Institution

On February 4, 1845 Doddridge County was created by an act of the Virginia Assembly from sections of Harrison, Lewis, Tyler and Ritchie counties. This newly created county received its name from Philip Doddridge, who was a famous statesman of his time. This is because he traveled the area a great deal. Then again, it is not known if he ever set foot in the area currently known as Doddridge County. Philip Doddridge was born in Bedford County, Pennsylvania on May 17, 1772. He dedicated his life to studying law and eventually settled down in Wellsburg, Virginia. Due to his remarkable debating skills Doddridge was known for being one of the best attorneys in Virginia. He was elected as a member of the House of Representatives in 1829 and served until his death on November 19, 1832.It is known that James Caldwell was the first known landowner in Doddridge County. He acquired 20,000 acres and patented current site of West Union around the year of 1787. He later sold the land to Nathan, Joseph, and William Davis in 1807. After moving to the area, it is said that the name West Union was suggested by Nathan Davis. At this point in history, the town was located near Lewisport, who was attempting to change its name to Union, thus the suggestion of West Union. The majority of the land was sold to Lewis Maxwell, a Virginia Congressman for about 23 cents per acre between the years 1808 and 1810. Nearly a decade later a post office was established in the town and to honor Lewis Maxwell the previous town known as Lewisport still appeared on the maps of the town. On March 14, 1850, West Union was incorporated by the Virginia General Assembly and later by the West Virginia legislature in 1881.With a total 830.03 sq. km of land and water area, Doddridge County, is currently the 2805th largest county equivalent area in the United States.

Current display of Doddridge County Courthouse built in 1904 by Charles Fulton 

A map of West Virginia with Doddridge County highlighted to show the location in comparison to other areas within the state. 

National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form

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The Doddridge County Courthouse can be found in the county's seat of West Union, West Virginia. It was created and designed by J. Charles Fulton, who also designed courthouses in Barbour and Randolph Counties. The structure is known for having a Victorian Romanesque style, which was very popular of the last nineteenth century. The previous courthouse was destroyed by a fire 1898/ 

Doddridge County Courthouse

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The buildings located on this tour show the history of West Union from its foundation to now. All of the buildings have unique history that all mesh with each other. 

On February 4, 1845 Doddridge County was created by an act of the Virginia Assembly from sections of Harrison, Lewis, Tyler and Ritchie counties. This newly created county received its name from Philip Doddridge, who was a famous statesman of his time. This is because he traveled the area a great deal. Then again, it is not known if he ever set foot in the area currently known as Doddridge County.  Philip Doddridge was born in Bedford County, Pennsylvania on May 17, 1772. He dedicated his life to studying law and eventually settled down in Wellsburg, Virginia. Due to his remarkable debating skills Doddridge was known for being one of the best attorneys in Virginia. He was elected as a member of the House of Representatives in 1829 and served until his death on November 19, 1832. It is known that James Caldwell was the first known landowner in Doddridge County. He acquired 20,000 acres and patented current site of West Union around the year of 1787. He later sold the land to Nathan, Joseph, and William Davis in 1807. After moving to the area, it is said that the name West Union was suggested by Nathan Davis. At this point in history, the town was located near Lewisport, who was attempting to change its name to Union, thus the suggestion of West Union.  The majority of the land was sold to Lewis Maxwell, a Virginia Congressman for about 23 cents per acre between the years 1808 and 1810. Nearly a decade later a post office was established in the town and to honor Lewis Maxwell the previous town known as Lewisport still appeared on the maps of the town. On March 14, 1850, West Union was incorporated by the Virginia General Assembly and later by the West Virginia legislature in 1881. With a total 830.03 sq. km of land and water area, Doddridge County, is currently the 2805th largest county equivalent area in the United States.

The owner and namesake of the opera house, Silas P. Smith was believed to have been born in Doddridge County around 1860. He was a jack of all trades and lived in the town of West Union. In 1889 for around $1800, Smith bought the lot adjacent to his house. Although construction did not begin until a decade later, a simple Romanesque style building was eventually completed, and was turned into the Silas P. Smith Opera House. In February of 1900, an ad ran in the local paper, The West Union Record, stating that the new opera house in the small town of West Union, which was not yet completed, would be open to the public on the following Monday. The opening three night engagement at the Silas P. Smith Opera House was performed by R. J. Elwood’s stock company, which after the first night returned numerous times to preform. Sadly, due to lack of funding, the opera house had to limit the engagements that took place there. Events were no longer scheduled after that year, but religious, civic, and school events still took place there.  The Silas P. Smith Opera House changed over the years to fit the needs of the town as they progressed. In 1915, both floors of the house were used as apartments for the glass factory workers until the factory was closed down. Between 1930 and 1936, the 6th through 8th graders of West Union Grade School were housed on the second floor while the first floor was still being used as apartments. In 1958, the opera house was sold through the West Union Bank to Virgil Hall who maintained it as an apartment building. Seven years later, the Doddridge County Library Corporation bought the building for $7000. At first, the Doddridge County Library was only the left side of the first floor while apartments still remained in most of the building. It wasn’t until the library started growing that it expanding through the first floor, using the second floor for storage and library activities. In 2015, the Doddridge County Library outgrew the Silas P. Smith Opera House and was relocated to Marie Street. Now, the building the building has yet to be re-purposed again and remains largely unused.

Built from the bricks of the Doddridge County Courthouse which burnt down in 1898, the Silas P. Smith Opera house was created in 1900. Silas P. Smith was a town staple. He served as postmaster, mayor and publisher of the local newspaper and was very influential in the town. Once the building was built, it was adorned with large bay windows and arches the building shows the architecture of the time. When opened, the opera house was a prominent in West Union. Acts would come in and out bringing with them tourism to the small town. Several decades later, the house was bought by the town and turned into the Doddridge County Public Library in 1965. Since 2015, due to the relocation of the county library, the building has been used as office buildings while the Doddridge County Courthouse gets a renovation. 

Silas P. Smith Opera House

The Doddridge County Historical Society locates unmarked and unprotected historical landmarks and artifacts in Doddridge County and preserve them to the best of their ability. The organization also obtains, records, restores, and promotes Doddridge County history and shares it with the local citizens. All of these efforts of preserving Doddridge County history are used to teach the young adults with hopes that they will&nbsp;become involved in the community and share their history to restore pride into the West Union area.1 Doddrige Count Roots is an affiliation of the Doddridge County Historical Society. Doddridge County Roots provides&nbsp;genealogy to Doddridge and surrounding counties.&nbsp;The Doddridge County Roots&nbsp;project evolved from a simple family tree of the Gaston and Husk families who settled in Doddridge County in the mid-1800s. Over the years, the project&nbsp;has grown to include over 108,000 individuals and encompasses the genealogies of many other families in the region. The family history library in which Doddridge County Roots is located, is frequented by genealogists from around the nation.2&nbsp;

The Doddridge County Historical Society and the Doddridge County museum are both house in the old repurposed Doddridge County Jail. This is a small county museum that showcases artifacts and documents ranging from before Civil War and forward. Doddridge County was the home of J.H. Diss DeBar, the designer of the West Virginia state flag, and a few of his sketches are on display in the museum. A main focus of the Doddridge County Historical Society is genealogy, and they are located in the family history portion of the museum. 

Doddridge County Historical Society, Inc.

In the middle of the 19th century, an architect’s designs were sweeping the nation and becoming a staple in residential buildings. After that, many architects tried recreating his works. The style and design caught the eye of a former B. &amp; O. Railroad attorney name Winfield Scott Stuart. Stuart was born in West Union, West Virginia in 1861. While living his adult years in Doddridge County, he was the leading prosecuting attorney. His wife, Nannie, was a much-respected music and art teacher in the area. Together, they had two children, Don who died at the age of 2 and Jay who became a furniture dealer. When looking for a place to live in Doddridge County with his family, Stuart decided on a house that reflected the movement made famous by Downing. Stuart’s house in West Union shows many characteristics of a typical Queen Anne style residence such has the tall and rounded towers and the large wrap-around porch. And to add a more personal touch, on the flat porch surface in front of the main door are the words "La Don-Juan”, a play on words for the names of the Stuart’s two children. Due to taxes being lower at the time on an unfinished house and difficulties the family was having at the time of residency, the Stuarts never completed their house. The current owner bought it from the couple’s nephew around 1964 and completed the projects that needed to be done. She built the stair balustrade, installed the pocket doors, and added the wood to cover incomplete parts of the entablature. The house has been well-maintained and retains all of the original characteristics that identify it as an elegant turn-of-the-century mansion. Stuart and his wife both died in 1950. Nannie died in February due to an extended illness while W. Scott died of a sudden heart attack in November. Both are buried in a local cemetery in West Union. Even though none of their family still lives in the area, their house still looks over the town and is currently being used as a hub for a local attorney.

Built in 1905 and still standing in the town of West Union today as an attorney building, the W. Scott Stuart house shows an architectural trend that swept the United States in the 1900s. This trend was initiated by a well-known architect named A.J. Downing. The Stuart house, named after the family who lived there for many years, features two very prominent towers on either side as well as a large wrap around porch. This house faces northwest and looks over the downtown portion of West Union casting a shadow of past and present over it. 

W. Scott Stuart House

Named a National Historic Place in 1993, the Lathrop Russell Charter house is one of many historical homes in West Union, WV. Sitting across from the locally famous W. Scott Stuart Mansion, the Charter house looks plain in its shadow, but it provides plenty of history in the town. Built in 1877 as a single-family home with a stone foundation and brick walls on the end of High Street, the Charter house remains unaltered from its original appearance when the Charter family lived in it. The house still boasts its tall and crowned windows as well as its two-story side porch. The house is also located on prominent grounds, sitting on the town of West Union’s highest point. There is also a small house on the property which once housed the city’s surveyor’s office. The current residence uses it as a guest house. Dr. Lathrop Russell Charter, the namesake of the house, was born to a wealthy family in 1816 in Massachusetts. After studying medicine and practicing it in New England, Charter decided to move to West Union, WV. He first lived in West Union alone to set up everything for his family. After a few months, he went back to New England to move his family to West Virginia. In total, it took him three trips to retrieve his family and their belongings. While in West Union, Charter was a travel physician and surgeon. In addition, he also regularly attended the Methodist Episcopal Church, was the 3rd superintendent of schools, mayor, magistrate and an US Pension Examiner. During his life, he accomplished many things professional as well has being a husband and father. Between the two wives he had throughout his life, he fathered 13 children. In between the two wives, it is also said to believe that he fathered a child with an African American slave. On reports of this, it is only said that there was a female born in 1858. On the birth certificate, the date of birth as well as the mother’s name were left blank. In addition, at first, the race of the child was listed as “W”, for white. After a few years, the report was changed and “W” then became “CS” to stand for colored slave. In 1909, Dr. Lathrop Russell Charter passed away. He is buried with his second wife at the Blockhouse Hill Cemetery in West Union. Even though he is gone and most of his legacies have moved away from the small town, his house where he made so many memories and where he did work to better the small community still remains.

Still standing where it was built in 1877, the Charter House stands proud next to many other historical buildings found in the small town of West Union, WV. Since its construction, it has been unaltered from its original Italianate style. It boasts a unique T-shaped floor plan that was enjoyed greatly by Dr. Lathrop Russell Charter and his family who lived in the house for many years and give it its namesake. 

Dr. Lathrop Russell Charter House

&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp; Many residents of Doddridge County have answered the call to
duty and have placed themselves in harm’s way serving the armed forces of the
United States, in both wartime and peacetime.&nbsp;
The patriotism found in Doddridge County is deep rooted and goes back
generations.&nbsp; The Doddridge County Veterans
Memorial and Honor Roll is a unique county monument that honors all veterans,
living and deceased, for their service and sacrifices to secure the freedoms of
these United States of America from WWI to the current War on Terror. &nbsp;The memorial is comprised of several parts,
the most inspiring is the hand-written names of those who have served on the
Honor Roll wall which is encased inside a small brick building and behind glass
for viewing.&nbsp; The original Honor Roll of
Doddridge County was hand painted on a white wooden wall by the Ladies
Auxiliary of veteran’s organizations, listed alphabetically and grouped by war,
with names added as needed.&nbsp; As the wars
of the recent eras have again became abundant, the names of those who have gone
off to war for the United States have again needed to be added and the wall is
beginning to fill.&nbsp; A huge endeavor is
being undertaken by the Doddridge County Heritage Guild and the VFW Post 3408
to create a digital version of the honor wall to also include from WWI –
present day as well as the Civil War and the Spanish-American War when those
names are known to them.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The land that the
Veterans Memorial and the Doddridge County courthouse stands upon was donated
to the county by Nathan Davis, jr. &nbsp;&nbsp;Nathan Davis came to what is now Doddridge
County, West Virginia between 1801-1807.&nbsp;
The first court session in the county happened in his home – where the
courthouse and the Veterans Memorial now stands – which he later left to the
county for the erection of a permanent courthouse.&nbsp; Nathan Davis was a prominent figure in
Doddridge County history and owned most of, if not all the land, in what is now
the county seat of West Union.&nbsp; Nathan
Davis was a mail carrier, militia captain, director of the West Union Academy,
Justice of the Peace, and the Sheriff of Harrison County.&nbsp; 

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; While directly nestled
below the county court house, as well as sitting on a knoll above the main town
and Doddridge county seat of West Union, the memorial provides a powerful
reminder of the rich military history of the citizens of Doddridge County as
well as a place to reflect and meditate over the hundreds of men and women from
this West Virginia county that have served in the United States Armed Services.&nbsp; The wall is a lasting tribute to the heroes
of Doddridge County and with this memorial those who look upon it will be able
to treasure and honor that respect and acknowledgement even after those men and
women have passed.&nbsp; The Doddridge County
Veterans Memorial and Honor Wall show the community and the youth that freedom
is never free and that many from this community came before them to serve so
that they may live free in the United States of America.

Located in front of the Doddridge County Court House, in West Union, WV, stands a memorial, hand made in part, to all those persons who have served in the wars of the United States and were from the county of Doddridge, WV. 

Local Landmarks of West Union

Doddridge County Courthouse

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Backstory and Context

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