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The Palace of Gold
by traveldave
It was a surreal experience seeing the Palace of Gold for the first time. It is located four miles (six kilometers) off a main state route on a narrow, twisting country road with typical farms and rural homes, but as I turned a corner I saw a magnificent palace that should belong in India rather than in the hills of West Virginia.The Palace of Gold is the centerpiece of the 1,204-acre (487-hectare) New Vrindaban Community that was established in rural West Virginia in 1968 by Srila Prabhupada, the founder of the controversial Hare Krishna movement. It is the first, and most ornate, of seven palaces eventually constructed across the United States which were based on seven Hindu temples in Vrindhavan, India.Work began on what would become the Palace of Gold in 1972. The building was originally supposed to have been the residence of Srila Prabhupada, but when he died in 1977, the plans...
The Anna Jarvis House
by traveldave
Built in 1854, the Anna Jarvis House was the birthplace of Anna Jarvis, the founder of Mother's Day, and also served as the field headquarters of General George McClelland during his 1861 western Virginia campaign during the American Civil War. His troops were encamped across the road in what is now known as the Ocean Pearl Felton Historic Park. During the time General McClelland occupied the house, it remained the focal point of the entire civil war.The two-story frame house was built by Granville Jarvis, the father of Anna Jarvis, and was occupied by the family for 11 years until they moved to nearby Grafton. Anna Jarvis was born in the house in 1864.Anna's mother, Ann Jarvis, had established Mother's Day Work Clubs in five cities. The purpose of these clubs was to improve sanitary and health conditions for women who were mothers. During the American Civil War, the clubs remained...
The Adaland Mansion
by traveldave
Located a few miles northwest of Philippi in Barbour County, the Adaland Mansion is a former farmhouse that has been restored with strict attention to authenticity. The building features homemade bricks and walnut woodwork. The grounds contain extensive flower gardens, an herb garden, and a barn dating from the 1850s that has displays of antique farming equipment and tools.The house was built by in 1870 by a prosperous farmer, Augustus Modisett, to replace a double log cabin in which three generations of Modisetts had lived. The construction work was done by emancipated slaves who had stayed on the farm after slavery was abolished. The mansion acquired its current name in 1920 when Judge Ira Robinson, the Chief Justice of the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, bought the house and named it and the grounds after his wife, Ada Sinsel Robinson.Nowadays the mansion is open for tours and...
The Hamilton Round Barn
by traveldave
Located in the small town of Mannington in Marion County, the Hamilton Round Barn is only one of five round and polygonal barns in West Virginia. It was built between 1911 and 1912, and served as a dairy barn on the Hamilton farm, which was the first farm in the county to use electric milking machines. The barn accommodated from 20 to 25 cows on the ground floor, and up to seven tons (6,350 kilograms) of hay could be stored on the upper floor.The wooden barn is 66 feet (20 meters) in diameter and its cupola is 75 feet (23 meters) tall. It features a slate gambrel roof topped by a six-sided cupola.Nowadays, the barn is operated as a museum by the West Augusta Historical Society. The museum contains a collection of antique farming equipment, a carriage, a sleigh, early mining tools, and other farm-related artifacts.The Hamilton Round Barn has been listed on the National Register of...
The Barrackville Covered Bridge
by traveldave
Located in the small town of Barrackville in Marion County, the Barrackville Covered Bridge is a 146-foot (45-meter) single-span modified Burr truss bridge that crosses Buffalo Creek just north of the town. The bridge was built in 1853 by local bridge builder Lemuel Chenoweth. Siding was added 20 years after its completion.The bridge was saved from destruction during the Jones-Imboden Raid by the Ice family and nearby mill owners. The Jones-Imboden Raid was a campaign led by Confederate generals William Jones and John Imboden to destroy bridges and other infrastructure in western Virginia (now West Virginia) during the American Civil War.A permanent bypass bridge was constructed in 1991 next to the Barrackville Covered Bridge, which was retired at that time. The new bridge was needed to preserve the covered bridge, and because the old bridge had become inadequate for modern traffic...
Pricketts Fort State Park
by traveldave
Located near Fairmont in northern West Virginia, Pricketts Fort State Park was established in 1975 to preserve the site of an eighteenth-century fort that had been built to protect nearby settlers from attacks by American Indians.The 22-acre (nine-hectare) park features a visitors' center with a museum shop, an outdoor 400-seat amphitheater, a picnic area, nature trails, and a boat ramp on the Monongahela River.The centerpiece of the park, however, is a historically accurate reconstruction of the original Prickett's Fort. Prickett's Fort was built in 1774 on a small rise overlooking the confluence of Prickett's Creek and the Monongahela River to serve as a refuge from American Indian war parties. At the first sign of a threat, up to 80 families from the surrounding area would converge on the fort to take refuge within its walls until the danger passed.The recreated fort was built in...
The Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum
by traveldave
Originally called the Weston State Hospital, the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum was built to house and treat the mentally ill from throughout the region. The building was designed by architect Richard Andrews, who followed the Kirkbride plan for mental institutions. This plan called for long wings in staggered formation which assured an abundant supply of therapeutic light and fresh air. The building is the largest hand-cut stone masonry building in the United States, and the second-largest in the world, after the Kremlin in Moscow.Construction began in 1858 and was completed in 1881. However, patients were first admitted into finished sections of the building in 1864.During the American Civil War, Weston was seized by Union troops. The unfinished asylum was converted to Camp Tyler, an important military post which controlled the roads in the area. The completed south wing was used as...
The Dolly Sods Wilderness
by traveldave
Located in the Allegheny Mountains of Grant, Randolph, and Tucker counties in eastern West Virginia, the Dolly Sods Wilderness consists of a high-altitude plateau characterized by ecosystems more commonly found farther north in Canada. The plateau is the largest of its kind east of the Rocky Mountains. Elevations within the wilderness area range from about 2,700 feet (820 meters) to 4,770 feet (1,454 meters). Its name originates from a corruption of Dahles, the name of an eighteenth-century German family who homesteaded in the area, and "sods", a term used in the Appalachian region that means a mountaintop meadow.The Dolly Sods Wilderness is part of the larger and older Monongahela National Forest. It was created in 1975 as part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. Over the years, more acreage was added to the original protected area so that it now totals 17,371 acres (7,030...
The Cranesville Swamp Preserve
by traveldave
The 1,174-acre (475-hectare) Cranesville Swamp Preserve is mostly located in eastern Preston County in northeastern West Virginia. However, a small portion of the bog and preserve is also situated in Garrett County, Maryland. (The "swamp" is technically a bog). The land was purchased by the Nature Conservancy in 1960 to protect the bog's unique environment. In 1964, the Cranesville Swamp Preserve became one of the first National Natural Landmarks in the nation. The Cranesville Swamp Preserve contains one of the few boreal muskeg bogs in the southern United States, a habitat type that is more generally found in northern New England and southern Canada. The muskeg bog can only exist in such southern latitudes because of what is called a "frost pocket." The area's topography and weather combine to create a microclimate similar to that found much farther north. The bog sits in a natural...
The Old Stone Tavern
by traveldave
The historic stone building that houses the Old Stone Tavern was built between 1825 and 1827. The building was designed by Henry Grimes and was constructed of rubble stone. The ground floor consists of one large open room. There are three rooms on the second floor with an attic above. It originally served as a private residence, but in 1841 it was opened to the public as an inn and tavern, serving travelers along the Northwestern Turnpike. (The Northwestern Turnpike is a historic West Virginia road and is notable as being one of the first roads to cross the Appalachian Mountains). The Old Stone Tavern was kept by George Houser, Hiram Hanshaw, and William Grimes. It was the first tavern in the Union District on the Northwestern Turnpike.Also known as the Brookside Inn and the Red Horse Tavern, the Old Stone Tavern has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places.Nowadays, the...
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