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Sarah (Miner) Carroll was born most likely in the 1790s in or near Kingwood, Preston County, WV, the daughter of Burket and Frances (Skinner) Minerd.

Sarah married Anthony Carroll (1793-1840?), son of James and Sarah (Vankirk) Carroll. Documents on file today at the Monongalia County (WV) Courthouse in Morgantown show that on Nov. 18, 1815, Sarah's father signed his consent for her to marry Anthony. Both Carroll and Godfrey Guseman signed a bond for the marriage license, which stated that the "marriage is suddenly intended to be had and solemnized..."

Their only known child was James Miner Carroll, born in 1815.

The Carrolls lived near Kingwood and Masontown, Preston County, WV. They are mentioned in several history books of the county, including Samuel T. Wiley's 1882 History of Preston County and the 1979 book, Preston County West Virginia History, published by the Preston County Historical Society. (Unfortunately, in the 1979 volume, Sarah's maiden name is misspelled as "Niner.")

Sarah and Anthony are mentioned in an article in the April 23, 1908 issue of the Preston County Journal, entitled "Pioneers of Preston," written by H.S. Whetsell. In the article, the author writes this compliment of their son James, who had died at the age of 90 just two years earlier: "Being a close observer and having a retentive and accurate memory of early events, the lack of his assistance has been keenly felt by the compiler of these articles."

Sarah appears to have been active in her church congregation -- according to Wiley's 1882 History of Preston County:

The first Methodist society in Kingwood was organized sometime prior to the year 1815 ... Soon after the organization of the society, a log church was built one mile east of the village [of Kingwood]... After 1818, the Court house was used as a place for preaching, and class and prayer meetings were held in the houses of the leaders... The following are the names of the class, as far as can be ascertained, which met in the log church: ... Sarah Carroll ...

In 1829, Anthony purchased a 200-acre farm from James and Dorcas Dent, adjacent to “drains of Bull Run and Cheat River,” said the deed.  It was stocked with poplar, gum, beech and white oak.  The farm was located “about three miles northeast of Masontown,... [contained] a cabin and a clearing … and [the family] lived there between the years 1829 and 1856.”

At some point, at a young age, Sarah died, leaving behind her husband and only child.  Her death was probably in the 1815 to 1820 timeframe, although this needs to be proven. Son James was sent to live with his grandfather and namesake, James Carroll, near Kingwood.

Anthony later married Temperance Alley (1800- ? ). They went on to have eight children -- Mary Herndon, Eugenus Carroll, John Jackson Solomon Paul Carroll, Lucinda Carroll, Catherine Caroline Kemble, Margaret Carroll and two who died infants. 

In 1840, son James Carroll purchased a 70-acre portion of his father's farm. Both Anthony and his second wife could not read or write, and in the deed, they signed their names with an "X." 

When the federal census was taken of Preston County in 1850, the 55-year-old Anthony and 50-year-old Temperance made their home in the 45th District. Anthony was marked as a farmer. That year, 16-year-old daughter Caroline Catherine, nine-year-old daughter Margaret and 21-year-old son John lived under their roof.

Their final fates are unknown, but as they cannot be located in the 1860 census, it's presumed that they died during the decade of the 1850s.

~ Son John Jackson Solomon Paul Carroll, 
from Anthony's Second Marriage ~

Son John Jackson Solomon Paul Carroll (1829- ? ) is seen here. He was a farmer and lived with his parents when the 1850 census was taken. 

On Aug. 23, 1860, when John was 31, he married Cynthia Ann Bowen (1841- ? ), who was about 13 years younger in age. She was the daughter of John B. and Hester A. (Haney) Bowen of Shoals, Wayne County, and a descendant of Charles Carroll, who was a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and of Bacchus Bowen, a member of the first West Virginia Legislature. 

They lived for many years in Shoals, a rural community on the outskirts of Huntington, Cabell County. Cynthia was referred to by newspaper columnist W.L. Mansfield, writing in "Bench and Bar of Wayne County, 1843 to 1873" as "a most excellent and worthy woman of one of the best families of [their] church and among the most prominent in the county."

The Carrolls had four children -- Osmond D. Carroll, John E. Carroll, Anna Forbess (or "Farbus" or "Farbes") Lunsford and James Tolbert Carroll.

John initially prepared for a career in the ministry in the Methodist Episcopal Church. In April 1859, he was listed among those preachers admitted to the conference "on trial." His name was published in the Minutes of the Annual Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church for the year 1858.

He moved to Wayne County, WV to become a "northern Methodist circuit rider to serve a few churches that had not gone with the other branch of that denomination," stated a newspaper some years later. "He had transferred from the Indiana Conference and politics engaged more of his attention than religion." John's demeanor apparently did not impress Wayne County locals, reported newspaperman Manfield:

He was nervous and fidgety and exhibited little of the mein, humble piety and humility of a minister of the gospel. In his talk he was pompous and conceited. He insinuated himself into the leadership of the scattered abolitionists largely became no other man wanted the job. In his manner he betrayed an exaggerated degree of politeness which in a dispute assumed a mock and exasperating obsequiousness; but the smirk of the hypocrite was plainly reflected through the thin veneer of gentility. 

When the Civil War broke out, he enlisted as a captain on Feb. 26, 1862, serving with the 9th WV Infantry, Company D. This regiment was commanded by Col. I.H. Duval. During the war, his older half-brother James Miner Carroll is known to have sent him letters, as one was published in the Huntington (WV) Day Book newspaper in November 1863. With casualties mounting, diminishing headcounts in John's regiment, said the Parkersburg (WV) Gazette, the regiment was consolidated with others in November 1864 and became the 1st WV Veterans Infantry (Company S), stationed at Martinsburg, Berkeley County, WV. He was promoted to full lieutenant colonel on Jan. 7, 1865. "In a fighting capacity [he] did much toward suppressing the rebellion and meting out punishment in the rebels at the close of the war when the spoilers swarmed down like wolves on the fold, their visages gleaming the the lust for gold," recalled a newspaper reporter. "J.S.P. Carroll was in the vanguard, pointing with pride to his accomplishments and claiming that reward henceforth laid up for those who had been loyal and brave." When the war ended, he mustered out on July 21, 1865, and returned home:

He acquired the leading hotel at Wayne Courthouse, and while the records may not show that he was the jailor de jure, his hotel was situated near the jail, and Carroll had, at least, a feeding relation to that institution. During the war he had become a man of the world and not only had gone in for glory, but also for blood. As no man's religion can survive his morals he had shed the mask and habiliments of the parson. He entered the more congenial field of politics, and soon went all of the most difficult and freakish gates.

After the State of West Virginia convened its fourth legislature, in January 1866, John attended as a delegate from Buffalo Shoals, Wayne County. He also was in the House of Delegates in the fifth and seventh legislatures in 1867 and 1868. For many years after that, his name regularly appeared in lists of early delegates, published in the West Virginia Legislative Hand Book and Manual and Official Register. But his unusual behavior continued: 

He ran for legislature against one of the most prominent Union men in the county, one who had held down a seat in the first Wheeling convention in 1861, and was an original Union Man. Having no advantages over him on the plea of loyalty, Carroll went down to defeat before the better man. Advised by J.H. Ferguson, he filed a contest and was seated by Ferguson, who was more potent than the legislature. In the following election he sought an endorsement at the polls for the same office. His opponent was another Union man and an honest and capable citizen, and the second condition of Carroll was worse than the first. Nothing daunted he went up to the legislature on a contest and was elected a second time by the same influence as before.

The federal census of 1870 shows John and Cynthia (spelled "Syntha") living in Union Township, Wayne County, WV, near the post office of "Falls 12 Pole." John's occupation is listed in that census as "Lawyer" but he also was a farmer at that time. He also began the descent into illegal activity, drawing the ire of law enforcement officials: 

Having put his religion professions in cold storage, he entered upon a saturation of wickedness, his hotel became a resort of gamblers and the demimonde and chief among the revelers was Carroll. The carousals reached the ears of the grand jury, and indictments were filed against Carroll and his associates by the score. When the atmosphere became too heavily overcharged, he decamped taking with him the favorite of his seraglio [harem of women].

One descendant believes John abandoned his family "because of the effects of the war," said a descendant -- possibly some form of post-traumatic stress. It is certain he was under great threat of imprisonment, and may have gotten away to escape the law.

While the details are sketchy, he is said to have never returned. Said a newspaper, "It was ascertained some years afterward that he had again donned the garb of the parson, and was holding a relation with the Methodist Conference in Indiana." He is rumored to have been killed in a train accident in Kansas while traveling as a hobo. Details are lost to history for now.

The 1880 census of Wayne County marks 41-year-old Cynthia (spelled "Cintha") as the head of the household, with all four children living with her. Cynthia's occupation was "keeping house" and she could neither read nor write. Her elder sons were listed as "works on farm." Living next door were Cynthia's parents, both in their early 60s. 

John's abandoned, fatherless children were "brought up under the influence of the most estimable mother [and] have attained stations in life of the highest respectivility and usefulness," said a newspaper. "No reasonable estimates can be placed upon the virtuous influence of a noble woman."

Sometime between 1880 and 1900, Cynthia married again, to (?) Powers. When the 1900 census was taken, she carried the surname "Powers," and was marked as married but lived alone. Her home was next-door to her sons Osmond and James in Wayne County. At the time, three of her four children were living.

Cynthia died in Huntington, Cabell County, WV on May 19, 1922, at the age of 83. Her death certificate lists her as "widowed." She was laid to rest in Shoals.

Their children and their fates: 

• Daughter Anna "Annie" Carroll (1866-1948) was twice married. Her first husband was James Forbess (or "Farbus"), whom she married when she was age 18. They had five children -- James "Jamie" Forbess, Inez Gibson, Lelia Williams, Olive Martin and Eugenia McElroy. They later divorced, although the census of 1900 shows her as a widow. The 1920 census shows Annie making a living as a seamstress in a mattress factory in Huntington, at the age of 52, with daughter James and grandson Raymond living in her home. Circa 1922, she lived at 1540 Monroe Avenue in Huntington, Cabell County, WV. Later, before 1930, she married postal mail carrier James K. Lunsford (1857-1934), son of John and Matilda (Hall) Lunsford of Ohio. James brought a son to the marriage -- Fred A. Lunsford, acting postmaster in Huntington, who died in 1936. They made their home in Huntington. Both James and Annie died of heart disease -- "myocarditis" -- he at the age of 76 on Feb. 24, 1934, and her 14 years later, at the age of 81. Annie died at her daughter Inez Gibson's home in Huntington on Feb. 13, 1948, the last surviving one of her siblings. Her remains were interred at Bowen Cemetery in Shoals. The informant on her death certificate was "Mrs. J.M. Gibson" of Huntington. Burial of second husband James Lunsford was at Springhill Cemetery in Huntington. Daughter James Carroll married (?) Earl and died in Huntington at age 65 on Aug. 21, 1963.
• Son Osmond B. Carroll (sometimes spelled "Asman") (1861-1942) married Kentucky native Ella (?) (1867- ? ) in about 1888. They had two children -- William "Delbert" Carroll and Nettie K. Carroll. They resided in the Union District of Wayne County when the census was enumerated in 1900, with Osmond (spelled "Osmon") engaged in farming. At some point Osmond moved to a home farm in Buffalo Creek, in the Ceredo District of Wayne County. He died at the age of 80 on Jan. 13, 1942. His burial site is not indicated on his official West Virginia certificate of death.
• Son John E. Carroll (1864- ? ) is lost to history for now.
• Son James Tolbert "Uncle Bertie" Carroll (1868-1933) married Angeline Brumfield (1868-1963), daughter of Allen Trig and Nancy (Adkins) Brumfield of Giles County, VA. They are seen here, and were wed in about 1890. Their children were Charles Emerson Carroll, John W. Carroll and Crystal Gaye Carroll. The 1900 census shows them to be residing near James' brother in the Union District of Wayne County, and under their roof that year was James' 82-year-old widowed grandfather, John B. Bowen. James is said to have played a banjo and violin as a young adult, but never to have worked at a "public job." Over time, they accumulated 100 acres of land near Shoals, including three houses thereon. He raised cain, corn and hay on the upper level of the hilly tract, which was rich in beech, hickory, white oak and chestnut oak trees. James became blind during his final years. He died of pulmonary tuberculosis at the age of 64 in Wayne County on Aug. 31, 1933. Following a funeral held at Newcomb Baptist Church, led by Rev. B.F. Curnutte, he was laid to rest in the Brumfield Cemetery. In his will, James left everything to his wife except for their log house and six acres to their daughter. Angeline outlived him by three decades. She achieved fame, with her photo published in a newspaper, when she rode the first and last passenger trains on the Twelve Pole Valley Railroad, some 50 years apart. She died in Shoals at the age of 95, of an arteriosclerotic heart, on Dec. 2, 1963. Great-grandson Larry Beuhring has been a certified general appraiser in Ohio for more than 25 years and a painter of nature scenes on display at the Briggs Lawrence County Public Library, Chesapeake Branch.

~ Daughter Mary (Carroll) Herndon from Anthony's Second Marriage ~

Daughter Mary Carroll ( ? - ? ) married Dr. William P. Herndon ( ? - ? ) of Ritchie County, WV. Their paper trail mysteriously ends, but more will be reported here when learned.

~ Daughter Catherine (Carroll) Kemble from Anthony's Second Marriage ~

Daughter Catherine Caroline Carroll (1834- ? ) married Dr. Julius C. Kemble (1817- ? ) sometime between 1880 and 1882. Seen here, he was the son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Warner) Kemble of Kingwood, WV. Husband and wife were 17 years apart in age -- she was 48 and he 65.

Unmarried at age 26, Catherine lived with Solomon and Mary Herndon in Preston County in 1860 when the federal census was taken. When the federal census was taken in 1870, Catherine was age 35 and unmarried, and made her home with her 55-year-old half-brother James Miner Carroll, who operated a hotel that year in Rowlesburg. 

Circa 1880, when she was age 46, Catherine filed a legal complaint against Gustavus J. and Ruhama Cresap, alleging that the Cresaps illegally occupied land that belonged to Catherine. She stated in her complaint that the tract was "covered with valuable white oak and other timber, and charges that [the Cresaps] are engaged in cutting said white oak timber and manufacturing the same into boards, rails, &c. and are cutting and removing timber therefrom, and thus committing great waste on said land..." The Cresaps countersued. Because the title to Catherine's land was imperfect, and in dispute, she was unable to prove she was the clear owner, and lost the case.

In a biographical profile, Wiley wrote this about Julius:

[He] was born in Pruntytown, May 21, 1817. He attended Rector College, read medicine with Dr. J.L. Carr, and attended lectures at Richmond, Va. He came in 1844, from West Union to Evansville where he served as postmaster from 1845 to 1850, and also as justice of the peace. he was a member of the Legislature of Virginia from 1855 to 1861, and afterwards Democratic candidate for State Senator from Preston and Monongalia counties. His first wife having died several years since, he married Miss Catherine C. Carroll, of Kingwood. he has enjoyed a good practice and accumulated considerable wealth.

As postmaster in Evansville, Julius was named in a "list of post-offices and post-mastres in the 1850 book, Tremayne's Table of The Post-Offices in The United States. 

Their fates are unknown.

~ Daughter Margaret Carroll from Anthony's Second Marriage ~

Daughter Margaret Carroll (1841- ? ) is lost to history.