Hello All: Every list needs to recieve this information. I am passing it along to those who are interested. Because of the actions taken by a certain individual some record that researchers need is sitting in a city dump! I hope this doesn't happen in other cities too. How Awful, Lynn Lynn Roebuck pretzlgirl@cafes.net ========================================================== > > >I thought this might be of interest to anyone with VA ancestors. > > >People > > >like this need to be stopped, and we all need to ensure that this type > > >of thing NEVER HAPPENS AGAIN. > > > > > >Sheila I Hale > > >Fort McMurray,AB,Canada > > >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > > > > > >Please forward the news of this Marion County, West Virginia > > >travesty to every > > >genealogy group or historical society that you belong to. Also, if > > >you have > > > any > > >media contacts or government contacts please forward this > > >information to them. > > >Let's make Cody Starcher infamous! > > > > > > From: Pam Mullinax > > >E-Mail: pmullinax@mindspring.com > > >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > > >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~> > > >Fairmont -- Leatherbound books recording transactions between 1842 to > > >1880 have been important to local genealogist, but now the historical > > >books are gone - buried with the five bins of trash the Marion County > > >Commission hauled away from the Jacob's building last week. > > > > > >Along with books were, boxes and files of papers dating back to Marion > > >County's inception in 1942. There were five floors that had books, > > >boxes > > >and files to be removed. > > > > > >Some of the books were Wills; others were Justice of the Peace > > >books. > > >There may have been other records, but the article didn't say what > > >all > > >had been destoyed, because they didn't know. The article was a large > > >article for the paper. The historical and genealogical societies were > > >NOT notified that the county had planned to discard the handwritten > > >record books, files and other etcs. > > > > > >It seems the decision was made by the county commissioners (namely, > > >Cody > > >Starcher) to clear out several floors from the Jacobs building > > >(scheduled > > >for renovation) in which these historical documents were stored. They > > >decided on their own that no one would want to go through all the > > >files to > > >separate out the salvagable and so decided to not tell anyone. > > >They then > > >had the local garbage collectors come and clear out the books and > > >documents. > > > > > >************* > > > > > >The story about the above first appeared in the Times West Virginian > > >(Fairmont, WV)Sunday,June 21, 1998. On Thursday, June 25, 1998 the > > >below follow-up story was published. > > > > > >* * * > > >Dump off limits to historians > > > > > >By Theresa Haynes > > >Times West Virginian Staff Writer > > > > > >FAIRMONT - > > >Genealogists who wanted to dig through the landfill in search of the > > >county's discarded pre-Civil War record books will not be allowed to > > >excavate the dump.   Ron Chrislip, a local historian who has > > >researched > > >Marion County's past for more than 30 years, said he and four other > > >people > > >were prepared to go to the Meadowfill Landfill in Bridgeport to > > >search for > > >the record books tossed last week. > > > > > >But landfill officials halted the group's plans at the request of the > > >Marion County Commission. > > > > > >The day books dating back to 1842 were among several tons of outdated > > >files, books and papers the commission removed from the historic > > >Jacob's > > >building, which is undergoing renovation. > > > > > >Chrislip said he and other genealogists wanted to dig up the > > >historically > > >valuable record books when they learned the books had been hauled > > >away to > > >the dump, but the landfill told them there were confidential files > > >among > > >the garbage. > > > > > >Commissioner Cody Starcher said in an interview last week that the > > >county > > >had received special permission from the state to include old juvenile > > >records in the six BFI Dumpster trash bins hauled to the dump. > > > > > >"We are allowed to throw the juvenile records away after 20 years," he > > >said. "But they usually have to be shredded and burned." > > > > > >Now local historians are concerned they will never see the priceless, > > >handwritten books again. > > > > > >"I don't see how they will be retrieved," Chrislip said. "As a > > >historian I > > >have to be realistic. Now hopefully the county will preserve what > > >is left." > > >  Chrislip said the leather-bound books were particularly valuable > > >because > > >they recorded everything from the county clerk's office. > > > > > >"Record keeping then was a very different process," he said. "We > > >were still > > >in Virginia and documents like that are very, very rare." > > > > > >The historian said the records gave insight into a lifestyle long > > >gone. > > > > > >"There is no oral history from that time, no photography and very > > >little > > >written history. Through the day books we had a great deal of > > >information > > >to interpret history," he said. > > > > > >Chrislip agrees with the county commission that the books had no > > >monetary > > >value, but he said the county has lost something culturally valuable. > > > > > >He said 20 years ago he had searched for day books like the ones > > >thrown > > >away and was told they did not exist. Years later he learned they > > >were in > > >existence, but in "dead" storage. > > > > > >The historian said he and other people interested in genealogy > > >would have > > >liked to have been given access to the books before they were > > >discarded. > > > > > >County Commission President James Sago and Starcher were not > > >available for > > >comment Wednesday evening. > > >* * * > > > > > >If you'd like to write the Editor of the WV Times, > > > > > >The email address is: > > >timeswv@timeswv.com > > > > > >LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: > > >All letters for publication should be so stated. > > >Requests for publication must include address & telephone number. > > >phone: (304) 367-2500 * Fax: (304) 367-2569 > > > > > >Or postal mail to: > > >Times West Virginian > > >PO Box 2530 > > >Fairmont, WV 26555-2530 > > > > > >======================================================= > > > > > > ______________________________ >