U.S. Data Repository http://www.us-data.org/ -- USGenNet Inc. -- Please read the U.S. Data Repository Copyright Statement on the following page: --------------------------------------------------------------------- Burch, William Thomas (d. 1922) --------------------------------------------------------------------- A History of Preston County West Virginia Biographical Department, Supplied by J. R. Cole Kingwood, W. Va., The Journal Publishing Company, 1914 by H. S. Whetsell Pages 856-858, WILLIAM T. BURCH. James Tidy Burch was the oldest son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Tidy) Burch. He was married in Frederick, Maryland, in 1805. There were two other sons both physicians. They went West, raised families and died there, one in Fredericktown, Ohio, the other in St. Louis, Missouri. There were three daughters, who married, lived and died in Maryland. James T. Burch was born in Frederick County, Maryland in 1806, was married there in 1842, to Mary Wiles, a daughter of William and Maria Hewett. He was a farmer, and engaged also in the lumber business. In 1857, he sold out and moved to the lower end of Frederick county near the Potomac River where he engaged in agricultural pursuits, but in 1863 he sold out here and moved West locating this time on a farm in Henry County, Indiana. This was an unhealthy country, and his whole family took the chills and fever, causing him to sell out and move back to Frederick County where he came from, where he began farming again, locating this time near Point of Rocks along the Potomac River. In 1869, he sold out again and moved to Preston county, West Virginia, where he bought 1127 acres of timber land. He put in a steam saw-mill on Salt Lick Creek and again went into the lumber business. In 1872, he sold out again and retired from business. Mr. Burch was one of the progressive citizens of the county. He saw much of life, one of the incidents being present when General Layfayette visited Frederick County, Maryland. He died March 6, 1883. Children born to Mr. and Mrs. James T. Burch were ten in all, two of whom died in infancy. Benjamin lived eight days, and Isabella only one month and twenty-seven days. The eight children who came with the family to Preston county in 1869 were as follows: William Thomas, John Coleman, James Daniel, Thirza Ann Maria, Elizabeth Jane, Mary Emily Catherine, Alice Cornelia and Charles Hewett Burch. Elizabeth Jane, the first to leave home, married January 2, 1872, Charles H. Stunkle and went with her husband to Point of Rocks, Maryland, where they live on a farm. They have six children, Frederick, Emmons, Orra, Bowers, Nellie and Edgar. (2) John C. Burch married Sarah E. Smith on January 4, 1870, and lives in Washington, D. C. They have two children, Amanda and Ida, who died in South America in 1908. (3) Thirza A. M. Burch married Christian H. Nine, January 7, 1873. They had two children, America McAleer and Christian Henry. Mr. Nine died June 6, 1887, and his widow married Robert Brown Frazier of Pennsylvania. One child, Robert Burch, came of this union. They now reside in Terra Alta. (4) James Daniel Burch was married October 12, 1871, to Clara H. Stuckle, sister to Charles H. Stuckle. They live in Martinsburg, West Virginia. Mr. James D. Burch has been in the employ of the B. & O. Railroad Company for thirty-five years. Six children were born of this union, namely: Albert, Florence, Ida, Eva, Frederick and Henry, who was killed when a boy. (5) Mary E. C. Burch married J. W. Menefee and lives at Albright. He is an engineer on Eakles Mills, Maryland. Two children were born to this union, Ray, who is now running a grist mill at Doubs, Maryland, and Flora L., who married J. W. Mennefee and lives at Albright. He is an engineer on the M. & K. Railroad and operator of a grist and planing mill. (6) Alice C. S. Burch married Jacob Allen Smith (a brother of her sister Emma's husband), on January 22, 1884. There were born to this union eight children: Mary May, Rosa P., John Thomas, deceased, Charles Burch, James Allen, Nellie Jane, who died in infancy, Lovinia A., Elizabeth Alice. Charles and James are telegraph operators on Third Division of the B. & O. Railroad Company. (7) Charles Hewett Burch married Sarah R. Miller March 24, 1887, and lived in Martinsburg until he was killed May 20, 1911. He was an engineer on the B. & O. Railroad and was killed at 11 P. M. in terminal yards as Washington, D. C, while in charge of the through mail train to Baltimore. Three children, Edna, Glenn and Ethel Burch were born of this union. William Thomas Burch was the oldest son, but never married. He remained at home and kept the family together, after the death of his father, and farmed the home place. He purchased the Thomas Nine property at Rodamer, and went into the merchandizing business. After holding the postmasters office at Rodamer seven years, he retired from the more active pursuits of life, but still lives at Rodamer. --------------------------------------------------------------------- From Death Certificate, Preston County, WV #6706 FULL-NAME: Thomas Burch (William Thomas Burch) DEATH-DATE: May 23, 1922 at 81-years of age DEATH-PLACE: Rodamer, Portland District, Preston County, WV MARITAL-STATUS: Single OCCUPATION: Farmer BURIAL: Salt Lick (Father of William Thomas Burch) From Register of Deaths, Preston County, WV (Page 10, Line No. 8) FULL-NAME: J. T. Burch DEATH-DATE: March 16, 1883 AGE-AT-DEATH: 76y-5m-11d DEATH-PLACE: Portland OCCUPATION: Farmer FATHER: Thos. Burch MOTHER: Eliz. Burch CAUSE-OF-DEATH: Dropsy (Mother of William Thomas Burch) From Register of Deaths, Preston County, WV (Page 26, Line No. 2) FULL-NAME: Mary Burch DEATH-DATE: January 13, 1905 AGE-AT-DEATH: 82y-3m-25d DEATH-PLACE: near Rodamer MARITAL-STATUS: Widow OCCUPATION: Housework CAUSE-OF-DEATH: Old Age, General Debility Their tombstones are in Wesley Chapel Church Cemetery, Salt Lick, Preston County, WV --------------------------------------------------------------------- If you've reached this file through a SEARCH, you can access other biographies for Preston County, WV by going to the following URL: http://www.us-data.org/wv/preston/bios.html ---------------------------------------------------------------------