W.Va. Endangered Properties List released
Wheeling's Mount de Chantal Visitation Academy, in operation since 1856, and now up for sale with an uncertain future, is among eight sites on the 2011 Endangered Properties list.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- A home for orphaned black children in Huntington, an art deco theater in Ronceverte and a former rail depot in Mannington used by tens of thousands of Union Civil War troops are among eight historic sites included on the 2011 West Virginia Endangered Properties list.
The list, compiled annually by the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia, directs attention to buildings of historic and community importance across the state that are in danger of collapse, demolition or development.
Preservation Alliance workers assess structures on the list to determine their needs, help community supporters become better advocates for their buildings, and identify possible historic preservation grants and tax incentives.
Of the eight buildings on this year's list, the structure in most immediate peril is the former West Virginia Colored Children's Home on the outskirts of Huntington, slated for demolition to create space for a new middle school.
Built in 1922 and rebuilt in 1924 after a fire, the three-story brick building provided a place in which orphaned or abused black children from across West Virginia could live and learn. A cemetery in which some of the home's children are believed to be buried lies near the building. The classical revival-style structure, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, later served as housing for Marshall University graduate students, and then was a community mental-health facility.
The Cabell County Board of Education owns the building and its surrounding property, on which orphanage residents raised some of their own food. Despite court challenges, a petition drive and National Register of Historic Places status since 1997, demolition of the building appears imminent.
"Barring a miracle, it will probably be gone in as little as 30 days," Karen Nance, an advocate for preserving the home, said during Thursday's Endangered Properties announcement in the state Capitol Rotunda.
"It's still in wonderful shape. We tried, unsuccessfully, to convince the school board to build a two-story middle school on the property, so the home wouldn't have to be taken," Nance said. "It would make a great site for a West Virginia African-American heritage museum. But it looks like a miracle is about all we can hope for, now."
Other sites on the Endangered Properties list are:
Old Ansted High School
This long-vacant brick and stone structure produced its first graduating class in 1920, and is now damaged by water, ice and vandalism.
"Our mothers and fathers graduated from there, and my generation followed," said Ansted Mayor Pete Hobbs. "It was the central place for our community then, and we would like it to be the center of our community again. We need a sense of place and connection."
If the building can be stabilized and renovated, plans call for it to house a community museum, business incubator sites and a center for learning high-speed internet applications.
Mannington Railroad Depot
The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad began operating its Mannington depot in 1852, linking the eastern seaboard to the Ohio River and the western frontier.
"During the peak of the Civil War, 22,000 Union troops went through the depot in a 48-hour period," said Becky Williams of the Mannington Main Street program.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- A home for orphaned black children in Huntington, an art deco theater in Ronceverte and a former rail depot in Mannington used by tens of thousands of Union Civil War troops are among eight historic sites included on the 2011 West Virginia Endangered Properties list.
The list, compiled annually by the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia, directs attention to buildings of historic and community importance across the state that are in danger of collapse, demolition or development.
Preservation Alliance workers assess structures on the list to determine their needs, help community supporters become better advocates for their buildings, and identify possible historic preservation grants and tax incentives.
Of the eight buildings on this year's list, the structure in most immediate peril is the former West Virginia Colored Children's Home on the outskirts of Huntington, slated for demolition to create space for a new middle school.
Built in 1922 and rebuilt in 1924 after a fire, the three-story brick building provided a place in which orphaned or abused black children from across West Virginia could live and learn. A cemetery in which some of the home's children are believed to be buried lies near the building. The classical revival-style structure, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, later served as housing for Marshall University graduate students, and then was a community mental-health facility.
The Cabell County Board of Education owns the building and its surrounding property, on which orphanage residents raised some of their own food. Despite court challenges, a petition drive and National Register of Historic Places status since 1997, demolition of the building appears imminent.
"Barring a miracle, it will probably be gone in as little as 30 days," Karen Nance, an advocate for preserving the home, said during Thursday's Endangered Properties announcement in the state Capitol Rotunda.
"It's still in wonderful shape. We tried, unsuccessfully, to convince the school board to build a two-story middle school on the property, so the home wouldn't have to be taken," Nance said. "It would make a great site for a West Virginia African-American heritage museum. But it looks like a miracle is about all we can hope for, now."
Other sites on the Endangered Properties list are:
Old Ansted High School
This long-vacant brick and stone structure produced its first graduating class in 1920, and is now damaged by water, ice and vandalism.
"Our mothers and fathers graduated from there, and my generation followed," said Ansted Mayor Pete Hobbs. "It was the central place for our community then, and we would like it to be the center of our community again. We need a sense of place and connection."
If the building can be stabilized and renovated, plans call for it to house a community museum, business incubator sites and a center for learning high-speed internet applications.
Mannington Railroad Depot
The Baltimore & Ohio Railroad began operating its Mannington depot in 1852, linking the eastern seaboard to the Ohio River and the western frontier.
"During the peak of the Civil War, 22,000 Union troops went through the depot in a 48-hour period," said Becky Williams of the Mannington Main Street program.
Rebuilt in 1906 and operated as a rail terminal through 1957, the depot is for sale and its future is uncertain. "It's still in good shape," said Williams. "We'd like to be able to buy it and use it as a community center."
Woodlawn Cemetery Chapel and Supervisor's Residence
Built of brick fired from locally dug clay, this Fairmont building was built in 1928 to serve as a funeral parlor, chapel, office and residence for the cemetery superintendent. A large hole in the roof endangers the building.
The adjoining cemetery, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is the final resting place of the "Father of West Virginia," Francis Pierpont, and Matthew M. Neely, former U.S. senator, congressman and governor.
Whipple Company Store
One of the few still-standing wooden coal company stores in Appalachia, the hexagon-shaped Whipple Company Store near Scarbro in Fayette County was built in the 1890s, and now serves as a privately owned heritage center, which drew 32,000 visitors last year.
Roof repairs are needed to keep water out of this unique structure, the grounds of which will be the site of an archeological excavation later this year.
Elkins Coal & Coke Co. Building
Located along the Deckers Creek Rail Trail near Masontown in Preston County, this Romanesque-style stone structure is deteriorating and damaged by vandals. The Monongahela River Trails Conservancy hopes to restore the building and convert it to a visitor center and restroom facility for trail users and those traveling the Old Route 7 National Scenic Byway.
Shanklin's Grand Theater
This art deco theater in downtown Ronceverte, Greenbrier County, was designed in the 1930s by John Norman, West Virginia's only black architect at the time. A collapsed roof is one of many repairs needed to restore this building, which its supporters hope to convert into a college cinema-arts classroom and recording studio.
Mount de Chantal Visitation Academy
This eclectic Victorian architectural monument built of local materials has overlooked Wheeling since 1856, serving as a boarding school for girls from across the nation until it closed two years ago. During the Civil War, girls from the North and South lived and studied there. Owned by the Sisters of Visitation, the academy and its campus are now for sale, leaving its future uncertain.
Preservation Alliance of West Virginia field representative Lynn Stasick said "success stories" from previous Endangered Properties lists include Charleston's Quarrier Diner, listed last year after years of vacancy and a threat of demolition. The diner is being restored under new ownership and is expected to reopen in May or June.
The Wyco Community Church in Wyoming County, which made the endangered list in 2009, has received more than $100,000 worth of volunteer labor since it was listed. Although work remains, the 94-year-old church is on its way toward a new role as a community center and coal heritage museum.
Reach Rick Steelhammer at rsteelham...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-5169.
