W. E. Blackhurst
Encyclopedia
Warren E. "Tweard" Blackhurst was an author and a lifelong resident of the Cass
community who centered on the culture of eastern West Virginia
where the higher elevations supported northern pine forests. "Riders of the Flood" which he is arguably the most well-known of Blackhurst's books, for it centers on the world of the late 19th to early 20th-century logging industry in eastern West Virginia
through the Greenbrier River
and its tributaries.
, West Virginia
. Set during the bygone era when logging camps were plentiful, and loggers risked their lives to drive logs down the Greenbrier River
, Riders of the Flood tells the tale of one young man who, down on his luck, is forced to leave the big city and start a new life. He sets off to join a logging
camp, not only to find work, but more importantly, to find himself. His journey winds its way through the Greenbrier River
Valley, over Droop Mountain
, in to Pocahontas County
, and on to the high mountain country beyond. Along the way he finds adventure, romance, and success.
Every September the nonprofit organization, Riders of the Flood, hosts this outdoor drama to critical success in Ronceverte. West Virginia
. Its sequel, "Big Dreams, Restless Spirit" is equally well-received. The theatre is built along the banks of the Greenbrier River
and occasional floods have disrupted the showtimes.
. After learning of his plight, Bill Brake (the local cook of the diner) gives him a large meal, clothes from a dead man, and a few dollars so he can get started as a man who can possibly make his way in the logging industry. He follows the railroad tracks northeast out of Greenbrier County to a future in Pocahontas County
.
Duncan soon falls in with the St. Lawrence Boom and Lumber Company
, which owns the sawmill
in Ronceverte. He soon becomes one of the crew and learns their ways, encountering colorful characters such as Windy Hammer, a man as skilled in tall tales as he is in his craft, Tad Stevens and Jim Noonan. As he learns the ways of timbering, he grows stronger in body, mind, and spirit. He falls in love with Martha Mendell, the beautiful daughter of his employer’s business partner. Romantic tension is supplied by Arthur Hennessey, the son of a former Virginia
governor. Wealthy, pampered and callous, Arthur Hennessey is a darker aspect of Duncan ’s former social rung. He is unaware that his ignorance of the so-called ‘common man’ has left him just as ignorant of the values of life.
At the end of the play, Duncan and his friends start up their own sawmill
. Duncan marries Martha after her mother dies of consumption
.
Riders on the Flood is performed solely in the Island Park Amphitheatre of Ronceverte, West Virginia
—the same town and locale that saw the true lumbering industry during the latter half of the 19th-century.
, came to America in 1886 with his parents Jabez and Sarah, and Warren's mother was an American-born native of Pocahontas County, West Virginia
. "Tweard", as he was known, spent nearly his entire life close to the lumber
industry, and knew the intricacies of this industry like few other people. Even more remarkably, he was able to portray the logging workers in a realistic light. Whether they are the blustering bully about to get drunk and rip a town apart just because it is payday, or a young man trying to make something of himself, the characters sounded like actual people who one might already know. As a native of West Virginia
, Blackhurst knew when was self-parody and when it would ring false.
Blackhurst was a graduate of Green Bank High School and Glenville State College
, attended West Virginia University
and the Davis and Elkins College
. He returned to his alma mater
(Green Bank) and taught English and Latin for thirty-two years. He and his wife, the former Stella Yates, operated the Wildlife Museum at Cass
.
Blackhurst devoted much of his life to collecting and writing the history of the early logging days. At the time of his birth in 1904, the lumber business was just seriously getting underway in the Greenbrier Valley following the completion of the C&O Railway's Greenbrier Branch. One location in his books, the town of Cass
, was created by the West Virginia Pulp and Paper Company, and Blackhurst grew up during the most active years of that company in the valley.
Riders of the Flood is an historical work that involves romance, the pride of the working man, drama, and rollicking humor. Through it all the Greenbrier River
and its northern tributaries of the watershed
are the backdrop
that unites everyone, rich or poor, friend or enemy. Blackhurst's books are spiced with historical photographs that emphasize the now-alien world where entire rivers were choked with giant logs and one's livelihood depended on spring floods.
The town of Ronceverte hosts the theater version of "Riders of the Flood" every September just downstream from the original site of the St. Lawrence Boom and Lumber Mill in Blackhurst's books. The play was written by a local artist, Robert Tuckwiller, who was given an out-of-print copy of the book by his father. Mr. Tuckwiller was so inspired by the book he wrote up the play and garnered permission to use it from Blackhurst's family. Riders of the Flood is now back in print and the theater provides revenue for the improvements of the city.
Cass, West Virginia
Cass is an unincorporated census-designated place on the Greenbrier River in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, USA. As of the 2010 census, its population was 52...
community who centered on the culture of eastern West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
where the higher elevations supported northern pine forests. "Riders of the Flood" which he is arguably the most well-known of Blackhurst's books, for it centers on the world of the late 19th to early 20th-century logging industry in eastern West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
through the Greenbrier River
Greenbrier River
The Greenbrier River is a tributary of the New River, long, in southeastern West Virginia, USA. Via the New, Kanawha and Ohio Rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area of...
and its tributaries.
List of Books (Taken from Your Train Ride Through History)
- Afterglow (published posthumously)
- Mixed Harvest
- Riders of the Flood (book) Published in 1954
- Sawdust in Your Eyes
- Of Men and a Mighty Mountain
- Your Train Ride Through History
Blackhurst's Most Famous Work
Riders of the Flood, the outdoor drama, was written by Greenbrier County native and artist, Robert Tuckwiller. It is based on the book of the same title by the late W. E. Blackhurst of CassCass, West Virginia
Cass is an unincorporated census-designated place on the Greenbrier River in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, USA. As of the 2010 census, its population was 52...
, West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
. Set during the bygone era when logging camps were plentiful, and loggers risked their lives to drive logs down the Greenbrier River
Greenbrier River
The Greenbrier River is a tributary of the New River, long, in southeastern West Virginia, USA. Via the New, Kanawha and Ohio Rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area of...
, Riders of the Flood tells the tale of one young man who, down on his luck, is forced to leave the big city and start a new life. He sets off to join a logging
Logging
Logging is the cutting, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or logs onto trucks.In forestry, the term logging is sometimes used in a narrow sense concerning the logistics of moving wood from the stump to somewhere outside the forest, usually a sawmill or a lumber yard...
camp, not only to find work, but more importantly, to find himself. His journey winds its way through the Greenbrier River
Greenbrier River
The Greenbrier River is a tributary of the New River, long, in southeastern West Virginia, USA. Via the New, Kanawha and Ohio Rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area of...
Valley, over Droop Mountain
Droop Mountain
Droop Mountain is a small mountain in the Allegheny Mountains on the border of Greenbrier and Pocahontas counties in southeastern West Virginia. It was the scene of one of West Virginia's most important battles during the American Civil War—the Battle of Droop Mountain.Droop Mountain, rising...
, in to Pocahontas County
Pocahontas County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,131 people, 835 households, and 527 families residing in the county. The population density was 10 people per square mile . There were 7,594 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile...
, and on to the high mountain country beyond. Along the way he finds adventure, romance, and success.
Every September the nonprofit organization, Riders of the Flood, hosts this outdoor drama to critical success in Ronceverte. West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
. Its sequel, "Big Dreams, Restless Spirit" is equally well-received. The theatre is built along the banks of the Greenbrier River
Greenbrier River
The Greenbrier River is a tributary of the New River, long, in southeastern West Virginia, USA. Via the New, Kanawha and Ohio Rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area of...
and occasional floods have disrupted the showtimes.
Summary
The main protagonist, Duncan “Dunk” Mall is quickly moved by his unexpected collapse in fortunes to take the next train out of Washington, D.C. He falls asleep in the freight-car of a Chesapeake & Ohio train and wakes up in Ronceverte, West VirginiaWest Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
. After learning of his plight, Bill Brake (the local cook of the diner) gives him a large meal, clothes from a dead man, and a few dollars so he can get started as a man who can possibly make his way in the logging industry. He follows the railroad tracks northeast out of Greenbrier County to a future in Pocahontas County
Pocahontas County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,131 people, 835 households, and 527 families residing in the county. The population density was 10 people per square mile . There were 7,594 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile...
.
Duncan soon falls in with the St. Lawrence Boom and Lumber Company
St. Lawrence Boom and Lumber Company
The St. Lawrence Boom and Manufacturing Company was founded in 1802 by a Colonel Cecil C. Clay, a former US Army Brigadier-General from Philadelphia....
, which owns the sawmill
Sawmill
A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....
in Ronceverte. He soon becomes one of the crew and learns their ways, encountering colorful characters such as Windy Hammer, a man as skilled in tall tales as he is in his craft, Tad Stevens and Jim Noonan. As he learns the ways of timbering, he grows stronger in body, mind, and spirit. He falls in love with Martha Mendell, the beautiful daughter of his employer’s business partner. Romantic tension is supplied by Arthur Hennessey, the son of a former Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
governor. Wealthy, pampered and callous, Arthur Hennessey is a darker aspect of Duncan ’s former social rung. He is unaware that his ignorance of the so-called ‘common man’ has left him just as ignorant of the values of life.
At the end of the play, Duncan and his friends start up their own sawmill
Sawmill
A sawmill is a facility where logs are cut into boards.-Sawmill process:A sawmill's basic operation is much like those of hundreds of years ago; a log enters on one end and dimensional lumber exits on the other end....
. Duncan marries Martha after her mother dies of consumption
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
.
Riders on the Flood is performed solely in the Island Park Amphitheatre of Ronceverte, West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
—the same town and locale that saw the true lumbering industry during the latter half of the 19th-century.
Life and Upbringing
Warren Elmer Blackhurst was born on August 10, 1904 in Cass, West Virginia to Rev. Harry Blackhurst (1870-1956) and his wife Lula May neé Burner (1870-1960). His father, an immigrant from Tunstall, EnglandTunstall, Staffordshire
Tunstall is an area in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. It was one of the original six towns that federated to form the city. Tunstall is the most northern town of the city of Stoke-on-Trent....
, came to America in 1886 with his parents Jabez and Sarah, and Warren's mother was an American-born native of Pocahontas County, West Virginia
Pocahontas County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,131 people, 835 households, and 527 families residing in the county. The population density was 10 people per square mile . There were 7,594 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile...
. "Tweard", as he was known, spent nearly his entire life close to the lumber
Lumber
Lumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....
industry, and knew the intricacies of this industry like few other people. Even more remarkably, he was able to portray the logging workers in a realistic light. Whether they are the blustering bully about to get drunk and rip a town apart just because it is payday, or a young man trying to make something of himself, the characters sounded like actual people who one might already know. As a native of West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
, Blackhurst knew when was self-parody and when it would ring false.
Blackhurst was a graduate of Green Bank High School and Glenville State College
Glenville State College
Glenville State College is a public four-year college located in Glenville, a town in the rural north-central part of the U.S. state of West Virginia.-History:...
, attended West Virginia University
West Virginia University
West Virginia University is a public research university in Morgantown, West Virginia, USA. Other campuses include: West Virginia University at Parkersburg in Parkersburg; West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Montgomery; Potomac State College of West Virginia University in Keyser;...
and the Davis and Elkins College
Davis and Elkins College
Davis & Elkins College, also known as D&E, is a small residential liberal arts college located in Elkins, West Virginia, United States. The school was founded in 1904 and is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church. It was named for Henry G. Davis and his son-in-law Stephen B. Elkins who were both...
. He returned to his alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
(Green Bank) and taught English and Latin for thirty-two years. He and his wife, the former Stella Yates, operated the Wildlife Museum at Cass
Cass, West Virginia
Cass is an unincorporated census-designated place on the Greenbrier River in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, USA. As of the 2010 census, its population was 52...
.
Blackhurst devoted much of his life to collecting and writing the history of the early logging days. At the time of his birth in 1904, the lumber business was just seriously getting underway in the Greenbrier Valley following the completion of the C&O Railway's Greenbrier Branch. One location in his books, the town of Cass
Cass, West Virginia
Cass is an unincorporated census-designated place on the Greenbrier River in Pocahontas County, West Virginia, USA. As of the 2010 census, its population was 52...
, was created by the West Virginia Pulp and Paper Company, and Blackhurst grew up during the most active years of that company in the valley.
A World Gone By
Blackhurst's books resurrect the forests with a sharp, historical eye and a natural love of detail. The logging industry no longer depends on water-travel to deliver the logs from the headwaters to the sawmills, but during its heyday it meant respectable work for high pay.Riders of the Flood is an historical work that involves romance, the pride of the working man, drama, and rollicking humor. Through it all the Greenbrier River
Greenbrier River
The Greenbrier River is a tributary of the New River, long, in southeastern West Virginia, USA. Via the New, Kanawha and Ohio Rivers, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area of...
and its northern tributaries of the watershed
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
are the backdrop
Backdrop
Backdrop may refer to:* Theatrical scenery* Photography backdrops used in studio photography circa 1860-1920.* Filming location* A pro wrestling move that's also called a belly to back suplex....
that unites everyone, rich or poor, friend or enemy. Blackhurst's books are spiced with historical photographs that emphasize the now-alien world where entire rivers were choked with giant logs and one's livelihood depended on spring floods.
The town of Ronceverte hosts the theater version of "Riders of the Flood" every September just downstream from the original site of the St. Lawrence Boom and Lumber Mill in Blackhurst's books. The play was written by a local artist, Robert Tuckwiller, who was given an out-of-print copy of the book by his father. Mr. Tuckwiller was so inspired by the book he wrote up the play and garnered permission to use it from Blackhurst's family. Riders of the Flood is now back in print and the theater provides revenue for the improvements of the city.
Voices Lost
In the beginning of Riders of the Flood, Blackhurst gives a wrenching account of trying to hear the stories of the past. He goes to the Mountains, but they tell him he is being presumptuous; he must go to the lowlands. Blackhurst goes to the streams there, and they tell him they know great stories, but they have no time to tarry,Blackhurst then finds the Lonely Pine, but the Pine is grieving for its friends lost to the logging industry. It bides him to:
"Go to one not so hurried. Ask one who has much time. If you would have tales of the old days, go seek from yon Lonely Pine."
"Go to the haunts of the Old Men." It is here, the Old Men of the lumber days, with strong hands and fearless eyes, tells him the stories he needs to hear.