA. This church was formed by German-American pioneer settlers in the area. Charter members of this congregation formed in 1813 include Epperlys, from which my paternal grandmother descends. The old part of the cemetary was blocked off, but we did get to go inside the church and look around. The present church building was built in 1898. There were picnic tables in the back and we had a pleasant lunch under the trees.
My dad's cousin and his wife came from West Virginia for a day of family research. I had met the wife through the internet. She was researching her husband's grandfather. She found my information and emailed me. We discovered that her husband's grandfather was my greatgrandfather. I met them in 2000 and again in July of 2001. We were especially looking for John Jewell's grave. John Jewell was the son of Thomas Jewell, first Jewell known to reside in Montgomery Co. We were unable to find his grave, but we found the grave of Asa Hall, revolutionary soldier and John Jewell's father-in-law, making him one of our ancestors. From my aunt's house we headed east to Ironto and found Hall's United Methodist Church. Below is a picture of the church and of me and my cousin at the church.
My cousins and I continued on our journey to find the grave of our ancestor, John Jewell. We stopped at a small place to get a bite to eat. My cousin asked some of the people there if he knew where any Jewells lived. We were told of a Robert Jewell and how to find his house. So we took off, hoping to find a Jewell. We found him at home, sitting on his porch. Was he ever surprised to see us pull in and even more surprised when we told him we were Jewells, too. His daughter came home and was tickled to death to meet us. We all took pictures and had a good time. The one on the right is Robert Jewell and his daughter has the dark hair and is wearing purple.
After visiting with the Jewells, we went to the Piedmont Cemetery on Allegheny Spring Rd. in Shawsville. We found the graves of plenty of Jewells, but not John Jewell. My Hale great-greatgrandparents are buried in this cemetery. While traveling on Allegheny Spring Rd., we saw Jewell Dr. We stopped to take a picture. Nearby was a white building. It had a sign on it that said "The Jewell Building". We didn't get to go inside, but my cousin posed for a picture outside.
We had a full, fun day and it was late when I got back to my aunt's house. My mom told me that my aunt was very worried about me as it got later and later. She asked my mom, "Did you say she met them on the internet?" and "Do you think she's alright going off with them?" "How well does she know them?" She was so afraid that I had met some strange people online and had now been kidnapped by them. They were both very relieved when I got back safe and sound.
Created on ... May 04, 2008