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| Reuben B. Ricketts (1830-1891) |
| Reuben B. Ricketts was born in 1830 in the Dry Fork community of Pittsylvania County, Virginia. He was the son of Nathaniel Ricketts (b.1795) and Sarah "Sally" Dodson (b.1800). Reuben B. Reuben B. Ricketts was married three times:
They had at least three children: b. Virginia T. Ricketts (born 1859) married Hezekiah Mills in 1877. c. James Henry Ricketts - (Norman Hardy and Elsie Durham's grandfather) 2. He married Eliza Jane Elliott (b.1838) on July 16, 1860. They had at least three children:
3. He married Gabriella Celeste Hearp in 1876. They had at least three children:
My great grandfather, Reuben B. Ricketts, was a brick mason in Danville, Virginia in 1860. On May 23, 1861, he was a qualified voter in Danville and voted in favor of secession. On March 19, 1862, he enlisted as a private in Capt. Joseph C. Cabell’s Co. E of the 38th Virginia Infantry Regiment. Later that year, he was in the Lynchburg Confederate hospital and was transferred to the hospital in Danville “which was not more than one hundred yards distance from his home.” So we know that he lived in the area of Franklin Street near the railroad depot. He was present with his company from May until August of 1863. His regiment was then in Pennsylvania and he was at the Battle of Gettysburg. Many Danville men were killed or wounded in that battle, but Reuben B. Ricketts survived. He remained with his company and the last military record shows him present on February 25, 1865. The 1870 census shows Reuben B. Ricketts as a 40-year old merchant with wife Eliza J., age 32 and children Lucy Ann 12, Virginia T. 11, Emma L. 4, and William B. 2. James Henry Ricketts was staying with his maternal grandparents when the 1870 census was taken. Another son, Charlie Edward Ricketts (my grandfather), was born on June 23, 1870, after the census taker came around. A near neighbor is William Clarkson who lived on Franklin Turnpike, so Reuben B. Ricketts' house and store was probably along that road in 1870. In January of 1874, Reuben B. Ricketts declared bankruptcy. He claimed a homestead exemption on his $800-dollar house on 16 ½ acres with a storehouse and other improvements. I guess if you are bankrupt, you have certain needs. He also exempted “80 gallons of whiskey, 40 gallons of blackberry brandy, 100 pounds of coffee, 30 pairs of shoes, 500 pounds of candy, one cooking stove, and five barrels of corn. |
On January 14, 1876, Reuben B. Ricketts purchased a one-acre parcel of land 2 ½ miles from
Danville with a storehouse. On Feb. 22, 1876, he bought another 10-acre tract on what was then
called the “Bachelor’s Hall Road.” This very old road led by Beavers’ Mill southwest to Berry Hill and
North Carolina or west to Henry County. At the four-way intersection, the other roads led south to
Danville, north to Callands and on to Franklin and Botetourt counties, and northeast to the Pittsylvania
courthouse at Chatham. Today, this is the intersection of Piney Forest Road and Franklin Turnpike in
Danville, Virginia. This crossroads has always been a perfect location for stores and Ricketts set up
his store on the southwest corner, where the Wendy's Restaurant is now located. Although he only
kept the property for a year, later documents mention a point near “Ricketts Old Stand.”
For more information, see Old Store.
Danville with a storehouse. On Feb. 22, 1876, he bought another 10-acre tract on what was then
called the “Bachelor’s Hall Road.” This very old road led by Beavers’ Mill southwest to Berry Hill and
North Carolina or west to Henry County. At the four-way intersection, the other roads led south to
Danville, north to Callands and on to Franklin and Botetourt counties, and northeast to the Pittsylvania
courthouse at Chatham. Today, this is the intersection of Piney Forest Road and Franklin Turnpike in
Danville, Virginia. This crossroads has always been a perfect location for stores and Ricketts set up
his store on the southwest corner, where the Wendy's Restaurant is now located. Although he only
kept the property for a year, later documents mention a point near “Ricketts Old Stand.”
For more information, see Old Store.
| Above is a map of Reuben B. Ricketts' land where his store was located. Today it is the intersection of Piney Forest Road and Franklin Turnpike in Danville, Virginia. His little store was located where the present Wendy's Restaurant is located. |
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| Reuben B. Ricketts and his first wife, Jane Richardson |
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