E.B. Hawkins House

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

The E.B. Hawkins home in Fayetteville, West Virginia was established in 1905 and includes large porches, gambrel roofs, extensive shingle-work, and grand interior stairway added in 1925. Among the interior details, its dining room walls feature a continuous hand-painted wallpaper. The property includes a guest house, garage, barn and second home, on a large grassy lot. Hawkins was an influential politician who served as mayor, county clerk, and sheriff of Fayette County. The residence operated as the Historic White Horse Inn Bed & Breakfast in the early 2000s. Of local significance, the house was built by a wealthy politician and occupied through the years by socially prominent citizens of the community.

Images

The Hawkins House from the road.

View of the E.B. Hawkins house from the front yard.

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

The Hawkins House holds local significance because it has survived as one of the county’s primary architectural landmarks and because E.B. Hawkins was elected to important local offices. Hawkins was the mayor of Fayetteville in 1883, and Hawkins was the Clerk of Fayette County from 1885 to 1897. Hawkins was Sheriff of Fayette County from 1905 to 1909 and built the home while he was serving his term as sheriff. The home remained under his ownership until 1919.

In 1920, Dr. J.E. Coleman, founder of the Fayette Hospital, chose the Hawkins House as a location to fulfill a government contract to provide hospitalization for soldiers who had contracted tuberculosis during World War I. However, Dr. Coleman ran into unexpected opposition from the citizens of Fayetteville when they learned of his plans. Their fear of the spread of tuberculosis from the hospital forced Dr. Coleman to agree to resell the property if a buyer could be found. In July 1920, a concerned group of citizens from Fayetteville purchased the property from Dr. Coleman and later sold it to coal operator V.S. Veasey, who used the home as a summer residence.

During the late 1920s, the Veasey’s sold the property to a local judge, C.W. Dillion. In the late 1930s, Judge Dillon’s death caused the house to be put on the market again. The house stood empty for 7 years until it was purchased by William Ballard in 1941. The wife of William Ballard was voted West Virginia’s Mother of the Year during the 1970s. During this same decade, both Mr. and Mrs. Ballard passed way. The house was then transferred to one of their heirs who lived in the house until 1983. The house stood empty from 1983 until 1988 when the Voslers purchased the property.

The E.B. Hawkins home was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 18, 1990. Today, the home serves as a local bed and breakfast called the Historic White Horse Inn Bed & Breakfast.

Sources

"E.B. Hawkins House." West Virginia Explorer. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 May 2017. <https://wvexplorer.com/attractions/historic-landmarks/e-b-hawkins-house/>.

Revolvy, LLC. ""E. B. Hawkins House" on Revolvy.com." All Revolvy Quizzes. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 May 2017. <https://www.revolvy.com/main/index.php?s=E. B. Hawkins House>.

E. B. Hawkins House, Historic Places. November 3rd 2018. Accessed October 19th 2019. https://historicplaces.net/monument/e-b-Hawkins-house-fayetteville-west-virginia/AODkwMDIzMTk=/.

E. B. Hawksins House National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, WV Culture. Accessed October 19th 2019. http://www.wvculture.org/shpo/nr/pdf/fayette/89002319.pdf.