Today in Wheeling History: August 6--James Whitehead Paxton, prominent Wheeling businessman, banker, and key figure in West Virginia's statehood, was born (1821).
James Whitehead Paxton, born on August 6, 1821, in Wheeling, Virginia (now West Virginia), was educated at Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, and Bacon College in Georgetown, Kentucky. Despite studying civil engineering, he joined his father William's wholesale grocery business at 18 in 1839, forming William Paxton & Son. On February 4, 1845, he married Catherine Mason Paull in Wheeling, having seven children with her. After Catherine's death, he wed Frances Joan Logan on January 11, 1872, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with whom he had three more children: Charles Francis, Eliza, and Gertrude.
Paxton's business acumen led him to become president of the Northwestern Bank of Virginia in 1860, later orchestrating its conversion into the National Bank of West Virginia in 1863. Despite his slaveholding background, Paxton emerged as a staunch Union supporter during the Civil War, actively organizing resistance to secession in western Virginia. In May 1861, he was appointed to the Committee of Safety by Union supporters in Wheeling and served on the convention reorganizing Virginia's state government, becoming one of five advisors to Governor Francis H. Pierpont.
Paxton played a crucial role in West Virginia's statehood, serving on the constitutional convention that framed the new state's first constitution as chairman of the Committee on Finance and Taxation. He was instrumental in securing federal funding for the provisional government. His civic contributions extended beyond politics, gifting the Paxton Fountain to Wheeling on September 10, 1878, which was unveiled on November 9 of that year in Capitol Square.
After residing in Philadelphia from 1867 due to health concerns, Paxton returned to Wheeling in 1872, maintaining his primary residence there while spending winters in Thomasville, Georgia. James Whitehead Paxton died on November 2, 1896, in Wheeling, West Virginia, at 75 years old. He was buried in Greenwood Cemetery, leaving behind a legacy of business success, political engagement, and civic philanthropy that significantly shaped West Virginia's early statehood and Wheeling's development.
To learn more: (https://shorturl.at/kSOAV) (https://shorturl.at/3Zu8h)
Photo credits: Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV; Find a Grave, Waymarking, Library of Congress
James Whitehead Paxton, born on August 6, 1821, in Wheeling, Virginia (now West Virginia), was educated at Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, and Bacon College in Georgetown, Kentucky. Despite studying civil engineering, he joined his father William's wholesale grocery business at 18 in 1839, forming William Paxton & Son. On February 4, 1845, he married Catherine Mason Paull in Wheeling, having seven children with her. After Catherine's death, he wed Frances Joan Logan on January 11, 1872, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with whom he had three more children: Charles Francis, Eliza, and Gertrude.
Paxton's business acumen led him to become president of the Northwestern Bank of Virginia in 1860, later orchestrating its conversion into the National Bank of West Virginia in 1863. Despite his slaveholding background, Paxton emerged as a staunch Union supporter during the Civil War, actively organizing resistance to secession in western Virginia. In May 1861, he was appointed to the Committee of Safety by Union supporters in Wheeling and served on the convention reorganizing Virginia's state government, becoming one of five advisors to Governor Francis H. Pierpont.
Paxton played a crucial role in West Virginia's statehood, serving on the constitutional convention that framed the new state's first constitution as chairman of the Committee on Finance and Taxation. He was instrumental in securing federal funding for the provisional government. His civic contributions extended beyond politics, gifting the Paxton Fountain to Wheeling on September 10, 1878, which was unveiled on November 9 of that year in Capitol Square.
After residing in Philadelphia from 1867 due to health concerns, Paxton returned to Wheeling in 1872, maintaining his primary residence there while spending winters in Thomasville, Georgia. James Whitehead Paxton died on November 2, 1896, in Wheeling, West Virginia, at 75 years old. He was buried in Greenwood Cemetery, leaving behind a legacy of business success, political engagement, and civic philanthropy that significantly shaped West Virginia's early statehood and Wheeling's development.
To learn more: (https://shorturl.at/kSOAV) (https://shorturl.at/3Zu8h)
Photo credits: Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV; Find a Grave, Waymarking, Library of Congress
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