Historic Bramwell Author

MEET THE HISTORIC BRAMWELL AUTHOR

Wiliam "Bil" Petty, this site's founder/author/editor was born in a Buckeye Coal & Coke Company house, located about 100 yards from this tipple. His father and many of his relatives were among approximately 200 miners responsible for digging, loading and hauling the coal from a mine located in Buckeye Hollow just off Simmons Creek. This primative coal mining camp in southern West Virginia was typical of a miner's family living environment in the late 1800s and through the 1930s. The author's very early childhood days were spent in this harsh coal camp environment. His father died of typhoid fever when he was just 4 years old, leaving the mother wth four orphan chidren to care for with no income.

Growing up on that mountain, Bill learned the value of hard work early. As a youth of eight years old Bill threw local newspapers onto front porches and spent one summer working at local WR Gazee's car dealership, scrubbing and sanding cars to prepare them for fresh paint. He sold the Grit weekly newspaper and "Zanol Company" products to add to the family income. By his senior year of high school, he landed a job at the Bluefield Daily Telegraph . Every Saturday night, starting at 11:30 PM, Bill stood by the presses inserting the funny pages into the Sunday paper. When his shift ended at 3:00 AM, the real challenge began. With no rides available, Bill would walk eight miles home to Freeman, WV along a pitch-black, deserted mountain road. The lonely trek took four hours, ending just as the Sunday sun began to peak over the ridges.

Despite the grueling hours, Bill excelled at Bramwell High School . He was inducted into the National Honor Society , elected Student Council President , and chosen as President of his senior class . His passion was music. A talented trombonist in the school band, he earned the prestigious first chair in the West Virginia All-State Band .

He graduated from Bramwell High Sch. in 1953. He was inducted in to the Nntional Honors Society. He was the BHS Senior Class President and the School Student Councel. He served as Treasurer of the National Honor Society.

After graduation, Bill traded the mountains for the sea, enlisting in the U.S. Navy for four years. He rose to the rank of 2nd Class Petty Officer , specializing in a cutting-edge field: maintaining and instructing pilots on the 1CA1 pilot flight trainers . This early brush with sophisticated technology sparked a lifelong interest. Once his enlistment ended, Bill enrolled at West Virginia University , earning a degree in Electrical Engineering .

His sharp mind and engineering expertise eventually took him to the highest levels of national defense. During the height of the Cold War in the 1980s, Bill served as the Director of the Army's EMP (Electromagnetic Pulse) Survivability Laboratory , ensuring the nation's military technology could withstand catastrophic nuclear interference.

Bill was acknowledged by the Dept. of Defense and received Presidential recognition for his technical and managerial leadership rolls in EMP hardening of critical weapons and communications systems. He received the Army's distinguished Meritorious Civil Service award. The second-highest award granted to civilians, The Army Meritorious Civilian Service Award is approved at the MAJCOM level..

ARMY CIVIL SERVICE AWARD

He received separate awards for both management and techinical leadership from Harry Diamond Laboratories ( HDL ) and was sponsored for the Army's R & D Achievement Award for the technical management concerning the development of the first threat level EMP, TEMPS SIMULATOR .This development was sponsored by THE DEFENSE NUCLEAR AGENCY

The Historic Bramwell website is its extensive, detailed digital archive of historical information and photographs related to the Bramwell, WV and surrounding coal mining communities. The site serves as a massive, continuously updated virtual history book. William "Bill" Petty established the platform in 1999. As a Bramwell High School graduate whose family worked for the Buckeye Coal & Coke Company, Petty founded the project to preserve the heritage of what was once known as a prominent "millionaire coal town". The Historic Bramwell site features thousands of archival photos, school graduation timelines spanning over 70 years, and deeply researched text dedicated to documenting early pioneer and mining families.

Key aspects of the Historic Bramwell site features:

The site presents detailed information on Bramwell High School (BHS) graduating classes spanning over 70 years, including memory pages for many deceased alumni.
It documents the lives and contributions of numerous local pioneers and residents who helped develop the southern West Virginia coal region.
The site features thousands of enhanced photographs contributed by hundreds of former residents and historians, offering a rich visual history of the area.
Focus on Coal Mining History: It includes significant material on various southern West Virginia coal mining communities,thanks to contributions from experts in the field.
The website is constantly being updated with new material, demonstrating a long-term commitment to preserving local history that has spanned over two decades.

This collaborative and constantly evolving digital archive makes the site a unique and invaluable resource for anyone interested in the history of Bramwell and the Pocahontas coalfields. It features thousands of photographs, along with accompaning text for hundreds of coal mining communities, located primarily in West Virginia's Mercer and McDowell Counties.

Website founder, William Petty established the Historic Bramwell site in 1999 and has spent decades developing and updating.
The website is dedicated to documenting the history of Bramwell and the lives of its early residents. It includes school events and over seventy years of graduating senior classes from Bramwell High School, that operated for 98 years and closed after the 1992 chool year.
William Petty was born in a Buckeye Coal & Coke Company house near the Buckeye Tipple. His father and other relatives worked in the mines, which gives his project a personal connection to the town's history. A house built by his coal miner father, William Haskel Petty, using lumber from an old Buckeye Coal & Coke Company house. The house still still stands along Route 52 near Bramwell.
In 2024, the site was updated with additional material on southern West Virginia coal mining communities, including hundreds of restored and enhanced photographs and history of Southern WV mining communities from expert southern , WV coal mining espert, Buddy French.

The " Historic Bramwell site was fouded in 1999 by William "Bill" Petty, a 1953 graduate of Bramwell High School in" Bramwell, WV. Bill has spent the last 25 years developing the site and constantly upgrading by adding new material almost daily. Hundreds of former BHS students and Bramwell residents along with many historians have provided material on a continuing basis. In September 2024 a significant amount of material was added from material provided by Buddy French, for numerous southern West Virginia coal mining communities. Buddy has provided enhanced photographs and significant additional history on these coal mining communities. Buddy is recognized as an expert in having knowledge of the history concerning southern West Virginia coal mining mining comunities (especially Gary, WV ). He has authored numerous articles on these coal mining communities over many years. This site is an attempt to document the history of this historic town, surrounding communities and the many Bramwell and sourrounding communities pioneers. The site was initially underpened by material from the late Martha Jane Becker's book: "Bramwell - The Diary Of A Millionraire Coal Town". Numerous local pioneer's lives are discussed on this site in an effort to documment their contributions to Historic Bramwell and the southern West Virginia coal region. A significant amount of material emblishes the high school events of students who attended Bramwell High School. The BHS graduating classes are presented by year and are available for over 70 years of graduating senior classes. Many deceased graduates have memory pages linked to their graduation class.

The Bramwell Foundation Comment

We extend our heartfelt thanks to William Petty, BHS Class of '53, for maintaining the most comprehensive online archives of Bramwell's rich history.From historic photos to pioneering family stories, his dedication has preserved our town's heritage for all to access. We're grateful for his generosity in allowing The Bramwell Foundation to share this invaluable material, helping us continue our mission to protect Bramwell's legacy.

Mr. Petty's archives are considered comprehensive and are readily available online through the Historic Bramwell website.
This suggests a broad range of visual documentation representing Bramwell's unique historical journey.

FACTS ABOUT THE AUTHOR

AUTHOR'S AWARDS

HISTORIC BRAMWELL FOUNDER

HISTORIC AUTHOR'S FIRST JOBS
LIFE OF WILLIAM "BILL" PETTY
WILLIAM "BILL" PETTY NAVY SHIP WORK

WILLIAM "BILL" PETTY FIRST JOBS

HONORING THE AUTHOR
HISTORIC BRAMWELL