The Black Knight Country Club was organized in 1929 after Colonel Ernest E. Chilson offered more than 60 acres of Raleigh Coal and Coke Company property for a golf course and clubhouse. While the club itself was funded by sales of stock shares . . . — — Map (db m234724) HM
This bronze, titled "Mortality," is the work of West Virginia sculptor Bill Hopen. His study of a dying tunnel worker eulogizes the many men lying in unmarked graves near Hawk's Tunnel about 30 miles from here. There was no memorial for nearly a . . . — — Map (db m75073) HM
On Industrial Drive just west of Lewis Ritchie Drive, on the right when traveling west.
The airfield once located here was the first major aviation facility in southern West Virginia. Known variously as Skelton Field (for the town of Skelton), Scott Field (for S.A. Scott, President of the New River Coal Company) and most commonly as . . . — — Map (db m212839) HM
On North Vance Drive south of Spring Street, on the right when traveling north.
Here was located the main hangar of the Beckley-Mount Hope Airport (1937-1952). Hangar appears behind the U.S. Navy Aircraft pictured above. Built by Herbert L. Sessler to house the short-lived Beckley Air Transport Corporation. Sessler, a leading . . . — — Map (db m235073) HM
On Neville Street west of Woodlawn Avenue, on the right when traveling west.
Founder of Raleigh County and the City of Beckley. Born in Washington, D.C., he was a West Point graduate, class of 1823, U.S. Artillery officer, and a brigadier general in the Virginia militia 1849-1861. He came to Fayette County (now Raleigh) in . . . — — Map (db m165062) HM
On South Kanawha Street (West Virginia Route 210) east of Massey Street, on the right when traveling east.
Alfred Beckley. Born May 26, 1802. Beckley was a
graduate of West Point and served
in the army 13 years before moving
to present-day Raleigh County in
1836. He pushed formation of the
county and named its seat after his
father. Made . . . — — Map (db m138150) HM
Room for one. From the coal camp in Helen, WV, this one room dwelling dates back to the early 1920s. It was built for and occupied by a single miner or a married miner living away from home while working in the coal mines during a work week. The . . . — — Map (db m86376) HM
On Main Street at North Herbert Street on Main Street.
Created Apr. 4, 1838. Named for John Beckley, clerk of the House of Representatives in terms of Washington, Adams, and Jefferson. General Alfred Beckley, his son, had home, "Park Place", later known as "Wildwood", built here in 1835. — — Map (db m60987) HM
On South Kanawha Street (West Virginia Route 210) at Vale Street and School Street, on the right when traveling west on South Kanawha Street.
Created Apr. 4, 1838. Named for John Beckley, clerk of the House of Representatives in the terms of Washington, Adams, and Jefferson. General Alfred Beckley, his son, had home, “Park Place,” later known as “Wildwood,” built . . . — — Map (db m138131) HM
On Joel L. Smith Drive at Jersey Avenue, on the right when traveling north on Joel L. Smith Drive.
Alfred Beckley built a mill along
Piney Creek (1838-1840) to spur
economic growth on his wilderness
landholdings. Union Commander and future U.S. President Rutherford
B. Hayes visited site in 1862. It
was destroyed in the 1878 flood . . . — — Map (db m138152) HM
On Industrial Drive just west of Lewis Ritchie Drive, on the right when traveling west.
Even before the construction of the airport here in the late 1930s, Raleigh County hosted a variety of air shows and “flying circuses.” Air shows were extremely popular for local coal miners who might never have seen an airplane before. . . . — — Map (db m212842) HM
On South Fayette (West Virginia Route 3) near Mool Avenue, on the right when traveling south.
Born July 4, 1938, in Slab Fork, Withers grew up in Beckley. After nine years of service in the US Navy, he began a successful career in the music industry, recording hit songs “Ain’t No Sunshine” and “Lean on Me.” In his lifetime, he won three . . . — — Map (db m176833) HM
On South Heber Street at Heber Street Cutoff, on the right when traveling south on South Heber Street.
Christopher "Chris" Sarandon was born in Beckley on 24 July 1942. Graduated Woodrow Wilson HS, earned a degree in speech from WVU, and a masters in theatre from Catholic U. of America. Noted stage, motion picture and television actor. Nominated for . . . — — Map (db m230295) HM
On N. Heber Street, on the right when traveling north.
General Alfred Beckley
Founder of our city
John H. McCulloch
Mayor of Beckley 1970-1983
Fireman Steven Horwath
Killed in the line of duty Nov. 24, 1960
Capt. Jon A McBride, U.S.N.
Astronaut-Space shuttle pilot Oct. 5, 1984
Police . . . — — Map (db m165072) HM
On South Kanawha Street (West Virginia Route 210) at Bair Street, on the right when traveling west on South Kanawha Street.
This was a staging area for Confederate troops under the command of Gen. John B. Floyd in the fall of 1861. The 23rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry set camp here on April 18, 1862. — — Map (db m161224) HM
On East Beckley Bypass (Bypass U.S. 19) 0.3 miles north of Pinecrest Industrial Road, on the right when traveling west.
Born February 11, 1904, in Beckley. Meadows, a lawyer, entered public service in 1930. He served as state delegate, county prosecutor and WV Attorney General before becoming a judge of the 10th Circuit in 1942. As governor (1945-49) he oversaw . . . — — Map (db m176834) HM
On Industrial Drive just east of Lewis Ritchie Drive, on the left when traveling west.
Aviation had a long history in Raleigh County before the Beckley-Mount Hope Airport broke ground in 1933. Col. Paul Peck of Hinton is thought to be the first person to land an airplane in Raleigh County, in a field sometime before 1912 – only a . . . — — Map (db m212837) HM
Ernest Earl Chilson was born in
Williamsport, Pennsylvania in August,
1869, the first child of an eventual
nine siblings in a large military family—an upbringing that doubtless
helped prepare him for his success
within a few years as a . . . — — Map (db m233467) HM
On May 12, 1962, Beckley Street Commissioner D. E. Warden, initially in charge of setting up the City's new Exhibition Coal Mine, announced the donation of a dinky locomotive to the project. Dinkies were small locomotives used on short line . . . — — Map (db m161230) HM
Five miles west at Eccles, on April 28, 1914, a gas explosion in No. 5 Mine in the Beckley seam killed 174 miners; another nine died in No. 6 Mine above from blackdamp. On March 8, 1926, 19 died in No. 5. In 1891, Royal Mine on New River was first . . . — — Map (db m60204) HM
Near Laurel Terrace just west of F Street, on the right when traveling west.
In 1814 an injured young man thrown and abandoned by his horse on Piney Creek purportedly carved his own tombstone awaiting death. — — Map (db m177144) HM
On Park Avenue just west of Granville Avenue, on the right when traveling west.
Constructed in late 1903, privately owned and state rented, it housed Beckley's two National Guard units. The facility proved increasingly inadequate. Units relocated to the new Eisenhower Drive armory-field house in October 1941. The first armory . . . — — Map (db m236343) HM
On Prince Street at N. Heber Street, on the right when traveling east on Prince Street.
Dedicated to
veterans of all wars
Raleigh County
American Legion Posts 32, 70, & 169
American Legion Auxiliary units 32 & 70
March 1969 — — Map (db m165075) WM
Shortly after European explorers arrived, permanent settlers began to use the "Indian Path" to enter southern West Virginia. The first permanent settlers arrived at Paint Creek in the early 19th century. Agriculture was the dominant way of life for . . . — — Map (db m75144) HM
Near Armory Drive, 0.1 miles south of South Eisenhower Drive (U.S. 19), on the right when traveling north.
West Virginia Army National Guard Special Forces (Green Berets) were initially headquartered in Beckley in 1959. Detachments were home stationed here 1959-1963 and 1976-1979. — — Map (db m183908) HM
On South Kanawha Street (West Virginia Route 210) at Howe Street, on the left when traveling north on South Kanawha Street.
On this spot in 1842, James Bird Cole built the first residence in Alfred Beckley's 30-acre "paper town." Cole was born in Floyd County, Virginia, circa 1813. A blacksmith, he also established the first business in Beckley. He built his forge and . . . — — Map (db m177088) HM
On Park Avenue just west of Granville Avenue, on the right when traveling west.
Born Charleston, 14 August 1943, relocate to Beckley which he considered home Graduated Woodrow Wilson (1960), attended WVU, received BS U.S. Naval Postgraduate School (1971) Navy pilot in Vietnam (54 combat missions' thereafter served as test . . . — — Map (db m236362) HM
On Woodlawn Avenue close to Park Avenue, on the right when traveling south.
Founded by the charitable Beckley Circle of King's Daughters, which in 1922 opened a temporary hospital downtown while a new facility was built on Park Knoll. It filled a growing need for health care in the county and also provided a nursing . . . — — Map (db m221034) HM
On South Kanawha Street (West Virginia Route 210) north of Howe Street, on the right when traveling north.
Location of the 23rd Mile Tree, the city's first business (James Bird Cole blacksmith forge, 1842-ca. 1865), and the original First Presbyterian Church building (1907-1923). The city purchased the property in 1925, converting the church edifice into . . . — — Map (db m229188) HM
On Marshall Avenue (West Virginia Route 19) at Bailey Avenue, on the left when traveling south on Marshall Avenue.
Established in 1927 by act of the Legislature to provide additional facilities for sufferers from tuberculosis. Opened to the public in 1930. Capacity increased, 1938. Early treatment of the disease is emphasized. Altitude 2350 feet. — — Map (db m109187) HM
On Main Street at South Herber Street, on the left when traveling east on Main Street.
Formed, 1850, from Fayette. Named for Sir Walter Raleigh, who planted the first English colony in America. Beckley, the county seat, was founded by Alfred Beckley, and named for his father, John, first clerk of the House of Representatives. — — Map (db m138154) HM
The county's first mine opened at Royal on the New River in 1891. The Beckley Exhibition Mine, once an actual operating mine, and the dozens of others throughout Raleigh County produced 792,055,155 tons of bituminous coal in the first century of the . . . — — Map (db m161229) HM
In grateful tribute
toward the living
and the dead who
through their valiant
efforts and bitter
sacrifice have made
America great,
is this shrine
dedicated by the
Senior Girl Scouts
of Raleigh County.
Let us hold in
honored memory
those . . . — — Map (db m165069) WM
Captain Sam Antonio (b. Pax, 3 Jan 1916), learned to fly at the Beckley-Mount Hope Airport formerly located here, then became a pilot for Pennsylvania Airlines. He died on 21 May 1943, at the age of 27. Antonio was reportedly on a classified mission . . . — — Map (db m234781) HM
On South Kanawha Street (West Virginia Route 210) at Howe Street, on the right when traveling south on South Kanawha Street.
Worked as a mining engineer before moving to Beckley 1921 and pursuing architecture beginning in 1930. Major projects: Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building, Post Office and Federal Building, Pinecrest Sanitarium, Stratton High School, Mountainair . . . — — Map (db m192494) HM
On South Heber Street south of McCreery Street, on the left when traveling south.
In 1922, State Police Colonel Arnold announced Raleigh County roads were the "chief gateway into the state for the bootlegging fraternity." — — Map (db m203035) HM
On 1st Avenue at Neville Street, on the right when traveling north on 1st Avenue.
During the deadly Spanish influenza pandemic of 1918-19, a special flu hospital operated on this site in the basement of the First Baptist Church. Volunteers, risking their own lives, tended to the plague victims brought in from throughout Raleigh . . . — — Map (db m159733) HM
On S. Eisenhower Drive (U.S. 19), on the right when traveling north.
On October 7, 1939, station WBSP
went live, part of a new shortwave
communication system throughout
the state. Within nine months, in
late-June 1940, Company D occupied
new, state-owned "barracks here.
Partially funded by WPA grants, . . . — — Map (db m165070) HM
On South Fayette Street (West Virginia Route 3) at G Street, on the right when traveling west on South Fayette Street.
Gone are the days of the early 1800s in which African Americans were mainly provided education by missionaries and charitable organizations. The WV legislature passed a bill in 1866 that provided public schools for black students, but revised it in . . . — — Map (db m161232) HM
On South Heber Street, on the left when traveling south.
On 20 August 1900, architect John Price Beckley (Age 26), grandson of county and city founder Alfred Beckley, was engaged in building a house for a prominent Beckley attorney. He and carpenter William E. George (30 y. o.), a friend, were conferring . . . — — Map (db m230297) HM
A reflection of Status Constructed in 1906 in Skelton, WV, the “super’s home” was just that, a three story structure for the mine superintendent to make his home. However, all indications are that Samuel Dixon the mine . . . — — Map (db m86432) HM
On Main Street at S Fayette Street on Main Street.
General Alfred Beckley, founder of the city of Beckley, shows this corner location as land lot 29 on his 1838 map. Reverend Matthew Ellison, founder of the First Baptist Church of Beckley, built his home here in 1850, and his heirs held title to the . . . — — Map (db m60262) HM
Known as the "War Road", the "Hunter's Road", or simply the "Indian Path" by the time European explorers arrived in the 18th century, Paint Creek had long been a route of travel for Native Americans. Delawares, Mingoes, Ottawas, Senecas, . . . — — Map (db m75165) HM
On South Kanawha Streeet (West Virginia Route 210) at Cemetery Street, on the right when traveling south on South Kanawha Streeet.
There are many tales surrounding Ferguson rock, the oldest known landmark in Beckley, Raleigh County. One popular story holds “S. Ferguson” to have been an “old pioneer” who came to grief in 1814 while traveling from Virginia to the Kanawha . . . — — Map (db m177086) HM
On Main Street at North Fayette Street, on the left when traveling east on Main Street.
This city block, laid out by General Alfred Beckley, was the headquarters of Union troops
during the Civil War
Among these troops were two future presidents of the United States:
Rutherford B. Hayes
19th Pres. 1877-1881
William . . . — — Map (db m165079) HM
On Main Street at South Heber Street, on the right when traveling east on Main Street.
An explosion underground at Montcoal in western Raleigh County on April 5th, 2010 took the lives of 29 miners listed below:
Deceased Miners
Carl C Acord, 52, Roof Bolter Operator Jason M. Atkins, 25, Roof Bolter Operator Christopher . . . — — Map (db m138161) HM
On Neville Street at 1st Avenue, on the left when traveling east on Neville Street.
Dedicated to all Police, Fire, & EMS workers, & their families, who in any way gave their time, their effort, & in some cases their life, in serving & protecting the citizens of Beckley & Raleigh County.
The piece of steel on top of this . . . — — Map (db m184249) WM
Built by John Lilly, Sr. in 1835-36, it was the home of Alfred Beckley (1802-88) and Amelia Neville Craig. Son of John Beckley, first clerk of the House of Representatives, he founded the town of Beckley and wrote the bill proposing formation of . . . — — Map (db m76957) HM
On Clear Fork Road at McDowell Hollow Road, on the right when traveling south on Clear Fork Road.
Born in 1823, he moved to Raleigh County in the 1850s where he was a carpenter. A staunch Unionist during the Civil War, he served in
the 7th WV Cavalry until discharged due to ill health. Elected to the House of Delegates in 1863, Dunbar also . . . — — Map (db m186661) HM
