Posted: 5:45 AM - Mar 27, 2002
Judy
Michael,
Dee told me to post my message here, thought you might be able to help. My ancestors the Bryan Family came from a Berrysville, W.V., but the only Berrysville I can find in the Atlas's I have available is Berryville, Vir. Did the W. Virginia state line change at any time?? If anyone can help, I would truly appreciate it. Thanks
Posted: 9:31 AM - Mar 27, 2002
Michael McKay
If you know from history how West Virginia came about it was during the Civil War when the counties of the mostly western half of what was then Virginia decided not to follow their sister counties to the east in seceeding from the Union and remained in the Union in the place that all of Virginia once occupied in the government.
After the Civil War when the Southern states were admitted back into the Union West Virginia became a separate state.
The story I've heard regarding the panhandle counties was that they originally were going to seceed with the rest of Virginia but were persuaded not to. Something to do with keeping the Shenandoah Valley divided (the "breadbasket of the Confederacy".)
By that time, Clarke, Warren, Hampshire, Morgan & other counties had already been carved out of old Frederick County. Clarke and Warren being among some of the youngest counties back then.
Hampshire and Morgan remained within the Union while Clarke County (where Berryville is located) went Confederate.
Berryville has always been in Clarke County (except of course when it was all Frederick County.)
Berryville got it's name from the Berry family which was prominent in that region and I believe I have ancestry in through my great-grandmother Eva (Ferguson) Robinson's Strother family.
I have not heard of Clarke County being part of West Virginia. All of the history I've seen indicates what I told you above about the counties.
It could be possible that the information you received contained errors and they meant to say Virginia.