The Thomas W. Harrison House was built circa 1860 for Thomas W. Harrison. Harrison attended West Virginia’s First Constitutional Convention and was the first circuit court judge of Harrison County following the formation of the state. In addition to his law duties and pursuits, Harrison also served as the director of the Merchants Bank. The Thomas W. Harrison Home is a two and a half story square brick building. It is set back rather far from the street and occupies a significant plot of land. Origionally a simple brick farm house on Broad Oaks farm, the facade now features a number of Neo-Classical Revival features, most notably the pedimented portico with a well decorated entablature. A mansard roof suggests Europe’s urban centers. By the early 20th century the building was abandoned until the 1920s when it was acquired and decorated by Jay Edward Long and his wife Anna Shaffer. They occupied the home until 1940, when it was purchased by the family of Louis A. Johnson. Johnson served as United States Secretary of Defense under President Harry Truman from 1949 to 1950.
Completed in 1880, the James Clifford House was the first house built on the north side of East Main Street. James Clifford, an Irish immigrant, commissioned the building as a family home. The distinctive dark red brick used in the structure was kilned directly on the property. The completed house is two stories with a cut stone foundation. The facade is defined by an engaged tower on each side of the building. Each facade bay includes a large vertically oriented window beneath a bracketed entablature. A rounded glass transom over the main entrance mirrors the window arches throughout the structure. Unlike many other Italianate buildings in the Quality Hill Historic District, the James Clifford House was not remodeled to fit a more Neo-Classical Revival style in the early twentieth century. Infamously, the home was the site of the Union Army’s corral during the Civil War. The James Clifford House remained in the Clifford family for many generations, until being sold to the American Legion in the 1970s. The American Legion has maintained the general historical authenticity of the building, though an original two-story wing on the rear was demolished and replaced with a smaller one-story structure.
The Burton Despard House is the oldest extant home in the Quality Hill Historic District, having been completed in 1856. Constructed for Colonel Burton Despard, a prominent lawyer and entrepreneur, the home initially provoked the moniker “Despard’s Folly,” for its location away from the center of town and proximity to an animal corral. Perhaps there was some truth to the name, as Despard was kept awake by the braying of thousands of Union mules during the Civil War. However, the Burton Despard House encouraged others to move to the area and Quality Hill quickly became one of the most prestigious neighborhoods in the area. The Despard Family lived in the house until 1919; it was later purchased by John Davis and Harry and Elizabeth Weaver.
The Abraham Smith Jr. House was finished in 1871, making it one of the oldest houses in the Quality Hill Historic District. Abraham Smith Jr. was a successful businessman in the Clarksburg area. He was a backer for the Clarksburg-Fairmont rail line and owned several coal mines. Smith purchased land for his house from George Bastable, who owned several lots in the area. The two and a half story brick building is executed in a nineteenth century vernacular style with Italianate elements. An elevated coursed ashlar foundation supports the grey painted brick structure. The steeply pitched roof is supported by a dentilled cornice. Palladian style windows allow light entry from every direction. A one-story three-bay porch defines the facade of the home. In addition to Smith, the house was also owned by Louis A. Johnson, President Roosevelt’s assistant secretary of defense and President Truman’s secretary of defense, and Catherine Osborn Goff, relative to many of Clarksburg’s most influential figures. In large part due to the vernacular style of the Abraham Smith Jr. House, it has aged quite well. The home is in good condition and the architectural choices remain in modern aesthetic favor.
The Virgil Highland House was constructed between 1903 and 1905 and is located in the Quality Hill Historic District. Highland hired local architects, Holmboe and Rafferty, to design his Victorian Romanesque styled home. The house resembles a medieval castle as it includes towers, large cut stone blocks, and a porch cornice designed to resemble a crenellated parapet. Virgil Highland was a prominent local figure who contributed to the development of Harrison County and Clarksburg. He was both a politician and a businessman. In addition to serving in area governments, he also owned the Empire National Bank. Today the Virgil Highland House is known locally as “The Castle” and remains a private residence.
In the early 1870s, Nathan J. Coplin purchased this plot of land from John Bassel, who in turn acquired it from the extensive holdings of George Bastable. The Coplin family had been present in the Clarksburg area since the early days of its settlement in the latter half of the eighteenth century. The Coplins were some of the most prolific farmers in the area. In fact, Nathan J. Coplin was the only homeowner in the Quality Hill Historic District to still earn a living from farming when his home was constructed in 1873. The first iteration of the Nathan J. Coplin House was a two and a half story square Italianate structure. The five-bay facade includes a one-story porch supported by Corinthian columns. The dentilled cornice of the porch once matched the gabled roof cornice. This changed between 1911 and 1924 when the home was remodeled to incorporate Colonial Revival elements. Though the renovation was largely well blended with existing elements, the general shape of the structure became rectangular due to an eastern expansion. This led to a noticeably asymmetrical roof and front facade, which both detract slightly from the once symmetrical building. Regardless, the Nathan J. Coplin House remains a historically significant home, both architecturally and for its association with an important Clarksburg family.
The Bastable-Koblegard-Keeley House was built between 1870 and 1872 for George Bastable. It is likely the second oldest house in the Quality Hill Historic District. Bastable, who was associated with the Clarksburg Telegram, purchased this plot and several others in the area from Granville Davisson. The original structure was Victorian Gothic in nature. The two-story brick structure featured a five-bay facade with a one-story porch. A detached second-story porch was capped by a pedimented roof. The home was purchased by John Koblegard in 1881. Koblegard was an incorporator of Clarksburg’s Union National Bank and West Fork Oil and Natural Gas Company. Under Koblegard’s tenure, major renovations between 1911 and 1924 markedly converted the Bastable-Koblegard-Keeley House from Victorian Gothic to distinctly Neo-Classical Revival. The multiple one-bay porches were replaced with a single pedimented three-bay porch supported by four doric columns. The previously symmetrical roof was altered with the addition of a gabled attic space perpendicular to the general flow of the roofline. The brickwork was also painted white to match the clapboard and porch. The home was purchased some time in the twentieth century by a member of Clarksburg’s Keeley family, likely Tom Keeley.
The Robinson Jackson House is one of Clarksburg’s most unique historic homes. The Classical Revival structure with Beaux-Arts detailing was built between 1903 and 1907. It is the only representative of these styles in the Quality Hill Historic District. The two and a half story home was constructed of white painted brick. A deeply projecting porch and second-story balcony is supported by large Ionic columns. Though pediments are common in the area, none are as detailed or ornate as the one on the Robinson-Jackson House. Decorative cartouches and arabesques fill the space under a bracketed cornice. A smaller tympanum over the door echoes the features above on a smaller scale. The mansion was repainted yellow for many years, though it has recently been returned to its original white. Paul W. Robinson paid for the construction of the house. Robinson was vice president of the Union National Bank and had other business interests in town. The site of the home was previously the site of an 1801 mansion known as the John George Jackson House. This earlier building had badly deteriorated and was demolished to make room for the Robinson-Jackson House. The Robinson-Jackson House remained in the Robinson family for several generations, before, through a twist of fate, it was purchased by George Jackson, a descendant of John George Jackson.
The Freeman-Stout House was part of the first wave of building in the Quality Hill District in the early 1870s. It was built circa 1872 for William H. Freeman, brother-in-law to the neighborhood’s first resident, Burton Despard. The two-story structure is T-shaped and Victorian Gothic in style. The home is covered in gray-green clapboard with a simple gable roof. Extensive wood detailing and decoration on the porches and balconies are uniquely impressive for the neighborhood. The Freeman-Stout House has been repainted and refinished several times over the years, though the general shape and style remains faithful to the nineteenth century. As of 1985, the home was owned by Frances Osborn Stout, the granddaughter of William H. Freeman.
The Stealey-Goff-Vance House dates back to 1807, when it was constructed for tanner Jacob Stealey. It is the oldest home in Clarksburg, and likely the oldest building in general. Stealey died in 1841, but the home remained in the family's possession until 1881, when John Stealey sold the property to Nathan Goff Sr., a former member of the West Virginia House of Delegates. Goff's widow remodeled the home around 1891, adding Victorian details such as the gable roof and detailed exterior millwork. During the early twentieth century, the home served as a boarding house and doctor's office before it became the property of Amy Roberts Vance in 1933. When Vance died in 1967, her sons donated the historic home to the Harrison County Historical Society with the stipulation that the property would serve as a headquarters and museum. The historical society offers tours of the home by appointment, as well as special programs at the house throughout the year.
The Nathan Goff Jr. House was built between 1880 and 1883, and belonged to a prominent figure in Clarksburg and the state of West Virginia. Nathan Goff Jr. was the United States District Attorney for West Virginia from 1868 to 1883. He was also the son of Waldo Goff, the owner of the famous local Waldomore home. Nathan Goff Jr. was also responsible for creating the Waldo hotel, named after his father. The Nathan Goff Jf. House was an emblematic example of the Second Empire architectural style. The Goff home was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976, but was delisted in 1994 following the home’s 1993 demolition.
This home was completed in 1914 and designed by architect J. Edward Wood for William Brent Maxwell and his wife Lillie Jarvis Maxwell. The three-story brick Neo-Classical Revival Style home with tile roof. The original balustrades have been lost and the chimneys have been shortened but otherwise the exterior and interior are original. The estate remains in the Maxwell family and has been continuously occupied as a private family residence since construction. A carriage house is located in the left rear and (possibly) Civil War era store building that originally faced Pike Street is in the right rear. When viewed from the rear alley, the old storefront façade is visible including four "L" shaped bolts that held a sign.
This Tour is a Driving or Biking Tour.
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This tour takes users through two centuries of historic Clarksburg homes. Antebellum constructions, residences of famous figures, and architectural masterpieces are just a few of the offerings to be had. Be sure to visit the Clarksburg Visitors’ Bureau for more information about this tour or the city.
