Pre-civil War Homes in St. Albans, WV
1. ST. MARK’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH, (ca. 1847),
423 B St.
Built here after fire destroyed the original Bangor
Parrish church, it was occupied by Federal troops and
their horses during the Civil War and was almost
destroyed. It was nearly 50 years until the Federal
Government paid for its damages. The bell is from the
original church. Listed on the National Register
of Historic Places in 1977.
2. CHILTON HOUSE, (ca.
1857), 6th Ave (The
Loop) along
the Coal River
This fine brick Gothic Revival style
house was built by Allen M. Smith.
N.B and Louise Brooks, Allen’s
daughter, lived her until 1883. Wm.
E. Chilton, who later became a U. S. Senator from 1911 until 1917, was
raised here and attended nearby Shelton College. The house was
moved in the 1970’s from its original location on B St., from where the
Post Office is presently located. This house was listed on the National
Register of Historic Places in 1977.
3. COAL RIVER LOCK HOUSE NO. 1
(ca.1855) (Located approx. ¼ mile past
the American Legion Building on Pa. Ave.
and along the Coal River).
With the discovery of coal in Boone County
in the 1850’s, a series of locks and dams
were built on Coal River from Coalsmouth to
Peytona. Cannel coal was shipped by steamboat to Cincinnati where
the greasy coal was refined to make fuel oil for lamps (coal oil).
Passengers also traveled the packet boats daily. The Coal River could
be traveled nearly 30 miles up-stream to Peytona. Today, only one
complete dam remains at Tornado. It was rebuilt to operate a gristmill.
The lockmaster’s house, built in 1855, remains in town near lock #1,
but the lock is now under water. This house and locks were listed on the
National Register of Historic Places in 1997.
4. ROSEDALE (ca 1818), Kanawha
Terrace & Hudson St.
Located on the old James River &
Kanawha Turnpike, this is the oldest house in
St. Albans. Morris Hudson purchased this
land from George Washington’s niece,
Elizabeth Spotswood, who had acquired it
from her great uncle George Washington.
Hudson’s son Samuel Hudson built this
house in 1818 originally where the High
School now stands and it was moved in 1954.
5. TURNER HOUSE (ca. 1832), 102 B St
This street (formerly brick) once lead to the
wharf on the Kanawha River. This Gothic
Revival house was built by St. Albans first
mayor, John P. Turner and was later
purchased by Stephen Teays in 1880. It’s St.
Albans second oldest house. Noted for its
decorative bargeboards and bracketed
columns. This house has 9 rooms and 3
baths with 7 outside doors.
6. RAVENSWOOD (ca. 1833)
821 McQueen Blvd.
Georgian (Classic Revival) style house
built by Phillip Thompson for his son and
is the third oldest house in town. Judge J.
B. Drew, one of its owners, invented the
story that Poe had written the “Raven”
there. Also called Raven’s Court, a dairy
was once run from the basement.
Featured on Home and Garden TV in
2007.
7. MORGAN’S KITCHEN (ca 1846),
MacCorkle Ave. near Walnut Street
This is a typical one-room log structure
used during its period and was originally
located at Morgan’s Plantation near the
present John Amos Power Plant. It was
used to serve meals and also to treat
wounded Union soldiers during the battle
of Scary Creek nearby. It served solely as
a kitchen for the adjacent Morgan farmhouse, but it has a loft
supposedly used by the slave cooks and family members. The
kitchen was moved to this site in 1972 and is maintained by the St.
Albans Historical Society. Open for groups by appointment and
Sundays in the summer. The St. Albans Historical Society was
started in 1972 to care for this cabin, as they still do today.
8. HANSFORD HOUSE
(ca. 1839), Located across Coal
River on Riverside Dr. & Rust St.
near the Railroad Bridge.
This brick house is called the
John Hansford House and,
according to family tradition, this
house was partially destroyed by
fire sometime before the Civil War. The foundation and possibly
some of the walls were salvaged and rebuilt almost as it was before.
Mollie Hansford and her family moved here after floating down from
the Upper Kanawha Valley on a flat-boat in 1839. In her memoirs,
Mollie said,” It was (located) on a beautiful situation with a large lawn
sloping down to the river”. It is said that a wounded soldier from the
Battle of Scary Creek lay on the floor and his blood stained the floor
for many years.
Printed by the St. Albans Historical Society – 2011
See: http://stalbanshistory.com