Wheeling, Ohio County 2017 Update: The historic women’s school was demolished in November 2011 after its purchase by Wheeling Hospital. Much of the site has now become sports fields. Some salvage did occur; the bell from the academy’s bell tower was moved to Wheeling Jesuit University, where it is now on display. Several statues from the site were saved and moved as well; one now sits in front of Wheeling Clinic. The building’s stained glass windows are in storage. 2011: The Mount de Chantal Visitation Academy (Ohio County) has overlooked Wheeling since 1856. The “commodious," eclectic Victorian architectural landmark was constructed using local materials. It exhibits a tri-partite arrangement providing space for public functions in the center (administration and chapel), nun's residences on the left side, and student housing on the right. Additions have expanded the classrooms with space included for other functions as well. The school provided quality education for young women, together with girls from both North and South during the Civil War era. The building is no longer in use and is deteriorating. While local supporters are advocating for its saving and adaptive reuse, the structure is threatened by likely demolition. Mount de Chantal is in private hands; however PAWV agrees that this unique, historical, cultural treasure should be preserved and will advocate to that end as opportunities permit. Scarbro, Fayette County March 2019 Update: In October 2018, the owners who had restored and ran the museum sold the property in an online auction. The new owner is based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and is said to be supportive of keeping the landmark in tact (according to a newspaper article from October 2018). 2017 Update: No updates have been made available to PAWV in 2017. The Whipple Company Store was listed as a PAWV 2011 Endangered Property and has been restored and re-opened as Appalachian Heritage Educational Museum and store and is now considered “SAVED” on the Endangered Properties List. The site hosts a number of events which include: An Annual Masquerade Ball, held in “The Golden Ballroom” with a Victorian era theme; Haunted History tours; and car shows. The Whipple Company Store is also now available for event bookings - such as family and school reunions, music and theater performances, anniversaries, and birthday and tea parties. They have already hosted several music events and a family reunion. The Whipple Company Store is an important heritage destination in the New River Coal Fields, representing a critical element in telling the story of the 1921 mine wars, the struggle for unionization, and the lives of the miners and their families. https://www.facebook.com/WhipplecompanystoreWV/ http://www.whipplecompanystore.com/ 2014 Update: Whipple Company Store was designed by the Coal Baron, Justus Collins. This store is one of four he had built, all in this unique architectural fashion, and today the only one left standing. The privately owned Whipple Company Store (Fayette County) circa 1900 was a focal point in the area’s once thriving coal community. Today, it is an important heritage destination in the New River Coal Fields, representing a critical element in telling the story of the 1921 mine wars, the struggle for unionization, and the lives of the miners and their families. The Whipple Company Store was listed as a PAWV 2011 Endangered Property and has now been restored and re-opened as Appalachian Heritage Educational Museum and store. 2011: The privately owned Whipple Company Store (Fayette County) circa 1900 was a focal point in the area’s once thriving coal community. Today, it is an important heritage destination in the New River Coal Fields, representing a critical element in telling the story of the 1921 mine wars, the struggle for unionization, and the lives of the miners and their families. The owners are seeking funding to make critical repairs necessary to preserve the unusual and eye-catching hexagonal building and keep the museum open and accessible to the visiting public.
There are plans to repair the building’s foundation and the exterior stone keystones above an entryway. 2011: The Mannington Railroad Depot (Marion County) began operations in 1852 serving as a link to the Ohio River and the western frontier, as well as providing strategic advantage during the Civil War. Built in 1906, the present structure is a one story hip roof, brick building with stone detailing. The depot, typical of that style on the line, is in danger of development that will not preserve its special historic features. The City of Mannington and Mannington Main Street, are working with at least nine organizations interested in providing fund-raising efforts and “sweat equity” to purchase the building for adaptive reuse as a community center and snack bar along the Mannington Rail Trail.
2010: The Riverside African-American School in Elkins began in 1906 as a simple one floor brick building. In 1925, a second floor was added. What makes this building highly significant is its history as the educational forum for the Black and Native American populations of Randolph County and surrounding areas for five decades. Fifty-five years of neglect have taken their toll. Water intrusion has caused severe structural deterioration to Riverside’s interior walls, floors, windows, and roofing system. School alumni and a dedicated team of volunteers are working to purchase and rehabilitate the building as a new “Riverside African-American Heritage Center” to serve the local community.
2010: Little Kanawha Valley Bank is a quaint, one room, wood-frame building in Glenville represents a visible example of rural Appalachian economic development. Constructed in 1901, it is clad in decorative pressed metal with wire bank teller’s cages still in the building. This structure is facing serious preservation issues. Termite infestation and poor drainage have had a devastating effect on the sills, floor beams, flooring, and to an unknown extent, other interior and exterior components. The window sills and sashes are decayed and some of the exterior pressed metal panels are deteriorated. It is significant as a heritage tourism asset for the Little Kanawha Byway and the Glenville Folk Festival.
The diner struggled for several years until 2015 when an employee (of one year) was promoted to general manager. The diner prospered under the new general manager and he later began to lease the business from the Pollitts. In a short time, he offered to buy it. At the time of the site’s last update in February 2017, the diner was in the process of changing ownership. However, the new ownership plans fell through when the diner closed down abrubtly in July 2017 due to financial mismanagement by the general manager – its future new owner. The business is back in the hands of the Pollitts and they have no plans to reopen it until they find someone to lease or buy the building. Until such time, the Quarrier Diner will be return to an “Endangered” status on the Endangered Properties List. http://www.wvgazettemail.com/news/20170712/charlestons-quarrier-diner-abruptly-closes-amid-unpaid-bills 2011 Update: The Quarrier Diner in downtown Charleston officially re-opened its doors for business on October 27, 2011. The diner was built in 1947 and served many American classic dishes to patrons until closing its doors in 1999. Anna Pollitt and her family purchased the diner in 2010 with the purpose of renovating the building. The Quarrier Diner was listed on Preservation Alliance of WV’s 2010 Endangered Properties List. After a year renovating the diner, which includes Timothy’s Bar downstairs and a banquet area upstairs, the building is open. 2010: The Quarrier Diner in Charleston is one of several Art Deco style buildings populating Quarrier Street. Built in 1946, the restaurant seated 300 people and was a popular destination for fifty years. The building is constructed of brick with a façade of contrasting maroon and cream glass panels with curved windows and a curved entranceway and handrails. Now vacant but stable, the building is missing windows and has roofing issues. But its greatest threat is unsympathetic development. The property is listed for sale and the FBI has shown interest, with developer proposals that the Quarrier be demolished. An alternative use or development plan that includes the historic structure will be needed to save this building.
Charles Town, Jefferson County March 2019 Update: Restoration of the brick smokehouse and stone kitchen began in November. It was paused for the winter but will begin again in March/April and will be completed before summer. Last summer, restoration of the roofs on the main house was completed. The standing seam metal roof on the central portion of the house was restored, and new gutters and downspouts installed. The standing seam metal roofs on the two wings were replaced with new standing seam metal roofs. New gutters and downspouts were installed. 2017 Update: There has been quite a bit of activity at Happy Retreat since the last update. The Jefferson County Historical Society moved its office to Happy Retreat; the Historic Structure Report (HSR) was completed; and Friends of Happy Retreat (FOHR) hosted a few events at the site --a Wine and Jazz Festival and a book club. The Historic Structure Report has given insight into the history of the construction and use of Happy Retreat. The HSR included a paint analysis that helped reveal the age of construction of the west wing of the house and a Preliminary Structural Assessment of the outlying building. Due to the lack of original wood floors and floor joists in the first and second story, dendrochronology could not be used to determine the age of construction of the house’s west wing. Therefore, a paint analysis was implanted to help date construction. Using a technique known as cross-section microscopy, small samples of paint were examined microscopically to determine the number of paint layers and their colors. In one room, the analysis revealed a complete chronology of the paint colors used back to the day Charles Washington first entered the house. Paint analysis also helped date the door and window of the west wing as well as reveal that the current mantel had been moved from another location. The Preliminary Structural Assessment of the brick smokehouse, stone kitchen and privy outbuilding determined that that the smokehouse is in good structural condition, but it will need repointing and replacement of damaged bricks. The kitchen and privy however, require some work. The brick kitchen and privy walls will need to be rebuilt. The shingles on the outbuilding will also need to be replaced as they contain asbestos. As far as events hosted at Happy Retreat, FOHR successfully hosted a Wine and Jazz Festival on June 10, 2017 with over 500 people in attendance. The festival included three Jazz bands, over 50 different local and national wines, and food from local restaurants and bakery. All proceeds went to the restoration and maintenance of the site. A book club, with free membership, was also started in June 2017. On September 9, 2017, FOHR will host their second Craft Beer and Music Festival at Happy Retreat. 2010: Charles Washington, who founded Charles Town in 1786, began constructing his Early Classical Revival mansion, Happy Retreat, in 1780. Nearby at least seven other homes were constructed by Washington family members, including Charles’ brother George, who frequently visited Happy Retreat. The threat to Happy Retreat arose several years ago when the owners expressed their desire to sell the home and its 12.2 developable acres. Two other Washington family homes had just been lost to development, so the threat was all too real. To stave off a sale, the grassroots Friends of Happy Retreat began raising funds to keep the property under option. After four years, however, the group realized that it would be impossible for them to raise enough private funds to acquire and sustain it for public enjoyment. So the nonprofit is now seeking public partners to join them in a new initiative: to develop Charles Washington’s Happy Retreat into the centerpiece of heritage tourism in Charles Town.
The next project planned for the Blue Church is repairing the proscenium’s structurally unsound arch. A structural engineer is currently creating drawings to address the situation. 2010: Church of God and Saints of Christ Tabernacle is a superb Greek Revival Romanesque church. It is a key anchor of the Wheeling historic district in which it is listed. Built in 1835, the interior has cathedral ceilings, original stained glass windows, and a balcony with slave gallery. Although still in use, this building has severe problems. The roof and box gutters have failed allowing water to intrude and the front steps supporting the columns and portico are crumbling. In addition to church services, the church is home to Saints Charity which this year alone provided clothing, hunger relief, living assistance, computer literacy, and children’s summer programs to over 1,200 families.
Lewisburg, Greenbrier County The Greenbrier County Public Library is an 1834 Adams style building in Greenbrier County and was significant as the “Library and Study for the Supreme Court of Appeals of Virginia” prior to West Virginia statehood in 1863. The building served as a Union hospital and barracks and still has soldier’s inscriptions on the interior walls. Owned by the town of Lewisburg since 1935, it was the Greenbrier County Library from 1941 until 2007. When first listed, the building was reasonably stable, but interior floors had buckled due to water intrusion, and water pipes had burst from lack of heat. It needed a new roof and rehabilitation of windows and bathrooms. After being listed on Preservation Alliance of WV’s 2010 Endangered Properties List, the City of Lewisburg replaced the roof, installed a heating and air conditioning system, and rehabilitated the wood windows. The City of Lewisburg then leased the library and annex buildings to the New River Community and Technical College Greenbrier Valley Campus, which finished the renovations. The college library moved into the historic buildings in the summer of 2012 with the intention of serving all five of the college’s campuses, in addition to being open to the public. In October 2012, the College celebrated the opening of its new library in the historic pink building. |
Endangered Properties ListIf you are interested in assisting with any of these preservation projects, contact the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia at info@pawv.org.
Categories
All
Archives
March 2024
|