Harner Homestead | |
 The Harner Homestead | |
   | |
| Location | Morgantown, West Virginia |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°37′26″N79°55′14″W / 39.62389°N 79.92056°W Coordinates: 39°37′26″N79°55′14″W / 39.62389°N 79.92056°W |
| Built | 1852 |
| NRHP reference No. | 84003629 [1] |
| Added to NRHP | January 12, 1984 |
The Harner Homestead (also known as the Old Harner Homestead), is a historic home outside Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia.
Located at 1818 Listravia, in the Sabraton area, east of Morgantown, it served as the home of Philip William Harner, blacksmith and farmer. In 1983, Nancy Moore and Deloras Fleming, two women from the History Department of West Virginia University compiled information and submitted documentation to place the Old Harner Homestead on the National Register of Historic Places. The form gives highly detailed information about the exterior and interior of the home, i.e. the woodwork, porches, cabinets, and chimneys. [2]
The main section of the building was built about 1852 and is one of the oldest houses in the Morgantown area. Architecturally, it is an excellent example of an I-house with an ell in the back. The two story front porch is a common feature in the I-house. It is not known when the ell was added, but it is believed that it was built by Phillip William Harner as he had a large family of nine children who are listed on various census reports. [2]
According to the Monongalia County tax records, there is some indication that there was a smaller house on the land when Philip Harner bought it in 1850. Following the trail of early tax records the land was called the Costolo Place; a Samuel Costolo had owned it in 1839 then sold it to James Johnson who sold it to Caleb Dorsey. Dorsey sold it to Harner in 1859. The Harners farmed the land. Much of the Harner property was divided among his sons before his death, [3] but provisions for his wife and the house is mentioned in his will. [4]
Philip Harner was taxed for a building assessed for $200 in the tax year 1851. [5] The following year, a notation on the tax record states that $2000 was added for the buildings. [6] The farm consistently appeared on the tax records as being located two miles (3 km) east of the courthouse. Many other Harner names appear on the deeds and old maps for this part of the county. [7] [8]
Philip and Sarah Harner sold the house and 111 7/8 acres on August 14, 1888, to their son, William T.(Taylor)Harner for $3356.25. The deed includes personal considerations for the elder Harners until their deaths: the use of five rooms, the garden and two cows. William and Nancy Harner sold approximately 100 acres (0.40 km2) to George Sturgiss for $20,000 on July 10, 1902. Harner asked that he and his family be able to live in the house until November, 1902, presumably until the house he was building next door was finished. William kept 1-acre (4,000 m2) directly adjacent to the family house and shortly after 1902 built several houses. The house was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on January 12, 1984. [1]
Morgantown is the county seat of Monongalia County, West Virginia, United States, situated along the Monongahela River. West Virginia University is in the city. The population was 30,712 at the 2020 Census Bureau, making Morgantown the largest city in North-Central West Virginia. The Morgantown metropolitan area has a population of 138,176.
Colonel Zackquill Morgan was the son of Welsh-born Colonel Morgan Morgan and Catherine Garretson, the first known white settlers in what would become the U.S. state of West Virginia. He was born in Orange [now Berkeley] County, [West] Virginia, in 1735. Zackquill Morgan founded Morgantown, West Virginia in Monongalia County, where he died at sixty years old on New Year's Day in 1795 and was buried in the cemetery at Prickett's Fort. The grave was "marked by rough native sandstone slab, on which was crudely chiseled the simple lettering, Z. M. Jan. 1, 1795."
Waitman Thomas Willey was an American lawyer and politician from Morgantown, West Virginia. One of the founders of the state of West Virginia during the American Civil War, he served in the United States Senate representing first the Restored Government of Virginia and became one of the new state of West Virginia's first two Senators. He is one of only two people in U.S. History to represent more than one state in the U.S. Senate, the other being James Shields.
Moses Pierce Kinkaid was a member of the United States House of Representatives from the state of Nebraska. He was the sponsor of the 1904 Kinkaid Land Act, which allowed homesteaders to claim up to 640 acres (260 ha) of government land in western Nebraska.
Ridgedale is a 19th-century Greek Revival plantation house and farm on a plateau overlooking the South Branch Potomac River north of Romney, West Virginia, United States. The populated area adjacent to Washington Bottom Farm is known as Ridgedale. The farm is connected to West Virginia Route 28 via Washington Bottom Road.
The Reynolds Homestead, also known as Rock Spring Plantation, is a slave plantation turned historical site on Homestead Lane in Critz, Virginia. First developed in 1814 by slaveowner Abraham Reynolds, it was the primary home of R. J. Reynolds (1850-1918), slaveowner, founder of the R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company, and the first major marketer of the cigarette. Upon liberation of the plantation in 1863, 88 people were freed from captivity and enslavement. It was later designated a National Historic Landmark in 1977. The homestead is currently an outreach facility of Virginia Tech, serving as a regional cultural center. The house is open for tours.
Cool Spring Farm — also known as Rockdale Spring Farm and Torytown — was a wilderness estate settled by Colonel Morgan Morgan (1688-1766), long celebrated as the first permanent European settler in what would become West Virginia. The Welsh-born Morgan was granted 1,000 acres (4.0 km2) here in 1735, but he is believed to have first settled there in 1731. Recent research indicates that Morgan's settlement was not the first, but was preceded by a German settlement at what became "New Mecklinberg", possibly as early as 1726.
Walters House, also as known as the Walters Residence, is a historic home located in Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia. It was built about 1900–1901, and is a brick Queen Anne style brick dwelling. It features a three-story tower in the southeast corner topped with a wrought-iron balustrade. The architect is unknown. It was a single family home until 1931, after which it was a boarding house, fraternity house, home of the University Christian Council, and law offices. It is currently the location of the Morgantown Chabad Jewish Center. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. It is located in the Downtown Morgantown Historic District, listed in 1996.
Dering Building is a historic commercial building located at Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia. It was designed by noted Morgantown architect Elmer F. Jacobs and built in 1896. It is a three-story Romanesque Revival style brick building. It has a rectangular plan, a flat roof, separate store fronts, and recessed portico entrances. It features a pediment above the flat roof with a rising sun motif and the date of construction inscribed in the center.
Rogers House is a historic home located at Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia. It was originally built about 1857 and is one of the last remaining residences from this time period in downtown Morgantown. The building is a two-story, five bay brick and wood frame dwelling in the Classical Revival style. The original section of the house is in brick, whereas the addition, designed by noted Morgantown architect Elmer F. Jacobs and built in 1905-1906 is wood frame. Jacobs is also responsible for the interior design. It sits on a rough-faced coursed ashlar stone foundation. It features a front porch with four sets of triple wooden, Tuscan order columns. It was the home of the Rogers family, pioneer settlers of Morgantown. It has been the home of West Virginia University's Campus Ministry Center since 1984. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. It is located in the Downtown Morgantown Historic District, listed in 1996.
Old Stone House is a historic home located at Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia. The original section was built about 1796, and is a two-story stone structure measuring 26 feet, 8 inches, by 20 feet, 8 inches. A one-story, timber-frame addition built in the early 1900s and measures 16 feet, 7 inches, by 16 feet, 4 inches. The Old Stone House was the home of John W. Thompson, a potter in early Morgan's Town. He was able to create red ware and stoneware pots from the clay found in the basement of the house. It is one of the oldest surviving examples of rustic pioneer architecture in Monongalia County. In 1935, it became headquarters of the Morgantown Service League, who operates a gift shop in the house.
Oglebay Hall is a historic classroom building associated with the West Virginia University and located at Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia. It was built in 1918, and is a three-story, brick and concrete building with Classical Revival detailing. The front facade features four Doric order columns that support a pediment with a false, concrete railing and entablature with the building's name. It also has balconies with cast iron balustrades. It originally housed the university's College of Agriculture and represents the university's heritage as a land-grant institution. The building is named for industrialist and philanthropist Earl W. Oglebay, whose house at Wheeling, West Virginia is known as the Oglebay Mansion Museum.
Stewart Hall is a historic library and administration building associated with the West Virginia University and located at Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia. It was built between 1900 and 1902, and consists of a gabled central block, a 2 1/2 story gabled entrance pavilion, and a monumental octagonal tower. It is built of reinforced concrete and coursed Amherst sandstone blocks and is in the Romanesque Revival style. The interior features a two-story, arcaded rotunda. It housed the university library until 1931, when it became the Administration Building. It was renamed in the 1970s in honor of Irvin Stewart, president of the University from 1946 to 1958.
Monongalia County Courthouse is a historic courthouse building located in Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia. The courthouse was erected in 1784 with the current structure built in 1891. This Romanesque style building consists of a two-story building with a basement, five-story clock tower and a three-story South tower. The building measures at 99’ by 83’ by 99’ by 76’ with the first story at fifteen feet high and the second story at twenty-two feet high. The distinctive central clock tower has a pyramidal roof, four doomed buttresses, stone molds over the four clocks and tower windows, arcade belfry, and quatrefoil design with the building date. The original northern facade was covered by an addition built in 1925 with another addition built in 1975. Connected to the courthouse is a two-story Italianate style jailhouse built in 1881.
Kincaid and Arnett Feed and Flour Building is a historic warehouse building located at Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia. It was built between 1904 and 1906, and is a three-story, vernacular brick warehouse located along the banks of the Monongahela River. It is trapezoid shaped and has a prominent concrete-block loading dock with overhead canopy. Kincaid and Arnett functioned as a prosperous wholesale and retail grain dealership and brokerage until they sold the property to Morgantown Feed and Flour Corporation in February 1921.
Easton Roller Mill is a historic sawmill and grist mill located near Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia. Construction began in 1864 and was completed in 1867. During the first 10 or so years, the mill changed hands from the original builder, Henry Koontz of Frostburg MD, about four times before mill-modernizer Isaac Morris bought the mill in 1894. Originally it was a 3 1/2-story rectangular, timber frame building with a shed addition; however, the shed was removed In recent years. Most mills of this era were exclusively using Burr stones for milling and grinding, however in 1894, the owner, Isaac Morris, installed roller mills for the production of high-grade white flour coming into popular demand. At that time, the Burr stone mill was relegated to grinding cornmeal, and so began a second business of cornmeal and animal feed products also sold at the Easton mill. It is probable Mr. Morris also installed the current steam engine, an 1875 Lane & Bodley 40 HP single expansion engine. The engine once ran on coal-generated steam; however, for insurance reasons, it now runs on compressed air for demonstration purposes. The mill ran under Mr. Morris' ownership until 1910. William C. Ley bought the mill in 1910 and ran it 24 hours a day until 1930. We are told that Mr. Ley was of German descent, was tall, spoke with a heavy accent, and often wore a thick black mustache under his wide brimmed hat. He was known for running a very expertly tuned operation, and keeping his equipment in perfect working order. We believe Mr. Ley potentially ran the mill seasonally through the 1930s, until his death in 1941. Between 1939 and Ley's death in 1941, Ley's daughter Estella Ley-Pickenpaugh and her husband Fred Pickenpaugh attempted to restore the mill to full working order, only to discover local wheat and grains unavailable, as most milling had moved to large-scale mills in the Midwest. During this time they may have been assisted by Mr. Ley's milling partner Frank A. Walls of Easton. It is unclear whether Walls held ownership interest in the mill at any time; however, his name appears on the cornmeal bags only. The mill was willed by Estella Ley-Pickenpaugh to the Monongalia Historical Society in 1978. In the fall-winter of 2012–2013, restoration work began at the mill. The mill is expected to be operating and touring visitors by spring 2013.
Seneca Glass Company Building, now called Seneca Center, is a historic glass factory located at Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia. It was built by the Seneca Glass Company in 1896–1897, and is an industrial complex of work areas, all connected by doors, passageways, or bridges. A fire in 1902, destroyed much of the interior of the original brick part of the complex. After the fire, Elmer F. Jacobs designed the new two-story replacement, a new Needle Etching Room in a separate building connected by a bridge, and the reconstruction of the Grinding, Glazing, and Cutting areas. A large addition was built in 1947. The building features a conical brick stack that projects 36 feet above the roofline of the Furnace / Blowing Room. The complex was the home of one of the finest hand-blown, hand-cut and etched, lead glass factories in the world. After the factory closed in 1983, it was adapted for commercial use.
Old Watson Homestead House, also known as Rowe Residence, is a historic home located at Smithtown, Monongalia County, West Virginia. It is a two-story, "L"-shaped Federal style brick dwelling with Italianate details. The original house was built about 1803, with two additions, one completed about 1843 and another in the late 1850s. It is one of Monongalia County's oldest and most significant homes.
The Downtown Morgantown Historic District is a federally designated historic district in Morgantown, Monongalia County, West Virginia. The district, encompassing approximately 75 acres, has 122 contributing buildings and 2 contributing sites including commercial and public buildings, residences, and churches. The district has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since May 2, 1996. Ten of the contributing buildings are listed separately on the National Register of Historic Places. Significant structures located within the historic district are the Monongalia County Courthouse, the Metropolitan Theater, and the Old Morgantown Post Office.
Frank Cox was a justice of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia from January 1, 1905 until his retirement January 28, 1907.
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Harner Homestead . |
| Topics |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Top subjects | ||
| Neighborhoods | ||
| Suburbs | ||
(*) Outside of the city limits | ||
