A Helping Hand at Mouth Greenbrier

“You will confer a great favor if you will furnish it, and at Raleigh County court I will repay you, or before if I see you”

Well now, pull up a chair and let me show you a little piece of our local history that just warms the heart. It’s a simple note written back on October 7, 1873, by a man named H. A. Brazie. He’d run into his friend, Mr. Loben Ginn, and found himself in that relatable spot of being just a bit short on cash. He wrote this quick letter to William Prince Jr., asking if he might lend Mr. Ginn a few dollars as a personal favor, promising on his word to pay it back when the court met in Raleigh County.

This old paper has certainly seen better days, looking a bit ragged and worn around the edges. It’s yellowed with time, featuring some deep creases and stains that make you wonder whose pocket it sat in or what dusty shelf it called home for a century. The corners are tattered and missing, yet that dark ink remains remarkably bold, carrying Brazie’s message across the generations to us today.

If you look closely at the bottom, you’ll see little notes about ferry fees at the Mouth of the Greenbrier and train fare for the trip home. It’s a wonderful window into the 1870s, a time when traveling across our rugged landscape meant navigating rivers and catching the ‘cars’ to get back to your own hearth. It wasn’t just about the money; it was about the logistics of living in a growing mountain community.

What I love most about this letter is how it highlights the quiet trust that held our neighbors together. There were no credit cards or bank apps back then, just a man’s signature and the promise of a meeting at the county court. It reminds us that no matter how much technology changes, the real foundation of any town is the way we step up to help each other out when the pockets run thin.

Original Transcription

Wm Prince Jr
Dr Sir
Mr Loben Ginn may desire a few
dollars and as he meets me at a time that
finds me short. You will confer a great
favor if you will furnish it, and at Raleigh
County court I will repay you, or before if I
see you
H. A. Brazie
Oct 7″ 1873
ferrage at Mouth Greenbrier & night lodging
fare on cars home