No comments about Greenbrier [W. Va.] Pioneers and Their Homes.

No comments about Virginia and West Virginia Genealogical Data from Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Records: Volume 1 (Virginia & West Virginia Genealogical Data from Revolutionar).

1 comments about Genealogies of West Virginia Families.

1. Genealogies of West Virginia Families is a consolidation of all the family history articles to have appeared throughout the complete run of The West Virginia Historical Magazine Quarterly, from 1901 to 1905. Though a rich source of West Virginia genealogical data, this short-lived periodical is very scarce and, moreover, has never before been indexed. Clearfield Company is delighted to rectify both of these shortcomings by reprinting the genealogical meat of the magazine and by adding a complete name index of more than 5,000 entries. If your West Virginia ancestor came from one of the following main families, Genealogies of West Virginia Families is a work you won't want to overlook: Cameron, Clendinen, Doddridge, Duke, Elting-Shepherd, Hansford, Henderson, Henshaw, Hite, Houston, Lewis (Samuel and John), Lovell (Joseph), McWhorter (Henry and John), Miller, Morris (William), Nourse (James), Patrick (Virginia Harvie), Ruffner (Peter and Joseph), Rumsey (James), Shepherd, Stribling-Hereford, Teays, VanMeter, Van Metre-DuBois-Shepherd-Hite, and Yates-Aglionby.

No comments about The Parsons Pioneers.

3 comments about Absentee Landowning and Exploitation in West Virginia, 1760-1920.

1. The work of a biased amateur with no sense of the true West Virginia. The methodology is poorly conceived and rigged to yield the author's desired outcome. This book is a classic example of how not to do history.



2. This appears to be the senior thesis of a struggling C or D student. The writing is very poor and it appears that the writer decided what conclusions she would reach and then fit all the facts to reach that conclusion, and failed to consider other sides of the issue. A very one-sided, polemic and unintellectual book.



3. Anyone with any rudimentary knowledge of West Virginia history will appreciate this work by Barbara Rasmussen. A basic trait of most humans is that they will take care of the land they own and depend on for their existence. They will also have a sense of community unlike the many industrial giants that took advantage of not only West Virginia but many other parts of our country. West Virginia history is sadly filled with exploitation of the state's people and resources. Industrialism in West Virginia proved once again that without a sense of responsibility for helping your workers grow both personally and financially you breed a population of dependents and you end up with socialism. This lead to the Great Depression and we are just now climbing out of the socialist mess it left behind. I recommend that you read Rasmussen's book and decide for yourself where the truth lies.

No comments about Written in Stone: Tombstone Readings of Preston County, West Virginia.

1 comments about The Soldiery of West Virginia in the French and Indian War; Lord Dunmore's War; the Revolution; the Later Indian Wars; the Whiskey Insurrection; the Second War with England; the War with Mexico. And Addenda Relating to West Virginians in the Civil War..

1. This is the most comprehensive compilation of West Virginia soldiers in the Revolution and other wars, containing rosters and, in many cases, service records of thousands of soldiers, with narratives on the various wars. The rosters and rolls, here collected for the first time, are drawn from both published and unpublished sources, the original records being in many cases in the Department of Archives and History of the State of West Virginia.
   
   "The reader is struck by the extent of the troop rosters, especially in regard to detail. All manner of tidbits of information went into the routine rosters of participants, replete with rank and survival data."--West Virginia History.

5 comments about The Davissons Twelve Generations: 1630-1992 Davidson-Davison-Davisson Families : A History and Genealogy.

1. Obviously, this book is not going to have wide appeal. I bought it more to put on display than read. My grandmother had done the genealogy work long ago so I already had the information.

   Russell Lee Davisson has done an admirable job of making a rather dry subject come alive. The illustrations are the best part, putting a face on some locations. I would have appreciated some anecdotes, or greater historical background of the time periods. At the end of the day it is a list of names. It is, after all, a genealogy book. The book itself is nice looking, and goes on display well. Nothing fancy.

   Some of his conclusions are a little odd, and his references to "Gaelic Propaganda" reveals a strange prejudice. As a student of the Scots-Gaelic language with friends in Gaelic speaking Scotland, I found this off-putting.

   All in all, a nice book if you happen to be a Davisson




2. I feel fortunate to have a few copies of Russell Lee Davisson's book, "The Davissons". As my grandmother was a double Davisson in that both her parents were Davissons and it was from her that I came to love to hear about our family heritage and learn our genealogy, I am very interested to know more about this family and their time in America. Mr. Davisson's book is very informative and I too like the drawings that are in it. I am glad to have my copy as well as a few extra to give to new found cousins who also exhibit an interest in this family history.



3. Russell Lee Davisson's genealogy book will of course be of primary interest to all the Davissons, Davidsons and Davisons who happen to be kin. It should be noted, however, that he went out of his way to make his book interesting to non-genealogy buffs by including more than just a list of names, dates and genealogy charts. He was thoughtful enough to incorporate interesting historical facts along with wonderful maps and illustrations provided by Pierre Bergem.

   Anyone who has done genealogical research will understand that it is not easy to come up with cute anecdotes for each ancestor. Most people searching for their roots are primarily interested in finding out who their ancestors were, where they lived and died, and most importantly, who their children were starting with Daniel Davison "The Exile" in the mid-1600s and being able to trace them down to the current Davisson generations. In this, Russell Davisson has done an exceptional job.

   Russell Davisson concentrated on the Davissons who migrated from Massachusetts to Long Island, on to New Jersey, and on to West Virginia, Kentucky and Iowa. His dedicating a chapter to each generation and his numbering system for each generation makes it simple to keep track of a particular family line from Daniel in 1650s Massachusetts to the present. It took me less than half an hour to trace my wife's ancestors up to "The Exile" and saved her hundreds of hours of research.

   Also of importance is the fact that Davisson, Davidson, Davison descendants who have ancestors in this book will get a tremendous bonus in the outstanding 33 page index of other surnames to pursue other branches of their family tree.




4. Russell Davisson's work follows the line of Daniel Davison (1630-1693) and is the definitive work in this area. Davisson corrects several commonly quoted mistakes of A.A. Davison's 1905 "Davison Family" work (refuting in particular the link between Daniel and Nicholas Davison (1611-1664)).
   
   In short, every researcher of the Daniel Davison line should own a copy of this book.



5. The book was packaged well to preserve it through postal services. I have just started to work with it but I am in hopes that it will answer a few nagging questions regarding the family ties in the 1700-1800s that are not answered by censuses, etc. The family history is very hazy at one point and I am in hopes that this book may answer the brick wall I have run into. I wish that I could get my hands on the Arthur H. Davison book that is out of print.

No comments about Virginia and West Virginia Genealogical Data from Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Records, Volume 4 Nabors - Rymer (Virginia-West Virginia Genealogical Data from Revolutionary).

1 comments about West Virginia: A History.

1. A long read, and a true history of the state. Whatever your background, If you like West Virginia, then this book is for you.