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BARBOUR COUNTY WEST VIRGINIA
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Submitted to the West Virginia Biographies Project by:
Valerie & Tommy Crook
vfcrook@earthlink.net
July 23, 2000
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The History of West Virginia, Old and New
Published 1923, The American Historical Society, Inc.,
Chicago and New York, Volume III,
pg. 580-581
Barbour
ALDINE S. POLING is a veteran editor and newspaper man
of West Virginia, being founder and proprietor of the
Barbour Democrat at Philippi. He was a successful teacher,
later studied and qualified for the bar, but instead found
his vocation and life-work in "the fourth estate."
Mr. Poling was born in Glade District, Barbour County,
January 14, 1867. His grandfather, James Poling, came to
this section of West Virginia in pioneer times from old
Virginia and spent his life as a farmer in Glade District
He had a large family, his sons being Elam, Nathaniel,
Perry, Brown, Isaac, Salathiel, Emery and Tazewell, while
his daughters were Annie, who married Marshall Stal-
maker; Rebecca, whose first husband was Mortimer Johnson
and the second, C. K. Rymer; Luverna, who was the only
one of the family who remained unmarried; and Virginia,
who became the wife of Wesley Bean. These children not
only married, but most of them had many descendants, and
as many of these remained in Barbour County Aldine S.
Poling probably has more relatives in the region than any
other man.
The father of Aldine S. Poling was Isaac Poling, who
was born in Barbour County and who married Elfanzine
Corder, a native of Warren County, Virginia. Her only
child was Aldine S., but the latter has a half brother, Wade
Poling, of Glade District, and half sister named Mrs. Etta
Hudkins, Mrs. Matrona Wilmoth, Mrs. Bertie Wilson and
Mrs. Rebeeca Elliott.
Aldine S. Poling was reared in the home of an aunt in
Pleasant District of Barbour County, and lived with her
until he began his university career. He attended the rural
schools, summer normals, began teaching at the age of
sixteen, and for ten years his program was teaching a term
or two and then attending school himself. In this way he
secured the money to complete his legal education and was
graduated LL. B. from West Virginia University in 1892.
Before he could secure a clientele as a lawyer his old
friend with whom he had first studied law induced him to
start a democratic paper at Philippi. Thus he became the
founder of the Barbour Democrat in 1893, the first issue of
which appeared July 6, 1893. It has probably never missed
an issue in nearly thirty years, and there have hardly been
more than a half dozen issues of the paper run off the press
without the editor's presence in the office. Mr. Poling is a
man of ideals in the newspaper business. With the usual
enthusiasm of youth he thought it necessary in early years
to be strongly partisan, and he attacked his political op-
ponents as vigorously as he boosted the interests of his own
party in political or civic matters. Gradually experience
and increasing years softened this part of his character, so
that generosity and liberality have characterized his treat-
ment of men and measures through his paper. He made the
Barbour Democrat one of the first papers in the state ac-
tively to advocate and fight the battle of temperance and
prohibition. From the first he has believed that he had a
duty to perform in editing and conducting a home news-
paper, one free from sensation and the lurid presentation of
crimes and scandals.
In addition to his service as an editor Mr. Poling has
been a notary public for a number of years, largely a
gratuitous service, has been secretary and a member of the
board of Education of the Philippi Independent District,
and has been a trustee of Broaddus College since it was
established here. He was one of the active leaders in se-
curing this educational institution for Philippi, and he has
seen it grow to be a larger institution than the State Uni-
versity was when he was a student there. In polities Mr.
Poling inherits democratic sentiments from both sides of
the family. Fraternally he has been a Mason and Odd Fel-
low since reaching his majority, and is also a member of the
Knights of the Maccabees and the Junior Order United
American Mechanics. He has sat in the Masonic Grand
Lodge. For thirty-five years he has been a member of the
Missionary Baptist Church, was superintendent of the Sun-
day school ten years and represented the church in the
Northern Baptist Convention at Boston, and has attended
many of the general associations in the state.
At Philippi in December, 1893, Mr. Poling married Miss
Lizzie W. Grant, daughter of Edward F. and Lydia (Skid-
more) Grant, an old time family of Barbour County. Her
father was a cabinet maker and undertaker, and for many
years served as postmaster at Philippi. He was a repub-
lican, and he died during the childhood of Mrs. Poling.
Mrs. Poling has a half brother, Charles Grant. Mrs. Poling
went to work in one of the local banks at Philippi at the
age of seventeen, is still an employe of the Citizens National
Bank, and is credited with more banking experience than
any of the bankers in the city. Mr. and Mrs. Poling have
two sons, Forrest Blanchard and Lawrence Edward. Forrest
Blanchard, who graduated A. B. from West Virginia Uni-
versity and is now in the University Law School, is an ex-
service man, and spent twenty-two months at Camp Shelby,
reaching the rank of top sergeant. The second son is a
graduate of Broaddus College of Philippi, and is now con-
tinuing his studies in the Ohio State University. He
volunteered as a member of the Students' Army Training
Corps in the naval contingent, and was at Morgantown dar-
ing a portion of the war.
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