Clay County Postal History

The Clay County Postal History is among the  many books recently donated to the library.  This colorful 97-page book gives the locations, dates of operation, postmasters, and much more about each of the  Clay County post offices. It also includes location maps, historical information,  and pictures of postmarks.

In 1861 the hand stamp for Center Point was Centre Point; in 1890 the hand stamp was Centerpoint.   Offically, the town’s name is spelled Center Point, and the post office name is spelled Centerpoint.
Some post offices changed names and locations over the years.  The Alexander Post Office in northern Clay County was established in February of 1872 shortly after the town of Alexander was laid out.  It was in operation until March of 1879, when its name was changed to Cardona.  Listed below are former and present Clay County post offices with their opening dates:

Alexander — 1872                         Alum Cave — 1884
Anquilla — 1851                             Art — 1873
Ashboro — 1886                            Ashborough — 1858
Ashersville — 1873                      Asherville — 1897
Belle Air — 1852                            Benwood — 1881
Birch Creek — 1854                     Bowling Green — 1825
Brazil — 1844                                  Calcutta — 1870
Campbell– 1897                           Carbon — 1870
Cardonia — 1879                         Centerpoint — 1893
Centre Point — 1855                 Cherryvale — 1899
Christy’s Prairie — 1836          Clay City — 1875
Cloverland — 1850                      Coalmont — 1901
Coffee — 1849                                Connely — 1892
Cory — 1872                                    Daviston — 1840
Eaglesfield — 1866                       Easter — 1896
Eel River — 1821                            Farm — 1856
Harmony — 1840                          Hookers — 1839
Hoosierville — 1858                    Huntersville — 1875
Hurricane — 1866                         Knightsville — 1870
Lena — 1871                                      Martz — 1854
McKinley’s Store — 1837          Perth — 1880
Peyton Creek — 1840                  Plunge Creek — 1849
Poland — 1846                                 Prairie — 1895
Prairie City — 1888                       Pratt — 1871
Saline City — 1872                         Sherman — 1864
Staunton — 1853                            Stearleyville — 1893
Turner — 1870                                  Van Buren — 1835

PINHOOK TO BRAZIL

          Pinhook to Brazil, written by Nelle DECKER HUBBARD, records the HENDRIX family ancestry.  “In the year of 1896, Eli HENDRIX employed William TRAVIS, of Clay City to help arrange all data to get it into print, but death overcame these two old friends and the boxes of documents and the originals were left to the brother, John, Jr., and he laid them all aside with the intention of finishing the work, when he became able, financially.  He soon became disabled and sick, and knowing his days were few, he gave all this to his son, Frank HENDRIX.  Frank being unable financially to complete the work, gave all of the originals, pictures, records, data and letters to his niece, Nelle DECKER HUBBARD, with the promise to complete the work and have the same published in book form, at her expense.”
Nelle published the information in 1936 and named it Pinhook to Brazil due to the fact that the book traces the family from Pinhook, Ohio, to Brazil, Indiana.  The resulting book is an interesting 222- page genealogy with an index.  Below is what William TRAVIS wrote about John HENDRIX, Sr.
“John HENDRIX, Sr., native of North Carolina, born March 4, 1798, the family coming north and settling in southwestern Ohio in his infancy, before the close of the eighteenth century, where they lived until the subject of this sketch was eighteen years of age, when they moved to Wayne County, Indiana.  At the age of twenty-two years, he married Miss Nancy WHITTAKER, of Withamsville, Clermont County, Ohio, on the 4th day of April in 1820. Succeeding his marriage, he settled down in Wayne County, four miles south of Centerville, where he engaged in blacksmithing at a crossroads, and later managed to buy a quarter section of land, which he proceeded to improve and on which he erected one of the first brick dwellings in Wayne County. Having sold this property in 1843, he located on the National Road, three miles west of Centerville, Ohio, at a place then known as “Pinhook,” where he again engaged in blacksmithing, at which he continued something more than two years, when he moved to Clay County, arriving at Brazil on the l0th day of September, 1845, and established the first mechanical industry in the town.” (Pinhook to Brazil is listed on our Publications for Sale page.)