How exciting it will be to visit an historic building during the upcoming Parsons Christmas House Tours! The St George Academy, listed on the Register of National Historic Places, will be one of the sites featured this year!
An interview with local historian and President of the St George Academy Preservation Society Marvin E. “Bud” Parsons provided much information about the history of this unique building. Sansome Parsons and William H. Lipscomb, relatives of Parsons, initially owned the property sold the land to the St. George District School Board; bonds were sold to raise $20,000 to build the academy. St George Academy was the first center of higher education in Tucker County.
The academy became incorporated on July 20, 1885. It had a top-notch educational curriculum. The Classics as well as advanced science and math and courses in letters and literature were offered. A dormitory was built across the road from the school which was used to house students who stayed at the school during the week. Unfortunately, the academy only operated for eight years. It could not be predicted that St. George would not remain as the county seat and that demographics would change significantly.
The first graduation class (1890) had three graduates. The last graduation class was just a few years later in 1893 and had two graduates. The academy closed in 1893 and was sold to the Tucker County Board of Education.
The school is a stately two-story building that was moved in the 20th Century. The academy was located too close to the newer school in St. George according to WV Board of Education guidelines, and it became apparent that the choices were to raze the academy or move it. Tucker County Historical member Freda Parsons gave the land to set the school on. Robert Phillips, President of the Historical Society at one time, and his family members helped move the school to its present location.
In 1985, the flood devastated and destroyed many homes and buildings; however, the St. George Academy building continued to stand.
Today the Academy is used as a museum. It is open on most Sundays in May through October from noon until 4:00. Other times it is open by request. The Society continues to solicit funds to keep the Academy in good condition. Presently, the society members are selling cookie jars which can be purchased with donations to assist in the maintenance of the building.
Bud and Jane Parsons and residents of St. George have been busy decorating the Academy for the tour. Those of us who visit will be able to feel like we are stepping back in time as there are some artifacts of the 1890s that will be on display also. According to Parsons, “we have some items on display that people will want to see.”
The Parsons Christmas House Tours will be held on Friday, December 1 from 5-9:30. Tickets are $5 if purchased in advance, and $7 at the door of any of the six sites. The Parsons Revitalization Organization is pleased to provide this early glimpse of “a Hallmark Christmas” in Parsons. Citizens Bank and Mountain Valley Bank are sponsors of this event.
The final featured location on the Parsons Christmas House Tours is the home of Pricilla Flanagan in St. George. Following is a description and history of this wonderful home and it’s owners, wrtiien by it’s current owner, Pricilla.
In 1884, Rufus Maxwell, then prosecuting attorney for Tucker County, bought the property on which Priscilla’s house stands. It was previously owned by Rosenbergers, and there was another house a few hundred yards to the west of the present one. The Maxwells (Rufus and/or his son, Wilson) began constructing the house in 1884, and it was finished in 1886.
There is some question as to whether an architect was involved, but no record of one is found. The Maxwells were all brilliant and well-educated, so it was certainly within their scope of knowledge to design such a home with so many practical environmental aspects. The orientation of the house is great with the front of the house facing northeast, giving a bit of sun in the morning; then the sunshine travels around the music room; the living room has sunshine nearly all day from the east and the south. The kitchen and dining room get the setting sun. The windows are large (all 36 of them) and deep porches allows winter warmth from the sunlight but keeps out the high summer sun. Originally there was no kitchen in the house. The present one was then the dining room, and the present dining room was the parlor. A 20 x 60 foot servants’ quarters set where the present shop is now located. It had three chimneys and was well-furnished, stocked and comfortable. All food was prepared there and carried to the dining room via a covered board walk. (In fact, a board walk went straight through to St. George.)
The design of the house is called “Italianate Four Square.” A ten-foot-wide hallway divides four 12 x 18 foot rooms. The same layout exists on the second floor. Each room was heated separately. Doors to the hallway were normally kept closed and, with ten-foot ceilings, the heat of summer would rise and circulate through open transom windows over each door, thus helping maintain a comfortable temperature using convection.
In 1893, because the county seat was moved to Parsons, the Maxwells had no reason to stay in St. George. State Route 72 had not been built, so the trip to Parsons via Holly Meadows Road took a great deal of time. It is also possible that they were a bit miffed at Ward Parsons et al for illegally removing the records and bell from the courthouse even though the people voted more than once to keep it in St. George and an appeal had failed. The Maxwells moved to Elkins. Still in the 21st century, the Maxwell family contains many lawyers and judges. Will E. Cupp, the Tucker County Sheriff at the time, purchased the house from Maxwells. The next resident was his daughter, Marie Cupp Nestor and then her son, Woodrow Nestor was the next owner. It is now owned by his daughter, Priscilla Nestor Flanagan.
Because the house now has central heating and air-conditioning, all the first-floor interior doors have been removed. A little addition with a downstairs bath was added where the original porch existed, and a new porch was added. St. George was quite modern in 1884-86, and many homes and street lamps were lit with gas. This house had gas lights, gas heat, and a bathroom. When they were invented, it also had a gas refrigerator.
Both exterior and interior walls are built on stone foundations and contain rough-sawn 20-foot boards which go from the foundation to the eaves/attic. Another layer of boards is angled across the upright ones forming double-layered walls over three inches thick and covered on each side with wood lath and plaster.
Jim Flanagan enlarged the music room door to a ten-foot doorway, fabricated frames and facings to match the original and used the old float glass from replaced windows over the opening so as to keep the architectural integrity intact.
The furnishings are mixed: Many, original to the Cupp family, remain. There are a couple antique beds—one in a suite with a wardrobe and marble-top dresser and wash stand. Another is the iron bed which belonged to Mary Mayer Cupp and is now found in the bedroom where little Ella (presently the youngest granddaughter) sleeps when visiting from Las Vegas. That room also contains an intricately pieced and elaborately quilted antique quilt, Ella’s inherited Madame Alexander Dolls as well as her personal microphone for talking to the North Pole. A “Crazy Quilt” (circa 1880) hangs on the wall in the upstairs hallway, and the companion bolster cover is displayed on a quilt rack with other old quilts. The crazy quilt includes many beautiful fabrics and every embroidery stitch known at the time.
The Christmas House Tours are on Friday, December first from 5 to 9:30pm. Advance tickets may be purchased at Shop N’ Save and City Hall in Parsons and at the Davis Visitor’s Center for $5. Tickets at the door of each location may be purchased the evening of the tour beginning at 5pm for $7. The ticket gets you into all 6 locations. Participants may do the self guided tour in any order they choose. Carpooling is recommended. An item will be raffled off at each location. Those tickets are one dollar each or 6 for $5, so you may want to bring some extra cash. All locations and directions are listed on each ticket. “Google Maps” works well for the addresses listed. So come and get into the Christmas Spirit by joining in on the Parsons Christmas House Tours!
