Middleway Historic District Added to West Virginia Endangered Properties List

The Preservation Alliance of West Virginia is adding the Middleway Historic District in Jefferson County to its West Virginia Endangered Properties List.  This step, taken by the state’s leading grassroots nonprofit historic preservation group, highlights the significant risks to this unique National Register historic district that could result from the construction and operation of the proposed Mountain Pure water bottling facility by Sidewinder Enterprises.  The proposed development is under current active consideration by Jefferson County authorities.     

​“With this listing, our chief goal is to ensure that public officials and citizens of West Virginia recognize Middleway as a rare historic treasure, not only for the state but also nationally, and to understand the threats posed by this proposed development,” remarked Executive Director Danielle Parker.   “Middleway is an intact example of a historic rural village, featuring homes and buildings from the 1700s and 1800s.   The proposed water bottling facility risks the historic, cultural and environmental significance of a community that has existed for nearly three centuries.  There is simply no other place like Middleway in West Virginia.  It deserves to be protected, cherished, celebrated and supported.”

Sidewinder Enterprises, LLC has submitted a concept plan to the Jefferson County Planning Commission to construct a one million square foot bottling facility in two stages on a remediated brownfield industrial site bordering the village that was formerly owned by 3M/Kodak.   Once completed, this would become one of the largest such facilities in the United States.  The concept plan indicates that the facility would depend on the daily extraction of over 1.2 million gallons of water from the local aquifer that feeds Lake Louise, located just outside Middleway. This extraction volume is the equivalent of servicing water to over 4,000 homes.  Sidewinder proposes to install a pipeline to transport the water over two miles to the facility crossing through the village with its significant historic and archeological resources.  The final facility plan includes parking for 406 tractor trailers, which would necessitate driving through Middleway’s narrow historic streets.  The proposal will be reviewed at a public meeting of the Jefferson County Planning Commission on February 11.  

Middleway Conservancy President Jessie Norris expressed gratitude for the Preservation Alliance’s recognition, stating, “We are deeply grateful to the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia for acknowledging Middleway and the critical need to preserve this rare and authentic glimpse into our past.  The challenges facing Middleway undeniably warrant its inclusion on the Endangered Properties List. The additional heavy truck traffic on our narrow historic roads could cause significant damage to the stone-stacked foundations and increase the risk of collision as the streets are not wide enough to accommodate semi-trucks.  Moreover, the remediated 3M/Kodak site contains two toxic chemicals in a plume of contaminated groundwater which hydrological experts fear could be disrupted by the significant amount of water being moved by the plant, threatening hundreds of residential wells in the village and surrounding areas.  While we are not against all industrial development, the scale and design of this proposed plant and the pipeline will cause irreparable damage to our historic village. We hope Middleway's placement on the Endangered Properties List, along with the support of our allies, will encourage decision-makers to consider what is best for the invaluable treasure that is Middleway and Jefferson County.”  

Danielle Parker added, “Preservation leaders throughout the state are deeply concerned by the threat this proposed development poses to the Middleway Historic District, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.  A groundswell of citizen support has also emerged, including a newly formed advocacy group called Protect Middleway, dedicated to safeguarding the village’s water, ecology and safety.  We call upon Jefferson County authorities to reconsider the scale and direction of this proposal.  Given the risks it presents to a historic village of statewide and national significance, we urge the county to reject this development. The Middleway Historic District and its residents deserve protection.”
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Since 1999, the West Virginia Endangered Properties List has become one of the most useful and powerful tools of the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia for raising awareness and garnering support for the preservation of threatened landmarks and landscapes across the state.   In 2024, the Preservation Alliance announced three additional endangered property listings -- West Virginia’s historic hand-cut stone walls, Charleston’s magnificent Art Deco Municipal Auditorium and 35 historic structures of importance to the state’s history within the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve proposed for demolition by the National Park Service.  

Advocacy Gathering in Support of the Middleway Historic District will be held at 5 pm on Friday, January 31 at Grace Episcopal Church in Middleway, followed by light refreshments at the nearby Union Church.  This event, cosponsored by the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia and the Middleway Conservancy, offers an opportunity for the community to come together and hear from partner organizations and stakeholders committed to preserving and protecting the historic district and its residents.  Attendees will also have the chance to explore the Middleway Historic Archives and view relics uncovered in Middleway, as well as learn about the untold stories and artifacts that remain to be discovered.  Representatives from the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia will be present to discuss the significance of the West Virginia Endangered Properties listing and its implications for Middleway’s future.    

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