Pendleton County West Virginia

Free and enslaved families have been present and on the landscape of Pendleton County, West Virginia since the late 1700's. Early names associated with Free people of Color included the Shaver, Hayes, Emanuel, Holly, Lotterberry, Moats and Triplett families, among others.

The surnames of some of the largest slaveholders from 1810 - 1860 were Coile/Kile, Dyer, Henkle/Hinkle, Hopkins, Hull, Kincaide, Rexroad, Ruleman and Skidmore.

The most comprehensive history of Black folks in the County can be found in the text below:

Entry Mountain

"This small community is named for the mountain on which it is located at the west side of Franklin. Malinda Emanuel, widow of George Emanuel, along with her children and mother-in-law, are believed to be the first people of color to live on Entry Mountain. In 1872, Malinda purchased a seventeen-acre tract of land there from E.J. Coatney, paying $200 for it. By 1880 there were several black families living nearby as neighbors, indicating that a community evolved during the mid- to late 1870s."

(Black People of Pendleton County, page 32)

Since that time and after National Emancipation,The community established Entry Mountain School for their children and Emanuel Chapel AME Zion church for their souls. Entry Mountain became a place for Black families, locally and from outside the area, to settle and purchase land. Prominent families include the Douglas, Gardiner, Merritt, Willis, Wright and Lindsay surnames. In the 1940s and 50s, Black families from the town of Franklin began to relocate to the Mountain, perhaps, through an Urban Renewal project or through other land acquisitions by the town. More research is needed to understand this relocation process and its origins. There is a strong history of horsemanship, agricultural production, community organizing, factory work as well as unbeatable baseball and softball teams.

Moatstown

The Moatstown community was settled and developed by white German immigrants. The first settler was Jacob Moats. The community's demographics shifted due mostly to the Moats female descendents and their Free Black offspring. This very rural, historically mixed-race community began to appear in the US Census in the 1840's. Out of those early days came a robust and hardworking body of descendants who were able to create something out of nothing. Moatstown Chapel church and Moatstown School were established to serve the spiritual and educational needs of the community, while ancestors passed on working class skills of horsemanship, farming, woodworking, logging and vibrant musical traditions.

Homecomings & Community History Days

In August, 2025 Black in Appalachia was invited to conduct Community History Days during the Moatstown & Entry Mountain Homecomings. We worked with residents and returning family members to conduct oral histories and digitize personally-held materials in churches, former schoolhouses and peoples' homes.