Saving the Home Place: A Helping Hand from Lewisburg

“I send enclosed a writing which if you get the heirs to sign so that I may file their answers to the bill we will save a great deal of cost.”

Pull up a chair and take a look at this little piece of our local history. It’s a letter from August 8th, 1881, penned by a lawyer named J.M. McWhorter in Lewisburg and sent to Mr. Buckingham Gwinn over in Green Sulphur Springs. When you look at it today, you can really feel the weight of the years. The paper has turned a warm beige and is marked by deep creases from where it was likely folded and tucked into a pocket for safekeeping. There is a noticeable brown stain running down the right side—perhaps from a spilled cup of tea or some rain that found its way in long ago—but even with that, McWhorter’s steady black ink is still as clear as a mountain stream.

The heart of this letter is about something we can all understand: keeping hold of the family land. Mr. McWhorter was writing to deliver some much-needed good news—the court had finally issued a decree to stop the sale of Buckingham’s property. However, there was a bit of a hurdle to clear. The judge decided that all the heirs of the late John Gwinn had to be made part of the legal case. Now, McWhorter was a practical man who cared about his neighbors’ pockets. He knew that officially serving legal papers to every last cousin and sibling would cost a small fortune in fees. Instead, he sent a document along to Buckingham, asking him to personally visit the heirs and get their signatures to save everyone a great deal of money and trouble.

This isn’t just a legal update; it’s a wonderful snapshot of life in West Virginia back then. It shows us a time when land was a family’s lifeblood and when a local attorney worked hand-in-hand with folks to protect their legacy. McWhorter even mentions the Eldridge family, showing how all these family lines were woven together in our local tapestry. It’s a reminder that our history is built on these quiet, everyday acts of cooperation and the determination to keep a home place together.

Today, this stained old letter reminds us that the struggle to keep a family’s roots firmly planted is a story as old as these hills. It’s a testament to the fact that a little neighborly advice and the cooperation of kin can make all the difference when times get tough. It tells us that history isn’t just about big events, but about the value of a name and the strength we find when we stand together to protect what we love.

Original Transcription