My grandfather, Charles Herman Crist, was from Pond Gap. I can't recall much of Pond Gap personally, but it probably wasn't far different from Ward. It's located on Bell Creek, whereas Ward is on Kelly's Creek, and these two creeks, along with a third, Campbell's Creek, all head up at about the same place. For those who are totally unfamiliar with creeks and hollows, creeks flow out of hollows into bigger creeks or rivers, getting bigger as they go, and the hollows get wider at their end (or beginning, depending on one's perspective), and that's called the mouth. The other end is where the mountains that form the borders of the hollow come together – and the further you go, the higher and more narrow the hollow becomes. When you get to the top, that's the head, and several hollows will head up in the same general area. So these three creeks all head up in the same area, and as a result, have much in common.

Many of the early settlers entered the Kanawha Valley on the same route taken by Gen. Andrew Lewis' Army enroute to the Battle of Point Pleasant in 1774. That route from Covington, VA followed what reportedly was a buffalo route from Lewisburg to Ansted (Hawk's Nest), through the mountains to Pond Gap, and down Kelly's Creek to the Kanawha River. Another branch went down Campbell's Creek to the Kanawha. These old wagon roads connected these communities in the late 1700s, and continued to for years to come.

Charles Herman Crist (9/7/1889- 1/2/1945) was the son of Charles Kemper Mauzy Crist (6/11/1848 - 6/29/1926). Charles Kemper was born in Nelson Co., VA, and settled in Pond Gap, WV, where he was a school teacher, a Notary Public, and either the Post Master or the husband of the Post Mistress. He married Emma (Emor) Jane Branham (2/25/1860- 3/25/1929) on 5/24/1877, and their marriage produced at least 9 children: Mary A. (2/7/1878- 4/14/1878); Maggie (b.5/1880); Ella R. (b.1881); John W. (b. abt 1887); Charles Herman; Elizabeth (b. 1892); Mabel; Georgia; and Jacob.

Mary died as a baby, Jacob as a child. Ella R. married G. E. DeWitt and lived in Charleston; John married Maggie Brown on 4/27/1910 in Pond Gap, later moving to Nitro, where he appears to have worked for Monsanto, and had a son, John Jr.; Charles Herman married Grace Garnet White (6/23/1901- 11/27/1981) on 12/23/1916; Elizabeth married R. G. French, and they lived in Corbin KY, where they owned a shoe store; Mabel married a Mr. Ash, and Georgia married Don Donnally in Pond Gap, where they, or their son, Don, ran the Post Office.

Charles Herman and Grace were married one day before Bernie Sarver & Bertha Skaggs took their vows (the Sarvers will be covered in the next issue), and I can't help wondering if they knew each other, then or ever. I know Grace was still in Ward in the late 1940's - early 50's, and Bernie was living in Mammoth in 1952. Oh well, back to Punk & Pie, as they called each other. They had 4 daughters: Helena Jane who married John Wesley Steele (my parents), Betty Jean who married Charles Edward Buckley, Donna Ruth, who married Jack Walton, and Freda Phyllis who married Charles Alex "Chuck" Gaunch.

Charles Herman was injured when hit by a side car on the railroad in Ward, and had a slight limp. He apparently spoke Hungarian & several other languages, and claimed to be a Scotch, Irish, Jew - or something similar. I understand he also played the fiddle. Grace never remarried. She was known as an excellent seamstress, and worked for many years at the Piece Goods Shop in Charleston.

Charles & Betty Buckley had several children: Danny, Jeffrey, Diane Gaye, Randy, Mary Ann and Martha. Donna Ruth has a son, Steven Mark Crist (wife Della & children, Rebecca and Steven). Donna is now living, with husband Jack Walton, at Tad.

Phyllis & Chuck Gaunch had 4 children, Caroline, Carla, Charles and Luke. Chuck worked in the mines many years before taking on a management position with the Seabolt Lumber Co. in Shrewsberry. A WWII Navy veteran, he loved playing cards with the family. Daughter Caroline married John Hicks & their marriage produced 2 children, who I think are named John, Jr. and Delbert. The younger Charles Gaunch's wife is named Shirley. Phyllis, incidentally, made the best "Hunkie" bread and cabbage rolls around at the time – and loved baking cakes.

Helena and John Wesley were my parents, and I think the single most distinguishing thing about them was their tremendous love affair. Except for dad's 35 year employment at DuPont Chemical's Belle Works (well, 34 1/2 – but that's a story for another day), one was rarely seen without the other. They seemed to find in each other everything they needed, and as a result, were never as "outgoing" as they might otherwise have been.

Mom attended East Bank High School, and Dad graduated from Raceland (KY) H.S. in 1932, worked in the mines a couple of years (long enough, he claimed, to want out), attended college for a couple of years at New River State (later WV Institute of Technology – and now WV University, Institute of Technology), and finally was hired by DuPont in 1940-41. He was a member of the Salina Masonic Lodge in Malden, and they were both active in the Boy Scouts during the period when I was active.

There were three of us kids, Nancy, me, and Kathy, in order. Nancy's married to Larry Regelin and living in Bridgeville, DE with their youngest daughter Missy (Melissa Joan) who graduated from college last June. Nancy also has two older daughters, Chris (Garten) Kaiser and Kelly (Garten) Rice – and four grandchildren. She and Larry are both retired from the National Weather Service, but Nancy has gone to work for a credit union. My younger sister, Kathy, makes her home in Lusby, MD with husband George Hope, and son, Jon George. I have two sons, Jim, who lives in Tulatin, OR, and Jonny, who lives in West Yellowstone, MT.

But, back to Charles Kemper Mauzy Crist. His death certificate shows his father as Jacob. At present, nothing more is known of Jacob, but a possible (probable) brother of CKMC is found in the 1880 US Census for Kanawha Co. – a George M. Crist (b. abt 1844), also listed as a school teacher. George's family included wife Mary J. & sons John W., Jacob M., James E., & Edgar E. In addition to the Crists that we know about from Ward & Bell Creek, there were groups on the other side of the Kanawha, around Pratt & Handley, and in Fayette Co., many in the Ansted (Hawk's Nest) area.

As previously mentioned, Charles Kemper Mauzy Crist , in 1877, married Emma (Emor) Jane Branham. She was the daughter of John B. Branham (1840-1934) and Mary (Nancy) Tucker (12/17/1847- 12/31/1913). John was the son of Andrew Branham (b. abt 1808) and Sabra Estep (b. abt 1809), both from Kentucky. Sabra was from Pike Co.

Andrew and Sabra were the parents of at least 8 children: Ann, b. 1831; Lane Shannon (4/26/1832- 5/24/1908); Rebecca, b. 1835; Emily, b.1836; Celia, b. 1839; John B.; and Matilda (1843- 8/18/1862). The first 3 children are known to have been born in KY, and Matilda, the youngest, was born and died in Pond Gap, so the family apparently came from KY in 1835-1843.

Nothing more is known of Ann at this point, but Lane Shannon married (on 5/24/1908) Mary White (1/1839- 3/15/1914), daughter of William White & Cynthia (Morris) White. This marriage produced at least 8 children: Martin Houston Branham, b. 5/21/1860; Segal, b. 11/2/1862; John, b. 6/1/1865; Milton (either 11/7 or 11/27/1861- 5/21/1946); Cynthia (8/1/1871- 10/5/1954); Anna (Annie) F., b. 11/17/1872; Andrew, b. 1877; and Cora E., b. 11/1879.

Martin H. married Maggie E. Murphy (1868- 2/20/1898) who was born in McDowel Co. Martin (M. H.) became a preacher, and was the 2nd pastor of the Ward Community Church during the period 1920-1929. Little is know of his family at this time, but 2 unnamed infants are buried next to Maggie at the Branham Family Cemetery on Tyler Mountain.

John married an A. Coiner, b. 1868, on 11/4/1891, and a child, G. S. Branham (listed as the son of J.W. & Ella) is believed to be theirs. Milton married Elzada G. Brown (7/17/1880-1960) on 8/2/1899. She was born in Nicholas Co., the daughter of Phillip A. Brown & Mathilda Ellen Dorsey. They had at least 2 children, D. Branham, who was born in Pond Gap on 5/24/1901, and Harry Wallace Branham (7/9/1918- 3/5/1943), also buried on Tyler Mountain, and listed as a 1st Class Seaman, WWII. Because of the date, there is a very good possibility he was killed in action. One report has Elzada dying in Wyoming Co., but she is buried with Milton in the family cemetery on Tyler Mountain.

Cynthia married Alexander R. Smith (2/16/1863- 5/9/1926), son of Andrew J. Smith & Esther Sizemore, and a widower, in Pond Gap on 10/12/1892. Anna married George W. Simpson (b. 1868 in VA) on 12/14/1898. Nothing more is presently known about Andrew and Cora, Lane Shannon's 2 remaining children.

A third child of Andrew & Sabra, Rebecca, married William M. Taylor, b. 1825 and a widower, on 12/13/1865. Emily married Martin Hill, b. 1829 in Nicholas Co., the son of Moses & Felicita Hill, on 2/18/1857 in Bell Creek. Celia married Jacob Tucker, b. 1839, and the son of Lewis & Rhoda Tucker, on 12/4/1861, and other than Matilda, about whom nothing else is presently known, that leaves only John B. Branham, who married Mary (Nancy) Tucker (and they are the parents of Emma J. Branham).

Emma was probably the oldest of John & Mary's children, as it seems that Holis was born in 1869, Lewis in 1870 (and died on 10/15/1871), and William E. on 9/2/1885 (and died 9/27/1905) at age 20. Both her marriage registration and the 1880 U.S. Census (which shows Grandmother Sabra living with Charles, Emma, and daughter Maggie) indicate a birth date of 1860 for Emma, but since John B. & Mary (Nancy) Tucker weren't married until 1868, an explanation needs to be found.

That wraps up the Crist & Branham coverage for this edition, but right at press time, more information came to light about the Branham & Estep families (Sabra was an Estep), tracing their roots to the early 1700s. So, there's a lot to look forward to.