Wyoming County drive offers numerous points of interest

Jun. 16—While historians disagree about the origins of its name, Wyoming County boasts miles of recreational trails for hiking, biking, as well as ATV enthusiasts, an expansive state park with an 18-hole golf course, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-maintained lake, in addition to rich timber, coal and railroad histories that have carved new vistas into the landscape.

A driving tour of the county will take a tank of gas and a few hours, depending on how much time one wants to linger at the sites of interest.

The Mullens historic district — roughly bounded by Lusk and Highland Avenues, the railroad tracks and Water Street — was added to the National Register of Historic Places in November 1993.

Andrew Jackson Mullins, who first settled the area in 1894 when he purchased 69 acres, built his farm at the junction of the Guyandotte River and Slab Fork and constructed his family's cabin at the intersection of First Street and Moran Avenue.

Mullins also established a sawmill half-a-mile up Slab Fork. Two years later, he and his neighbors built a one-room school, post office, store and boarding house, creating a small town.

With abundant timber and coal in the area, the Deepwater Railroad obtained right-of-way. By 1906, the railroad ran from Mullens to the Kanawha River.

By 1915, the town was surrounded by booming mining towns, lumber mill communities, and railroad settlements. Multiple fires destroyed many of the downtown buildings in the early 1900s.

"The city of Mullens can trace the construction of numerous commercial buildings and dwellings to one family, Jubal Lee Early, a direct descendant of Confederate General Jubal Anderson Early, and his two sons, Robert Lester Early and Anderson Cabell Early," according to historic documents. The men built mining houses, tipples, company stores and commercial buildings in Mullens.

On March 4, 1904, A. J. Mullins filled out the application for a new post office to be at "Mullins, Wyoming County, West Virginia." The spelling was changed from Mullins to Mullens, with a capital "E" marked over the small "i" on the original post office application filed by A. J. Mullins, according to historian Jack Feller (1922-2013).

During King Coal's reign, Mullens was booming and the Wyoming Hotel, towering over the historic district, offered luxurious accommodations in its 68 guest rooms and an elegant escape in the dining/ball room which could seat up to 250 people.

The posh city landmark hosted historic visitors that reportedly included U.S. Senator John F. Kennedy on his campaign trail to the White House, Franklin Roosevelt Jr., UMWA President John L. Lewis, Major League Baseball great Babe Ruth, World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Jack Dempsey, among numerous senators, congressmen, governors, judges, railroad tycoons, coal barons, and traveling salesmen.

Empty since the mid 1970s, the 70-foot structure now sits in disrepair awaiting a multi-million-dollar renovation.

Designed by acclaimed Bluefield architect Alexander "Alex" Blount Mahood (1888-1970), the five-story structure was built in the form of an "H" near the confluence of the Guyandotte River and Slab Fork Creek.

The brick structure also featured the lobby, five commercial bays, and a bank on the first floor, with a second-story mezzanine that encircled the lobby complete with social rooms, along with a basement.

A variety of businesses were also housed in the hotel through the years, including a coffee shop, drug store, barber shop, beauty salon, shoe repair shop, Wyoming Rent Control Office, and Mullens Credit Bureau.

Just outside Mullens, on W.Va. Rt. 10/16, stands the Itmann Company Store building.

Also designed by Alexander Mahood in 1923, the gigantic facility was constructed by Italian stonemasons.

The land was graded in 1917 in preparation for the project. It was the largest construction project in Wyoming County between 1923 and 1925.

The stone was hand-cut from a nearby cliff, then hauled down the hill and across the Guyandotte River, and finally placed by construction workers.

The isolated mining community and its prominent company store were named for Pocahontas Fuel Company president Isaac T. Mann, shortened to Itmann.

Like company stores throughout southern West Virginia at the time, the Itmann Company Store was the community center. The massive structure housed the company offices, the post office, a poolroom, barber shop, the doctor's office, along with apartments for company employees.

Miners' families bought all their needs — from food and clothing to furniture and caskets — at the company store.

The Itmann Company Store's distinctive exterior boasts an arched loggia between the two main structures, featuring metal railings and seats. The parapeted, half-gable roofed loggia bridges an arched opening over the driveway entry into an open courtyard.

The mine and company store closed in the 1980s, and the structure was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990.

Twin Falls Resort State Park, off W. Va. 97 between Mullens and Pineville, offers visitors plush accommodations in the lodge, a more rustic adventure in the cabins, or, for outdoor purists, there are 50 camp sites.

One of the park's greatest assets are the deer which roam the 4,000 acres. Visitors often get a close look at the animals in their natural habitat from various locations across the park.

Additionally, the park features an 18-hole golf course, a driving range, an 1830s pioneer homestead — still a working farm — nature programs, along with hiking and mountain biking trails that range from a gentle quarter-mile stroll to a three-mile wilderness challenge.

In Pineville, the county courthouse, built in 1916, and adjoining jail building, constructed in 1929, were placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. Built with native stone by Italian stonemasons, the surrounding property also has a statue of Rev. W. H. H. Cook — local Union soldier, statesman, minister — as well as monuments honoring area veterans and Kenny Shadrick, a native son who was one of the first casualties of the Korean War.

The courthouse lobby has been renovated to restore the stone structure to its original historic elegance. Chandeliers replaced the institutional look of the florescent lighting. The original trim was restored on the ceiling, emphasizing the workmanship and architectural details of the original structure.

Pineville also boasts Castle Rock, a 165-foot sandstone rock which towers over the mouth of Rockcastle Creek. The easily identifiable formation was used by Native Americans, scouts and early settlers as a landmark.

The town of Pineville, the county seat, was built where seven Native American trails converged, according to historians.

In the late 1890s, the town was known as Castle Rock. That was changed, however, to match the name given by John W. Cline to the post office. Cline reportedly chose the name Pineville for a nearby forest of pine trees and the Wyoming County court made that name official in 1907.

A Civil War Trails marker, located adjacent to Turkey Ridge Baptist Church, just outside Oceana on W.Va. Rt. 10, immortalizes the romance between Thompson L. Walker, a Confederate soldier held prisoner by the Union Army, and Martilia F. Walker, the 15-year-old daughter of a loyal Unionist. About one month after his prison release, Thompson Walker had made his way from the Union's Maryland prison to the Wyoming County ridge, across the road from the marker's location, where the 15-year-old girl's family farm was located.

She discovered his presence, but didn't tell anyone. She secretly fed and cared for him.

Though they had the same last name, the two were not related. They married Dec. 11, 1866 and had 16 children.

In Oceana, on Rt. 10, the Wyoming County Historical Museum is home to myriad items of historical significance. Hundreds of items have been contributed, or loaned, to the museum, showcasing the area's unrivaled culture and diverse past, encompassing the county's heritage involving coal mining, railroads, timbering, Native Americans, early settlers, among numerous other legacies.

John Cooke, recognized as the county's first settler, built his cabin at the mouth of Laurel Fork, in what is today Oceana, in the late 1790s, according to historians.

Cooke fought in the Revolutionary War and fought against the Indians as a soldier, according to historians.

Near Oceana, on Rt. 971, is Clearfork Valley Golf Course, which stretches across historic land that was once roamed by Native Americans and early White settlers and was first known as the McDonald Plantation.

The plantation was burned to the ground by Union forces during the Civil War. This tragedy is now memorialized with a West Virginia Civil War Trails marker. The marker stands under the flag pole near the golf course restaurant.

In the first half of the 20th century, a large portion of the McDonald land was purchased by businessman Edgar H. Crouch, and the area today is still known as Crouch's Farm.

Bob Crouch, the deceased grandson of Edgar H. Crouch, leased about 60 acres of the farm to the golf course board of directors in 1957 to construct the first nine holes. Bob Crouch's family continues that tradition today.

The 18-hole course is open to the public and draws players from throughout West Virginia as well as Ohio, Kentucky, and other states.

On Rt. 97, toward Hanover, R. D. Bailey Lake was built by the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers as part of a flood-control project. The dam has 17 miles of shoreline with 630 acres of surface.

The dam's random rockfill design is unusual and has drawn visitors from as far as China.

Most dams have a clay core, but clay is hard to find locally and it was too expensive to ship to the site.

The random rockfill dam is a carefully designed mound of closely compacted rock, according to information provided by the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, and this was the first concrete-faced dam built by the Corps.

Constructed in 1974, the dam includes 5.7 million cubic yards of rock, 6.4 million pounds of steel, and 240,000 bags of cement.

It was also one of the first dams on which new laser technology was used. The lasers were used to guide the blade along the concrete face.

Visitors can get a bird's-eye-view of the dam from the Visitor's Center, which sits 365 feet above the lake, on Rt. 52. The center also exhibits information and photos concerning the dam project and its flood control.

Open to boaters year-round, the lake is home to largemouth bass, striped bass, walleye, tiger muskie, catfish, crappie, bluegill, stripers, and panfish.

While two state record-breaking-size bass have been caught in the lake, the project is fast becoming known throughout the country for the trophy bucks which sprint through the lush forests.The county is part of a region with no rifle season, so the hunters can get trophy-size bucks, according to officials.

Seasonal features include picnic facilities, hiking trails, and a 168-site campground stretched over six miles along the Guyandotte River.main story