Rev. Josiah Keely was born in Northampton, England; landed in America in 1818 and located in Haverhill, Mass., where, later, he engaged in mercantile trade, and was one of the forty shoe manufacturers of the town in 1837. It was then the cutsom for the young man who put up his first business sign, to "wet his sign;" Keely, Chase & Co., were the first business firm in the town who did not "wet his sign." - being active in the temperance movement that had been started in the country. In 1840 Rev. Keely entered the ministry. In 1843 he settled in Wenham, Mass.; in 1852 he settled in Saco, Me, pastor of the Main Street Baptist church, and for a number of years was also supervisor of the public schools of the town and township; in 1863 he was appointed chaplain of the Thirteenth Maine Infantry, then doing duty in the Department of the Gulf, and he joined the regiment at New Orleans, saw active service during the whole Red River campaign, was commended by Major-General N.P. Banks for his care and devotion to the soldiers, was placed in charge of the Hospital Steamer "Natchez" with the sick and wounded for New Orleans, and shortly after, was stricken with malarial fever and died (June, 1864), aged 58 years.

Mrs. Eliza (Bradley) Keely, his wife, was the daughter of Enoch and Abigail (Hildreth) Bradley. Enoch was a drum-major in the war of 1812, and after the war returned to his farm in Haverhill, Mass.; later, as nine children became of age, he built cottage homes for each on different sections of his large estate, - to provide against possible need. Enoch's wife was a near relative of the Hildreths who settled Marietta, Ohio; their descendants are among the most estimable of the present residents of Marietta.

William Keely entered early in life upon duties of a public nature: at 16 years, was librarian at Saco Athenaeum (Public Library); at 17, teaching a rural schoo; at 17, was graduated from the Saco (Me.) High School, and entered Colby (Waterville) College. Later, the Civil War was claiming the young patriots of the Country, and he enlisted as a private in the 13th Maine Vol. Infantry, of which Gen. Neal Dow was the Colonel; and while in camp, at Augusta (Me.) was Adjutant's Clerk at Headquarters. His regiment was ordered to Ship Island, Miss., where he performed his share of guard duty and of loading and unloading, and coaling U.S. Transports, preparatory to the capture of New Orleans. This regiment was sent to cut off the retreat of the Confederates, and two companies were ordered to garrison Fort Macobm, La. Later, Mr. Keely is commissioned a Lieutenant, and Acting Post Quartermaster and Commissary of this fort. Later, civil government being restored in Louisiana, he and other officers are ordered to await assignment of duty in the regular army. Not desiring to enter the regulars, he resigned and was honorably discharged in October, 1864. Soon after arriving home he was appointed principal of the Peaks Island School, - a part of Portland, Me. Closing his school work, he accepted position as bookkeeper, and, later, as superintendent of the Cannelton (W.Va.) Branch of the Union Coal and Oil Co., of Maysville, Ky. This company mined cannel and bituminous coal, made oil from the cannel coal, shipped the crude oil in barrels and an oil boat to Maysville to be refined, and, also, shipped cannel coal to Cincinnati and New York for gas purposes. The pay rolls and expenses of the company were about $30,000 per month. When, in 1865, Mr. Keely was appointed postmaster at Cannelton, he and his two sureties had to go horseback fourteen miles on to Cabin Creek to the nearest magistrate, Matthew P. Wyatt, Esq., to qualify.

Upon the discovery of Rock Oil, the cost of making oil from cannel coal became prohibitive; and, in 1868, Mr. Keely was instructed to close up the business of the Canneltown Branch. In 1869 he moved to Fayette County, on to the William Buster farm, where the town of Mount Carbon now is; later, he rents the Hogue farm below Charleston, and in the winter months we find him working fire and life insurance in Kanawha, Boone and Logan Counties, representing the Coldwell & Moore Agency. At the same time, he is looking about for some place on which to permanently locate. In the meanwhile, he is business manager of the Baptist Record at Charleston, and, later, is local edeitor of the Kanawha Daily, - the FIRST Daily paper printed in Charleston, and also reporting the proceedings of the Constitutional Convention of 1873; later, this Daily, with its good-will, was merged into the Daily Courier, of which Hon. H.S. Walker was proprietor.

Mr. Keely now accepts a position as Secretary, Bookkeeper and General Manager of the Anchor Stove Works Co., of which Colonel T. B. Swan was the President - succeeding Secretary Randolph, of the firm of Boggs & Randolph. This stove company was composed of local capitalists, and made a brave fight to compete with the larger and stronger stove companies on the Ohio River, but having assumed the debts of a former company, it was "quit or lose more money."

For a year or more Mr. Keely was accountant for Mr. Charles Ward and The Charleston Gas Co., of which Mr. Ward was the efficient superintendent, but stringency in money matters compelled curtailment in office force.

From 1874 to 1876, business was very dull in Charleston, and, for the first time since coming to the Kanawha Valley, Mr. Keely retired for a livelihood to his mountain home on the wooded hills of the south side of the Kanawha River, - this site having been purchased in 1870. He supplemented his poultry and dairy operations by devoting his spare time to copying "Briefs." and by occasional bookkeeping.

In August, 1870, through the kindness of friends, and unbeknown to Mr. Keely, he was recommended to Dr. J.P. Hale, President of the Snow Hill Salt Co., who was planning to start the old Snow Hill Salt Furnace, the largest in the Kanawha Valley; Dr. Hale wrote for an interview. Mr. Keely had never met Dr. Hale, but, following the first interview, he accepted the position of storekeeper, bookkeeper and general manager. He was able to handle the work in the store for a while with the young men who were assisting, but other duties demanded more of his time, and he secured the services of Mr. B.F. Mays of Charleston, who proved faithful and trustworthy in every respect. Mr. Keely made a thorough study of the process of salt making, and demonstrated that the business could be made a success. The furnaces were running every hour of the six week days and Sunday, and he ascertained, by experiments, that he could make as much Salt without running on Sunday, and so give the men who were "Kettle-tenders" a needed rest; and the furnace was running for three years on this plan; until 1882, when all the furnaces of the Kanawha and Ohio rivers were closed out and shut out by the cheaper grades of salt from Michigan and New York States, which monopolized the markets, - the Dickinson Furnace, only, running on the Kanawha, by holding the Kentucky trade over the Chesapeake & Ohio R.R.; and one or two furnaces on the Ohio having their own market.

During his stay at Snow Hill, Mr. Keely was road commissioner, Sunday school superintendent and school trustee; he also opened a reading room for the men, which was well patronized and much appreciated; he had, also, Mrs. Keely as his valued assistant in keeping up the bookkeeping and office work.

In 1882, Mr. Keely, having closed up the business of Snow Hill Salt Co., moved to his mountain home; and, again, accepted position with Mr. Charles Ward, whose business as inventor and manufacturer of the Ward Water-tube Marine Boiler, was becoming firmly established; and Mr. Keely, as accountant and later, as secretary of The Charles Ward Engineering Works has continued with this firm for a period of thirty years. During this time, he has, also, through the courtesy of this firm, been able to accept the position of president of the Board of Education of Loudon Magisterial District, for four years, and, later, for seven years, he has been the secretary of the same Corporation.

He has been active in religious work since his conversion at fifteen years; was superintendent of the Union Sunday School when at Cannelton, and after taking his letter to the Charleston Baptist Church in 1870, he was clerk, and, later superintendent for ten years of the Sunday School of this church, also a Deacon the Church since 1876; also, clerk of the Kanawha Valley Baptist Association for thirty-two years, and West Virginia Transportation Leader for the Convetions of the International Baptist Young Peoples' Union of America since 1905.

He is awake to all matters of public interest, especially of good schools, of good roads and of good farming. For a number of years he has been County Correspondent of and Reporter for the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington, under a commission from the secretary of agriculture. At all the general elections he is either a clerk or an election commissioner, and has been a notary public for twelve years. He is a Prohibitionist in principle and practice, and a Republican in politics, - an upright, active, useful and appreciated citizen.

In 1865, he married Miss Lucy Stacy of Saco, Me., whose ancestry, as well as that of Mr. Keely, is traced back to the seventeenth century. Their six children, all now in active callings, are Elizabeth and Madeline, teachers in the City Schools; Josiah, for ten years principal of the State Preparatory Schools at Montgomery, now superintendent of the Ownings Mine of the Consolidated Coal Co., near Shinnston; John, a former bookbinder, now a settled pastor in Massachusetts; Urania and Abby, teacher and accountants.

George Keely, when quite a youth, was sent for a prolonged visit to an uncle in Haverhill, who had a private school at his residence; and George combined farming with a course of study. Returning to Saco, he continued his school work, - his summer vacations being given to farming and harvesting for the parishiners of Rev. Keely; later, he was a student at Colby Institute (Waterville, Me.). He was graduated from the Saco High School and entered Colby (Waterville) College in 1859.

During his high school study course he gave part time to medical study, while employed as apothecary clerk; he taught school the winter of 1859 at Charleston, Me., about 20 miles from Augusta, the capital of the State. The neighborhood was primitive, and the 26 scholars had 24 different kinds of readers, - requiring 24 recitations each day; his salary was meagre, and he "boarded round." Failing health in college compelled Mr. Keely to seek more active employment; and going to the Aroostook country in the Northern part of Maine, he engaged as clerk in a village store. Later, the Civil War being already in progress and many of his student friends having enlisted, he returned to Saco in the fall of 1861, and enlisted as private with his brother William in Co. K, 13th Maine Volunteer Infantry. In 1863, the hospital steward of the regiment was made a surgeon, and Mr. Keely was recommended for the position, and was hospital steward during the remainder of his term of service in the Red River campaign and after the regiment was transferred to the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. He was honorably discharged January 6, 1865, - having served more than his three years' term.

Mr. Keely again took up his studies, - entering the New Hampton (Vt.) Theological Institute, and, later, completing at Hamilton Seminary; he preached during the time to the small adjacent village churches in New York State. Completing his studies he returned to the Aroostook country, and engaged in colporteur and pastoral work at Linneus, Linden and Smyrna, Me., and remained in the county preaching and farming until March, 1876.

In 1868 he married Louisa J. Adams, an efficient and prominent school teacher and teacher of music in Aroostook County. Her sister, Miss Marada Adams of Portland, Me., has been principal for years of the Emerson Grammar Schools of that city, and is a woman of remarkable tact and ability as superintendent and instructor.

The experience of Mr. Keely and wife among the people as they went from place to place revealed a primitive condition of things in some of the homes - both in want of culture and the proper conception of pastoral support; so that the pastor was often found without money or material to keep the wolf from the door in the long severe winters in the Aroostook. Wonderful dreams began to trouble the wife, and she had a vision of mysterious meaning, in which she saw the words of Scripture recorded in the Revelation, "Come out from among them, and be ye separate," - which decided their action in leaving the Baptist faith, and they sought for a new light.

An uncle learning of their extreme financial straits and of their environments, and who had taken a deep interest in the two "boys" (George and William) since the death of the father in the army, proffered help; George also wrote his brother William about his decision religiously; later, the brother taking up the matter and the situation with the uncle, it was decided that Mr. Keely and his family should move to West Virginia. They arrived in March, 1876, remaining on the farm of his brother William during the management of the Snow Hill Salt Furnace, where he occupied his adjoining property of 34 acres, which had been purchased, - on which the family of eight living children have since resided. In their religious searching for new light they were led to choose the faith of the Society of Friends. The children were all matriculated at the Friend's School at Westtown, Pa., except Frank, deceased, who was graduated from Charleston High School, and was fitting himself for the forestry. George, the eldest, married, and is with a Leather Belt manufacturer at Wilmington, Del.; Louisa and Jennie are at home; Mary, married, and has a nice home at Patten, Me.; Faith, a teacher; Mercy and Truth are efficient graduate trained nurses; Thomas, married, and is a truck gardener; the wife and mother still teaches at home, and many of the neighbors' children and grandchildren are pleased to say that they went to school to "Aunt Louisa."

As the years have gone by, either the father or mother have alternated in attending the Yearly Meeting of Friends at Philadelphia. The influence from this good family is widely felt and appreciated.