Director

There are several houses in the historic “Country Club Hill” section that were designed by famed architect, Alex Mahood, including this Mediterranean-style home. Built in 1920 for L.G. Toney, this stately home has a unique feature. It has a monogram. If one looks carefully, you can see the letter “T” on the downspout of each side of the home. The home originally had quarters for the family’s maid and butler. Over the past century, there have only been four families who owned the home. Dr. Richard Shanklin, a prominent Bluefield physician, purchased the home in 1946. It was passed on to his son, Dr. James Shanklin, and the home remained in the family until 1991.

Website

Country Club Hill Mediterranean House 

This driving tour features only a sample of the 250 listings on the National Register of Historic Places. Many of the homes were designed by architect Alex B. Mahood (1888-1970).  He was trained at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris where he brought back the styles prevalent in Europe at the time. To have a professional of this caliber, concentrating his talents in Bluefield and Southern West Virginia, is amazing.

Most of the residents of these grand homes were bank presidents, architects, mine operators and owners, contractors, & merchants who shaped the destiny of Bluefield.  They were connected through the West Virginia Cole Realty Corporation in the development of downtown Bluefield and helped our population grow to 19,330 in 1930, greater than its present population.  Bluefield was booming and the Norfolk & Western Railroad line was shipping out coal from the Pocahontas Coal fields, one of the richest coal deposits ever discovered.

Despite some additions and renovations to the property in 1970, the Easley House in Bluefield, WV remains an excellent example of Tudor Revival architecture. Also known as "The Breezes," the home was designed by architect Alex Mahood in 1919 and construction was completed by 1922. Mahood himself was a significant figure in the development of Bluefield. He was already a prominent figure in the state by the time he moved to the city in 1912. The West Virginia Hotel is another of his more notable projects. Born in Virginia, Mahood went on to study in Paris where he would have largely learned Renaissance and Classical Revival styles. The Easley home is a unique example of Mahood's work as he did not frequently design homes in the Tudor Revival style.   At the time of the home's construction, Bluefield was in the midst of a development boom. This growth was spurred in part by Mahood's work and an economic upturn in the area. The neighborhood in which the Easley home was built was one of the fastest growing areas at the time. A country club was also being developed nearby and is indicative of the wealthy residents who were moving to southern Bluefield. The home was one of many lavish structures to be built at the time.   The Easley family was headed by the wealthy Frank Smoot Easley. The Easley family moved to the area in the late 1800s when Frank still lived with his parents. He was a graduate of the WV State Normal School in what is now Concord. After finished school, Easley spent many years working as a manager for the American Smelting and Refining Co. and later Pocahontas Fuel Co.'s coke department. Relocating to Bluefield, Easley took a management position in Bluefield Coal and Coke Co. and eventually became president of the company. Easley was a well-known contributor to the Bluefield community. He served on committees for a variety of groups including Bluefield College, the Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club, Country Club, and several transportation committees. Like Mahood, Easley was also involved in the regions developmental boom and helped bring to life the West Virginia Hotel and Bluefield College.   The Easley home was built for Easley and his family after he had obtained his fortune. The home was nominated to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. Over the years, the home has remained the property of the Easley family. The Easley Bridge on US Route 52 is also named for Frank Easley.

This beautiful stone Tudor Revival home has the distinction of always being owned by the same family. Built for Frank Smoot Easley, this 1919 Alex Mahood design has been known as “The Breezes,” because there is always a breeze, thanks to the many angles of the design. Mr. Easley was president of Bluefield’s Coal and Coke Company. He was also an active member of the West Virginia Turnpike Commission. The bridge that extends from Cherry Street to Bluefield State University was named for Frank S. Easley.A beautiful bird is associated with this historic property. At one time, more than 25 peacocks roamed the property. The stone for the first two floors was extracted from the site of Bluefield University, before the campus had been established. Italian stone masons from McDowell County hauled 90 wagonloads of stone as they built one of the grandest homes on College Avenue. The stone for the third floor came from the hillside behind the house.The story is told that Mrs. Frank Easley’s father, Walker Wilson Tyler, saw an auction listing in the New York Times for furniture for sale, imported from England. Easley purchased the collection and had it shipped to Lynchburg for his new wife, Ellen Rucker Tyler. The beautiful furniture was later given to Frank and Elizabeth Easley and brought to Bluefield.The house has five bedrooms, seven bathrooms, and several closets that “put every angle to use.” For four generations, the Easley family has always had a long association with Bluefield College, now Bluefield University. The campus library is named The Easley Library.

Easley House

The Spanish Colonial Revival house was designed by Alex Mahood and built in 1924 for W.A. Bodell, owner of West Virginia Heating and Plumbing Company. This business served a three state area. Bodell was also president of Acme Motor Company. Perhaps one of Bluefield’s most accomplished Mediterranean-inspired mansions, the blond brick exterior is complemented with the original red tile roof. A particularly handsome loggia centers the facade, through the Ionic capital of its single column. This grand home is very much a part of the Bluefield Country Club Hill Historic District, with a number of homes designed by the prominent Bluefield architect.

Spanish Colonial Revival

This beautiful white stucco house was built in 1919 for West Virginia State Senator D.E. French. Senator French was an attorney and President of First National Bank of Keystone. His family of five children enjoyed the beauty of this Greek Revival home with its Corinthian columns. Only four families have owned this beautiful home. Situated on two acres of land, there is a copper beech tree in the back of the home that was planted when the house was completed. Today, it stands over three stories tall.A photograph of one of the French daughter's beside the young tree is displayed in the home today. To this day, the back garden features a bench and sundial that are also pictured in that photograph from the 1920s of the French girls overlooking the rolling hills behind the home that was once the Bluefield Country Club Golf Course.Alex Mahood was the architect of this handsome home..

Greek Revival House 

It’s time to mention another talented Bluefield architect, Robert Sheffey. Built in 1920, this Federal style house is associated with the family of Robert H. Moore, an officer of the Jewel Ridge Coal Company. The Moore family lived in this wood frame home from 1926 to 1981. Mrs. Moore was involved in a number of charities, and she and Mrs. James M. Godwin started the Bible In The Schools program in 1939.Neighborhood boys, including John Nash, recall the flat, large yard where they would play – but one knew not to mess with Mrs. Moore’s young maple trees, two of which still stand today. In 1930, a Music Room with an arched ceiling was added. Whereas the main house has all oak flooring, the Music Room has maple, more suitable for dances.The house has always been white. In times past, there were buzzers in the upstairs bedrooms and under the dining room floor to call the servants.

Federal Style House 

Known as Alex Mahood’s masterpiece, the Garrett house was constructed in 1915. Set atop a hillside, the Georgian Revival mansion with its ornate portico was the perfect place to view the budding of South Bluefield’s growing neighborhoods. Interestingly enough, the original plans called for a squared front porch, rather than the beautiful curved one seen today.The Feuchtenberger family lived at Spring Grove the longest of any family so far, almost 30 years. The Tierney family had also been previous owners of this grand home of South Bluefield. Local Bluefield attorney and historian, John W. Feuchtenberger, who grew up in this house, fondly recalls,“‘This porch was the site as well as the spacious yard for numerous festive occasions, some parties of which will be remembered for rocking the city of Bluefield into the wee hours of the morning.”

Garrett House 

This beautiful brick home was built to serve as the “town home” for someone who was fortunate enough to have a home in the country and the city. The owner, David H. Barger, originally from Blacksburg, VA, was known as “Captain Barger” for his leadership in the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad. Captain Barger is the man credited for having “built Matoaka” West Virginia. He was president of the Bank of Matoaka, and there is a Barger Street in Matoaka. There are two interesting stories about the brick of this grand home. Most brick homes would have one layer of brick. Some might have two layers of brick, and if so, the second layer would probably be just on the front side of the residence. This grand home has three layers of brick on all sides. The story is told by neighbors that when the bricks arrived for the construction that each separate brick was wrapped in tissue paper.When the house was built in 1916, it had every modern convenience, including a central vacuum system. In previous eras, this home was noted for its elaborate awnings. It has a magnificent open staircase with a stained glass window at the landing. Recent owners have installed an elevator to access all four levels of the home

Captain Barger's home 

This beautiful pink stucco home is just a bit different from the typical Bluefield homes built in the 1920s. It was built in 1926 for Edgar S. Pedigo. The architectural style is Mediterranean Revival. The house enjoys the distinction of being the home of a West Virginia political dynasty for John and Elizabeth Kee, long-time owners of the home. Between the husband and wife and son, the Kee family controlled the Mountain State’s Fifth Congressional seat for 40 years. Elizabeth Kee was the first woman elected to Congress from WV.

Mediterranean Revival House 

This beauty may very well be the first home built in this part of South Bluefield. The story is told that the “untouched wilderness,” from Oakhurst to Cumberland Road was just one big field, and for sale for $28,000 in the early 1900s. We don’t know of anyone who purchased the entire area. Likely, it was divided into smaller parcels.Two brothers are a part of Bluefield’s history, Walter Sanders, who owned farmland that ran to the Virginia state line. The red brick Victorian farmhouse, The Sanders’ House, is part of his legacy. His brother, Judge Joseph M. Sanders was elected as Bluefield’s second mayor in 1891. He was one of the five men who signed the document to incorporate Bluefield as a city in 1889. This was his home.This Robert Sheffey design may be the largest Four Square home in the state. If you include the original third floor ballroom, the nine bedroom house is 8,500 square feet. Because some of the interior woodwork was sourced from the property, this house has been known as “The Oaks.” Pocket doors may feature oak on one side and cherry on the other. It boasts the original slate roof from 1908.An interesting story is told that Dr. Richard O. Rogers, well-known physician who was one of the founding doctors of Bluefield Sanitarium, wanted a larger home. His 1300 Whitethorn Street home of 2,250 square feet may be the smallest house that Alex Mahood designed. Dr. Rogers wanted a larger home, and Judge Sanders wanted a smaller home, so they purchased each other’s homes -- with a difference of about 6,000 square feet.

The Oaks 

Alex Mahood designed this large Colonial Revival style house for John T. Wilson, president, and treasurer of Winco Block Coal Company. It was built in 1926.

Colonial Revival House

The picturesque Neo-Classical style Arthur Kingdon house was designed by Alex Mahood and built in 1928. Arthur Kingdon, an attorney, and stockholder in the West Virginia Coal Realty Company, built and occupied many of the most beautiful homes in Bluefield. Walter C. Shunk, a coal operator, later owned the house.

 Neo-Classical Style House

In 1922, this Alex Mahood Colonial Revival home was completed for Arthur Kingdon, a self-taught attorney from London. Mr. Kingdon quickly realized that working with the talented architect was indeed a delight. Six years later, his second home, right across the street, 618 Mountain View, was another outstanding design by the Paris-trained talented architect, Alex Mahood.His first Bluefield home was on Groveland Avenue. Interestingly enough, each of the three homes featured a backyard pond. Kingdon would later relocate to be near even more water, as he moved to a cabin by Wolf Creek. Lawrence E. Tierney, Jr., a graduate of Yale, purchased the home in 1940. It was owned by the family for more than 80 years.Mr. Tierney founded and served as president of Flat Top National Bank, Bluefield, WV. He was an advisor to Presidents Truman, Kennedy, and Johnson. Presidential candidate John F. Kennedy stayed with the Tierney’s when he was campaigning in southern West Virginia.

Colonial Revival House 

There are three wonderful stories associated with the beginnings of this Tudor Revival style home. Its design is based on an English castle. The owner had it built to persuade his new bride to move to Bluefield, WV. There are bits of coal dust in some of the bricks.This 1925 home is known as the Cooper House.The Cooper family was among the region's leading coal entrepreneurs. The builder's grandfather was one of the earliest investors in the Pocahontas coalfield, and his father built one of the great mansions in nearby Bramwell, WV. That mansion is also known as the Cooper House. One fascinating architectural detail – when a new house was being built, if the architects wanted it to have an established, aged look from the beginning, they would use “clinker” bricks. These jagged, rough bricks would generally be discarded in most designs; but in a Tudor house like this, these clinker bricks would give it an historic flair from the very beginning.The original home was completed at a price of $28,000. The family crest is featured above the front entrance of this impressive South Bluefield home.

Tudor Revival 

There is one source that credits this home to Robert Sheffey, also a well-known Bluefield architect, second only to Alex Mahood. The Sydney Kwass house was built in 1935, and one reference cites that this bold design “acts as an architectural challenge to its period revival neighbors.” The brick house has always been painted white. With its distinct horizontal brick, corner casement windows, flat roof, and three round porthole windows, it is said to have been inspired by a model house at the Century of Progress Exposition at the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair. According to one story, Kwass, a successful Bluefield attorney and respected man in the community, was denied a loan from a local bank because of the radical design of the home. This unique home is sometimes referred to as “The Boat House.”

The Boat House 

The stately Mitchell house has graced Albemarle Street since its construction in 1915. Designed by architect John Kingsbury, the house was originally owned by Michael S. Stupalsky, businessman and Bluefield city treasurer. H. Milnor Mitchell, president of Bluefield Bottling Company later purchased the property.

Bluefield Historical Home Driving Tour

Country Club Hill Mediterranean House

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Additional Information