My paternal great great great grandfather, William Lanham Pool, was born in June 1817 in Monongalia County, (West) Virginia. He was the first born child of Reverend Asby Pool and Vilender Lanham. (Month and year of birth taken from the 1900 West Virginia census for William. Year of birth on his tombstone is 1816).
William grew up during pioneer times in the Morgantown (West) Virginia area. His father was a circuit rider with the Methodist Episcopal Church and land owner; both buildings in the newly formed town and farm land outside. Seven additional children joined the Pool family over the next twelve years; George Henry, John Asby, Catherine Esther, Anna Vilender, Alexander Ferguson, Theophilus and Mary.
Vilender Lanham Pool died between 1829-1830. William would have been age twelve. His father remarried Christina Smith on September 14, 1830. Four additional step siblings were added to the family; Hamilton Smith, Walter Greenmont, Nancy Jane and Harriet.
William followed his father into the ministry and was preaching at age 16 in Bald Hill, Pennsylvania.
 |
| Document shared by Dr. Robert Poole Wilkins |
At age twenty-one, William married twenty-one year old, Ann Louise Frum, daughter of Sampson Smith Frum and Elizabeth Ann VanGilder. The wedding was celebrated on May 14, 1839 in Monongalia County, (West) Virginia.
 |
| Map of Ann Frum Pool's property Dorsey School is the green dot |
The Pool's lived on a farm outside Morgantown. The location is mentioned in a newspaper article about William's father, Asby Pool written by Earl L. Core. William Pool, "He has ten children, all born on his farm on Aarons Creek near the Dorsey School." If this statement is accurate, the Pool's farm was on land belonging to Ann.
During the next two decades following their wedding, William and Ann added ten children to their family.
- Elizabeth Ann Pool, born May 24, 1840, died April 24, 1928, married William Steele McClure
- Martha Jane Pool, born December 25, 1842, died January 9, 1930, married Levi Samuel Shomaker
- Sampson Frum Pool, born February 20, 1843, died December 14, 1909, married Sarah Louise Harner (MY GREAT GREAT GRANDPARENTS)
- William Asby Pool, born June 14, 1846, died January 19, 1914, married Julia Catherine Kennedy
- Margaret L. Pool, born June 1848, died August 1849
- Alpheus Jerome Pool, born January 10, 1850, died April 11, 1913, married Belle V. Darrell
- Mary Ellen Pool, born January 4, 1851, died April 25, 1917, married Caleb Beall
- Matilda V. Pool, born 1854, died May 12, 1907, married Joseph M. Mras
- George Henry Poole born February 2, 1855, died October 18, 1924, married Martha Jane Kennedy
- John Waitman Poole, born April 16, 1857, died May 31, 1930, Mary Elizabeth Clark and Nancy Ella Zinn
William Lanham Pool listed his occupation as farmer on census reports. As mentioned above, he was also a minister with the Methodist Protestant Church.
Both William and his son, Sampson served in the Civil War, with the same regiment but different companies. To date, I have not found a pension file for Sampson. There is a civil war letter in my possession and a file on the West Virginia Archives and History website, West Virginia Union Militia in the Civil War.
 |
| Pension Service Record |
William Lanham Pool's service is listed in numerous sources and he does have a pension file.
He enrolled on August 20, 1862 in Morgantown for three years as a 4th Corporal in Company I, 14th Regiment West Virginia Volunteers. The document gives William's age as forty-four, 5 feet 7 1/2 inches tall, light complexion, grey eyes, dark hair. His muster in date is September 11, 1862 in Wheeling, West Virginia.
I had to google 4th Corporal and found that William was the Front Right Flank Squad Leader; front right of the second platoon, immediately to the left of the Captain during march.
William was present from his muster in date of September 11, 1962 until February, 1864. He is listed as a private beginning November, 1862. During January and February 1864, he was working daily as the regimental butcher.
 |
| Ambulance Corps Training |
Beginning in April, 1864 and continuing until July or August, William was on detached service with the ambulance corps. The ambulance corps was initiated early in the Civil War as a method of moving the injured soldiers to a hospital. Each infantry regiment was assigned a pair of two horse ambulances, a four horse ambulance and a medical supply wagon.
For the remainder of his service he was sick. Beginning in July and August, 1864 William has a record of being in the U.S. Field Hospital in Sandy Hook, Maryland. September and October 1864 he was sick in The U.S. General Hospital, Grafton, West Virginia; however he also has a hospital muster roll at the Sandy Hook, Maryland Hospital. November and December 1864 he is listed at the Hospital in Sandy Hook, Maryland. From January, 1865 until he mustered out on May 9, 1865, William was in the Island U.S.A. Hospital at Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. He was mustered as a private.
 |
| Furlough Letter dated January 5, 1865 |
In January, 1865, while hospitalized, William asked for a furlough by letter to go home for twenty days to get the farm ready for winter. His wife, Ann, had injured her arm, was at home alone, and needed help. The furlough was granted.
During the Salem Raid in West Virginia, near December 1863, William's first complained of symptoms that would be rheumatism and in Lynchburg, he complained of diarrhea and piles--dysentery. According to a first person account given the War Department by a fellow soldier and resident of Morgantown, William was afflicted with these diseases following his discharge.
William returned to his family and farm in May, 1865 and lived there for the next seven years. On September 10, 1872, he divorced his wife, Ann Louise Frum Pool. He wasted no time remarrying. In Fayette County, Pennsylvania, he married widow, Sarah Clark Runner, on September 19, 1872. Sarah's first husband, William Runner, died on March 4, 1860.
The marriage caused a schism in the family with his children refusing to visit him except his son, George Henry Pool.
The 1880 West Virginia census report seems to be MIA for William L. Pool.
Sarah had a daughter, Harriett Runner, who was born on December 10, 1858 in Monongalia County, (West Virginia). She is enumerated with her mother and William L. Pool on the 1900 West Virginia Census. Harriet died on November 21, 1904 in Monongalia County at the age of forty-five. I believe she is buried in Mt. Pleasant Cemetery, Monongalia County, West Virginia in a plot near the Pools.
 |
| 1890 Special Veteran's Census |
On the 1900 West Virginia Census, William is listed as a farmer who owns his farm. His wife, Sarah, step daughter, Harriet, a boarder, Sarah Kidwell and a servant, Albert G. Blosser are living together in the Clinton District, Monongalia County.
There was mention of William in the Morgantown Weekly Post, April 30, 1903, page 5. "Wm L. Pool, one of our loyal supporters, and well informed old citizen, paid us a visit Monday. Mr Pool is now in his 86th year and seems well, reserved, but feels his age to some extent. We trust he may live to make out the century."
In 1910, William and Sarah were living on the farm in the Clinton District. William is no longer working. He is living on his own income. He lists his age as ninety-seven.
William Lanham Pool died on October 7, 1911 in Monongalia County, West Virginia. To date I have not located his death record, even though records are available on line.
William is buried at Mt Pleasant Cemetery, Monongalia County, West Virginia. Of note: Date of birth on the tombstone is 1816. His wife, Sarah, died on January 23, 1920 and is buried beside her husband.
 |
| Will of William Lanham Pool |
The entire estate located on the Kingwood Pike, Clinton District, Monongalia County, West Virginia was bequeathed to Sarah with the exception of one horse, one buggy and one harness which was bequeathed to his son, George Henry Pool.
Thank you to my friend and cousin, Dr. Robert Poole Wilkins, my paternal second cousin twice removed, who unselfishly shared much of his research on the Ferguson, Lanham, Frum and Pool Families during our correspondence in the 1990's. He sent me a copy of his manuscript, "The Poole Family of Hampshire and Monongalia Counties, West Virginia being principally descendants of the Reverend Asby Poole (1788-1867) of Morgantown, as well as associated members of the Ferguson, Morgan and McRa Families."
Cale, Freda Robinson, Poole Family, personally bound, no date.
Core, Earl L. The Monongalia Story A Bicentennial History III Discord, McClain Publishing Company, Parsons, West Virginia, 1979. pages 497, 533, 603
Core, Earl L. The Monongalia Story, Asby Poole rode local circuits many years, newspaper article, newspaper and date unknown.
I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU. All comments are welcome; however, if they are inappropriate, they will not be published. PLEASE post your e-mail in the comment section if you would like to network about a particular surname or topic. I will capture it for my use only and not include it when I publish your comment.
© 2022, copyright Linda Hughes Hiser
Oh, so close. I only wish I have your William in my Poole tree, but it doesn't appear. Unless you get yours back to the mid-1660's in Massachusetts, and drop the E from the name. So nice to see your blog and it's very good and thorough.
ReplyDelete