General Notes

Died at age 89 yrs, 9 mo, 13d

Wirt Co. WV fiduciary records, book 2, page 35 gives a list of his heirs and gave Mary's middle name as _______ the list of children was: Dual, Amick W., Rhea Goodacre, Rena Barker, Blake, Albert, Kathleen Wandersee and Kenneth. Daniel was in his father's household in the 1870 and 1880 Wirt Co. census. In 1900 he was back in his father's household, listed as married 12 years. D.P. worked in the Railroad Yards when he resided in Princeton, Mercer Co. WV. this is where he married his second wife. He returned to Wirt Co. about 1918 and is found in the 1920 Wirt Co. census with five children. He bought the farm next to the old home place. His brother Will lived in the area also. Daniel was a farmer and blacksmith after returning to Wirt Co. WV. Contributors: Don & Carlos Higgins, Grandsons.



Daniel Higgins (DP) worked as a "heavy fire" blacksmith on the Virginian Railroad, later taken over by Norfolk Western RR, now Norfolk Southern. His job was "sweating" tires onto the 6 ft. diameter steel wheels of locomotives. When the old blacksmith shop on the homestead was torn down, a 4 inch brass tag with numbers on it was found. It had been lost by his son Dual who also worked on the railroad. Because many of the railroad workers could not read or write, these tags were used as a time clock, issued to the workers when they began their days work, and turned in when they finished. Daniel's Wirt Co. family farm included around 1000 chickens, 15 head of cattle. His children never knew there was a depression, there was always plenty of food. There was also plenty of work, too much hard work really. Daniel practically supported another local blacksmith/neighbor with about 10-12 kids, by providing them with sustance from his farm. Average wage from working the railroad was about 7 dollars a day. The cream from the cattle was sold every other day for 18 dollars.

Daniel was baptized in the Kanawha River and joined the Seventh-day Adventist church around 1924 through the friendship & influence of another local blacksmith His wife Mary did not join the church until after his death. She was baptized in the Parkersburg, WV SDA church. Their son William Amick Higgins became a pastor in the SDA church, spent many years as a missionary in Africa and was the Publishing Secretary of the General Conference of SDA. Contributors Bill & Rhea Higgins Goodacre, Daughter.