• A visit to Union 2013. If you grew up in Union, West Virginia and you have not been able to return to Monroe County recently, chances are you will enjoy a little tour of Union and the area.

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Memories

Historical Houses and Buildings located in Monroe County

In this section you will see some of the historical houses and other buildings located in Monroe County. If you would like to add your historical house, please contact us. Please visit this section often as new things will be added.   (Click on the pictures for a larger view)

                              

The Caldwell House

This is the Caldwell House located in Union on the corner of  U.S. 219 and the Willow Bend road.  The house at this time was owned by Dr. B. B. and Nora Caldwell.  They purchased the house in 1920, when Dr. Caldwell moved from Athens to Union to open a dental practice. It was built before the Civil War by Frank Hereford, a U.S. Congressman from 1871 to 1877, and a U.S. Senator from 1877 to 1881.  

The John McCreery House

The John McCreery House in Union was built in 1846.  This house may include an earlier small house inside. The house is now owned and occupied by  Robert Pomphrey.

The Keenan Store/Post Office and Cottage

This interesting old photo was found in the Monroe County Historical Society.  This 1910 picture depicts the Keenan Store and Post Office before the road from Union to Gap Mills (Route 3) was re-routed.  The store is gone but the cottage portion still remains and was the home for many years of George and Marguerite Flouer.

 

The Colonel Roberts House

This home is located on Main Street in Union and was the former home of Colonel Nathaniel Hardin Roberts, whose wife was Mary Jane Campbell, daughter of Andrew Campbell of Union.  The home, which appears to have been painted red with white trim when the picture was taken, was built by Colonel Roberts in 1867.  The house is now owned by Judge Robert Irons.

The Trail House

This is John L. and Permilla Trail’s home in Union.  They purchased the home in 1916 from W. McDonald Johnston.  The big oak trees in the front yard that are not clearly seen are over 300 years old.  Betty Shanklin Dransfield, the granddaughter of  John L. and Permilla Trail is the current owner.

The Eliza Echols House

This small Greek Revival house with Italinate features located on 5th Street in Union, was built in 1857 for Eliza Echols, the mother of General John Echols and the mother-in-law of Senator Allen T. Caperton.  During most of the 20th century it served as rectory for the All Saints Espiscopal Church.  This house is presently owned by Robert and Janet Echols Tuckwiller .  

The Herbie Johnson House

The Herbie Johnson House was built in Union in 1913.  It was built for the Johnson family by John Campbell, contractor.  It is now owned by Theresa Miller Dumas.

 

The George Curry House - 1840

George Curry House

The George Curry house located in Union was built in 1840.  It is the style of Greek Revival with later Neoclassical features. It was once owned by Hereford and Nancy Shanklin and served as the Shanklin Funeral Home in Union. The house is currently owned by Drs. Craig and Sue Mohler.

 

The Masonic Hall

This building is located facing north on Main Street in Union. The picture was taken the year of 1940.  It is the home of the Masonic Hall, Monroe Lodge No. 77 and the Order of The Eastern Star.

The Houston-Johnston House

The Houston-Johnston House, located on Main Street in Union was built in 1846.  The style is Greek Revival, with Federal elements and was made of bricks that were made in Union.  The first owner of the house was the Rev. Samuel Houston, pastor of the Union Presbyterian Church from 1842 until 1886.  Houston owned the house until the 1870’s, then moving to the country near Sinks Grove where he served as pastor of Mt. Pleasant Presbyterian Church.  In the 1870’s the house was purchased by Albert Sydney Johnston, editor of The Monroe Watchman and a West Virginia legislator. The house is still owned by members of the Johnston family. 

 

The old Presbyterian Manse/Robert Gray House

The old Presbyterian Manse was built around 1845 and is located on south Main Street toward the Willow Bend road. It was best known as the mid-twentieth century home of the Rev. and Mrs. Robert R. Gray. The heirs of the late Richard Meeks are the present owners.

 

The John McNeer House

The James  McNeer house is located beside the Presbyterian Church as you enter Union. The  Neoclassical Victorian house was built in 1898 by John Campbell.  It has been home to Dr. Floyd and Ruth Johnson and Russell and Violet Hinkle.  It presently houses the Jonathan Rice Accounting Office.

 

Boyhood home of Andrew S. Rowan (Monroe County Hero)

The Rowan House located on Main Street in Union was constructed by Andrew Beirne, Jr, but he never occupied the dwelling and sold it to George Hutchison in 1852.  Mr. Hutchison sold the property to John M. Rowan, father of Andrew S. Rowan in 1871.  Mr. L. L. Spangler purchased the property from John Rowan’s heirs in 1938 for 2,000.  The Lighthouse Church of God is the current owner of the house.

 

Spring Valley Farm

Spring Valley Farm is located on Second Creek in Monroe County. Spring Valley Farm was acquired by the Dickson Family in 1834 and has remained in the family. The present owner is Page Dickson, wife of the late William Dickson.  The farm is known for its varied and long-lived architectural styles along with its long-lived example  of a farming enterprise in Monroe County.  It is also the site of the 1780 Second Creek Fort along with crossroads of Indian trails.

Hope Manor

Hope Manor, previously know as the McNeer House is located  2 miles south of Union on route 219.  The framed two and one half story Neo-Colonial Revival house was built at the turn of the century by Lewis Caperton McNeer.  It is the largest residential building in Monroe County.  It is one of the most beautiful nostalgic homes in Monroe County, sitting with grace and charm amid a level  meadow bisected by a vigorous stream of water.  The white mansion sparkles as an architectural jewel in southern West Virginia crown of hills.  Bill and Sylvia Fleener bought the house in 1995.

 

  

Andrew Campbell House

The Andrew Campbell House was located at Pickaway on the Campbell Farm.  In 1871, the farm was purchased by John S. and Sarah Ramsey Hodge.  The next known owners of the farm was Paul and Elaine Gilchrist and now owned by the Gilchrist heirs.

 

William and Betty Eads House

The William and Betty Eads House located in the Gap Mills Community.  This picture was taken in 1922.  The house is now owned by Andrew Humphreys.

 

The Copeland House 1800's

The Copeland House located in Wikle, was built in the 1800′s by John P. Copeland. He was married to Orlena Comer 1860 – 1945. They were the great, great grandparents of Connie Miller (UHS Class of 1968) and Mickey Miller (UHS Class of 1962).  The picture shows  the Copeland Family  in  front of the house  and grandfather Lewis Miller on the top porch.  The house was torn down several years ago (about 2010).

 

The Salt Sulphur Springs Resort - 1820

Salt Sulphur Springs Hotel Resort

The Salt Sulphur Springs Hotel located on Route 219 three miles south of Union was opened as a mineral springs resort in the 1820′s. The beautiful old stone house which served as a private residence to Dr. and Mrs. Ward Wylie was constructed in 1825.  This building was the center of activity for the popular resort for almost a hundred years.  While living there the Wylies restored the main house, two of the brick cottages and two stone spring houses on the grounds of the Old Salt Sulphur.

 

Walnut Grove

Walnut Grove, located one mile north of Union off Route 219.  The original part was believed to be one of the oldest log cabins in Monroe County.  It was built by the Erskine  family in 1780.  A brick addition was built by Andrew Beirne in 1820 and thereafter was added onto by the succeeding generations of the Beirne family. Walnut Grove was a hospital during the Civil War and so escaped destruction. Walnut Grove is now owned by the Edward White family.    It has been owned and lived in by seven generations of the same family.

 

The Milton Dickson House

The Milton Dickson House is a two story home located  off of 219 in back of where Raymond Spencer lives today.  This was once home to the Bernie Elmore family.   At one time this house was part of the James  Beckett Farm.

 

General Augustus Chapman House - 1803

This house was built in 1803 for Augustus Chapman who served Monroe County many times in the Virginia Assembly and the state of Virginia in the 28th and 29th U.S. Congress. During the war he served at a Brig. General of Virginia Militia in the Confederate Army.  The house is now owned by the Monroe County Community Services Council. 

 

Ann Edgar Randolph House

Ann Randolph bought this property in 1854 and possibly added to a smaller earlier house.   This house is now owned by Jeanette Canterbury.

 

Elmwood 1838

Elmwood built in 1838 by Hugh Caperton, north of Union.  The design and brick work is attributed to William Philips of Charlottesville, Va, a brick mason trained by Thomas Jefferson.  The Jeffersonian Romain revival house was inherited by Allen Caperton, a son of Hugh Caperton.  Allen Caperton served as Senator in the Confederate States during the Civil War and afterwards a Senator in the Federal Government.  The brick Elmwood barn was built about 1910.  Grover Mitchell owned this property for many years.  The present owners are Chris and Anita Wszolek.

 

Jarvis House

This house was built in 1845, located at south main street .  The first known owners of this house was the Frank Jarvis family.  The next owners were Rev. David and Hazel Craft.  The present owner of the house is Jack Reed.

 

Major John Wallace cottage - 1854

The Major John A. Wallace cottage was built in 1854.  John Wallace was the owner/operator of the Wallace Business College in pre-civil war Union.  The present owners are Dr. and Mrs. Glen Bryan.

 

The Clark-Wiseman House and in the back the Owen Neel House

Two Historic Houses in Union, the front structure was built in Union in 1810 and first used by the Clark family and later by the gunsmith and silversmith John Wiseman.  The rear structure was built near Gap Mills by Owen Neel II in 1790.  These structures were re-erected by the Monroe County Historical Society on their property and constitutes part of their museum complex.

 

The Robert Crebs House - 1868

The Robert Crebs House was built in 1868, just off north main street.  Robert Crebs was Monroe County’s attorney just after the Civil War.  His sister Ella was one of the first public school teachers in Union.  A.B. Peterson family owned the house in the mid 20th century.

 

The Beckett House - 1895

The Beckett House was built in 1895, located on 219 north of Union.  The house, a large farm house, was owned by Ray and Leona Beckett.  In later years, the Beckett’s operated the house as “Sunnyside Tourist Home”.   It is now owned by Dale and Carol Beckett.

 

The Captain Christopher Beirne House - 1825

The Captain Christopher Beirne House was built in 1825.  Captain Beirne organized a rifle company form Monroe County during the Civil War known as Beirne’s Sharpshooters.    The house is now owned by Bennie Wilson.

 

Hillcrest - 1908 The Clarence Campbell House

Hillcrest was built in 1908.  This fine Victorian-Queen Anne style house was built by Clarence Campbell.  Clarence was the builder of many early 20th century houses in Union.  It is located on Rt. 3, east of Union.  It is now owned by Haskell  and June Campbell.

 

Willowbrook - 1770 The James Byrnside House

Willowbrook 1770.  Willowbrook, located just south of Union on the Willow Bend Road was built in stages possibly beginning about 1770 when James Byrnside built this 2 story log house as a fort.  the present house consists of two 2-story log structures within its walls and the  eastern structure is much earlier than the western structure. The Byrnside Fort represents the very beginning of the Union area.  Christopher Byrnside, owner in the 1850′s covered the house in board and batten and added Gothic touches.  The Johnson family acquired the house in the 1870′s and added the two story front porch.  Margaret Clark, a descendant of the Johnson family is the present owner.

 

The Compton House - 1900

The vernacular Victorian house at the corner of Pump Street and North Street was built at the turn of the 20th century.  The rear wing seems to date to an earlier era possible 1820.  The owner are Delmar and Mary Pearl Compton.

 

The Davidson House 1831-1860

The Davidson House 1831.  The first Methodist Church built in Union in 1831, is the brick portion on the left side of the house and acquired by Union College and expanded to provide living quarters and dining facilities for its students.  After the Civil War when Union College ceased to exist, the building became the West Virginia Female Seminary and later the Johnson Female College.   The building at this time consists of 24 rooms.  It has been in the Davidson family since 1892.  It is presently called the Higginbotham House and is owned by Julia and James Higginbotham.

 

The Don Ballard House - 1905

The Don Ballard House was built in 1905 by the McNeer family and owned by Don Ballard in the early 20th century.  The Ballard House designed in the shingle Queen Anne style represents an architectural vogue seldom seen in this area.

 

The Dunsmore House - 1820

The Dunsmore House just off the Tollgate-Hillsdale Road northeast of Union was built about 1820 and exhibits woodwork attributed to Conrad Burgess. This house was home to Orville and Callie Tomlinson in the 20th century and is presently owned by Renda and Ben James.

 

The Edwin Brown House - 1846

The Edwin Brown House was built in 1846.  The original one story Greek revival house was built by Col. Andrew Beirne II. The architect of the original part of the house was Henry Exhall of  Richmond, Virginia.  It was enlarged in the early 20th century with a second story.  Edwin Brown was a mid 19th century Union merchant.  It is presently owned by Ruth Riner.

 

The Estill House - 1773

The Estill House, located on Indian Creek was built in 1773 by Wallace Estill.  The family of Wallace Estill settled on the land on Indian Creek, where he built a stone house that was known ever since as the Estill House.  It now belongs to descendents of  Mr. J. H. Dowdy.

 

The James Howell House - 1854

The James Howell House built in 1854.  This small frame cottage was built by James Howell who was a tinsmith in mid-19th century Union. The house has also served as parsonage for the First Baptist Church.   The house is presently owned by Jill Fischer.

 

The John Campbell House - 1894

The John Campbell House was built in 1894.  This house was built by John Campbell and is located on Pump and Ninth Streets.  John Campbell was the Mayor of Union at about the turn of the century.  He operated a flouring and grist mill as well as a sawmill on his property in Union.  He and his son Clarence were builders of many of the early 20th century houses in Union, Ronceverte and Princeton.  The present owner of the house is Bill McDowell.

 

The John Echols House - 1846

The General John Echols House was built in 1846.  John Echols came to Union in the early 1840′s to organize a branch of the Bank of Virginia in Union.  during the Civil War he served as the Brig. General in the Confederate Army.  At one time the owner of this house was A.W. Boon, a former Mayor of Union.  After his death, the ownership of the house went to his two daughters, Louise Boon Massey and Eunice Boon Dillon.  The present owner of the Echols House is Dr. James Banks.

 

The Lewis log house - 1810

This log house was built by an unknown person and probably dates back to 1810-1820.  The Lewis family has owned this house since the late nineteenth century.  Currently owned by Carolyn Lewis Adamson.

 

 

The Nellie Thomas House - 1854

The Nellie Thomas House was built in 1854 and is covered with board and batten.  It encloses an earlier two story log structure.   Restored by present owners Dr. and Mrs Glen Bryan.

 

The Newton K. Lynch House - 1896

This neoclassical Victorian style house was built by Newton K. Lynch in 1896.  Newt Lynch was also the the builder and owner of the Monroe Department Store.  This house is now owned by Union Methodist Church.

 

The Old Girl's Academy - 1815

It is believed that this log structure built about 1815 was used as a Girl’s Academy in the 1820′s and 30′s.  This house is located on West North Street and is owned by Carol and Vernon Kittle.

 

The Old Salt Sulphur Store - 1825

The Salt Sulphur Springs Store building was built of limestone on the site for the Salt Sulphur Springs Resort about 1825.   It is now the home of Major and Shirley Walker.

 

The Old Union Academy - 1817

The old Union Academy was built in 1819 and received its charter from Virginia assembly in January of 1820.  Union Academy was a private boy’s school operated by the Presbyterian Church.  It grew to become Monroe Presbyterian High School in the 1850′s and later Union Acadamy operated by  the Greenbrier Presbytery.  The structure is reported to be the oldest remaining brick academy building in West Virginia.  It has been restored and is the home of Bill Burns.

 

The Second Union Academy - 1903

The Second Union Academy was built just prior to 1903 and opened as a private academy for both boys and girls in 1903.  It was built by the contractors John and Clarence Campbell.  It closed as a school in 1910 when a public high school was opened in Union as Union High School.  It’s present owner is John Bryan, Lawyer in the town of Union.

 

The John Shrader House - 1894

The Shrader House was built by John H. Shrader about 1894 and is located north of Union on US Rt. 219.  John Shrader was a carpenter and cabinet maker.  The home is now owned by John Shrader’s granddaughter, Hazel Shrader.

 

Bellevue - 1896 The W. McDonald Johnston House

Bellevue was built about 1896 by W. McDonald Johnston and is located just east of Union on Rt. 3.  In 1912, this large Victorian home was purchased by John L. Trail.  It is well known and loved for its two ancient and large oak trees on the beautiful front lawn. The current owners are Brian and Leslie Wickline.

 

Walnutta - 1907 The McNeer-Campbell House

This house was best know historically  as “Walnutta”.  A Queen Anne style built in 1907 and was designed by a woman architect whose name has been lost.  It is extremely rare to have a house designed by a woman architect during this period in rural West Virginia.  The house is located on Rt. 219, north of Union.  Walnutta was first owned by the Roscoe McNeer and then purchased by Judge Charles Wm. Campbell. The current owners of Walnutta are Don and Bobbie Sibold.

 

 

Wyndridge – 1870 The Gaston Caperton House

Wyndridge was built about 1870 by William Gaston Caperton, Jr.  It is well known as the home of his daughter, Miss Rose Caperton.  Wyndridge incorporates in its north side, two two story log houses of an earlier age.  There is also a log ice house and a log smoke house.  Separate from the house on its north side is the very early 1770 log Blanton House.  The late Judge James Sprouse and his wife June, did extensive renovations on this splendid house.  The present owner is June Sprouse.  

 

The Buford and Ada Dunbar house

The Dunbar farmhouse was built in the late 1800′s.  It is located at Dorr and is the property of Buford and Ada Dunbar.   It is still owned by the Dunbar Family.

 

The Lemons House

View of the Lemons Farm

The Lemons Farm is located in Pickaway on a road to the right off of  Rt. 219 just beyond the Methodist Church and sits in the Pickaway Rural Historic District.  The Lemons purchased the house from Jesse Caperton and Anna Steele Parker in 1952.  This farm has housed three generations of the Lemons family (Cary and Pearl Lemons, Shelby and Mayo Lemons and is now home to Gary and Betty Lemons).  

 

The Joe and Katherine Reed House

The Joe and Katherine Nichols Reed house is located at Second Creek just off of Rt. 219.  This house was originally the Higginbotham House and it housed the Second Creek Post Office in 1916.  It later became the home of Paul and Flora Reed Nichols and Flora became the post mistress in 1947.  It was home to thier children:  Jean Nichols (UHS class of 1951), Shirley Nichols (UHS Class of 1954),  Katherine Nichols (Class of 1960) and Sharon Nichols (Class of 1965).   Their daughter Katherine and Joe Reed are now the owners of the house and Katherine is the third generation of the Reed family to live there.

 

The Cyrus Mottesheard House

Cyrus Mottesheard became the owner of this house in the early 1920′s.  It was located on main street in the town of Union.  The two houses were connected together to make one family dwelling.  After the house was dismantled years later,  a building was constructed that now houses the Bryan Law Office.  The building next door on the left is now where the Kittle’s Hardware Store is located.

 

Nick and Lena O'Quinn House

The owners of this house was Nick and Lena O’Quinn. It was built in the 1840′s and located on the Willow Bend Road.  Nick and Lena were the parents of  Hazel Bernice O’Quinn, a graduate of Union High School in 1933.  Although this was a farmhouse, from the  main entrance a door to the right entered into a large ballroom.  Also from the entry a door to the left  lead into a parlor  with a dining room to the rear. The kitchen was in the back.  From the entrance a long stairway lead upstairs to three bedrooms and bath.  A separate kitchen with a large fireplace was away from the main house. Nick O’Quinn used it as a tool shed.  There was a large cistern between the main house and the old kitchen.