HISTORY OF KENTUCKY AND KENTUCKIANS, E. Polk Johnson, three volumes,
Lewis Publishing Co., New York & Chicago, 1912. Common version, Vol. III,
pp. 1306-07.  Boyd County.

HENRY CLAY GARTRELL.  For a number of years Henry Clay Gartrell was
numbered among the representative and prominent business citizens of
Ashland, Kentucky, and in his death the entire community felt that an
irreparable loss had been sustained by the public and the city had lost
one who had devoted his best efforts to upbuilding of public interests and
had achieved an enviable distinction in the different departments of life.
He had been intimately associated with several of the leading industries of
the locality, his genius and indubitable talent as a financier and business
manager resulting in the prosperity of these enterprises.  His entire
career was marked by signal integrity, justice and honor, and no word of
detraction was ever heard from those who knew him.
     Henry Clay Gartrell was born on a farm near Winchester, Virginia,
May 23, 1825, the son of Richard and Maria (Karney) Gartrell, both natives
of Virginia, where they were reared and married and soon afterward came to
Kentucky and located near Lexington.  A few years later they removed to
Missouri, settling near Palmyra, where they secured a large tract of land
and owned many slaves.  In 1832 a cholera epidemic prevailed and they lost
many of their slaves and also members of their family, the mother of
Richard Gartrell among the number.  She was a widow and accompanied her
son and family from Virginia to Kentucky to Missouri.  Soon after this
epidemic Mr. Gartrell sold out and removed to Dubuque, Iowa, making there
a permanent home and becoming extensively interested in lead mining, in
which he continued until his death, which occurred in Dubuque.
     Our subject was an infant when he was taken west by his parents and
grew up to young manhood in Dubuque, Iowa, receiving a good education. He
was about twelve years old when his father died, and when he was eighteen
he went to St. Louis and entered the large mercantile establishment of
Mr. Lisle, a prominent man and an old friend of his father.  Here young
Gartrell also had advantages both in good schooling and the opportunity of
acquiring a thorough knowledge of merchandising.  A few years later he
joined his mother and sister in College Hill, Ohio, now a suburb of
Cincinnati.  In partnership with his brother, C. H. Gartrell, he engaged
in the dry-goods trade on Fifth street, Cincinnati, and later sold out
and became a partner of Moses Crigler and operated successfully a dry
goods on lower Market street for many years.  He became a very energetic
and successful business man and engaged in many enterprises, and with
others built and owned steamboats which were operated on the Ohio river.
During the Civil war an immense business was transacted with the
government in transporting soldiers, supplies, etc.  After the war he
sold out his mercantile and river interests, and all others as well, and
retired from active business life.
     In the meantime he had located at Ashland, at the time the town
started in 1854, and bought property at the first lot sale, and in
consequence became interested in real estate speculation, buying and
selling much property successfully during the early years of rapid
development following the Civil war.  His wife owned about seven hundred
acres adjoining Ashland along the upper Ohio river, and they built a
handsome brick residence thereon, which is now within the city limits of
Ashland, near what is known as the underground crossing of the electric
railway and the C. & O. Railway.  This house was built in 1855, but
during the Civil war they took up their residence in Ashland proper, where
Mr. Gartrell lived until his death in 1870.  While he was actually retired
from active business for several years previous to his death, he was still
active in many trades and deals up to the time of his demise.  He
accumulated a large estate, owning among other properties the ground on
which the Norton Iron works were built, which was sold to that company in
later years.
     In politics Mr. Gartrell was originally a Whig of the old school.
He never aspired to nor held an office, his entire interest being given to
business, in which he displayed activity and sagacity. One of his brothers,
Charles Harris Gartrell, served for a time in the Union army in the Civil
war, but contracting a severe cold, lost his eyesight and was brought home
by our subject from Cumberland Gap, which trip required several weeks to
accomplish, owing to the difficulty in getting through the lines.
     Mr. Gartrell married on October 25, 1853, at Louisa, Kentucky, Miss
Eliza J. Pogue, born on the farm where she now lives in Boyd county,
Kentucky, March 20, 1835, the daughter of John H. and Sarah A. (Moore)
Pogue, the former a native of Mason county, Kentucky, and the latter from
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a sister to the late Colonel L. T. Moore of
Catlettsburg, of whom a sketch is given elsewhere.  The Pogue family was
among the pioneer families of Kentucky, the first settling at what now is
Harrodsburg, Kentucky, William Pogue being the founder of the family in
this state and the grandfather of John H.  During pioneer days he was
with Daniel Boone and helped build the fort at Harrodsburg.  While hunting
with a party of companions he was surprised by an Indian attach and
although on horseback was shot in the midst of the canebrake and fell from
the horse.  His companions escaped, but later returned with reinforced
numbers, secured the wounded man and took him to the fort, where he died.
His wife was Ann Kennedy, who was the mother of three children, two
daughters and one son, born in the fort, the oldest daughter, Ann Pogue,
being the first white female child born in Kentucky.  The son, Robert
Pogue, was reared amid frontier scenes at Harrodsburg and when a young
man removed to Mason county, Kentucky, when it was a part of Virginia,
locating on a farm near Limestone, now Maysville, where he acquired a
large landed estate in time and owned many slaves, also built a fine
stone mansion and surroundings.  For a number of years previous he had
following the profession of surveying, and, visiting many parts of the
state in connection with his work, he became familiar with the desirable
places and his settlement was due to former knowledge.  He also served
as surveyor general of this section when it was part of Virginia.  He
raised a regiment for the war of 1812 and became a colonel.  Colonel
Pogue was present at the battle Thames and witnessed the death of Tecumseh.
One of his sons, John H., served with him during that struggle and was
lieutenant of his company.
     Prior to the time Robert Pogue enlisted in the war of 1812 the
family name was spelled Poage, but this name was spelled Pogue on
government records and commissions and from that time forward he adopted
the latter method, as have also his descendants.  The family was
descended from the old Augusta county, Virginia, Poages.  Robert Pogue
passed his life on his plantation near May's Lick.  He married Jane
Hopkins, a native of Augusta county, Virginia, by which union there were
four sons and three daughters.  Of the above children John H. Pogue was
the father of Mrs. H. C. Gartrell.  He was the oldest son and removed
from the plantation to Mason county, Kentucky.  During early years he
became part owner with his father and others in the Amanda Charcoal
furnaces, one of the early institution of this kind in the Ohio Valley
in Kentucky.  Later he disposed of his interest on account of his
religious scruples in connection with Sunday work and engaged in farming
in Mason county, but lived but one year, dying from yellow fever at the
age of forty-four.  His neighbors had taken produce to New Orleans by
river and contracted the disease.  John H. Pogue was an elder in the
Presbyterian church, and very devout, and, acting according to his sense
of duty, administered to the victims and thus became afflicted with the
disease.  His wife also contracted the same, but recovered and finally died
at the age of sixty-seven.  Her husband died when they had been married
four years, leaving her one child, Eliza J., now the widow of H. C.
Gartrell, who resides on a fine estate about midway between Ashland and
Catlettsburg.  Portions of the seven hundred acres left her from the estate
of her grandfather Pogue have of late years became residence properties in
the development of this region, thirteen acres having been recently bought
by the government for dam No. 29 in the Ohio river improvement.
     Mr. Gartrell and wife were the parents of seven children, five of
whom are living.  They are as follows: Anna G., widow of William Kerr,
formerly a banker and hardware merchant of Ironton, Ohio; Viola, widow
of former Judge M. H. Houston, of Ashland; Virginia, wife of Judge Thomas
Cherrington, of Ironton, Ohio, recently retired, after serving twenty-six
years on the circuit court of that state and many years as superior judge;
Harry C., at home; Ethelbert Hopkins, secretary and general manager of the
Ashland Fire Brick Company.  He also manages his mother's affairs and is
largely interested in the company of which he is active head and manager.
He is a member of the Presbyterian church at Norman and active in support
of the same, being also the superintendent of the Sunday-school, for which
in fact he is largely responsible in maintenance, as the Gartrell family
were actively identified with it organization.

Gartrell Karney Lisle Crigler Pogue Poage Moore Boone Kerr
Kennedy Hopkins Houston Cherrington
=
Harrodsburg-Mercer-KY Mason-KY Lawrence-KY Fayette-KY Hamilton-OH
Augusta-VA MO IA PA

http://www.rootsweb.com/~kygenweb/kybiog/boyd/gartrell.hc.txt