BLAINE ISLAND
and the family that lived there
I find myself frustrated with the online content about Blaine Island. It's a pretty fanciful story that Fleming Cobbs came to Kanawha County in 1780, owned Blaine Island, planted a pear tree and traded it to a man named Charles Blaine for a Rifle. I have no idea of the date of origin of this story.
The truth is that Fleming Cobbs came here to Kanawha in 1790 with his uncle Thomas Upton. The folklore is that his father, Thomas Cobbs of Buckingham County, had remarried and Fleming did not get along with his stepmother, so he left for Kanawha with his uncle. Thomas Upton had been given grants for two tracts of land, the first one on July 11, 1787, containing 1400A on the Upper Falls of the Coal River and another on October 27, 1787, containing 3400A on the Kanawha River at Davis Creek opposite WILSON ISLAND. Thomas and Fleming began making improvements on the Davis Creek tract, but the valley was still dangerous because of the Shawnee and fresh attacks had made it too dangerous to live on the property. They moved into Fort Clendenin where Thomas Upton died in 1794 leaving a nuncupative will (he could not read or write). He left his estate to his siblings and their heirs because he himself was unmarried and childless. Fleming Cobbs inherited part of the Davis Creek tract that he had already made improvements on. To my knowledge, Blaine Island was not part of his tract. The Davis Creek tract began 1/2 mile below the mouth of Davis Creek and traveled down the Kanawha towards Upton Creek in present day Spring Hill. Linsdey Thomas purchased a 750A tract from a Thomas cousin. This tract became known as the 'Spring Hill' tract and he and his family are buried in a small family cemetery on Upton's Creek.
Now that we have established the Upton and Cobbs land let's get back to Blaine Island. A man named Conrod Smith was the original patentee of Blaine Island, then known as Two-Mile Island. On July 6, 1796 he was granted 65A on the first large Island in the Kanawha about two miles from the mouth of the Elk River. The Island was located in the Kanawha River at the mouth of Two-Mile Creek (Two-Mile Creek flows through present day North Charleston). On May 12, 1807, Conrod and Ann Smith sold 65A tract known as Two-Mile Island in the Kanawha River to WILLIAM BLAINE.
First, there was no CHARLES BLAINE, his name was William. According to later records pertaining to his children, William Blaine came to Kanawha County from Pennsylvania. He may have been born in Pittsburg because there is a later deed in Kanawha whereas the other party is a resident of that city. He was taxed for the first time in the personal property digest in 1802. He purchased two lots on Front Street in 1803 where he operated a Ferry (probably at Ferry's Branch). After he purchased Blaine Island in 1807, he built a tannery and planted an orchard on the island. On August 8, 1821 he petitioned to build a dam on one side of the island and build a mill.
The family owned the Island for 120 Years. They sold it to Carbide on June 7, 1927. There was a small family cemetery located on the Island and in 1936 when Union Carbide decided to expand their operations the cemetery became a casualty. The newspaper article only lists ten tombstones. I have only found an official record of eleven being moved. Did they leave the rest? The rules back then were a little more flexible on covering graves. The burial list along with the few that were moved:
*William Blaine - Spring Hill Cemetery
*Sarah Henry Blaine - Spring Hill Cemetery
*Elizabeth Blaine - Spring Hill Cemetery
*Valeria Blaine - Spring Hill Cemetery
*William Charles Blaine - Spring Hill Cemetery
*Elizabeth Jane Champe Blaine Copton - Spring Hill Cemetery
*Robert Blaine - Spring Hill Cemetery
*Sallie Henry Blaine - Spring Hill Cemetery
*Samuel Blaine - Spring Hill Cemetery
*Elliott Roberts Thomas - Spring Hill Cemetery
*Ruth P. Blaine Thomas - Spring Hill Cemetery (listed as unknown in official records, buried beside Elliott and marked with a field stone)
*Elizabeth Roberts Thomas - Teays Hill Cemetery
*James Thomas - unknown if he was moved
*Lavinia Ann Thomas - unknown if she was moved
*Susan Watts Thomas - unsure is she was buried in Blaine or with her parents. No other info available.
William Blaine was born in Pennsylvania in 1780. He married Sarah Henry, date and place unknown, daughter of Samuel Henry. Sarah Henry Blaine was born in 1783 and died in 1829. William Blaine died in 1824 leaving ten children:
1. Sarah Henry Blaine (1799-1835)
2. Mary Ann Blaine (Sept 15, 1800 -June 11, 1828) She died in Marion, Missouri. She married on Jan 2, 1825 in Kanawha to Waddy Cobbs (Feb 4, 1799-Aug 9, 1881) and had one child George Washington Cobbs (Feb 7, 1827-Apr 3, 1845)
3. Samuel Henry Blaine (1803-1831)
4. Robert Blaine (1808-1865)
5. Ruth P. Blaine (1810-1864) she was married on Sept 11, 1827 to Elliott Roberts Thomas (1804-1876) and had nine children. More on them at the bottom.
6. Elizabeth M. Blaine (1812-1851)
7. Rachel Mariah Blaine (1814-) she married James Gillespie (1812-) and had six children: William Charles Gillespie (1837-1861) Ann B Gillespie (1839-) Theopholis Gillespie (1841-1865) Valeria Jane Gillespie (1844-1917) she married Andrew J. Coon. Moses B. Gillespie (1846-1926) and Mary B. Gillespie (1849-)
8. Veturia Margaret Blaine (March 1819-Aug 13, 1902) She died in Jasper County, Missouri. She married on Oct 17, 1844 in Kanawha to Thomas Upton Cobbs (May 20, 1817-1898). They had six children: Sarah E. Cobbs (1846-) Robert Blaine Cobbs (1848-) Alice M N Cobbs (1850-) Annie Cobbs (1852-) Charles A. Cobbs (1858-) William P Cobbs (1860-). They divorced sometime in the 1870's and he moved back to Kanawha County.
9. Valeria Jane Blaine (1822-1857)
10. William Charles Blaine (Mar 26, 1823-Feb 15, 1905) He married on Mar 8, 1866, in Kanawha County to Elizabeth Jane Champe (Apr 1, 1848- Sept 28. 1922). They had no biological children.
Ruth Blaine, daughter of William Blaine and Sarah Henry, married Elliott Roberts Thomas on September 11, 1827, in Kanawha County. Elliott Roberts Thomas was the son of James Thomas and Elizabeth Roberts who came to Kanawha County from Buckingham County Virginia around 1796. Ruth P. Blaine inherited an interest in all the land holdings of her father after his death, which included Blaine Island. Since she was a married woman, her husband Elliott was the legal owner of the interest in right of his wife. They had nine known children:
1. Sarah Blaine Thomas (July 3, 1828-1886) married Bradford Hill (1819-1887) They had nine children: Lelia Jane Thomas (1854-1943) Sarah R. Thomas (1856-) Penola Alice Thomas (1856-1924) Lavinia Thomas (1858-) Elizabeth B. Thomas (1860-) James Elliott Thomas (1862-1937) William Charles Thomas (1865-1934) Robert Lee Thomas (1869-) Leonida Bradford Thomas (1871-1951)
2. James Thomas (1831-1850's)
3. Elizabeth Roberts Thomas (1833-1859) married her cousin John Mosely Thomas (1833-1914) and had two children: John Charles Thomas (1856-1930) and Pleasant Elliott Thomas (1858-1937).
4. Mariah Thomas (1835-1869) married c1852 in Boone County to Abner Buchanan Whitten (1827-1885) and had six children: Virginia Whitten (1853-) James K. Whitten (1856-) Susan P. Whitten Barker (1858-1891) Joanna Whitten (1863-) Frank Leslie Whitten (1866-1933)
5. Lavinia Ann Thomas (1837-Apr 27,1869)
6. Henrietta H. Thomas (June 27, 1840-June 12, 1917)
7. Veturia Margaret Thomas (Dec 9, 1842-Apr 26, 1922) married on Nov 5, 1870, in Boone County to Leonidas Henry Oakes (1842-1894) They had seven children: Charles Blaine Oakes (1871-1945) Leonidas Henry Oakes (1873-1949) Ebenezer Elliott Oakes (1874-1930) John Williard Kenna Oakes (1877-1947) Thomas Ashby Oakes (1878-1955) Margaret Veturia Oakes (1882-1965) Ira Phillip Oakes (1885-1959)
8. William Joshua Thomas (April 14, 1845- June 27, 1927) He married in 1875 in Kanawha County to Mary Rebecca Hamilton (1855-1935) They had six children: Mary Lavinia Thomas (1876-1914) Augustus Howell Thomas (1879-1949) Louisa Virginia Thomas (1882-1961) Ira Hampton Thomas (1884-1961) William Joshua Thomas (1884-1968) Sidney Carlisle Thomas (1886-1959)
9. Nancy Jane Thomas (June 1847-Oct 7, 1922)
Ruth P. Blaine Thomas died c1864 because on November 27, 1864 Elliott Roberts Thomas married for the second time to Susan Watts in Kanawha County.
Susan Watts was born c1824 in Pennsylvania and died July 1870 in Boone County WV. Her death record in the Boone County register has a number of errors. The record states E. R. Thomas, died July 1870, age 46, cause of death unknown, born Pennsylvania, farming, E. R. Thomas reporting. There are a number of reasons why this could have happened. It could be that this list was hand copied into this register from an original that no longer exists and transcribed incorrectly. After all, the entire list of names on this register page do not have exact dates of death just month and year. My best guess is that it was originally written as "Mrs E. R. Thomas" and it was copied incorrectly.
Elliott Roberts Thomas died in Boone County WV in the year 1876. In the land tax records for the year 1875 he was taxed for the full year for his land but in 1876 his land tax was reduced. In 1877 the land tax record states "E.R. Thomas heirs".
William Joshua Thomas was a confederate soldier. He was captured August 7th, 1864, and sent to Camp Chase in Ohio. His mother must have been dead already because he doesn't mention her in the letter he wrote home right after capture. He also refers to his uncle's Robert and William Blaine.
On May 13, 1875, Elliott Roberts Thomas transferred all his interest in his in the Blaine land to his only surviving son William Joshua Thomas. He also transferred his personal property and livestock to his son as well. He died the following year, so he likely knew he was dying or at least too sick to take care of his own affairs. (The land was two large tracts lying in Boone and Kanawha on the Coal River)
On Sept 22, 1884, John Charles and Pleasant E. Thomas, children of Elizabeth Roberts Thomas (daughter of Elliott & Ruth) deceased sold their interest in the estate of Ruth Blaine Thomas to William Joshua Thomas.
On March 6, 1889, the last remaining children of Elliott & Ruth who still owned shares had two of the remaining tracts of land partitioned. Those heirs were: William Joshua Thomas, Henrietta H. Thomas, Nancy Jane Thomas, Veturia Margaret Thomas Oakes, and the children of Marah Thomas Whitten deceased (James K Whitten, Frank Leslie Whitten, Susan Whitten Barker)
