House Photo. from the Eugene F. Jones, Jr. collection, Meadow Creek, WV.

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The Joseph Bleau home at Meadow Creek, WV ca. ~1894.This house, built ~1878, was located below the C&O Railway tracks near the mouth

of Meadow Creek. All that remains of the house today (2013) is theone story “kitchen” that set on the left side of the original house.

This house “kitchen” is the oldest building in Meadow Creek.I have heard some people say that the two-story portion of the house was damaged

by a flood and was torn down, others saying “no” to that.The E-911 address is: 141 North Riverside Rd.

Joseph [Guillaume?] Bleau was the son of Joseph & Rose “Jenny” Bleau.Joseph, a stonemason, was born ~1848 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada

and died June 4, 1921. His first wife wasVirginia Ann Gwinn (May 24, 1856–May 24, 1896) of Meadow Creek, WV.

They were married on Oct. 30, 1872 by Rev. A.J. Carper.Virginia is buried in the Meadow Creek Cemetery.

Virginia was the daughter of William & Mary “Polly” (Richmond) Gwinn

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.Joseph & Virginia Bleau’s known children are:

Joseph William, Sr. 1873-1963 married #1 Eliza M. Stickler #2 Effie Florence Ennis

Samuel M. 1875-1897 never marriedBessie Ann. 1879-1901 married Henry J. HuffFredrick Andrew 1881-1947 married Lula Florence DuncanErnest Vivian 1884-1952 married Mamie FoxDaisy R. b. Dec.1887 married ______________ HughesBirt B. 1891-1943 married Woodsie WaughViolet Mary 1894-1962 married Arthur A. Addleman

Joseph’s second wife was the widow Annie Beasley – born December 1869 in PA.Annie was the daughter of Henry & Mary Snyder. Rev. David G. Richmond married

them on April 3, 1897 at Meadow Creek, WV. 25977Annie Beasley may have had children with her first husband.

Joseph and Annie left Meadow Creek about 1914.They possible lived in the Kanawha Valley area, eventually living in Ohio

and it is assumed they are buried there.Joseph and Annie Bleau’s known children are:

Ruth b. ~1897 married Youell NelsonMargaret b. July 1898 married Clifford SlackDaniel b. 17 Nov. 1899 married Madeline NoelPaulEdith I. b. ~1906 married William RichardsonTheodore “Ted” died in auto. accident.Josephine A. b. ~1909 married Frank L. Mehlmann

In the photo it appears the family members in front of Joseph Bleau’s house are:from left to right:

Frederick Andrew, Ernest Vivian, Virginia Ann, in chair, Bessie Ann,Violet Mary, in stroller, Daisy R., and Joseph in chair with Birt B. Bleau.

Summers County, WV Cemetery Bookhas the following Bleau family members listed as buried within the County.

Bessie A. Bleau 1879-1901 Meadow Creek CemeteryBessie Dale Bleau 1915-1993 Richmond CemeteryBirt B. Bleau Apr. 19, 1891-Jun. 26, 1943 Meadow Creek CemeteryEffie F. Bleau Jun. 12, 191-Jan. 24, 1947 Meadow Creek CemeteryElizabeth M. Bleau Sep. 24, 1878-Oct. 7, 1922 DeQuasi CemeteryFred A. Bleau 1881-1947 Meadow Creek CemeteryGlenn Harvey Bleau 1917-1933 Meadow Creek Cemetery

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Joseph W. Bleau Jun.7, 1873-Nov. 11, 1963 Meadow Creek CemeteryLula F. Bleau 1890-1960 Meadow Creek CemeterySamuel Bleau Jun.9, 1875-Jun. 7, 1897 Meadow Creek CemeteryVirginia Bleau 1856-1896 Meadow Creek CemeteryWoodsie W. Bleau Aug. 12. 1903- Meadow Creek CemeteryViolet M. Addleman Jul. 16, 1894-Dec. 7, 1962 Restwood CemeteryArthur A. Addleman Aug. 24, 1888-Apr. 10, 1967 Restwood Cemetery

The town of Meadow Creek is named after the creek that flows form the meadows on top of Gwinn and Wallowhole Mountains. Most of the water gathered in the meadows flow northwest to form the Meadow River emptying into the Gauley River, then New River. Smaller part of the water flows south down the mountain and emptying into New River, is called Meadow Creek. At the top of the mountain this drainage water goes thru a town called Meadow Bridge. At the point where the water of Meadow Creek enters into New River, the area and small town is called Meadow Creek, Summers County, WV.

Joseph Bleau most likely came to the area ~ 1868 to work for the C&O Railroad, building a railway along the New River canyon “Gorge”. The railroad required many bridges requiring stone buttress. This building effort started shortly after the Civil War and the railroad started operating in 1873. Legend has it that John Henry, the steel driving man, died laying steel rails in this railroad’s Big Bend Tunnel at this time at Talcott, about 15 miles south east of Meadow Creek. Joseph built a small waterwheel powered electric generator on Meadow Creek to generate electric power for his house years before electricity was made availableto everyone in Meadow Creek.

This property was originally more than 2¼ acres, perhaps more than 5+ acres before being divided into lots. Records show Joseph & Virginia Bleau’s home property (2¼ acres) ownership history is:

Oct. 6, 1877 William Gwinn to Virginia Ann (Gwinn) BleauOct. 31, 1917 Bleau decendents to Arthur A. AddlemanApril 2, 1921 Huff descendents to J.P. BucklandNov. 19, 1917 Addleman, Huff & Buckland decendents to J.E. GwinnJan. 10, 1922 Joseph E. Gwinn to C.G. BrightwellJan. 9, 1945 Executor, Hersie Fox to Zama A. RodesMay 6, 1957 Zama A. Rodes to James M. CollierApril 23, 1958 J.M Colliers to Dewey Pettry & Lula Faye AcordDec. 9, 1961 Lula F. Acord to Dewey & Icie PettryMay 13, 1992 widow Icie Pettry to James R. & Nancy F. Pettry

Dewey Pettry and his aunt, Lula F. Acord, bought the “kitchen” and property (2¼ acres) from [I was told] a retired Army Sergeant, James M. Collier on 23 April 1958. Dewey (21 Feb.1899 Dry Creek, WV-14 July 1978 Beckley, WV) and his wife Icie Marie (Williams) Pettry (21 Feb. 1906 Bald Knob, WV-11 Feb. 2000Germantown, OH), Lula F. (Pettry) and her husband Gilbert Bee Acord, used the “kitchen” as a fishing camp. Dewey bought Lula’s interest in the property on 9 Dec. 1961. This “kitchen” is now used as a storage house and is the oldest building in Meadow Creek.

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Dewey and Icie Pettry lived at Packsville on Little Marsh Fork of Marsh Fork of Coal River, Raleigh Co., WV, also bought the home and property next to the Joseph and Virginia (Gwinn) Bleau’s 2¼ acres property from Thomas Guthrie & Zama (Adkers) Rodes on 22 Jan. 1965 containing a home on 1/8 acre of land. Thomas Rodes was a retired C&O Railway employee. Zama Rodes had obtained the property from the widow Roberta Brightwell’s estate on 25 Jan. 1945. C.G. Brightwell was a retired C&O Railway employee. Dewey and Icie moved into the Rodes’ house in the spring of 1965. After Dewey died, Icie lived here until ~1994 then went and lived with her daughter Verna Mae Sparks in OH. I believe the Rodes’ house was built by or for C.G. and Roberta Brightwell in the 1920s. The Rodes’ remodeled this house in the late ‘40s by adding a kitchen witha small basement under it, a bedroom, indoor plumbing, and bathroom, enclosed the front porch and installed central heating.

Icie Pettry deeded both properties on 13 May 1992 to her son, James Roland and Nancy K. (Faulconer) Pettry, P.O. Box 1067, King George, VA 22485. Ph: 540-775-7144. Roland is a retired electronics engineer and Nancy a retired teacher; they have one child, daughter Jamie Kay Wood, 7457 Shire Pkwy, Mechanicsville,VA. 23111 Phone: 804-599-0150

Fredrick Andrew Bleau (Sept. 1881 Meadow Creek-Dec. 1947 C&O Hospital, Huntington, WV), the son of Joseph Bleau, was a C&O Railway fireman promoted to locomotive engineer and owned the house next to [south of] the Rodes’ property. During the New River flood of Aug. 1940 this house had to be cabled to the railroad rails after it floated off its foundation. Fred and Lula F. (Duncan) Bleau’s known children are:

Rheda Virginia “Reta”(~1905-1937) married H. Lester “Leck” SpencerGladys (b. 1908) married Louis ProvenzanoEarl F. (1910-1960) married #1 Geneva ________

#2 Alice M. _______Larry Raymond (1913-1978) married #1 Millie Lewis

#2 Elizabeth LawsonLucille Maddie (b. ~1915) married #1 Frank Allen

#2 William G.“Bill” MillerGlenn Harvey (14 May 1917-26 Jan.1933) Became ill after playing basket ball at Sandstone

High School and died 5 days later.Helen Lula (7 July 1924-1997) married Fredrick W. “Red” St.John

Fredrick A. and his wife Lula (Duncan) Bleau (1890-1960), are buried in the Meadow Creek Cemetery. Lula Bleau sold this property to Lawrence W. “Chisel” Burdette, Sr. in ~1957. Chisel, 89 years old, was killed on 16 February 2006 as a result of an eastbound Amtrak No. 50 “The Cardinal” train-car collision at Sandstone’s railroad crossing. This house is now owned by Chisel Burdette’s daughter, Barbara (Burdette) Welch, 7012 Kanawha Farm Circle, Charleston, WV. 25312. Ph: 304-984-3940

Ernest Vivian Bleau was a telegrapher for the C&O Railway. He used a railroad quad cycle (Velocipede) to get himself to different telegraph offices in the area.

Millie (Lewis) Bleau, age 93, died May 23, 2012 and is buried in Wallace Memorial Cemetery, Clintonville, WV.

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Raleigh Co. WV’s 1910 census records list Joseph William Blue, 36, married 13 years, wife Eliza M. 32, no children. He lived at Lester, WV and was a merchant and postmaster. I saw a picture of him and Elizabeth “Eliza” standing in front of his business building with a sign on it; “Blue Mercantile”. Joseph and his first wife Eliza divorced. Joseph W. and his second wife Effie Florence (Ennis) Bleau are buried in the Meadow Creek Cemetery. One of Joseph William Bleau sons, Joseph William “Bill” Bleau, Jr. (98) is alive and lived in Meadow Creek in Evert Gwinn’s house until recently. He now lives in Marie, Summers Co., WV (2013). Bill is the last of the Bleau family members to live and own property in Meadow Creek.

Of the proximally 50 homes in Meadow Creek, about 7 are summer vacation home of absentee owners. I was told only 3 people in Meadow Creek are employed, some are retired but most are living on some kind of social programs.

It appears that many of the Bleau family suffered from TB and heart problems, and some died young. Joseph Bleau had two families and it appears that most of the families’ members never keep in touch with each other. Like members of most families in Meadow Creek, offspring’s had to leave the area to find jobs.

THIS IS WORK IN PROGRESS

27 Marsh 2013Comments, corrections or additions to this article will be appreciated. You are welcome to copy

this article in part or whole.

James R. Pettry Compiler Eugene F. Jones, Jr. Meadow Creek HistorianP.O. Box 1067 P.O. Box 85King George, VA 22485 Meadow Creek, WV 25977jrpettry@crosslink.net Phone: 304-466-1389Phone: 540-775-7144

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Sharon E. Bleau Daughter of Larry Raymond and his 1st wife 415 Woodlawn Ave. Apt. 8 Millie (Lewis) Bleau (d. May 23, 2012 at 93)Beckley, WV 25801Phone: 304-253-4869Sherryb2us@yahoo.com

Ronald Bleau St.John Helen Lula (Bleau) St.John’s son.1011 W. Bombay WayPalatine, IL 60067Phone: 847-991-4248

Ronald B. St. John, PHG, CPG ron@st-ma.comSt. John-Mittelhauser & Associates1401 Branding Ave., Suite 315Downers Grove, IL 60515Phone: 630-427-8111Mobil: 630-803-0254Fax: 630-427-8129www.st-ma.com

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