Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1890-05-30
AFTER SIXTY-TEREE YEiAn5.

! ONLY ONE HOUSE RECOGNIZED
WHIsKEY CREEK-MEN IN BUSINESS
AND PROFESSIONS HERE SIXTT-THREE
YEARS AGO.
| At the Virginia Hotel, Monday evening,
was registered MI. John G.. Fall, OF Arl-
IONA Territory. Though over seventy years
of age he looked to have the health and
Staunton after an absence of sixty-three
years, and the object of his visit was to
look after the graves of his father and
grandfather at Churehville where he was
born. A representative of the VINDICA-
TOR had an interesting conversation with
him on his return from that duty, Monday
evening.
''Staunton was a small place when 1
left,' said Mr.. Fall, ''say probably about
| 1900 inhabitants. All the town that there
then was, lay along from here up to the top
of Gospel Hill. There was no town West
Of New street. 1t was open, and the creek
| when it rose tore over it at will. / have
been walking over the city and the only
house, now occupied by Hardy's residence
and carriage factory. 1t seems to have the
same doors, even the same window shutters
it had when / staid there as a boy in the
store of MI. Hopkins. What is now the
Sheffey block, then had only one residence
on 1.-THE Daniel Sheffey homestead. Up
on Gospel Hill was the shop Of Michael
Egon. The two Rufus had a hat store
there. [ remember among the men doing
business in that day were John G. Sewers,
Benz. Crawford and John Wayt. The
lawyers as I recollect, were Howe Peyton,
Thomas J. Niche, a MI. Bowyer and a
Mr.. Baldwin. Daniel Sheffey was the great
lawyer. Mr.. Bowyer, I think, married a
Miss Stribling. There was a Dr.. Boys
The physician of our family was old Dr.
Waddell. | remember that when my father
met with an accident that caused his death
DR.. Waddel attended him. Old man Gar
Der kept the Eagle Hotel then.
81 was boy in Mr.. Hopkins store and
among our customers was Sandy Stuart's
mother. She was very industrious woman
and used to knit socks and bring them to
the store to sell. After my father was
killed, the family moved out to Lancaster,
Ohio I determined to follow them. I was
an active, useful boy in the store and MI.
r 11fI,O nnoCoI tn 1ocinT
me. When [ started, MI. Nicholas G..
Kinney and MI. Hopkins rode seven Oh
eight miles out of town with me trying to
persuade me not to go. / went on my own
horse. My guardian, Paul Sieg of Church
vile, who was appointed after my fathers
death, had bound me to MI. Hopkins with
the condition usual in that time, that al
the end of five years [ was to be free and
be given horse, and saddle, and bride. Mi.
Hopkins kept the contract and it was on
my own horse that I started for Lancaster
The first settlement that | rode into West
Of here, that could be called town, was
Kanawha Falls. AS I was going out,
met Daniel Shelley coming in from Ohio Oh
horseback with his saddlebags. He had
been to Ohio in a law case. was eighteel
days making the journey to Lancaster.
81 was born near Churchville in neigh
borhood called Whiskey Greek. 1t was
called that then, and I find that it is called
so now. 1t got the name from the fact
that every man living along the creek had
a peach orchard and every man OF them
made brandy. But for all that | don't re
member that there was but one drunkard
in the neighborhood. Churchville in that
day was no place at all, only a blacksmith
shop owned by a man named Knowles.
There was there a Mr.. Bear who was an
undertaken. saw in looking at the graves
of my grandfather and father to-day that
the inscription on my grandfather S tomb
stone was in German, and that his name
was spelled George Fail. On the tombstone
of my father, who was also named George,
the name is spelled as it is pronounced,
Fail, and as it has been written by our fam
lily for many years. My grandfather died
at the age of ninety-six. Our family is a
long lived one. There are three brothers,
none being under seventy years of age, and
sister who is seventy-eight.
'sOf course I know nobody here, but !
hear that MI. George Fuller lived here in
my time and / am going to call on him.
Men pass away very quickly. 1 went to
California in 1S49 when the gold fever ragged,
and of all themen 1 knew there then 1 know
of but five besides myself surviving. One of
them is Justice F ield Of the Supreme Court.
A year ago 1 revisited Lancaster, Ohio,
and found that the EWings, Shermans-all
the prominent men that were there when
was there, had passed away. Yet [ found
many of their wives living"
elbow is it MI. Fall that you have pre-
served such excellent health as your appear
ance indicates 20 asked our reporter, for
MI. Fall is remarkable case of well pre-
served strength, health and faculties in
advanced age.
"Well, /" replied MI. Fall, 81 attribute it
to regular habits. and more than all regular
diet. When l got to Lancaster the young
people used to have way in that day of
eating heavy supDers and drinking hard
cider after we closed business for the day.
[ was like the rest, and | got about five
years Of dyspepsia by it which taught me a
lesson. l was more careful both of my
hours and diet after that. For the last
forty-two years | have worked fifteen hours
out Of the twenty-four. / rise at 4:3O A.
M, dine at II O'Clock and eat supper at 6.
| BY 8 o'clock L am in bed. 1 have large
cattle interests in Arizona and that is real
ly my home for 1 am there pretty much all
the year, though my wife makes her home
/ oil oe an.