Parsons, Lovell M. Sr.

Passed: 1940-03-25

Age: 75

Source: Jackson Herald

Death Notice: 1940-03-27

Obituary Date: 1940-03-29

Information: Lovell M. Parsons, Sr., widely known farmer and business man of Ripley, died at the St. Joseph's hospital in Parkersburg Monday afternoon at five-thirty o'clock following an illness of only a few hours.  He would have celebrated his seventy-sixth birthday this coming Sunday and Mrs. Parsons had planned a birthday dinner in his honor and all the children were to be guests at the dinner.  Mr. Parsons was out in town as usual Saturday, but soon after he returned to his home Saturday evening he suffered a severe chill and by eleven o'clock his condition was serious.  Throughout the night his condition became noticeably worse and Dr. T. L. Harris of Parkersburg was called Sunday to consult with the local physician on the case and he was taken to the Parkersburg hospital Sunday afternoon.  There was no hope for his recovery at the time but everything possible was done to prolong his life. Dr. T. E. Rymer said that his death was the result of uremic poisoning which was followed by pneumonia. He said that he was first called to the home Saturday evening about seven o'clock and that it was apparent at that time that pneumonia was developing.  He said that the patient was only partially conscious early Sunday morning and that a desperate but losing fight was started against the encroachment of the disease.  He was born in Mason county in a section which was later to become a part of Jackson county in 1867, the son of the late Alexis Fink and Phoebe Casto Parsons.  His great-grandfather was the original settler at Ripley, Captain William Parsons, and his grandfather, also named William Parsons, was the first white child born at Ripley.  The family later moved to Parchment at the site where his son, L. M. Parsons, Jr. resides and it was there that he built up one of the best known stock farms in the state.  In addition to the widow, he leaves six children, T. Clayton Parsons, cashier of the Bank of Ripley; Alexis F. Parsons of Parkersburg; L. M. Parsons, Jr., president of the County Farm Bureau; W. King Parsons, member of the faculty of the Gilmore high school; Frederick W. D. Parsons, county agricultural agent of Braxton county and Mrs. D. M. Dorsey, wife of the pastor of the Baptist church at Welch.  Three brothers, A. L. or Parkersburg, O. D. of Akron and O. J. of Ripley and one sister, Mrs. Susan Ellison of Ripley, also survive. Mr. Parsons saw to it that each of his children had a splendid education to start out in life and gave each of them a farm of two hundred acres or more, or money equivalent and assisted each of them in getting started to housekeeping.  He was public spirited and gave much of his time, effort and money to the cause of advancing his community.  He was one of the prime movers in the building of the Ripley United Brethren church, purchased the materials and supervised the work, all without pay and was a heavy contributor to the cost.  He was one of the leaders in the good roads movement in the county , the erection of a high school building in Ripley and helped establish and promote the first telephone and electric power lines into his home community on Parchment.  Soon after the death of his father, who was a charter stockholder in the Bank of Ripley, he purchased the father's stock and was made a director, later vice president and for many years after the death of the late Warren Miller, served as president of the bank.  He was very successful in business throughout his entire career.  He started out as a renter in a barn which was transformed into a dwelling house and during his lifetime amassed considerable property.  He purchased the land in West Ripley many years ago and had it marked off into lots and was instrumental in the development of that section of his home town.  His first wife was Cordelia Staats, who was the mother of the first two surviving children named above.  Several years after her death, he married Miss Mary King, a daughter of the late G. S. M. King, who was the Civil War sheriff of the county.  After spending many years on the Parchment farm, he and his wife decided to spend the evening time of their lives in Ripley and he purchased the George B. Crow home here in the early twenties and they have since resided there.  He was widely known throughout the state as a fancier of Hereford cattle and buyers and breeders came from widely separated sections of the country to see his herd and to buy herd stock from him.  He never lost interest in his business until the time of his death and remained active until just a few hours before the end.  The funeral services were held from the Ripley United Brethren church Wednesday afternoon at two o'clock with the Rev. L. R. Mahoney in charge, assisted by Rev. T. L. Miles and Rev. Fred Slaughter, and the body was taken to the Fairplain cemetery for burial.  The Vail mortuary had charge of the arrangements.  A large crowd was present for the last rites for the man who had meant much to his community, his country and his state.