Winifred
(Minerd) Downs
(1888-1962)
Winifred Winona (Minerd) Downs was born on April 19, 1888 in Fayette County, PA, the daughter of Charles A. and Sarah Jane (Kincell) Minerd Sr. Her husband was an early lawyer in our family.
Winona married Harry Rutherford Downs (1877-1966), the son of Ashbel F. and Fannie (Lewis) Downs of Clarksburg, Harrison County, WV and Uniontown, Fayette County, PA. Harry was 11 years older than his wife.
The Downses had at least
two children -- Lewis
M. Downs and Virginia J. Robinson. They settled in Clarksburg, and the town's Main
Street is seen here in a rare old postcard photograph, circa 1908.
Harry was raised by parents who valued the development of one's mind. His father was a successful attorney, county treasurer and grade school teacher who is pictured and profiled in Samuel T. Wiley's 1889 book, Biographical and Portrait Cyclopedia of Fayette County. Harry graduated in 1908 from the West Virginia University College of Law, and then went on to establish his own law practice in Clarksburg.
In 1909, by an act of the West Virginia
legislature, a Criminal Court was established for Harrison County. According
to Henry Haymond's 1910 book, History of Harrison County, the first term
of the new court was held on June 1, 1909, and Harry was among the first attorneys
who were admitted to practice before that court. He would have tried his cases
in the stately, ornate brick Harrison County Courthouse in Clarksburg, seen
here. It's not known whether he also practiced in civil or business matters.
In all, said the Clarksburg Telegram, Harry was a lawyer for 66 years.
They were members of the First Methodist Church of Clarksburg, and Harry belonged to the Herman Lodge No. 6, AF & AM.
Little else is known of the Downses' personal lives in Clarksburg, except for a few small glimpses from time to time as reported in books and local newspapers. In December 1910, infant son Lewis was "suffering from meningitis," said the Connellsville Daily Courier, "and no hopes are entertained for his recovery." Sadly, little Lewis died shortly after, and was buried in the Downs family plot at Elkview Masonic Cemetery on Marshall Avenue in Clarksburg.
In the winters from 1910 to 1915, Harry's
mother resided in their home at 442 South Chestnut Street in Clarksburg. Then,
in early April 1915, she came down with the flu and bronchitis, and died in the
residence. The Downses traveled from Clarksburg to Uniontown for the burial at Oak Grove
Cemetery. The event was covered in a Uniontown newspaper.
Winifred worked as a clerk in the drapery department of the Montgomery Ward Co. store in Clarksburg.
In March 1937, the Downs' daughter Virginia was a student at the West Virginia Wesleyan College, and with the college choir gave a concert at the First Methodist Episcopal Church of Connellsville.
Not
much is known about Winifred and Harry in their later years. The photo seen here shows
Winifred, at
far right, with her sister and brother in law, Nell
and Martin Walsh. They appear to be standing at the edge of a hillside road,
but the structure immediately behind them (a road sign?) has not been
identified. It could well be somewhere in the mountains of West Virginia, or
elsewhere.
Winifred passed away on June 29, 1962, after a brief illness.
Harry outlived her by nearly 4 years, and moved to Texas to reside with daughter Virginia. He died there on May 13, 1966, and his remains were returned to Clarksburg for burial. They are laid to rest near their infant son in the Elkview Masonic Cemetery in Clarksburg.
Daughter Virginia
married Lyndon Robinson, and settled in Orange, TX.
Distant cousins of Harry Downs -- Barb Lewis-Hardung and her brother Don Lewis -- have done extensive research on the Downs genealogy going back to England. Contact them for more information.
Copyright © 2001-2003 Mark A. Miner. Grave photos by Donald Lewis.