Ashby Earl GATRELL
1886 - 1932 (46 years)
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Name Ashby Earl GATRELL Born 15 Jan 1886 Doddridge Co, WV 
[1] - Birth date given in 1900 Census as Jan 1885, but WV Births Index shows it as Jan 15 1886, son of John W. & Jennie Gatrell.
Gender Male Census 1900 West Union, Doddridge Co, WV Military 1906 [2] U.S. Marine Corps Residence 1916 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Co, OK [3] Census 1920 Sapulpa, Creek Co, OK Occupation 1920 [4] air man on railroad Census 1930 Phelps Co, MO Occupation 1930 [5] air brake rider on railroad Died 26 Sep 1932 Buried MACEDONIA CEMETERY Rolla, Phelps Co, MO [6] Notes - The conscientious objector Ashby Gatrell of Clyde Ware's Civil War movie "No Drums, No Bugles" was a fictional character inspired by someone of the same name who was born in Doddridge County in 1886, long after the Civil War. According to a newspaper interview of his niece, the real Ashby Gatrell joined the Marines in 1902 by lying about his age, although U.S. Marine Corps Muster Rolls show that he enlisted in 1906. His stay in the Marines was reportedly a brief one, and he returned to his home in West Union. Soon thereafter, Ashby and his father had a falling out, and Ashby hid in a cave for about three months. During that time, Ashby carved his name and the date Aug 10, 1908 in a heart which was chiseled into a large rock near the cave. (Note: This date is confirmed by direct inspection of the rock and conforms to the timeline of life events, most significantly his discharge from military service. The date Aug 10, 1903 was incorrectly reported in a newspaper interview of his niece. Dates 1917-1918 reported elsewhere are clearly incorrect.) He also carved a rectangular recess where he placed a picture cover page from a "Police Gazette" magazine. It was from the chiseled name on the rock, and a distorted local legend about Gatrell, that playwright and director Clyde Ware (1930-2010) obtained his inspiration for his 1971 historical fiction film "No Drums, No Bugles."
According to his niece, Ashby Gatrell moved to Fort Smith, Arkansas, when he was 17 (he was probably older than that), never to return to West Virginia. We have found no records showing his presence in Arkansas, but it is known that he married in Texas in 1909, resided in Oklahoma in 1916 and 1920, and by 1930 was living in Missouri, where he is buried. He died in 1932. The name inscribed on his headstone is Earl Gatrell, the name by which he was predominantly known after leaving West Virginia.
Person ID I78466 Doddridge County Roots Last Modified 24 Jul 2012
Father John Wesley GATRELL, b. 24 Sep 1835, Middlebourne, Tyler Co, (W)VA , d. 31 May 1911, Doddridge Co, WV (Age 75 years) Mother Sarah Jane "Jennie" DAVIS, b. 1 Jan 1857, d. 15 Sep 1942, West Union, Doddridge Co, WV (Age 85 years) Family ID F23447 Group Sheet | Family Chart
Family Fleta Rose BORING, b. 12 Jan 1893, Kansas , d. 23 May 1979 (Age 86 years) Married 26 Mar 1909 Higgins, Lipscomb Co, TX [7] - Married by Justice of Peace (also Postmaster) Mr. Mitchell. Witnessed by Mrs. Mitchell and Roy Schollenberger.
Notes - 1910 Census, Lipscomb Co, Texas (city of Higgins), enumerated on Apr 21 1910:
William Boring, 52, b. Illinois (both parents b. Tennessee), occupation plasterer (houses), married 30 yrs; wife Della Boring, 45, b. Illinois (both parents b. Tennessee), occupation agent (soap), mother of 3 children (all still living); dau Fleta Gatrell, 19, b. Kansas (both parents b. Illinois), widowed (corrected from married for 1 yr), mother of one child (still living); grandson Donald Gatrell, 5 months, b. Texas (father b. Va, mother b. Kansas).
(Note: Basis for Fleta's widowed marital status is not known.)
1920 Census, Creek Co, Oklahoma (city of Sapulpa), enumerated on Feb 2 1920:
Earl Gatrell, 34, b. W.Va. (both parents b. Va), air man on railroad; wife Fleta R, 29, b. Kansas (both parents b. Illinois); son Donald D, 10, b. Texas; son John W, b. Oklahoma.
1930 Census, Phelps Co, Missouri (Miller Twp), enumerated on Apr 4 1930:
W. M. Boring, 73, b. Illinois (both parents b. Tennessee), age 22 at time of first marriage; wife Della, 70, b. Illinois (father b. Tennessee, mother b. Illinois), age 18 at first marriage; son-in-law Earl Gatrell, 45, b. W.Va. (both parents b. WVa), air brake rider (?) on railroad, age 23 at first marriage; dau Fleta Gatrell, 39, b. Kansas (both parents b. Illinois), age 18 at first marriage; niece Edith Gatrell, 10, b. Oklahoma (father b. WVa, mother b. Kansas).
(Note: Niece Edith is actually granddaughter Edythe Gatrell.)
1940 Census, Phelps Co, Missouri (Miller Twp):
Wm. E. Ray, 51, b. Missouri, farmer; wife Fleta Rose Ray, 48, b. Illinois; stepdau Edith Gatrell, 20, b. Oklahoma, cutout stitch at shoe factory. (Note: Wife's birthplace of Illinois is contradicted by all previous census records, which show it as Kansas.)
Children 1. Donald DeWitt GATRELL, b. 11 Oct 1909, Texas , d. 8 Feb 1954 (Age 44 years)2. Virginia Ruth GATRELL, b. 19 Dec 1911, Bartlesville, Washington Co, OK , d. 2 Dec 1912 (Age 0 years)3. John Wesley GATRELL, b. 3 Apr 1913, Bartlesville, Washington Co, OK , d. 16 May 2004 (Age 91 years)4. Edythe Rose GATRELL, b. 3 Jan 1920, Sapulpa, Creek Co, OK , d. 4 Dec 2012 (Age 92 years)Family ID F36049 Group Sheet | Family Chart
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Photos 
Ashby Earl Gatrell, 1886-1932 Gatrell Cave & Rocks, Doddridge County, WV
Documents 
78466_GATRELL_Ashby_MorgantownDominionNews_20Feb1972.jpg
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Sources