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Nov. 13, 2005 "The Civil War is often referred to as a war of brother against brother and father against son. No other state illustrates this better than West Virginia, where there was equal number of sympathizers for the Blue and Gray causes. There were also quite a few who didn't want to get involved with the war at all. There is the story of the Marshall Brothers of Marlington, West Virginia. Jared Marshall became a Union Soldier and his brother Dwight brother joined the Confederate Army. The Brothers found themselves on opposite sides of the battlefield. Dwight brother immediately switched sided sides and joined his brother in fighting the confederate soldiers. Afterwards, the brothers decided enough of this nonsense. They sneaked out of the camp and hid out in Snedegar's Cave in Pocahontas County. They were able to get a message to their families for help. The Marshall Clan had a meeting and agreed that they did not want to send their young men to war. ll. This was not their fight. West Virginia became a State and separated from the Commonwealth of Virginia because they wanted to remain neutral. Why should brothers be pointed weapons at brothers for a cause that was essential a struggle between old money of the South and new money of the North? The young men and boys would be drafted into whatever troop marched through their communities. The Marshall's made a decision to send all their young men and boys to join Jared and Dwight in Snedegar's Cave. The McNeils, McClungs, Hedrick, and other families followed suit. Soon there were young men hidden in various caves throughout the county. The troops could not find young men but they did help themselves to livestock, horses, food and other supplies. The families found themselves destitute. There were no able bodied men to work the farms. The families were challenged to feed themselves much less the young men in hiding. Old Ansel "Pappy" Hedrick had a brainstorm. He took cooper and tin sheeting and plumbing parts into the caves. Pappy instructed the young men into building several 6 gallon capacity stills. . He showed them how to malt, mash, and ferment various forms of vegetation into alcohol. Afterwards they make it into whiskey, brandy and white lightning. When the woman came to the caves to deliver supplies, they would pick up the jugs of moonshine. The Moonshine was sold to the troops that frequently marched through their communities. This covert business enabled the young men and their families to survive during the Civil War. After a few years, the war ended. The young men left their caves. Some gathered their sweethearts and went west. Others went to South American. There were a few men who remained in Pocahontas County and maintained a thriving business that lasted even during the prohibition era. Caving devotees can still explore Snedegar's Cave and find relics of the old still. Few realize the history behind those old antique moonshine makers. ------------ About the author: Bonijean Isaacs is a freelance writer and Astrologer in West Virginia. Email: inez4liberty@gmail.com Tell a friend about this site! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com. Please link to this article rather than copying and pasting it onto your site (which would be unauthorized and illegal). |
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