Doors to the Past

Martha Community

to be their chief aim. C. L. Rolf died a poor man as he lost his 
possessions during the Civil War but he was a very honorable and good man. 
His wife, was a Miss Ruffner of Charleston, West Virginia, a daughter of 
Colonel Charles Ruffner. Mr. And Mrs. Rolf raised a family of five 
daughters and one son. This son, Charles Rolf, lives in Huntington, also 
several of the daughters. Mr. Rolf owned and lived on the farm now owned 
by Mr. Joe Mays. His nice home was burned with all its contents. He had a 
store and sold a great deal of merchandise. He also raised great flocks of 
sheep which he pastured on both sides of the county road from Squire 
Clay's to Barboursville, including the McKendrie and Charlie Moore farms, 
as well as the McKendrie farm now owned by C. O. Harrison. 
 
Mr. Rolf had a shepherd, a German whom he called Davis Morrison, who, with 
his two shepherd dogs, took care of the sheep and kept them at night in a 
large barn that stood in Squire Clay's orchard near the county road. 
 
The Dusenberry family was another very prominent family in this Elmwood or 
McComas District. They came from New York and settled near the mouth of 
Millbranch on the parcel of land on which Bailey Wentz now lives. This 
property belonged to Sampson Saunders and he built what was known as the 
Saunder's Mill on it. Mr. Dusenberry purchased this mill and since the 
mill has been torn down, the site is known by the older people of the 
community as the Dusenberry Dam. The mill was located just below the 
bridge across Guyan River. A dam was built at this point which caught 
sufficient water to run the mill by means of a turbine wheel. Upon several 
occasions this wheel was hindered frum running by large cat fish getting 
in at night through the water race or channel. The writer saw one that 
came out of the wheel that weighed 98 pounds. Two men were carrying it on 
a pole run through its gills. 
 
Guyan River was locked and dammed in the early fifties by the United 
States Government for navigation purposes. Two steamboats plied this river 
from Guyandotte to the falls of Guyan near the mouth of Four-mile Creek 
where the town of Hadley now stands. Coal and farm products were shipped 
by these boats, to Major and Louisa. How the geese and ducks paddled for 
the bank when the boats passed! The Civil War stopped this traffic which 
was never resumed. Later the push boat took the place of the steam boats. 
These boats did a great business for years until the Guyandotte Valley 

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Templates in Time