R280                  

Husband: Arthur Morton Wood (Fig. R280a)
Father: William Edward Wood [R266]
Mother: Mary Sue (McKinney) Wood [R266]
Born: 8/23/1904 in Botetourt County Va.
Died: 4/12/1982 in Botetourt County Va.

Wife: Marian Ella (Honts) Wood (Fig. R280a)
Father: George Edward Honts
Mother: Maude Peters (Brugh) Honts
Born: 11/26/1903
Died: 12/7/1989

Married: 5/11/1932

Children:
Martha Sue Wood (Fig. R280b), b. 10/23/1934, m. 2/12/1955 to Harry
    Edward Funkhauser (b. 9/13/1931 at Fancy Hill, Rockbridge County
    Va., s. of Wilton Leitch and Martha Snyder Funkhauser); they reside
    in Glasgow Va. Ch. Edward Allen (b. 9/18/1955), David Arthur (b.
    3/14/1958), Roy William (b. 1/7/1960), Calvin Andrew (b.
    10/21/1965), Gary Steven (b. 5/31/1969), John Gregory (b. 8/30/1976)
Antonia Brugh Wood (Fig. R280b), b. 1/20/1937, m. 9/3/1955 to
    Raymond Edward McCoy (b. 3/30/1938 in Augusta County Va., s. of
    Clarence Raymond and Hazel Virginia Thompson McCoy); they
    reside in Glen Wilton Va. Ch. Frances Lynn (b. 8/23/1959, m. 1st
    Timothy Raleigh Leslie, m. 2nd Barry Dean Bailey [Fig. R280c], 2
    sons, living in Lynchburg Va.); Sandra Diane (b. 10/1/1962, m.
    Murray Frank [Buddy] Buchanan III [Fig. R280d], ch. Murray Frank
    [Bobby] IV and Michael Raymond [Fig. R280b], Bryan James; living
    in Glen Wilton). Antonia McCoy is source [S083], an inexhaustible
    repository of information and papers concerning the Botetourt County
    Woods.
Marian Lucy Wood (Fig. R280e), b. 8/10/1938, m. 7/30/1959 to
    Thomas Edward Lomasney of Iron Gate Va.; they reside in Floyd Va.
    Ch. George Glen, Charles Edward, Patricia Elaine

Daughter Antonia Wood McCoy [S083] writes:

“Arthur Morton Wood, only son of William Edward Wood and Mary Sue McKinney was born August 23, 1904 and quit having birthdays when his first granddaughter, Frances Lynn McCoy, was born on August 23, 1959. ‘Woods’ or ‘Mort’ as he was sometimes called, loved the homeplace (Pleasant Hill) and his family. He was a handsome player for the Glen Wilton baseball team and either pitched or played in the outfield. He also played basketball and ran track while in high school. His track efforts led him to the state finals in Charlottesville where he did not win because he had been accustomed to hearing ‘on your mark, get set, go’ and that day they just called ‘on your mark, go.’ By the time he realized what was going on, it was too late for him to catch up (220-yard dash), but he did come in third or something like that. Was so disgusted he did not pick up his award. Maybe he was just a little nervous that day, also!!

“He married Marian Ella Honts Wood on May 11, 1932, after having ‘courted’ her for about seven years. He, like his Dad, brought his bride to the homeplace (where else) and lived there with her for 49 years and 11 months.

“His work career first began when he worked in the laboratory for the mining company (Princess Furnace) and for the C & O Railroad when the Baldwin bridge was being built, but he wanted to be a full-time farmer. However, demands of a family and need of funds forced him to seek work elsewhere. In 1941, he worked for the ‘powder plant’ in Glen Wilton and transferred to Radford after the explosion in 1942 at the plant in Glen Wilton. With the decreased production at Radford, he was ‘cut-off’ and happily came back home. He worked at the C & O Hospital in Clifton Forge and was able to go to work for the C & O Railroad in the mid-1940’s. He worked as a brakeman and later a conductor on the James River Division until a heart attack forced him to retire in 1972. All during this time, he still farmed, raising crops and cattle. He died April 12, 1982 as a result of another heart attack in the field just a way from the homeplace he dearly loved while he was trying to chop down a sapling to mend a fence. He died doing what he wanted, the way he wanted and just where he wanted—how could we ask for anything more. I still miss him terribly.

“He never wanted to live in the city and would have been heartbroken if he would have had to go to a nursing facility. He used to tell me country dirt was clean, but city dirt was dirty. He loved to laugh, have fun, tease and play pranks. He, in turn, had a lot of pranks played on him. He also loved to travel and never met a stranger. He was a very unselfish, caring individual who deprived himself to give to others. He had to help care for his mother, an aunt and two uncles and never did I hear him complain. Additionally, he ‘helped’ neighbors, giving what he could and never wanting to boast about having helped someone. He had very high morals, believed in God, preached and practiced tithing and expected his family to follow suit.

“Marian Ella Honts, fourth of eleven children of George Edward Honts and Maude Peters Brugh was born October 26, 1903. She first met Arthur Wood when the Glen Wilton baseball team was playing the Eagle Rock baseball team and it poured the rain. This handsome young man had gotten soaking wet and one of her brothers brought him to their home to get some dry clothes. She ‘hid’ on the steps and when he called to the ‘little girl’ to come there, she shyly ran.

“Upon her graduation from high school, she went to Radford College in the summer and taught school in the winter with her first school being Glebe Mills in Botetourt County. She also taught at the Oriskany, Lick Run and Glen Wilton schools. It was the Glen Wilton school assignment that finally ended her permanent teaching career, although she did some substitute work in the 1940’s after she had three children and they were in school also.

“She married Arthur Wood on May 11, 1932 after being ‘courted’ for almost seven years and they had three daughters; namely, Martha Sue, Antonia Brugh and Marian Lucy. These three daughters in turn blessed them with a total of 11 grandchildren.

“Marian was not the outgoing personality that her husband was but rather quiet and somewhat reserved. She loved to laugh and have fun also. She was a kind, caring school teacher who ‘liked the little ones,’ preferring to teach the ‘primary’ grades. She was particularly caring for those who did not have much.

“She was overshadowed in cooking, sewing, etc., by her mother-in-law, but she never really liked to do that stuff anyway. However, she could make the best biscuits and homemade bread. Her grandmother, Esterline Reid McClure Brugh, taught her to make bread when she was eight or nine years old and she had to stand on a stool to reach the table. She never did grow very much and was the ‘runt’ of her family.

“After her husband’s death, she was able to stay at the homeplace—really didn’t want to go anywhere else although she would comment many times it was mighty lonesome sometimes—until approximately six weeks before her death when a series of strokes made it necessary for her to leave home. Fortunately, she was able to stay with her daughter, Martha Sue and was not far from family. She died December 7, 1989 and her last words to me were ‘I love you.’ She was an independent, but yet dependent, person who was somewhat distant, but was a kind mother and grandmother and a true servant of God.”