Franklin County, Nebraska

For Another Day

This week’s information comes from the Coal Valley News newspaper in Madison, W.V.

The Hatfield-McCoy Trail Authority has decided to establish an office in Boone County (in my native county in West Virginia). The Authority Office will be at the Lick Creek Complex in Danville, W.V. With the beautiful mountains and friendly people, Boone County will be an important part of the trail project. The Hatfield-McCoy Trail would be a good thing for the county, as economic development is badly needed in the area.

According to a Trailhead Facilities Economic Impact Study conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the initial 300-mile system in Boone County would bring 43,612 visitors to this county each year. This would bring $6,670,000 added dollars to the local economy annually, and 213 new jobs.

These are powerful figures. When the total 2,000 mile of the Hatfield-McCoy Trail System covering seven counties is complete, the study estimates that 627,245 people will use the trails each year, adding $106,960,000 to the seven county area economy, with new jobs totaling 3,254.

All of this development is because two families were at war at each other for years. This fight ended up in the deaths of many family members, especially when some of the Hatfields and McCoys married each other. Although there have been many family feuds over the history of the United States that have been longer and bloodier, none have captured the imagination of the American people as the feud between the Hatfields and McCoys.

Many locals believe that his feud was actually a result of the Civil War. Anderson Hatfield, known as Devil Anse fought for the Confederacy, and Randal McCoy fought for the Union. The Hatfield-McCoy feud is said to have started over a misplaced pig.

The Tug River area along the West Virginia and Kentucky borders saw the beginning of this deadly feud. Devil Anse Hatfield’s home was located on the West Virginia side of the river near the town of Matawan, and he owned many acres of Farmland along the banks of the Tug River. Randall McCoy’s home was located on the Kentucky side of Tug River.

When I grew up in Boone County, W.V. I didn’t hear too much about this battle spreading into our county. This will remain a mystery for another day. In the meantime if any readers are interested in the feud, they can get the whole story can be learned from the internet or the public library.

Facts are stubborn things. Alain Rene Le Sage.

Rena Donovan, For Another Day.

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