This article, written by Todd Preston, the president of the Magoffin County Historical Society, was taken from the November 22, 2007 issue of THE SALYERSVILLE INDEPENDENT newspaper. The Salyersville Independent is a weekly newspaper published and edited every Thursday. For inquires or comments, please write to P. O. Box 29, Salyersville, KY 41465. Yearly subscription rates are $22.00 in Kentucky and $26.00 per year out of state.

As part of the observance of Veteran’s Day, the local DAV Chapter 15, of which I am a member, received invitations from all the grade schools of our county to visit and show how the American flag is folded and to tell what each fold stands for.  During the first part of the week we visited Prater-Borders Elementary, Salyersville Grade School, Millard Hensley Elementary and Salyer Elementary School. On Thursday we traveled to the other two schools namely Middle Fork and John T. Arnett Elementary.  We were treated with the greatest respect in all the schools with students from Headstart through 6th grade attending our program.  We have learned through Marilynn Allen that Magoffin County has approximately 1,270 elementary students.  We are proud of all of them and amazed at how talented and eager to learn they are.  I hope these children have enjoyed our visits for we have certainly loved going to the schools.   James Montgomery, Ray Shepherd, John Carpenter, Willard Risner, Chester Blanton, Melvin Blanton, Paul Lemaster, Randall Hardin, Wayne Jenkins and I will remember this event with pleasure.              Our good buddy Henry Clay Sizemore and his brother Hager Jack Sizemore were guided by Nelson Lovely, all riding mules, to a Marshall Cemetery on the left fork of the Brushy Fork of Puncheon last week.  I think this is a cemetery I’ve heard about but had not previously found.  Henry Clay described it to be in an abandoned condition but could make out Violet Marshall b. 1843 d. 1898 and other graves with unreadable markings. I found that Jackson Marshall b. 1842 d. 1908, a soldier of the Civil War in Co. D, 14th KY Regt., KY Inf. USA, is buried in the Thomas Fletcher Cemetery on Gun Creek.  He married 1st to Violet Fletcher b. 1843, dau of Alexander Fletcher b. 1816 and Loudena Castle.  Then Jackson m. 2nd in 1890 to Arzella Arnett, a dau of Catlett Arnett and Rhoda Howard.  Arzella was a widow of Brack Pinks.             Jackson and Violet had the following children: Miles, Cynthia, Mary, Eunis, Atlanta and Albert.  Jackson and Arzella’s children were: Helen, Walter, Sheridan, Susan, Emily, Malla, Lula and Anna.             My thoughts are this cemetery shouldn’t be abandoned with all the above descendants.  I have to admit that I am a bit puzzled.  Even though I’ve made several trips into Brushy looking for the cemetery that Donna Marshall Wireman listed in 1980 as the Miles Marshall Cemetery with 10 graves: Dora Marshall (dau of Scott Marshall), Violet Marshall (b. 1843 d. 1898, nee Barnett, wife of Jackson Marshall), C. M. d. 10 Jun 1883, L. L. Wm. -?- b. 10 Apr 1886 d. 8 Sep 1889. She also reported the following persons were said to be buried there, Miles, Betty, Dole, Scott and Sissy Marshall.  Is this the same cemetery as above?             Chloteen Fish (grannyrainbowsendfarm @yahoo.com) wrote to inquire if we had done any research on the old cemetery at the head of Craft Creek on land which used to be the Clyde Howard farm.              I think she is referring to the Harkin Craft Cemetery; at least this is what the late Earl Bailey called it in 1989.  He listed 26 unidentifiable sites and seven with names: Melva Jean Minix b. 1939 d. 1951, Mollie Smith b. 1885 d. 1934, Mace Carpenter b. 1889 d. 1929, Creasie Howard b. 1890 d. 1957, James Elwood Howard b. & d. 1933, Jesse Howard b. 1889 d. 1927 and Tommy Smith b. 1894 d. 1914.             I went to this cemetery several years ago with some visitors but a hard rain came during our visit and we couldn’t tarry long.  I’ve had in my mind to take another trip up there and it has to be rather soon before the road, if any, gets too muddy this winter.  In the meantime, is there anyone who can identify any other burials in this old cemetery?             While we are talking about the Carpenter line, we need some help!  Johnny Carpenter is the son of Ernest Carpenter and Ann Conley. Ann was the dau of Ham Conley.  Ernest was the son of Boyd Carpenter b. 1878 and a grandson of Dudley Carpenter and Mahala Howard.              Boyd Carpenter married in 1893 to Rebecca Patrick b. ca. 1874. Who were Rebecca’s parents?  Were they John C. Patrick and Jane Patton who married 22 Nov 1872?             We have struggled with this question for weeks to no avail.  Boyd was married a couple more times.  Boyd’s great grandfather was Wilson Carpenter.             Notice of a membership death has come to us from Clair Risner and also from Bernard and June Risner, all of Stockbridge, MI.  Marceline Risner Moyer of Fostoria, OH and a dau of Kelly Risner died October 14th of this year.  Ms. Moyer had been a valued member of the historical society for many years and always came to see us during her visits to Kentucky.              We have also received some sad news from Dave Conley (hhconley @comcast.net).  He reports that his father Harold Henry Conley who was born in 1923 in Palmyra, KY departed this life on 5 Nov 2007. He was a resident of Pueblo, CO, a son of Dewey Conley and Verna Louise McCarty.   Harold H. served in WWII in the Army Air Corps as a radio technician.             In civilian life Harold held occupations in many fields and in several states including Colorado, New Mexico and Idaho.  He was married to Donna M. Warner in 1948 of Boulder, CO, a dau of Herbert E. Warner. All his life he was an avid photographer, having his nature pictures published in the Pueblo calendar over the last ten years.             Our 1997, Vol. 19 Journal of the Magoffin County Historical Society has an article entitled Descendants of William W. Conley by Harold H. Conley.             During this season of Thanksgiving we pause to reflect on all the happenings of the past year and count our many blessings.  The year has brought us sadness with the loss of many dear friends.  We are thankful for the time we had with them and the enrichment they brought to our lives.  We are glad for the old friendships that grow more precious with time and for those friends we have just recently come to know.  For those who may wish to contact us by mail our address is Box 222, Salyersville, KY 41465 (email: [email protected]) or you may telephone 606-349-1607.