Feats of Architecture

Feats of Architecture and Civil Engineering in the Hills of West Virginia

Lowell Cerbone

As a state that ranks #47 in economy and #50 in infrastructure, it might come as a surprise that the state of rolling mountains hosts some of the United States’ best examples of historic architecture and construction. In the media, West Virginia often gets a bad reputation as a state ravaged by the opioid epidemic, represented by a controversial senator, and denounced by celebrities as home to a population that is “poor, illiterate, and strung out”. While we shouldn’t ignore the state’s overrun foster system, suffering public school system, and generally poor economic status, let us also appreciate a few of its better attractions: a grand B&O railroad station in Grafton, a historic suspension bridge in Wheeling, and the incredible Palace of Gold in Moundsville.

On Main Street in Grafton, West Virginia, a town of just under 5,000 people, there sit two gems of architectural design. The B&O railroad station and the adjacent Willard Hotel are great examples of Beaux Arts architecture, the architectural style taught by the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, France, particularly in the mid- to late-19th century. Both structures sit on a slope that runs along the B&O railroad station and are faced with red brick and terra cotta trim. The station rises two stories on Main Street and three on the track, while the hotel rises five and one-half stories on Main Street and six and one-half on the track. The station features six white columns which surround its three main entrances, a massive entablature that sits atop the columns, and a parapet curve which contains a garlanded cartouche with the B&O logo. The hotel features a mansard roof with dormers that have been altered and a panel inscribed with the name of a prominent lawyer and entrepreneur of the area, John T. McGraw. Maurice Alvin Long designed both structures while employed in the railroad’s engineering office to be built in 1910.

In Wheeling, West Virginia, home to approximately 27,000 people, lives a bridge that was the first longspan wire-cable suspension bridge in the country and first bridge to span the Ohio River. The Wheeling Suspension Bridge was first built in 1849, destroyed by a tornado five years later, and rebuilt in 1856. The 1,010-foot bridge is supported by twelve iron cables suspended from its towers. The cables are anchored to masonry walls built under Wheeling’s Main Street and rest on cast iron rollers that adapt to changes in temperature or transitory loads. This historic structure was designed by architects Charles Ellet Jr. and Washington Roebling. The bridge still serves as an example of pre-1900 bridge construction and is the oldest vehicular suspension bridge still in operation in the world.

Perhaps most surprising is the Indian palace, glittering gold against a backdrop of forested hills and farmlands in Moundsville, West Virginia, which earned its spot as one of CNN’s “8 Religious Wonders to See in the US.” The temple features 30 stained glass windows, 4 royal peacock windows, murals depicting ancient Indian classics, and walls and pillars accented with semi-precious stones and 22-karat gold leaf. The interior is lined with 24 pillars topped with sculpted lions, its walls are hung with oversized works of art, and its ceilings are adorned with crystal chandeliers and mirrored ceilings. Surrounding the temple are the award-winning Palace Rose Garden which features more than 150 varieties of roses; the Garden of Time which displays a variety of geraniums, marigolds, zinnias, salvias, and dahlias; and the Lotus Pond which attracts several swans. The highly-ornamented structure creates a beautiful contrast between the rugged simplicity of rural West Virginia and an opulent palace of material beauty. The palace was built by devotees in 1973 to serve as a home for Srila Prabhupada, an Indian Gaudiya Vaishnava guru and foremost Vedic scholar, translator, and teacher of the modern era. The devotees did the work themselves without any architectural design experience and often learned on the job.

Grafton’s B&O railroad station’s French architecture style that is rarely found in the US, Wheeling’s suspension bridge which stands as the last of its kind in the world, and Moundsville’s Palace of Gold built entirely by untrained workers are just a few of the many hidden gems in West Virginia. The too-often underrepresented state’s mountains are decorated with historic community centers, grand hotels, and relics of West Virginia’s once-booming manufacturing industry. Let West Virginia serve as a reminder that brilliant feats of architectural design can be found in the most unexpected places.

February 12, 2023

Works Cited

Chamber, S. (2019, June 17). B&O Railroad Station and hotel. SAH ARCHIPEDIA. https://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/WV-01-TA1

Ferrell, J. (2022, March 15). Uncover this peaceful palace in an unexpected place. Almost Heaven - West Virginia. https://wvtourism.com/palace-gold-moundsville/ Srila Prabhupada. Palace of Gold. (2021). https://www.palaceofgold.com/srila-prabhupada

Wheeling suspension bridge. ASCE American Society of Civil Engineers. (2022). https://www.asce.org/about-civil-engineering/history-and-heritage/historic-landmarks/ wheeling-suspension-bridge