Asturian-American Migration Forum

Many of the old photos (1920's) of my grandfather, Celestino "Tim" Fernandez Garcia shows him in Gypsy, West Virginia. It appears that my grandfather and his parents (Ulpiano and Virginia Fernandez Garcia) may have resided in Gypsy.

I'm a Clarksburg native but I don't know much about Gypsy - except that it's small and unincorporated. Does anyone know whether many Asturian immigrants lived in Gypsy during the 20's? And why they would have resided there instead of Spelter?

I've searched the internet but there's not much historical info. available on Gypsy, WV.

lgarcia
Gypsy is a small mining town about two miles from Shinnston. I can't speak to the 1920s, but from the late 30s on, as far as I know, there were no Spanish-speaking people who lived there. Most of them lived in Spelter, Anmoore, and Clarksburg. Gypsy was also a prison camp during World War II. Most of the prisoners there were German. I can remember passing the camp as a kid, seeing the tall fence, the guards in their high towers with big guns.

Some of the original buildings are still standing but a lot was lost to time. When I pass the camp now I still think of the high fence and the guards. I don't think I'll ever forget it.

It's likely that my great grandfather may have worked in the mine in Gypsy. Most of the early family photos have Gypsy, WV written on the back. Also, my grandfather's photo appeared in a mining company newsletter. The photo cutline reads something like: "Tino Garcia hunts with his dog, Dempsey." The photo shows my grandfather in his teens proudly holding a dead raccoon and his dog Dempsey, also looks quite proud.

In doing some research, I see that Dempsey - the fighter - was from West Virginia. So maybe this is why my grandfather named his dog, Dempsey.

My father, Isaac Martinez, was born in Spelter in 1917, and was nicknamed Jack after the boxer Jack Dempsey. According to his older brother, the nickname came from his practice of fighting other kids for a money prize, something he was apparently very good at. He had a reputation for never crying during or after the fights, and usually won. Of course, as the third child in a family of six brothers, he had a distinct advantage in real fights. As father, grandfather and great-grandfather. he never showed any aggressive tendencies. He was called Jack until his death at age 90 in 2007.