NEOLA W.Va. (WVDN) – On Saturday, September 13, 2025, over 60 descendants of John Baxter Dean and Margaret C. Sammons Dean gathered for food, fun, and fellowship at the Dean Family Reunion held at the Neola Baptist Church in Neola, WV.
John Baxter Dean, a Civil War veteran, was born in 1828 to Charles Dean and Barbara Fleisher Dean. John Baxter Dean and his wife, Margaret Sammons Dean, had eleven children. Descendants of two of their sons, Richard Baxter (Dick) Dean and John Wesley Dean, were represented at the reunion.
While many of the reunion attendees still live not far from where their ancestors settled on Anthony’s Creek in the 1850s, cousins from as far away as Florida and Missouri attended this year’s reunion.
In the years since the first Dean Family Reunion was held in 2005, the oldest generation has passed on and the next generation has taken the helm. The following attendees were recognized as the matriarchs and patriarchs of the family. From the Richard Baxter (Dick) Dean line: Nancy Dean Vaughn, Covington, VA; Joanie Dean McIntosh, White Sulphur Springs, WV; Gary Kean, McIntosh, FL; and Stanley Kean, Springfield MO. From the John Wesley Dean line, the following were recognized: Betty Dean McDowell, Ronceverte, WV; Pat Dean Hoke Bricker, Ann Dean Rogers, Jack Dean and Judy Dean Young, all of White Sulphur Springs, WV.
Stanley Kean and Betty Dean McDowell, who are both “90 and Fabulous,” were recognized and honored as the King and Queen of the Dean family.
A highlight of the day for the history buffs was seeing John Baxter Dean’s Civil War Musket which has remained in the family and is currently owned by Stanley Kean. Out of town family was amazed to discover two old family photos, framed and captioned, hanging on a wall at the Schoolhouse Hotel, in White Sulphur Springs, WV. One is of a seated John Baxter Dean and his wife Margaret Sammons Dean, taken before 1892, with the musket across their laps. The other, which had never been seen by direct descendants before, is the family of Richard Baxter Dean, his second wife, Martha Suttle
Dean and their six children were taken around 1912.
Plans are already in the works for next year’s reunion. If you are a descendant of the Dean family and would like to connect, please contact Anne Dean by email at AnieDoodle@aol.com.
