So, you’ve been contacted about releasing your legal share of 210 Poplar St in Parsons WV to someone named Judy Wilson Kisamore. You are probably wondering if this is a scam. I would too. So I created this page in the hope it helps you see it is not. Please give it a chance by reading it and contact me (wilson at doghousedigital dot org) if you have any questions. — Leslie Wilson
In a nutshell, Samuel and Sarah Wilson lived at 210 Poplar St in Parsons WV. Samuel died in 1914. Sarah Wilson died in 1918 without a will and the estate was not disposed of by her living children. This was not discovered until 2021 when granddaughter (yes a granddaughter is still alive) Judy Wilson Kisamore who was born, lived and took over the house in 1992 needed to sell it. She discovered the deed was still in Sarah’s name.
As a living descendant (according to the rules of West Virginia), you are being asked to release your legal share of 210 Poplar St in Parsons WV to Judy Wilson Kisamore. According to Parsons City Attorney Pat A Nichols, releasing the share requires signing a “Quit Claim Deed” form that he will prepare and send to you. Claiming a share means you will have to file a suit for it and a judge will decide. Unclaimed shares go to the state of WV. See the “Personal Note from Judy” later on this page that explains the details of her situation.
Attorney handling the case
Pat A.Nichols – Attorney at Law
P.O. Box 201
Parsons WV 26287
Introduction
My name is Leslie Wilson and I’m trying to help our cousin Judy Wilson Kisamore. In this 2016 photo, I’m standing in front of the 210 Poplar Street Parsons WV after researching my Wilson family tree and tracing it to this address. The house was built around 1900 and can be seen on this 1908 artist drawing of Parsons. This house was the home of Samuel and Sarah Wilson. If you received an invitation to this webpage, it’s because my research identified you are also a living descendant of Samuel and Sarah Wilson and legally own a share of this house and its three adjoining lots.
Credit for the success of my research goes to others because finding all the descendants of Samuel and Sarah was not an easy task. It couldn’t have been done without:
- Janet Bradley who had published a treasure trove of information about her great grandfather Nelson Wilson who was a son of Samuel and Sarah
- Kelley Maul who had published information on her great great grandmother Mariah McCalister Wilson who was a daughter of Samuel and Sarah
- The dogged persistence of a woman named Diana Pingley who left breadcrumbs all over the internet trying to find a man named William Wilson whom she had been told had fathered her grandfather Ted White with her great grandmother Verna White.
Eventually I put together the whole family of Samuel and Sarah Wilson which involved solving the mystery of Leroy Wilson who was mentioned in letters kept by their son Mitchell. Leroy turned out to be Samuel’s son from an affair with an unknown woman in Pennsylvania. My research shows you descend from Mariah, Nelson, William or Mitchell. Neither Granville or Mary Virginia had descendants. Melzar’s line died out. Leroy’s also line died out but isn’t eligible for heirship anyway. Click this link to jump to the list of descendants: Jump to Descendants List
In the years since 2016, I confirmed all four Wilson branches that have living descendants (Mariah, Nelson, William and Mitchell) using both DNA and public records. A complete family tree from Samuel and Sarah down to the generation of living descendants is here. A hi-resolution version you can print at Walgreens or CVS for a 11×14 frame can be downloaded here.
Brief history of the Samuel and Sarah Wilson family:
As stated above, my research indicates Mariah, Nelson, William, Mitchell have living descendants. Leroy Wilson has no living descendants but his mother was not Sarah and is therefore not eligible anyway. The exhaustive list of known descendants as of late 2021 is listed later on this page. JUMP TO DESCENDANTS LIST
- FATHER: Samuel Thomas Wilson
- MOTHER: Sarah Ann Jordan
- SIBLINGS:
- Mariah M Wilson (McCalister)
- Uclyde Hugh Nelson Wilson
- William Edward Wilson
- Granville Thomas Wilson
- Hugh Melzar Wilson
- Mary Virginia Wilson
- Mitchell Roland Wilson
Briefly, Samuel followed sons Nelson and Granville in migrating from Maryland to West Virginia in the late 1890s. Census records and letters from son Mitchell’s scrapbook show Sarah and the other sons eventually joined them settling in Parsons, Huntington and Charleston WV but that William moved around the region following work. Census records show he spent his later years in Charleston WV with brother Granville. Mary Virginia and Mariah stayed back in Harford County Maryland (Darlington and Pylesville respectively).
In Parsons, Samuel and Sarah lived at 210 Poplar St until their deaths in 1914 and 1918. Census records show that youngest son Mitchell Wilson lived at the house after their deaths. In his 70s, Mitchell married a much younger woman and had two children: Mitchell Jr and Judy.
It is because Mitchell Sr was a late in life child for Samuel and Sarah and that he in turn had late in life children himself, two grandchildren of Samuel and Sarah are alive today. Long story short, Judy inherited the house in 1992 when her mother died (or so she thought).
As mentioned, it wasn’t until 2021 when Judy went to sell the house with its adjoining lots that it was discovered that when Sarah Wilson died in 1918, the property had not legally been split amongst the living heirs. There is a paper trail from Mitchell Sr to Judy’s mother but there is no paper trail from Sarah to Mitchell Sr. This fact was missed by the attorney that settled the estate of Judy’s mother Frances. That brings us to today.
The Request
According to West Virginia law, ownership of the property gets split into “shares” according to specific rules of inheritance. Judy is the legal Executor for the property. According to Parsons City Attorney Pat A. Nichols, the living descendants (according to the WV rules of inheritance) can release their share to Judy or file suit to claim it.
NOTE: In 1954, Samuel and Sarah’s grandson Tracey Wilson (son of Nelson) and Mitchell Wilson sold their shares to Judy’s mother Frances Wilson. The legal transaction is shown here.
To the best of my knowledge:
- Releasing the share to Judy means signing a Quit Claim Deed form created by attorney Pat A. Nichols and sent to you.
- Claiming your share means filing suit and a judge will decide.
- Shares that are neither claimed or released end up going to the State of West Virginia.
Below is the letter I received from the Parsons City Attorney handling the case that describes the shares in terms of fractions of shares based on where you are in the family tree. My sisters and I are releasing our shares to Judy. To assist your decision making, I have created another page of historical photos from the archives of Janet Bradley, Judy and others from my 2016 and 2019 visits. Click here to view it (if prompted for a password, use the same one you used to access this page).
Personal note from Judy
My name is Judy Wilson Kisamore. According to the Wilson family research done by Les Wilson, Kelley Maul and Janet Bradley on ancestry.com, as well as DNA tests, we have determined that there are dozens of living descendants from Samuel and Sarah Wilson. I descend from their youngest son Mitchell Roland Wilson. I have attached the family ancestry below as I know it. JUMP TO DESCENDANTS LIST
Long story short, I was born, raised and lived at 210 Poplar Street until getting married and starting a family. My husband Dale and I have paid the taxes and flood insurance for it since my mother died in 1992. I personally rebuilt the home after the 1985 Parsons Flood, maintained the house and 3 empty lots, and have done assorted improvements all thinking we were the rightful owners having inherited the home and 3 adjoining lots from my mother Frances Wilson (nee Snider).
I currently live a half mile down the road. With Dale and I currently in retirement and our kids out on their own, we need to sell the Poplar St property. However, I discovered that the deed to the house is still in Sarah Wilson’s name from 1913 when she bought it from her son (Granville Thomas Wilson). Her estate was not probated and distributed to her heirs when she died in 1918. According to the Parsons City Attorney Patrick A. Nichols, the property is legally in what is called “Heirship”. Furthermore, West Virginia law states that property in this situation is to be divided amongst the living legal heirs according to the rules of of the state after approval by a judge. With Les Wilson’s research, I’ve determined that out of Sarah’s 7 children, 4 have living descendants today.
I am asking for your help in being able to gain title to the property so I can sell it. If you fill out the form at the top of this page, the Parsons City Attorney Pat Nichols will be notified of your interest in releasing your claim or not. He will then follow up with you. Releasing your claim will allow me to claim your share and dispose of the property. I am happy to cover your costs for notary and postage for your share(s). Please feel free to contact me with any questions. I’d love to hear from you and learn about your branch of the family.
Regards,
Judy Wilson Kisamore
274 Sugar Camp Run Rd.
Parsons WV 26287
email: kisa95main@gmail.com
Facebook: Judy Dale Wilson Kisamore
The genealogy of Samuel and Sarah Wilson
To the best of my knowledge, this is the list of descendants. If there’s an error, please send an email to wilson at doghousedigital dot org.
Genealogy of Samuel Thomas and Sarah Ann Wilson (nee Jordan): Mariah Margaret Wilson Ethel Connor McCalister Melvin Leroy Ziemann John William Ziemann Patrick Ziemann Christopher Ziemann Wilson A Ziemann Ethel Mae Ziemann Marie Catherine Ziemann Linda Tellis Kelley Kilduff Carolyn Erdeen Ziemann Claudia Sue Carroll Alvin Pete Clark Carolyn Ann Carroll Sarah Rebecca McCalister unknown Helen Coulter unknown Mary Louise McCalister Marvin McCallister Linkous Carolyn Steele Linkous Sarah Marjorie Linkous Raymond Thomas Talbott jr Kerrie L Talbott T. Gregory Talbott Marjorie Raye Pasko Terry Lee Maszarose Howard Alonzo McCallister Dorothy Virginia McCalister John Maslin Thomas Maslin William Maslin Elwood Wilson McCaliister William N McCallister Marie M McCalister Dennis T Vannoy Johnny W Vannoy Virginia Jenny Erleen McCalister Donna F Tompkins Jesse Sanders McCalister Robert Jesse McCalister unknown Kenneth L McCalister William Joseph McCallister Debra Lee Hagan Kenneth Lee McCallister Jr Donald Paul McCalister Terry L Moran Lori A Pinko Margaret Kay McCallister Ella L McCalister Beverly Erdeen Kane David Oakley CARL Oakley EDWARD Oakley JANICE Oakley Uclyde Hugh Nelson Wilson Nora Virginia Wilson Clifford George Wilson Clifford Wilson unknown Unnamed infant Wilson Theodore Hetrick Wilson Theodore S Wilson Catherine Gertrude Wilson Robert Orin Bradley Ronald W Bradley ??? Ellen Bradley Janet Bradley June Elizabeth Bradley Paul Bohn David Orin Bohn Mark William Bohn John Moultrie Bohn Jr Tracy Granville Wilson Troy William Wilson Tracy Wilson Wanda Gertrude Wilson Troxell Nelson Wilson H. N. Wilson William Edward Wilson Gertrude Wilson unknown William L Coates Gertrude E Coates Leon J Lawrence Michael Lawrence Scott Lee Lawrence Granville Pepper (nee Wilson) Marion Pepper Doris Warren Granville Asbury Pepper Harold Davis Granville Hughart Wayne Richard Hughart Cynthia A Hughart Christine Grace Hughart Bruce Hughart John Harold Davis Pepper John Harold Pepper Laura Elizabeth Pepper Clay John Harold Pepper Yvonne J Pepper Brenda Sue Pepper Deborah L Pepper Albert Frederick Pepper Glen Albert Pepper Gregg Edward Pepper Sr Kathleen M. Pepper Judy E Pepper Donald Taylor Pepper Janet Louise Pepper Frank Owen Pepper Peggy Ann Pepper Larry Edward Pepper George E Pepper Diane Louise Pepper Patricia Ann Pepper Richard W Pepper Monty Pepper William Warren Pepper William Arthur Pepper Charles Pepper Michele Lynn Pepper William Auther Wilson George E Wilson Barbara R Woeppel (nee Wilson) Nancy J Hummer (nee Wilson) Debra Wilson Beverly Wilson William A Wilson Jr William A Wilson III William A Wilson IV Katherine E Wilson Susan Buchan (nee Wilson) David Wilson Robert G Wilson Leslie Wilson Sandra Wilson Joanne Wilson Roland M Wilson Roland M Wilson Judy Kisamore (nee Wilson) Hugh Melzar Wilson Grantly L Wilson Mary Virginia Wilson