Samuel Henry Curfman (1835-1922) was the middle son of three sons born to Michael Christopher Curfman (1789-1882) and Rebecca Carman (1794-1882). All three sons were born in Steubenville, Ohio where the family lived until they moved to Roane County in what is now West Virginia in 1844 and where in 1846 father Michael Christopher took title to bounty land he was awarded for his service in the Maryland Militia during the War of 1812. Samuel Henry Curfman's grandfather Adam Curfman (1770-____) also served in the same Maryland Militia company during the War of 1812 as his father Michael Christopher had, and participated in historic battles that helped turn the tide of war for the new American republic. They were called to service at New Market, Frederick County, Maryland in the summer of 1814 in response to the landing of a British army on the Maryland shore of the Chesapeake Bay which subsequently stormed the capital city of Washington, burning both the White House and Capitol buildings on August 24, 1814. A few weeks later father and son were part of the American force that defeated the same British invasion force at the Battles of North Point (September 12, 1814), Fort McHenry (September 13-14, 1814) and Baltimore (September 13-14, 1814), where the British General Ross was killed. Several days later the British forces boarded ships and left Maryland for Halifax, Canada where General Ross was buried. These battles were the last major engagements to occur before the peace treaty was signed later that fall. The Battle of Fort McHenry is also famous because the British siege, which included rocket attacks on the American fort, inspired Francis Scott Key to write the Star Spangled Banner. After the war, sometime around 1820, both father Adam and son Michael Christopher moved to Jefferson County, Ohio.
Samuel Henry's grandfather on his mother's side -- Nathaniel Carman (1754-1806) -- was born in Monmouth County, New Jersey. In August 1781 Nathaniel and his brother Daniel both joined the American Continental Army, New Jersey First Regiment (known as the Jersey Line, or Jersey Blues), Captain Mead's Company, as privates, and served through the end of the war until November 1783. The First Regiment saw action in the decisive Battle of Yorktown in Virginia in October, 1781 under the command of General George Washington who defeated the British General Cornwallis with the help of French army units and French naval ships which bombarded British positions from the York River. In this famous battle, General Washington led his combined American and French forces on a 400-mile forced march from New York and New Jersey to Virginia where he was able to encircle the British at the very same time as the French navy arrived and effectively end the war. After the battle, the Regiment returned to New Jersey. Before he mustered out in 1783, Nathaniel married Elizabeth Braten on October 28, 1782 in Monmouth and the couple had seven children, including Rebecca who was born in 1794. The Carmans moved to Jefferson County, Ohio around 1800 and at the age of 28 Rebecca married Michael Christopher Curfman on October 28, 1822 in Steubenville, Ohio where all of their children were born, including Samuel Henry in 1835, before the family moved to Roane County in 1844.
Samuel's three brothers were Nathaniel (1832-1922), James (1837-1918) and William (1841-1907). Samuel, Nathaniel and James served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. Nathaniel and James joined first, at the outset to the war, when on June 16, 1861, both enlisted in Company E of the 36th Confederate Infantry, a company entirely comprised of young men from Roane County. James served until the end of the war but Nathaniel deserted in October 1864 after a series of brutal engagements with Union forces in the Shenandoah Valley. Both were involved in significant actions in Kentucky and Virginia, both survived the war, and both returned home after the war. Samuel held back and did not join until October 10, 1862 when he enlisted as a private in Company H of the 17th Confederate Calvary which was formed in nearby Sissonville. Within a month, the company was cut off from other Confederate forces for the remainder of the war and, according to the best accounts we have, his company remained as a "home guard" to protect Confederate-leaning families in the area from periodic Union attacks and skirmishes. The official Confederate war records show Samuel continued to be entered in the unit's muster rolls as a member in the unit for the remainder of the war but marked as "absent [,] cut off retreating from Kanawha Valley" on muster sheets. None of the Curfman family members ever owned slaves, nor did the family of his wife Mary Cain. We do not know what motivated the Curfman brothers to join the Confederate side, but most of West Virginia was very divided during this bloody conflict. There were many young men fighting on both sides.
Two of the brothers married Cain daughters. Samuel Henry married Mary Ann Cain (1841-1905) on December 27, 1858 and they began having children in 1859, with two more born during the Civil War and another six born after the war. Younger brother James married Mary Ann's sister, Elizabeth Cain, on August 18, 1865, three months after he was paroled at war's end.
Samuel Henry and Mary Ann (Cain) Curfman had 9 surviving children: 1) Michael Pleasant "Ples" (or "Pleas") Curfman born Nov. 26, 1859 and who eventually took over the family farm after the parents became to old to run it, 2) James Washington Curfman born Feb. 28, 1863 and died May 1950 3) Lurinda Curfman born June 19, 1864, 4) Permelia Curfman born Oct. 1, 1866, 5) Mary F. Curfman born Mar. 7, 1870 6) Elizabeth ("Bettie") Curfman born Oct. 17, 1873, 7) Martha Curfman born April 2, 1875, 8) Belle Sarah Curfman born Nov. 25, 1877 and 9) Rhoda Viola Curfman born April 1, 1883. Mary Ann Cain was 18 when she gave birth to her first child, and 42 when the last one was born. A tenth child died in infancy (1869).
Samuel Henry was a farmer and also taught school on Cain's Run.
In 1966, Hurshel Charles Lester, a grandson of Samuel Henry Curfman, wrote the following about his grandfather: "Samuel Henry Curfman made his home with us for some time. Grandfather was an inspiration to me and I have never forgotten the good influence he had on me and others around him. I wish you [Evelyn Tolles, daughter of his cousin Ezra Curfman] could have known your great grandfather as I knew him personally and had the privilege of being with him very much and so many interesting things he told me. He read the Bible a lot and had a good influence on others. He had a very kind, pleasant disposition; he was a good pa. He told me he was never in the regular Confederate Army, he told me he had to stay home to protect his family against raiders from the other side. He was in sympathy with the Confederate Army and engaged in many skirmishes around home. Raiders would go through the country stealing and destroying everything they could and the local people had to defend themselves and their families the best way they could. His father, Michael [Christopher] lived near or with him, and he, (Samuel Curfman), had to stay home to protect his family. He said he never killed anyone but he shot a horse from under a fellow as he was running away."
Samuel Henry Curfman was the great great grandson of Johann Daniel Korffman Sr. who emigrated with his wife Anna Katherine Dietrich from Stein-Bockenheim, Germany to America aboard the ship 'Friendship' which arrived in Philadelphia on October 12, 1741. The Korffmans settled near York, Pennsylvania where Samuel Henry's great grandfather Daniel Curfman Jr. was born in 1743 and where Samuel Henry's grandfather Adam Curfman was born in 1770 and christened at the Friedensaal Church in Seven Valleys, Pennsylvania on March 31, 1770.
Samuel Henry's grandfather on his mother's side -- Nathaniel Carman (1754-1806) -- was born in Monmouth County, New Jersey. In August 1781 Nathaniel and his brother Daniel both joined the American Continental Army, New Jersey First Regiment (known as the Jersey Line, or Jersey Blues), Captain Mead's Company, as privates, and served through the end of the war until November 1783. The First Regiment saw action in the decisive Battle of Yorktown in Virginia in October, 1781 under the command of General George Washington who defeated the British General Cornwallis with the help of French army units and French naval ships which bombarded British positions from the York River. In this famous battle, General Washington led his combined American and French forces on a 400-mile forced march from New York and New Jersey to Virginia where he was able to encircle the British at the very same time as the French navy arrived and effectively end the war. After the battle, the Regiment returned to New Jersey. Before he mustered out in 1783, Nathaniel married Elizabeth Braten on October 28, 1782 in Monmouth and the couple had seven children, including Rebecca who was born in 1794. The Carmans moved to Jefferson County, Ohio around 1800 and at the age of 28 Rebecca married Michael Christopher Curfman on October 28, 1822 in Steubenville, Ohio where all of their children were born, including Samuel Henry in 1835, before the family moved to Roane County in 1844.
Samuel's three brothers were Nathaniel (1832-1922), James (1837-1918) and William (1841-1907). Samuel, Nathaniel and James served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. Nathaniel and James joined first, at the outset to the war, when on June 16, 1861, both enlisted in Company E of the 36th Confederate Infantry, a company entirely comprised of young men from Roane County. James served until the end of the war but Nathaniel deserted in October 1864 after a series of brutal engagements with Union forces in the Shenandoah Valley. Both were involved in significant actions in Kentucky and Virginia, both survived the war, and both returned home after the war. Samuel held back and did not join until October 10, 1862 when he enlisted as a private in Company H of the 17th Confederate Calvary which was formed in nearby Sissonville. Within a month, the company was cut off from other Confederate forces for the remainder of the war and, according to the best accounts we have, his company remained as a "home guard" to protect Confederate-leaning families in the area from periodic Union attacks and skirmishes. The official Confederate war records show Samuel continued to be entered in the unit's muster rolls as a member in the unit for the remainder of the war but marked as "absent [,] cut off retreating from Kanawha Valley" on muster sheets. None of the Curfman family members ever owned slaves, nor did the family of his wife Mary Cain. We do not know what motivated the Curfman brothers to join the Confederate side, but most of West Virginia was very divided during this bloody conflict. There were many young men fighting on both sides.
Two of the brothers married Cain daughters. Samuel Henry married Mary Ann Cain (1841-1905) on December 27, 1858 and they began having children in 1859, with two more born during the Civil War and another six born after the war. Younger brother James married Mary Ann's sister, Elizabeth Cain, on August 18, 1865, three months after he was paroled at war's end.
Samuel Henry and Mary Ann (Cain) Curfman had 9 surviving children: 1) Michael Pleasant "Ples" (or "Pleas") Curfman born Nov. 26, 1859 and who eventually took over the family farm after the parents became to old to run it, 2) James Washington Curfman born Feb. 28, 1863 and died May 1950 3) Lurinda Curfman born June 19, 1864, 4) Permelia Curfman born Oct. 1, 1866, 5) Mary F. Curfman born Mar. 7, 1870 6) Elizabeth ("Bettie") Curfman born Oct. 17, 1873, 7) Martha Curfman born April 2, 1875, 8) Belle Sarah Curfman born Nov. 25, 1877 and 9) Rhoda Viola Curfman born April 1, 1883. Mary Ann Cain was 18 when she gave birth to her first child, and 42 when the last one was born. A tenth child died in infancy (1869).
Samuel Henry was a farmer and also taught school on Cain's Run.
In 1966, Hurshel Charles Lester, a grandson of Samuel Henry Curfman, wrote the following about his grandfather: "Samuel Henry Curfman made his home with us for some time. Grandfather was an inspiration to me and I have never forgotten the good influence he had on me and others around him. I wish you [Evelyn Tolles, daughter of his cousin Ezra Curfman] could have known your great grandfather as I knew him personally and had the privilege of being with him very much and so many interesting things he told me. He read the Bible a lot and had a good influence on others. He had a very kind, pleasant disposition; he was a good pa. He told me he was never in the regular Confederate Army, he told me he had to stay home to protect his family against raiders from the other side. He was in sympathy with the Confederate Army and engaged in many skirmishes around home. Raiders would go through the country stealing and destroying everything they could and the local people had to defend themselves and their families the best way they could. His father, Michael [Christopher] lived near or with him, and he, (Samuel Curfman), had to stay home to protect his family. He said he never killed anyone but he shot a horse from under a fellow as he was running away."
Samuel Henry Curfman was the great great grandson of Johann Daniel Korffman Sr. who emigrated with his wife Anna Katherine Dietrich from Stein-Bockenheim, Germany to America aboard the ship 'Friendship' which arrived in Philadelphia on October 12, 1741. The Korffmans settled near York, Pennsylvania where Samuel Henry's great grandfather Daniel Curfman Jr. was born in 1743 and where Samuel Henry's grandfather Adam Curfman was born in 1770 and christened at the Friedensaal Church in Seven Valleys, Pennsylvania on March 31, 1770.
Samuel Henry Curfman (1835-1922) was the middle son of three sons born to Michael Christopher Curfman (1789-1882) and Rebecca Carman (1794-1882). All three sons were born in Steubenville, Ohio where the family lived until they moved to Roane County in what is now West Virginia in 1844 and where in 1846 father Michael Christopher took title to bounty land he was awarded for his service in the Maryland Militia during the War of 1812. Samuel Henry Curfman's grandfather Adam Curfman (1770-____) also served in the same Maryland Militia company during the War of 1812 as his father Michael Christopher had, and participated in historic battles that helped turn the tide of war for the new American republic. They were called to service at New Market, Frederick County, Maryland in the summer of 1814 in response to the landing of a British army on the Maryland shore of the Chesapeake Bay which subsequently stormed the capital city of Washington, burning both the White House and Capitol buildings on August 24, 1814. A few weeks later father and son were part of the American force that defeated the same British invasion force at the Battles of North Point (September 12, 1814), Fort McHenry (September 13-14, 1814) and Baltimore (September 13-14, 1814), where the British General Ross was killed. Several days later the British forces boarded ships and left Maryland for Halifax, Canada where General Ross was buried. These battles were the last major engagements to occur before the peace treaty was signed later that fall. The Battle of Fort McHenry is also famous because the British siege, which included rocket attacks on the American fort, inspired Francis Scott Key to write the Star Spangled Banner. After the war, sometime around 1820, both father Adam and son Michael Christopher moved to Jefferson County, Ohio.
Samuel Henry's grandfather on his mother's side -- Nathaniel Carman (1754-1806) -- was born in Monmouth County, New Jersey. In August 1781 Nathaniel and his brother Daniel both joined the American Continental Army, New Jersey First Regiment (known as the Jersey Line, or Jersey Blues), Captain Mead's Company, as privates, and served through the end of the war until November 1783. The First Regiment saw action in the decisive Battle of Yorktown in Virginia in October, 1781 under the command of General George Washington who defeated the British General Cornwallis with the help of French army units and French naval ships which bombarded British positions from the York River. In this famous battle, General Washington led his combined American and French forces on a 400-mile forced march from New York and New Jersey to Virginia where he was able to encircle the British at the very same time as the French navy arrived and effectively end the war. After the battle, the Regiment returned to New Jersey. Before he mustered out in 1783, Nathaniel married Elizabeth Braten on October 28, 1782 in Monmouth and the couple had seven children, including Rebecca who was born in 1794. The Carmans moved to Jefferson County, Ohio around 1800 and at the age of 28 Rebecca married Michael Christopher Curfman on October 28, 1822 in Steubenville, Ohio where all of their children were born, including Samuel Henry in 1835, before the family moved to Roane County in 1844.
Samuel's three brothers were Nathaniel (1832-1922), James (1837-1918) and William (1841-1907). Samuel, Nathaniel and James served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. Nathaniel and James joined first, at the outset to the war, when on June 16, 1861, both enlisted in Company E of the 36th Confederate Infantry, a company entirely comprised of young men from Roane County. James served until the end of the war but Nathaniel deserted in October 1864 after a series of brutal engagements with Union forces in the Shenandoah Valley. Both were involved in significant actions in Kentucky and Virginia, both survived the war, and both returned home after the war. Samuel held back and did not join until October 10, 1862 when he enlisted as a private in Company H of the 17th Confederate Calvary which was formed in nearby Sissonville. Within a month, the company was cut off from other Confederate forces for the remainder of the war and, according to the best accounts we have, his company remained as a "home guard" to protect Confederate-leaning families in the area from periodic Union attacks and skirmishes. The official Confederate war records show Samuel continued to be entered in the unit's muster rolls as a member in the unit for the remainder of the war but marked as "absent [,] cut off retreating from Kanawha Valley" on muster sheets. None of the Curfman family members ever owned slaves, nor did the family of his wife Mary Cain. We do not know what motivated the Curfman brothers to join the Confederate side, but most of West Virginia was very divided during this bloody conflict. There were many young men fighting on both sides.
Two of the brothers married Cain daughters. Samuel Henry married Mary Ann Cain (1841-1905) on December 27, 1858 and they began having children in 1859, with two more born during the Civil War and another six born after the war. Younger brother James married Mary Ann's sister, Elizabeth Cain, on August 18, 1865, three months after he was paroled at war's end.
Samuel Henry and Mary Ann (Cain) Curfman had 9 surviving children: 1) Michael Pleasant "Ples" (or "Pleas") Curfman born Nov. 26, 1859 and who eventually took over the family farm after the parents became to old to run it, 2) James Washington Curfman born Feb. 28, 1863 and died May 1950 3) Lurinda Curfman born June 19, 1864, 4) Permelia Curfman born Oct. 1, 1866, 5) Mary F. Curfman born Mar. 7, 1870 6) Elizabeth ("Bettie") Curfman born Oct. 17, 1873, 7) Martha Curfman born April 2, 1875, 8) Belle Sarah Curfman born Nov. 25, 1877 and 9) Rhoda Viola Curfman born April 1, 1883. Mary Ann Cain was 18 when she gave birth to her first child, and 42 when the last one was born. A tenth child died in infancy (1869).
Samuel Henry was a farmer and also taught school on Cain's Run.
In 1966, Hurshel Charles Lester, a grandson of Samuel Henry Curfman, wrote the following about his grandfather: "Samuel Henry Curfman made his home with us for some time. Grandfather was an inspiration to me and I have never forgotten the good influence he had on me and others around him. I wish you [Evelyn Tolles, daughter of his cousin Ezra Curfman] could have known your great grandfather as I knew him personally and had the privilege of being with him very much and so many interesting things he told me. He read the Bible a lot and had a good influence on others. He had a very kind, pleasant disposition; he was a good pa. He told me he was never in the regular Confederate Army, he told me he had to stay home to protect his family against raiders from the other side. He was in sympathy with the Confederate Army and engaged in many skirmishes around home. Raiders would go through the country stealing and destroying everything they could and the local people had to defend themselves and their families the best way they could. His father, Michael [Christopher] lived near or with him, and he, (Samuel Curfman), had to stay home to protect his family. He said he never killed anyone but he shot a horse from under a fellow as he was running away."
Samuel Henry Curfman was the great great grandson of Johann Daniel Korffman Sr. who emigrated with his wife Anna Katherine Dietrich from Stein-Bockenheim, Germany to America aboard the ship 'Friendship' which arrived in Philadelphia on October 12, 1741. The Korffmans settled near York, Pennsylvania where Samuel Henry's great grandfather Daniel Curfman Jr. was born in 1743 and where Samuel Henry's grandfather Adam Curfman was born in 1770 and christened at the Friedensaal Church in Seven Valleys, Pennsylvania on March 31, 1770.
Samuel Henry's grandfather on his mother's side -- Nathaniel Carman (1754-1806) -- was born in Monmouth County, New Jersey. In August 1781 Nathaniel and his brother Daniel both joined the American Continental Army, New Jersey First Regiment (known as the Jersey Line, or Jersey Blues), Captain Mead's Company, as privates, and served through the end of the war until November 1783. The First Regiment saw action in the decisive Battle of Yorktown in Virginia in October, 1781 under the command of General George Washington who defeated the British General Cornwallis with the help of French army units and French naval ships which bombarded British positions from the York River. In this famous battle, General Washington led his combined American and French forces on a 400-mile forced march from New York and New Jersey to Virginia where he was able to encircle the British at the very same time as the French navy arrived and effectively end the war. After the battle, the Regiment returned to New Jersey. Before he mustered out in 1783, Nathaniel married Elizabeth Braten on October 28, 1782 in Monmouth and the couple had seven children, including Rebecca who was born in 1794. The Carmans moved to Jefferson County, Ohio around 1800 and at the age of 28 Rebecca married Michael Christopher Curfman on October 28, 1822 in Steubenville, Ohio where all of their children were born, including Samuel Henry in 1835, before the family moved to Roane County in 1844.
Samuel's three brothers were Nathaniel (1832-1922), James (1837-1918) and William (1841-1907). Samuel, Nathaniel and James served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. Nathaniel and James joined first, at the outset to the war, when on June 16, 1861, both enlisted in Company E of the 36th Confederate Infantry, a company entirely comprised of young men from Roane County. James served until the end of the war but Nathaniel deserted in October 1864 after a series of brutal engagements with Union forces in the Shenandoah Valley. Both were involved in significant actions in Kentucky and Virginia, both survived the war, and both returned home after the war. Samuel held back and did not join until October 10, 1862 when he enlisted as a private in Company H of the 17th Confederate Calvary which was formed in nearby Sissonville. Within a month, the company was cut off from other Confederate forces for the remainder of the war and, according to the best accounts we have, his company remained as a "home guard" to protect Confederate-leaning families in the area from periodic Union attacks and skirmishes. The official Confederate war records show Samuel continued to be entered in the unit's muster rolls as a member in the unit for the remainder of the war but marked as "absent [,] cut off retreating from Kanawha Valley" on muster sheets. None of the Curfman family members ever owned slaves, nor did the family of his wife Mary Cain. We do not know what motivated the Curfman brothers to join the Confederate side, but most of West Virginia was very divided during this bloody conflict. There were many young men fighting on both sides.
Two of the brothers married Cain daughters. Samuel Henry married Mary Ann Cain (1841-1905) on December 27, 1858 and they began having children in 1859, with two more born during the Civil War and another six born after the war. Younger brother James married Mary Ann's sister, Elizabeth Cain, on August 18, 1865, three months after he was paroled at war's end.
Samuel Henry and Mary Ann (Cain) Curfman had 9 surviving children: 1) Michael Pleasant "Ples" (or "Pleas") Curfman born Nov. 26, 1859 and who eventually took over the family farm after the parents became to old to run it, 2) James Washington Curfman born Feb. 28, 1863 and died May 1950 3) Lurinda Curfman born June 19, 1864, 4) Permelia Curfman born Oct. 1, 1866, 5) Mary F. Curfman born Mar. 7, 1870 6) Elizabeth ("Bettie") Curfman born Oct. 17, 1873, 7) Martha Curfman born April 2, 1875, 8) Belle Sarah Curfman born Nov. 25, 1877 and 9) Rhoda Viola Curfman born April 1, 1883. Mary Ann Cain was 18 when she gave birth to her first child, and 42 when the last one was born. A tenth child died in infancy (1869).
Samuel Henry was a farmer and also taught school on Cain's Run.
In 1966, Hurshel Charles Lester, a grandson of Samuel Henry Curfman, wrote the following about his grandfather: "Samuel Henry Curfman made his home with us for some time. Grandfather was an inspiration to me and I have never forgotten the good influence he had on me and others around him. I wish you [Evelyn Tolles, daughter of his cousin Ezra Curfman] could have known your great grandfather as I knew him personally and had the privilege of being with him very much and so many interesting things he told me. He read the Bible a lot and had a good influence on others. He had a very kind, pleasant disposition; he was a good pa. He told me he was never in the regular Confederate Army, he told me he had to stay home to protect his family against raiders from the other side. He was in sympathy with the Confederate Army and engaged in many skirmishes around home. Raiders would go through the country stealing and destroying everything they could and the local people had to defend themselves and their families the best way they could. His father, Michael [Christopher] lived near or with him, and he, (Samuel Curfman), had to stay home to protect his family. He said he never killed anyone but he shot a horse from under a fellow as he was running away."
Samuel Henry Curfman was the great great grandson of Johann Daniel Korffman Sr. who emigrated with his wife Anna Katherine Dietrich from Stein-Bockenheim, Germany to America aboard the ship 'Friendship' which arrived in Philadelphia on October 12, 1741. The Korffmans settled near York, Pennsylvania where Samuel Henry's great grandfather Daniel Curfman Jr. was born in 1743 and where Samuel Henry's grandfather Adam Curfman was born in 1770 and christened at the Friedensaal Church in Seven Valleys, Pennsylvania on March 31, 1770.
