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LOGAN COUNTY WEST VIRGINIA
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Submitted to the West Virginia Biographies Project by:
"John \"Bill\" Wheeler"
wheeler@gru.net
December 6, 1999
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The History of West Virginia, Old and New
Published 1923, The American Historical Society, Inc.
Chicago and New York, Volume ll.,
pg.110
Floyd D. Stollings, who has been a prominent and influential figure in
connection with the timber business in West Virginia and also in the handling
of coal lands, has the distinction of maintaining his home in a town that was
named in his honor, the attractive village of Stollings, Logan County. He was
born near Chapmanville, this county in January. 1853 and is a son of Nelson and
Lurania(Workman) Stollings, the former of whom likewise was born near
Chapmanville and the later of whom was in Boone County, where her death occurred
in 1890 and where her husband died in 1900, at the venerable age of eighty-four
years. Josiah Stollings, grandfather of the subject of this review, owned large
tracts of land near Chapmanville, and was one of the representative pioneers of
Logan County. The Stollings came from North Carolina and were numbered among the
first settlers in the Guyan valley in what is now West Virginia. Abraham
Workman, maternal grandfather of Mr. Stollings likewise came to this section in
an early day, his former home having been in North Carolina, near the Virginia
line.
Nelson Stolling finally established his home on a farm in Boone County,
about midway between Chapmanville and Madison, and he met with heavy property
and financial losses at the time of the Civil War. He became a mail contractor
and transported the mail from Logan to Charleston and also between Logan and
Wayne, besides which he established a postoffice at Tracefork, a village now
known as Manila, in Boone County.After the close of the war Nelson Stollings as
prosperous in his activities as a farmer, trader and mail contractor. He was
born in the year 1816 and his wife in 1821, both having been earnest members of
the Missionary Baptist Church and his political allegiance having been given to
the democratic party. Of their seven children Floyd D., of this sketch, is the
only one now living. The oldest son, Thomas B. though under the age at the time,
enlisted for services as a confederate soldier in the Civil War.
Floyd D. Stollings gains his early education in the schools of Logan and
Boone Counties, and his initial work of independent order was the service which
he gave as postmaster at Tracefork. From 1874 to 1876 inclusive, he was in the
panhandle district of Texas, and upon his return to West Virginia he engaged in
the mercantile business in Boone County. He next turned his attention to the
timber industry and instituted operation of Twelve Pole Creek and Guyandot
River. He first bought popular and walnut timber, which he would raft down to
the Ohio River, down which stream the fleet of logs were towed by boats to
market points. In his operation, which became of large scope, he maintained his
headquarters at Catlettsburg, Kentucky, which was the headquarters for all of
the old timber men operating on the Twelve Pole and Guyandot rivers. Mr.
Stollings has bought and sold many thousand acres of timber and coal lands, has
cut the timber from much land that he later sold to coal operators, and among
his purchases was 500 acres where the village of Stollings is now situated,
this town having been founded in 1900, which was named in his honor and to the
development of which he has contributed in general measure, he having
established his home after many years' residence in Boone County. He is a
democrat in political allegiance and his wife is a member of the Christian
Church.
The year 1873 recorded the marriage of Mr. Stollings and Miss Luella Stone,
daughter of the late William N. Stone of Boone County. Of this union were born
five sons and five daughters, two of the sons being deceased.
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