A Brotherly Hand from Elton: A Glimpse into 1893

“I would like to get you to tend to my land for me as I am not able to go to cort”

Hello there, neighbors! Come on in and pull up a chair. I have a special treat for you today—a little piece of our history that feels just as warm and personal as a conversation over a back fence. This is a letter from way back in March of 1893, written by a man named Samuel Gwinn to his brother, Laban. It is a simple thing, really, but it tells such a story about how folks in Elton looked out for one another in the old days.

When you look at this letter today, you can really feel the weight of the years it has carried. It is written on lined paper that has taken on a lovely, aged golden hue, with creases that show it was folded with care more than a century ago. In the upper right corner, there is a tiny, beautiful embossed stamp that looks like a lion or maybe a dog—a little touch of character from a bygone era. The ink is dark and bold, likely that old-fashioned iron gall ink, and you can almost see Samuel’s hand moving across the page as he penned this from his home in Summers County.

Poor Samuel was feeling quite poorly with what he called the flux, and he just wasn’t up to making the trip to the court. He was worried about his land taxes, feeling they’d been set much too high for the last ten years. He asks his brother, Laban, to stand in for him, even mentioning that their neighbor, Mr. Flanagan, would be there and could testify to what the land was worth. Samuel even asks his brother to fetch a deed for him from a man named Suttle. It is a wonderful reminder that even back then, life had its bureaucratic headaches, and family was the first place people turned for help.

There is something so touching about this request for a brotherly favor. It reminds us that history isn’t just about big events; it is about the quiet, everyday moments of kindness and the bonds of family that keep a community together. Even a hundred years from now, I hope people still look back at the way we helped each other out and find as much heart in it as we do in Samuel’s letter to Laban today.

Original Transcription

Elton
Summers Co, W.Va
March the 18″ 18-93
Mr Laban Gwinn
Dear Brother
I would like to get you to
tend to my land for me as
I am not able to go to cort
I have not been well for
several days with some thing
like the flux my land
has been assessed to high
for a bout 10. years and
now it is much higher
I think two dollars and a
half is high enough for
such land as that is
Mr A.G. Flanagan is
going over on the first day
day of the Cort
to try to get the assessment
reduced on his lands I
would like for you to call
Mr Flanagan in for he is
well acquainted with my
land I will send my
Tax tickets to you I would
like for you to get the Deed
from Suttle and Mail the
Tax tickets and Deed back to
Elton to me and oblige
Samuel Gwinn