History Alive is a program of first-person portrayals of historical figures by presenters who have conducted scholarly research on their character. David Hunter Strother was one of the most accomplished men of the new state of West Virginia. Born in Martinsburg, he trained as an artist in Europe and gained fame as a writer and illustrator for national magazines under the name Porte Crayon. From Charles Town he reported and illustrated John Brown’s capture, trial and execution for Harper’s Weekly in 1859. During the Civil War Strother served as a Union officer and topographer who saw action in several major battles.r