Madison Hively Sinnett (1871 - 1947)

Matt was born in Roane Co in 1871 while most of the county was still wilderness. Matt and his wife Margaret "Nannie" lived on a farm on McKowns Creek in Walton District near Left Hand Hill with their seven children. It is believed that this is the land that his father Joseph bought and developed and later sold to his son Claudius in 1898 and he later sold it to Matt in 1904. Matt later sold the farm to his son O.T. Sinnett for $1.00 in 1944 in consideration they take care of him and allow him to live in the family home until his death. Matt died in 1947 and Thair and his wife continued to live on the farm untill 1953 when he moved to Charleston to be closer to his job at the Carbide plant. 1953 is when he sold the farm to Robert and Edith White. This was when the ownership of this land left the Sinnett family for the first time in almost 100 years. It's not clear how much land they once owned but I was told by a neighbor, the late Dewain Canterbury, the Sinnett's at one time owned everything from Ambler Ridge Rd. down to McKown's Creek Rd. Walton was a young village in 1875, known for the many Grist Mills located there due to the ever flowing supply of water. The town itself was laid out in 1856 and a district government organized in 1863. With the opening of the oil fields on McKown's Creek about 1910, Walton had to accommodate the needs of this new industry, including the need for houses, restaurants, doctors and schools. The Ambler Ridge area, located over the hill from the Sinnett farm, became a busy little section of the county, with stores, boarding houses, schools and even a dance hall. I have even read reports that the outlaw Jesse James spent some time in the area. Matt was a blacksmith who sharpened the tools for the drilling rigs and he and his oldest son Thair, were teamsters with teams of horses that hauled materials and equipment for building roads, for drilling wells, and transporting the oil to market. They farmed the land and raised cattle, horses and chickens, some of which ended up in the pot for Sunday dinner. Nan had an oil field boarding house and housed and fed many men from all parts of the country while she raised her seven children. In april of 1932 Matt was one of many chosen for jury duty for the May term. By 1940 the census listed only Matt and his wife Nannie living on the farm they owned valued at $6,000.

I've heard stories about how all the neighbors would gather on the large front porch singing and playing instruments on Saturdays and Sundays after church. It must have been quite a sight seeing all the people and wagons at the house having fun and enjoying each others company. Today in most cases we don't even know our neighbors. In the 1930's there was a gas plant built on the south end of his property near Ambler Ridge Rd. and there were at least four oil wells producing on the farm from which they received royalty checks for. Matt's will gave equal shares of his life insurance to all the children but his personal and real property was divided up between the four girls. It's not clear how many acres were left at the time of his death but today (2008) it is taxed for about 63 acres. The house still stands today although it has changed hands a few times over the years and some of it's former beauty was taken away by time and neglect. Some of the families that have owned the farm are Raines, Wolf, McKrackin and today it is owned by Stanley and Janet Smith. In 1990 Judith Koffler, the owner at that time was attempting to bring it back to it's original stature. I was able to help by supplying her with some old photos I had showing the trim and molding as it was built. I had hoped she would be able to finish the job and keep it up, but that was not meant to be. In 1993 Stanley and Janet Smith bought the farm and built greenhouses and a country gift shop on the site and have spent much time and money in keeping it up but many of the old barns are gone and the property lines have changed over the years but the old cemetery remains on the hill overlooking the Grand old farm. Both of my grand parents died before I could develop any memories of them. But through visits to the farm and the Walton area along with the old photos I feel like I've know them my whole life. Madison is buried in the Humphrey family cemetery located next to the family farm near Walton, West Virginia on McKown's Creek. In some circles it is known as the Sinnett Cemetery. The cemetery is surrounded by land owned by a wonderful couple, Earl and Judy Shafer. Going back in time I couldn't help but think of the short carriage ride up the hill to the Mount Welcome Church on Ambler Ridge. The Church was built in 1914 with the help of Matt Sinnett, W.P. Humphrey, and William S. Boge Lynch. On a quiet Sunday morning you can almost hear the songs and prayers coming from this small country church, surrounded by the teams of horses as they grazed peacefully in the churchyard.