Your account does not include highlighter on images.
Searches Highlighted on Image
National Sponsors
| June 22, 2011 The Preston County Journal |  |
|
©
The Preston County Journal. All rights reserved. Upgrade to access Premium Tools
PAGE 5 (5 of 10 available) PREVIOUS NEXT Jumbo Image Save To Scrapbook Set Notifiers PDF JPG
June 22, 2011 |
|
|
Website © 2025. All content copyrighted. Copyright Information Terms Of Use | Privacy Policy | Request Content Removal | About / FAQ | Get Acrobat Reader 
|
She also picked
up stones, sticks
and firewood and
tossed it at them.
Mrs. Humphreys
finally rescued
Oliver from the
group soldiers,
and no sooner than he was free
from their grasp, she again
placed him on the horse with
directions to see Colonel Por-
terfield and warn his men of the
advance of the Union troops.
For the second time the young
messenger of war was dropped
from the saddle, and Mrs. Hum-"
phreys attacked the soldiers
again.
"Down with you oppressors!
God bless the South!" the wom-
an shrieked these words in a
loud voice and a moment later
drew a revolver from her blouse
and fired directly at the group of
Federalists. The ball missed its
intended targets, but the report
of the gunshot had its effect.
Several of the Union men
raised their guns to shoot back
in self-defense and would have
done so, if one the Union offi-
cers hadn't stopped them. This
gave Mrs. Humphreys and her
son, Oliver, in the all the confu-
sion, enough time to escape into
the house and lock the doors.
The Union Battery Command-
er took the gunshot as the signal
to begin firing and commenced
doing so around 4:20 a.m., 10
minutes earlier than planned.
Once the batter fired, with its
loud noise, everyone was awak-
ened and warned the enemy
was near. Union Colonel Robert
Milroy, who was supposed to
cut off the rebel retreat, was de-
layed 30 or 40 minutes because
he took the wrong road, this was
the miracle needed to allow the
Confederates time to escape.
A s St,ei] ab0ve, te atk wal
7 ade ;few minutes td NS
and prematurely brought, about
the battler, which would have
been a Union rout and complete
capture of Porterfield's army if
not for the discharge of a gun.
It was this mistaken signal - a
pistol shot fired by Mrs. Matilda
i-
Buying
ilunk Cars,
Buying junk cars
& hauling away
Call
892-4490 or 457-1806
698-8419 (Terra Alta area)
JC Auto.
Salvage
24 john Prin
Wrecker (304) 789-6047
& Rollback Services or (304) 698-8419
PHILIPPI
JAMES EDWARD
HANGER
Part 3
Humphreys, that saved the day
for the Southern boys and al-
lowed them to escape.
STRUCK BY
A CANNONBALL
The Confederate camp was
located in the valley below. The
cavalry was located in the lower
end of town, near where the old
B&O freight depot once stood.
the infantry were stationed in
the old Masonic building and
other structures in town. The
heavy firing of the cannon last-
ed for about a half an hour.
The newest enlistee, James
E. Hanger, had been placed on
patrol guard duty near the barn
and when the noise of the can-
non being fired on Talbott Hill
alerted him, he went to the
barn to get his horse. The first
two cannon shots were canister
'and were aimed at the tents of
the Upshur Greys lined up on
the town commons. The first
round sheared off the tops of
a row of tents. The third shot
was a 6 pound solid shot aimed
at Garrett Johnson's stable in
which the Churchville Cavalry
had slept. The shot struck the
ground, then ricocheted upward
wand entered the stable, strik-
ing young Harper as he tried to
get his horse out. He had enlist-
ed only a day earlier.
After the cannon ball Struck
the leg of young James, it
passed through six thicknesses
of two and a half inch oak plank
stall partitions and partially
penetrated the seventh. There
its momentum was exhausted
and the ball fell in the stall; but
after striking the door post, it
had glanced upward, and struck
the last partition six or seven
inches higher than where it first
2# Eour Service " 7 Dqys A Week
Terra Alta & Surrounding Areas
Wrecker, Wheel-Lift John Pritt
& Rollback Services
Fully Insured (304) 789-6047
Fast Response or (304) 698-8419
struck the stable.
Hanger stated he had passed
the previous night in the loft
Garrett Johnson's barn with his
brother and some of his friends
and' was roused early in the
morning by the firing. While
trying to escape by horse from
the stable, he was shot in the left
leg. Realizing the severity of the
injury, James sat down on a box,
partially disrobed and used his
linen to dress the wound. Then
hobbling to the door, he saw
several Union soldiers coming
his way. Fearing that he might
be shot, James climbed the lad-
der and hid in the hay loft. Af-
ter a period of time, he crawled
back to the top of the ladder and
fainted from exhaustion and
loss of blood, on regaining con-
sciousness, he heard soldiers
below and called out for help.
After the battle of Philippi, a
number of Union soldiers from
the 16th Ohio Volunteer Infan-
try started for the Johnson barn
to lie down, rest and search for
plunder. About 4 hours after
he had been wounded, soldiers
upon entering the barn heard
cries for help coming from the
hayloft. G.W. Swartz, a soldier
from Wooster, Ohio, climbed
up the mow and discovered
the appeal came from James E.
Hanger.
Dr. James D. Robison, also
of the 16th Ohio Volunteer In-
fantry, was then called for and
it was soon discovered that he
had a very dangerously wound-
ed man, and whatever could
be done to save his life had to
be done at once. He had been
greatly weakened by loss of
blood. The leg had been shot off
below the knee and Hanger was
informed that to save his life it
would be necessary to amputate
it above the knee. The wounded
leg was only hanging by a small
part of skin.
For want of something better,
a surgeon's table was impro-
vised by taking a barn door off
J'ennin
OOQ.M
VAOOINA00ION OL,INIO
TUESDAY, JUNE 21, 2011
Bruceton Mills 6:30-7:00 p.m. Veterinary Clinic AO, m
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 22, 2011
Reedsville 6:00-6:45 p.m. Old J&J Homes Lot tte
THURSDAY, JUNE 23, 2011
Fellowsville 6:00-6:30 p.m. Fire.Hall alto
Rowlesburg 7:00-7:30 p.m. Park
FRIDAY, JUNE 24, 2011 QO
Kingwood 6:00-6:45 p.m.. OldPreston Motor
(Intersection of RT. 26 and Rt. 7 near New China Restaurant.) ,,JA
SATURDAY, JUNE 25, 2011
Tunnelton 8:00-8:30 a.m. Fire Hall
Terra Alta 2:00-2:30 p.m. Stockyard
Aurora 3:00-3:30 p.m. Deerwood Station __
€.
qb( AVAILABLE VACCINATIONS:
Dogs: Rabies $8 • DHLPP $17 • Kennel Cough $10
Cats: Rabies $8 • DRCC $17 • Feline Leukemia $15 li
AII pet-s-'st--b"e'n-'a'Ma i-car''.ble for
accidents or escapes. Provided as a community service. OdP
61 DR. FRANK CARY
Wednesday, June 22, 2011-Kingwood, WV-PRESTON COUNTY JOURNAL-3
of its •hinges and carrying it to
the loft, here young James was
placed upon it and the opera-
tion was performed without an-
esthesia or little preparation by
Dr. Robison. The leg had been
removed seven inches below
the hip bone. It took about 45
minutes to complete the sur-
gery and construct a proper flap
of the remaining skin over the
stump. Later some heartless
soldiers were seen viewing the
removed leg by turning it' over
with a pitchfork.
The next day, Dr. Robison was
forced to go to Grafton to attend
to the severely wounded Colo-
nel Benjamin E Kelley. Hanger
was then placed in charge of Dr.
George A. new, of the Seventh
Regiment, Indiana Volunteer In-
fantry. Dr. New had assisted Dr.
Robison in the operation and
dressed the leg after the surgery.
Later he visited Hanger while
he was staying at the Hire home
and dressed the leg again until
it was nearly healed. A witness
to the surgery, J.L. Millikan saw
and held the cannon ball that
shattered Hanger's leg in his
hands. He heard one of the sol-
diers say he was going to keep
it as a memory of the battle, but
didn't know what became of it.
Somehow it came into the pos-
session of Hanger, who admit-
ted years later he had it.
After the surgery James was
moved to the Philippi Method-
ist Episcopal Church, which
had been converted to a hospital
and from here he was then tak-
en to the home of Mrs. William
Driveways. Patch Work
Seal Coating
Free Estimates
All Work Guaranteed
Over 25 Years Experience
Church, Senior & Veteran Discounts
I Oo Spring Discount
ILicensed & Insured ,
[References Available
Ice, Now! 30allm38
|WV#014237
Union soliders above Philippi and Cherry Hill Farm.
McClaskey, a Southern sympa- ing that Hanger made his first
thizer, where she cared for him. artificial leg, which he said was
William McClaskey was at this mainly made of barrel staves.
time in partnership with J.N.B. Cherry Hill served as a hospital
Crum. Together they ran a gen- for much of the Civil War. Once
eral store under the firm name of the McClaskeys were allowed
McClaskey & Crum. Her chil-
dren were Martha, Anna', Ella,
Rebecca and later Eva, Rose,
Isabella, Charles and Robert.
When the McClaskeys had to
vacate their home after Union
forces took over the town,
Hanger was taken to Cherry Hill
Farm, home of Thomas Hire,
who was living in the country
in a brick house which later was
known as the "Woodbine Farm,"
home of Lloyd Burner. It was
here, while he was convalesc-
to return to Philippi, format he
home of Barbara Zinn, Hanger
once again stayed with them
for a while. William McClas-
key was a Union prisoner at this
time.
After this, he was escorted to
the Union prison camp at Camp
Chase, in Columbus, Ohio, as
a prisoner of war, and shortly
thereafter was exchanged at
Norfolk, Virginia, in late Au-
gust of 1896 and returned to his
home near Staunton.
INSURANCE
CENTERS INC.
BUSINESS HEALTH- LIFE
(
FS 55 R
Versatile, straight-shaft ,
trimmer for occasional or
light-duty professional use
Can use nylon line or
STIHL PolyCuf head
Simple line advancement /
and replacement
FS 90 R
Solid drive shaft offers
end user more flexibility
for use with optional
interchangeable
attachments
Features a powerful
and lightweight
low-emission engine
Reduced vibration for
comfortable operation
18" blade
HS45 ,299900
HEDGE TFIIMMER
Designed for occasional use -
lightweight and easy to use
Are you ready for a STIHL* ?
Bruceton Mills
Bruceton Ag Service Inc.
Intersection Route 26 and 168
304-379-2641
BrucetonAgService.com
Kingwood
Childs Feed & Supply
101 North Sigler St.
304-329-0178
ChildsFeed.com