U.S. Data Repository http://www.us-data.org/ -- USGenNet Inc. -- Please read the U.S. Data Repository Copyright Statement on the following page: ------------------------------------------------------------------- Parsons, Job (1789-1883) ------------------------------------------------------------------- History of Tucker County, West Virginia From the Earliest Explorations and Settlements to the Present Time. by Hu Maxwell Kingwood, W. Va.; Preston Publishing Company, 1884. Page 482-486 Job Parsons, generally known by the name of "'Squire Job," was born in Tucker County in 1789, and died in 1883. He was a remarkable man in more ways than one. He possessed a powerful constitution, and he seemed capable of enduring almost anything. His weight was 250 pounds, and there was not on him a pound of superfluous flesh. In the War of 1812 he was a soldier, and was sent to the North West to fight the Indians. He was at Fort Meigs and at other posts throughout that country; and when the war was over, he returned to his home in Tucker. His principal occupation was farming, although he engaged in stock-raising, merchandising and in running a grist- mill. He lived in the Holly Meadows, and Job's Ford is named from him. His farm was called the "Job Place," and is that now owned by the Swisher Brothers: As a second wife, he married Sarah Losh, daughter of Stephen Losh, and raised a large family of respected children. His house was open with its hospitalities to all; and, the traveler whose good fortune brought him to that door at night, was always received with welcome, and in the morning, there was not a cent to pay. Parsons was a great lover of hunting, and always kept a large pack of hounds. It was his delight to hear them cross the distant mountains, deeply baying on the trail of a deer. Such sport was formerly much indulged in by the people along the river. Numerous hounds were trained to hunt down the deer and chase them to the river, where the} T were shot by hunters with long-ranged rifles. A deer-hunt was the occasion for the manifestation of the fullest spirit of sport. No sooner had The deep-mouthed bloodhound's heavy bay Resounded up the rocky way Than the whole country along the river was in commotion, horsemen mounting in hot haste and galloping off to intercept the deer in its passage of the river. The whole time, from the first cry of the hounds at early morn until the chase ended by the death of the deer, often at evening, was one continuous train of excitement and pleasure, surely not less than that of the high-born Englishmen, who go wild over a fox chase, or kill thousands of dollars worth of horses to catch a hare. But, the days of this kind of hunting in Tucker are about numbered. The bay of the hounds is seldom heard any more, and many of the old hunters are passed away, some to distant countries and some to that mysterious realm whence none ever return. When the civil war came on, Job Parsons was a warm sympathizer with the South, and never let pass an opportunity of expressing his preference. In consequence, he was much annoyed during the war, by such petty leaders as Hall, Latham and Kellogg. His property was destroyed or carried off, and himself was made to submit to indignities from the guerrilla soldiery who boasted that they were saving the Union. If saving the Union must be done by tormenting as good a citizen as Job Parsons, it might be questioned whether it deserved saving. The fact that his house was open to all was made a reason for persecuting him. He kept Rebels whenever they wanted to be kept, and did the same for the Yankees, although it was hard to extend to them as hearty a welcome. The last night of Lieutenant llcChesney's life was spent in Job Parsons' house. After Imboden's second raid, the Union troops sent up from Rowlesburg failed to find any of the Rebels who had paroled Hall, and thought to get something of satisfaction by carrying off the property of those citizens who sympathized with the South. As Job Parsons was well known to be southern in his proclivities, his property was not safe, and he knew it. When he learned that the Yankees were coming, he caught up some of the best of his horses and hurried them off to a hiding place, near the Yellow Rock, along the river between Job's Ford and Alum Hill. Scarcely had he reached the place of concealment when he was seen by Yankees, who peered through spy glasses to search out every nook and corner of the woods. They saw the horses and started for them. He was by his property, and had his old hunting rifle with him. When he heard the foot-falls of some one passing over the rocks, he was on the alert, and when the blue coats were seen filing up the path, he threw his rifle to his shoulder, and in a stentorian voice, called: "Halt!" The Yankees stopped and stood like cowards until he again spoke to them, when they mustered up courage to ask him who he was. He told them, and they at once took him prisoner and captured his horses. They disarmed him, and made him walk before, while they rode the horses. When they reached his home, they ordered dinner, and after they had eaten, they proceeded to St. George, still carrying away the horses and taking him as a prisoner. He walked in front of the soldiers, until the indignities which they heaped upon him became greater than he could bear. Suddenly wheeling in the road, he poured upon them a tirade of invectives, telling them that he had fought the British to make this country free, and now that freedom was denied him. They were making light of his words, when he showed himself in earnest by snatching up a stone. They saw the movement, and leaped from their horses to avoid it. He advanced with deliberation and mounted one of the horses and rode off, leaving the unhorsed man to toddle along on foot. Job Parsons died in the winter of 1883, and was buried at St. George. ------------------------------------------------------------------- There's a tombstone and a military footstone in Saint George Cemetery, Saint George, Tucker County, WV The military footstone has: JOB PARSONS CORP 2 REGT VA MILITIA WAR OF 1812 JUN 11 1789 DEC 18 1883 ------------------------------------------------------------------- If you've reached this file through a SEARCH, you can access other biographies for Tucker County, WV by going to the following URL: http://www.us-data.org/wv/tucker/bios.html -------------------------------------------------------------------