On the north face of this dial appear the names and the figures: “Moses and Lydia Shepherd, 1820.” Col. Moses Shepherd died in 1832, and his widow subsequently married Gen. Daniel Kruger, whom she also survived many years. They are all now dead, and their mortal remains mingle with their native dust, in the cemetery attached to the “Stone Church,” near Elm Grove. A handsome monument stands at their graves bearing the following inscriptions: On one side, “Sic Transit Gloria Mandi: Sacred to the memory of Col. Moses Shepherd, who departed this life April 29th, 1832, in the 69th year of his age.” “To him the country owes a large debt of gratitude, as well for his defense of it, when a frontier settlement, as for his recent public services in aiding the extension and construction of the Cumberland Road through Virginia.” The obverse side tells the story of the second husband, as follows: “Sic Transit Gloria Mandi: Sacred to the memory of Gen. Daniel Kruger, who died July 12th, 1843, in the 64th year of his age.” A third side perpetuates the memory of the twice bereaved widow as follows: “Sic Transit Gloria Mandi: Lydia S. Kruger, wife of Gen. Daniel Kruger, formerly Lydia S. Bogs, first married Col. Moses Shepherd: Born Feb. 26th, 1766: Died Sept. 26th, 1867, in the 102d year of her age.” High up on the granite shaft is chiselled on two sides the picture of a log cabin, and at the door appears a female figure in sitting posture, with a dog in repose at the feet, while in the back ground is seen the representation of a martial group, with branches of a palm tree overhanging the whole design.
A short distance west from widow Goodings, Samuel Carter kept a tavern as early as 1830. It was a brick house on the south side of the road, a resort for pleasure seekers from Wheeling, and a well kept house. This house was subsequently kept by William Strawn.
About one mile west of Carter’s, Michael Blackburn kept a tavern in the olden time, and was well favored with custom. It was a stone house on the north side of the road.
Next comes Steenrod’s, two miles out from Wheeling, a brick and stone building on the south side of the road, and a widely known old tavern. Daniel Steenrod, the old landlord, owned the property, and was a man of intelligence and much influence. His son, Lewis, represented the Wheeling district in Congress during the prosperous era of the road, and, as before stated, was one of its most zealous champions. Lewis Steenrod, a grandson of the old landlord, is at this time (1892), High Sheriff of Ohio county, West Virginia, and on November 18th of this year, executed Maier, the murderer. Daniel Steenrod kept the old tavern last mentioned as early as 1825, and probably before that date, and continued throughout the whole period of the road’s great career as a national highway. He died April 27th, 1864, aged eighty years. The property still remains in the Steenrod family.
A short distance from Steenrod’s, on the north side, was “Good’s Bottom,” now called Pleasant Valley, doubtless by reason of the frantic iconoclasm, which has lain its ruthless hands on so many old and familiar names. At Good’s Bottom there was a race course in early times, and it was here, and previous to 1840, that the celebrated horse “Tariff” lost his laurels. “Tariff” was owned by Thomas Porter, a farmer and stock man of Claysville. Joseph White, the well known marble dealer of Uniontown, a native of the vicinity of Claysville, was a witness of the discomfiture of “Tariff” on the old race course at Good’s Bottom.
And now, after a long journey of two hundred and sixty miles, the city of Wheeling is reached. Wheeling was the western terminus of the road, in contemplation of the Act of Congress of March 29th, 1806, given in a previous chapter. John McCortney kept the most noted wagon stand in Wheeling. He was likewise a commission merchant, which further identified him with old wagoners, enabling him to furnish them with back loads. His tavern was located on Main street, running back east on Fourteenth to alley B, parallel with, and between Main and Market, with ample grounds surrounding it for wagons and teams to stand on. These grounds were so extensive that they accommodated the old time circus, in addition to wagons and teams of the road, and two distinct circuses have been known to exhibit on them at the same time. They were not of the modern “triple ring” order, but of the Dan Rice design. McCortney was a man of agreeable manners, and managed his extensive business with marked success. He died in Wheeling on December 10th, 1872, aged seventy-nine years. He was three times married. His last wife was the widow of William H. Stelle, one of the proprietors of the Good Intent stage line. Martin Bugger was McCartney’s bar-keeper for many years, and is remembered by old wagoners as a rival of Wilse Clement in hard swearing. On lower Water street, Robert Newlove kept a wagon stand, and was well liked by old wagoners, and well patronized by them. He was the owner of wagons and teams, which he kept on the road, in charge of hired drivers. In 1829 Richard Simms, the old stage proprietor, kept the United States hotel, and was its owner. James Beck kept this house after Simms, and James Dennison after Beck. James McCray kept it next after Dennison, and Mordecai Yarnell next after McCray. The Monroe House, on Monroe, now Tenth street, was kept in 1830 by John McClure, and subsequently by James Matthers. The Virginia House was kept in 1830 by John Graham, and afterward by one Beltsville, and later by Jacob Kline. Beltsville and Kline came out from Baltimore. The United States, the Monroe and the Virginia, were stage stations. On upper Main street, in 1830, Moses Mossier kept a tavern, and on the same street, and at the same time, a tavern was kept by Mrs. Beamer, widow of Captain Frederic Beamer, assisted by her son, Samuel, who was a soldier of 1812. Capt. Frederic Beamer kept a tavern in Wheeling as early as the year 1802, at the sign of the Wagon, and took boarders at two piastres a week. The town council of Wheeling met in Capt. Beamers tavern in 1806. The house that Widow Beamer presided over as hostess, is a brick building, on the southwest corner of Main and Ninth streets, on a lot bordering the river. This house is still standing, but has not been used as a tavern for many years. Beamers old Landing was at the foot of Ninth street, where the National Road approached the Ohio river. In 1830 Joseph Teeters kept a wagon stand in Wheeling, below McCartney’s, and John Bradfield kept a similar stand on Water street in 1837-8. The mysterious disappearance of a man by the name of Cooper from the Mossier House about 1840, produced a local sensation, followed by an accusation of foul play and a charge of murder. Cooper, in company with a friend and neighbor by the name of Long, put up together one evening at the Mossier House, and on the next morning Cooper was missing. The two had come in from Ohio, and were going to Washington county, Pennsylvania, where they were born and raised, to visit relatives and old friends. It appears that Cooper rose early and took an outgoing coach back to Ohio without notifying his traveling companion or any one else. A dead body was found in the river and identified as that of Cooper; and Long, after reaching his destination, was arrested for murder and lodged in the Washington jail. The Virginia authorities made no requisition for him, and he was finally discharged, and settled in Michigan. A few years afterward, Cooper was discovered in Indianapolis, sound and well.
JOHN McCORTNEY.
The Forsyth’s of Wheeling, James H. and his son Leonard, were prominently identified with the destinies of the National Road. The commission house of James H. Forsythe & Co. was a leading establishment of its kind. James H. Forsythe, the senior member of this old firm, was noted for his energy and clear-hoodedness. He could converse with any number of persons, and indite a letter at the same time, without being in any wise confused. His son, Leonard, was also well known on the road. He conducted commission houses at Brownsville and Cumberland, and very often passed over the road, in the management of his business. He is now living in Texas near Austin, and feels a deep interest in the history of the road.