Charlestown Mining, Manufacturing and Improvement Co. Signed by Roger Preston Chew - 1891 dated Autograph Stock Certificate

Stock signed by R.P. Chew as president.

Roger Preston Chew (April 9, 1843 – March 16, 1921) was a noted horse artillery commander in the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia during the American Civil War. After the war, he was a prominent West Virginia businessman & railroad executive, as well as a West Virginia legislator. Chew was born into a prominent family in Loudoun County, Virginia. His father was Roger Chew & his mother the former Sarah Aldridge. The family moved to Charles Town, West Virginia (then Virginia) when Roger was three years old, & he attended the Charles Town Academy, & later the Virginia Military Institute. The Chew family owned The Hermitage, one of the oldest houses in western Virginia.

With the outbreak of the Civil War, young Chew raised a battery of horse artillery, "Chew's Battery," which eventually became part of the famous Laurel Brigade under Stonewall Jackson's command. He & his brother John A. Chew participated in all Jackson's campaigns until Jackson's death in May 1863. Chew also led raids into Union-occupied Middleway, West Virginia in February 1863, & Charles Town on May 12, 1863. Despite his youth, Roger Chew was promoted to the chief of the cavalry's guns under J.E.B. Stuart. He then served through the Gettysburg Campaign, the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, Cold Harbor, the Siege of Petersburg, & the Appomattox Campaign.

After the war, Roger Chew & his brother Robert rebuilt the family farm. In 1871, Roger married Louise Fontaine Washington, daughter of the last owner of Mount Vernon at Blakeley, & the couple would eventually have 6 children. Her father John Augustine Washington had served on General Lee's staff until killed in action in late 1861. Louise Chew purchased Blakeley from her financially struggling uncle in 1875, & maintained it until its sale in 1892.

Roger Chew engaged in numerous business ventures, including as the president of the Eagle Manufacturing Company. From 1882 until 1888, he also served in the House of Delegates. In 1883, the Shenandoah Valley Railroad constructed what became known as Chew's Siding, a private spur that led from the main line to Chew's business. In 1890, Chew & several business partners formed the Charles Town Mining, Manufacturing, & Improvement Company & Chew became its first president. Read more at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._Preston_Chew

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