Shiben Estates Give Buildings To Commission
The weather might have been dreary and rainy Friday morning, but spirits were high in downtown New Martinsville as the Wetzel County Commission received three of the Shiben Estates buildings from Shiben Estates, Inc. The families wished to give three of the buildings to the commission, which will be used for additional storage and possible office space. Johnny Joe stated it was the most exciting day he’s had in his lifetime. He said when the commission had previously told him it was going to cost $8 million dollars to construct a new building, he was happy to save them the money. He said he is thrilled the family can do this, and it is a highlight for him to be able to do this.
Johnny Joe stated there are only three Shiben grandchildren left that are living – he and his sister Esta Marie Mensore, along with his cousin John Shiben, all of whom were present.
The rest present were great-grandchildren. Dick Shiben and Tim Shiben, brothers of John Shiben, are deceased, along with Phillip Peters – another cousin of Johnny Joe, Esta Marie, and John.
Johnny Joe said he wanted to donate the buildings in memory of Joseph and Minnie Shiben, their children and all of the Shiben family.
John Shiben stated he would like to thank everyone who took part in the transition of the building – the Wetzel County commission, the City of New Martinsville, and his cousin John Mensore, who spearheaded and moved the process along. John stated his grandfather, Joseph Shiben, was an immigrant who came to America in 1895 and worked for farmers in the area. He had no money, could not speak English ,and could not write. In the span of approximately 30 years, Joseph Shiben built one of the buildings that is being donated, brick by brick, with nothing but hard work and dedication. Notably, stories state that Joseph sold things from a backpack, acquired enough money to buy a cart and eventually had a store that was called Shiben Dry Goods. The whole family worked there.
John said strangely enough, when Joseph Shiben came to this country, his goal was not to find wealth. His goal was to simply to feed his family. The Middle East was in a bad state, and people were dying by the millions. John said his grandfather not only immigrated, he escaped. Joseph Shiben loved this country, and what he loved about it the most was the ability to acquire land. This was not something a person could do in his country. For thousands of years, everything that was worth buying had already been bought, and a person couldn’t buy land. To buy land was a dream come true, which is one of the reasons Joseph Shiben acquired what he did, “because he was enamored and fascinated with the fact that he could acquire land.”
John said he is very happy and wishes everyone who uses the building, the county and city, a long and successful life inside the building.
“It’s an old building, but it’s a great building,” he said. “It’s very strong and in good shape. It needs work, but any old building does, and over a few decades you could bring it right up to modern standards and have a great building that will last you as long as the courthouse is standing – which should be a long time, and it has already been standing a long time.”
Johnny Joe said he echoed what John said. He said he, his sister Esta, and cousin John lived in the building when dried goods were sold out of the building, and it was a home. Johnny Joe said he lived with his grandparents in their home, and the family never knew a home outside of his grandparents home. Johnny Joe said his mother and father and his uncle Charlie lived with his grandmother and grandfather. He said the remaining grandchildren remember these times, and it means a lot to them; however, it means a lot for the county commission to have the building.
Johnny Joe said giving the building to the commission is a dream come true, and it’s one of the greatest days of his life.