The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1892-12-03

A Brief Sketch of the Life Of the State
Superintendent Elect.
Educational News

4
Virgin A. Lewis, the State Super.
ntendent of Schools elect, was born
July 9th, 1S4S, on farm in what il
now Waggener district, Mason coun,
ty, Va. (now w. Val
By the death of his father he was
left an orphan at the early age oil
nine years, he being the eldest of q
family Of five children. The mother,
though in destitute circumstances,
determined that her helpless children
should not be scattered. The eldest,
Virgil A., continued to work on the
little farm until his sixteenth year,
in the winter attending the old field
schools of ante beitam times. Here
be made progress which was observ-
ed by DIR. A. L. Knight, who gave to
the boy the first text books he ever
owned.
Upon the introduction of the Free
School system he resolved to prepare
himself for teaching aad prosecuted
his studies with that end in view.
Passing through the public schools
he attended the graded schools at
Point Pleasant and Clifton. in the
mean time supporting himself by
working in the Clifton Iron and Nail
Mills. Leaving the schools he at
once began teaching and gave TWEEN
ty years of his life to active work in
the school room, being finally en-
ployed in the graded schools of Hart
ford City, Valley City, and Mason
City, in Mason county, and in Buffalo
Academy and the Winfield schools,
in Putnam county.
Through all these years he welded
a tasy pen and it is safe to say that
no other man in the State has writ
ten SO much of the resources and his
tory of West Virginia. For several
years his productions appeared in
the newspapers and other periodicals,
but in 1884, after having betrayed
the expenses of educating his young
est sister, he conceived the idea of
writing a history of West Virginia,
and with that object ia view, trav-
esed the virginias and collected
matter pertaining to the history,
genealogy and biography of our peo-
pie, mass sufficient to I'LL many vol.
umes A partial result OF this labor
WAS the History of West Virginia, I"
published by Hubbard Bros, Phila-
.delphia, in 1889. So well mas the
work received that the Legislature
at its session Of 1891, by joint reso
lutiop, recommended it aS work of
standard authority. In order that
the valuable matter remaining in his
hands and since collected might be
placed in durable form, he began the
publication of The Southern Histor.
zeal Magazine, in which it is now
being published.
Throughout the years 1889, 80
and 81 because of vacancies, he was
the ouly member of the Examining
Board in Mason county, but the
work performed satisfactory to both
teachers and tax payers In 1890
nv Ot1dihS u iiiGthDSi VI tHt ODutu-
ern Educational Association, the
leading organization of its kind in
the South, and for two years has
been the West Virginia member of
its Executive committee.
In the same year Governor Elem
ing appointed him delegate at-lafge
to represent West Virginia in the
Inner State I'm migration and Indus
trial Convention, which met at
Ashville, N. c., that year.
His writings have made him wide
ly known and has been elected a
member Of numerous learned and
scientific societies and as the secre-
tary Of the West Virginia Historical
and Antiquarian Society, has gath
cred into its library nearly 5000
volumes, and has made that organi-
zatien a credit to the State.