A HISTORICAL LOOK AT

CHILHOWIE

VIRGINIA

From its earliest days as the site of a historically important stagecoach inn, to its current role as the Gateway to the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area, Chilhowie has always been a community in which travelers are welcome and visitors are made to feel at home.

Chilhowie (Chil•`how•ee), a Cherokee word meaning “valley of many deer,” was adopted as the town’s name when the town incorporated in 1913. During its stagecoach days the community was known simply as Town House. After the railroad was built in 1856 the town was referred to as Greever’s Switch, a reference to the name of the first Station Master and to the mechanical switch that allowed freight cars to be moved to a side track for unloading and loading of freight.

Various manufacturing and agricultural enterprises have contributed to the town’s growth over the years.

Pottery, brick, lumber, textile, fertilizer, equipment and furniture manufacturing companies have all operated successfully in Chilhowie. Cattle farms are a mainstay of the region’s agricultural economy. From 1912 to 1989 Bonham Brothers grew and distributed apples and apple products so successfully that Chilhowie became the center of apple production in southwest Virginia. Today, Duncan Orchards carries that tradition forward by producing and distributing its delicious apples throughout the United States. Chilhowie celebrates its apple heritage the last weekend of each September with an Apple Festival, a fun-filled weekend of festivities, contests and entertainment.

Prominent roles in the founding of our country were played by local citizens such as William Campbell, commander at the Battle of Kings Mountain, and Phillip Greever who is said to have fired the first shot at that decisive battle.

Elizabeth Russell, Campbell’s wife, was Patrick Henry’s sister and played a prominent role in the area’s early Methodist Church movement.

From Interstate 81 (Exit 35) Chilhowie and State Route 762 (south) provide the shortest route available to Virginia’s highest mountain, Mt. Rogers, and to one of the state’s largest recreational areas, the Mt. Rogers National Recreation Area. There, visitors find available a wide array of enjoyable activities such as hiking, camping, fishing, hunting, swimming, horseback riding and cross-country skiing in a setting which is among the most picturesque in the country.

Historic sites of interest are numbered and described in plain text.

Directions, when appropriate, are printed to the right in italics.

Chilhowie Avenues have roughly a north-south orientation. Chilhowie streets,

Lee Highway, Old Stage Road, the railroad and I-81 have roughly an east-west orientation.

The Town of Chilhowie invites you to contribute to the next edition of this publication by submitting

1. H. L. Bonham Regional Development and Tourism Center (1911)

This handsome brick Colonial Revival style house was built by H. L. Bonham in 1911. He was a prominent farmer, lumberman, orchardist and founder of Bonham BrothersApples. On November 19, 2002 the Sam Bonham family gave the house, which still possesses its original interior woodwork and fireplaces, to the Town of Chilhowie for use as a tourism center. This house and the three cottages located behind it are listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places. The cottages were first homes to H.L Bonham’s sons and grandsons. The Smyth County Chamber of Commerce currently operates the H.L. Bonham Regional Development and Tourism Center. A walking trail will connect the tourism center to the Chilhowie Recreation Park

.From the H.L. Bonham Center,• turn left (north) onto White Top Avenue and go across the Middle Fork Holston River Bridge and Main Street.• Turn left (at the traffic light) onto Lee Highway and go half a block past the Food City parking lot to three historic markers on the right.

This area of Virginia was patented in 1746 to Colonel James Patton. Samuel Stalnaker in 1750 was the first settler to build his home here. Robert Gannaway arrived in 1804 and later in 1815 opened Chilhowie Springs. The community became known as Greever’s Switch after the railroad was built in1856 and as Chilhowie after being incorporated in 1913. [Virginia Conservation Commission, 1941]

On his first journey to this area in 1750 Dr. Thomas Walker assisted in the building of Samuel Stalnaker’s cabin which at that time was Virginia’s western most settlement.

[Conservation and Development Commission, 1929]

As early as 1754 on the top of this hill a house was built that functioned as a fort and meeting place for settlers. Only the chimneys now remain.

[State Conservation and Development Commission, Sycamore Shoals. No. 117-K Chapter D.A.R.]

The oldest colonial building site in Chilhowie is on top of the hill in front of you. On this site a four-room log house was built, then added to, and used as a stagecoach inn, post office and home. It served as a gathering place for those who served in the Revolutionary War, Civil War, and War of 1812. All that remains today are the limestone chimneys, reminders of times past when travelers from all walks of life used the Town House to rest from their journeys. (Privately owned)

This Queen Anne style Victorian farm house was built in 1891 by A.C. Beatie, a farmer, Ninth District Delegate and, for 28 years, Mayor of Chilhowie. The house is on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places. The land on which it is built was part of the original Town House tract and has been in the Beatie family since 1837.

Dr. John S.Apperson practiced medicine as a Confederate surgeon in this area of Virginia during the Civil War. He acquired the land to build this house with money owed him for services rendered to the Confederacy. The Neoclassical Revival Style house was built in 1869 and an addition was added in 1930 when the house was sold. Ionic columns support a wrap-around porch. Two-story, Temple-of-the-Wind columns support the portico. (Privately owned)

This eleven-room Colonial Revival style house was built around 1906 by James D. Tate,the first Mayor of Chilhowie. It has full height Palladian windows and the wraparound porch is supported by Tuscantype columns. It was one of the first homes in Chilhowie to have inside plumbing and electricity. It is presently owned and operated as a funeral home by Bradley Funeral Chapel.

This Late Gothic Revival Style church was constructed in 1893-94 with brick made in Chilhowie. It is the successor to the Sulphur Springs Meeting House (#44) and is listed on both the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places.

This Colonial Revival style brick house was built by Robert Cole, a prominent Smyth County farmer and merchant. At one time Dr. George Pettit owned it and used part of it as a medical office. (Privately owned)

• Continue walking south on Church Street to the Rush Bonham House on the left.

Mr. and Mrs.Rush Bonham built this elegant twelve room Victorian stylehouse in 1903. The original tin shingles and wrap-around porch remain on its exterior today. (Privately owned)

This Second-Empire style house features a shingled mansard roof and a central tower. It was built by E. J. Rutland, Superintendent of the Virginia Vitrified Brick and Sewer Pipe Co., similar to his ancestral home in Sheerness, England. Mr. Rutland’s company manufactured Chilhowie Brick with clay from the clay field that runs from Old Stage Road to the Middle Fork of the Holston River. (Privately owned by a granddaughter of the Rutland family)

This house has served as a parsonage for six Methodist churches in Chilhowie and the surrounding area, including the Chilhowie United Methodist Church. (Privately owned)

The clay used in Chilhowie Brick, a brand of kilnfired brick popular a hundred years ago, came from this section of Chilhowie. The removal of the clay lowered and flattened the slope of the land immediately south of Old Stage Road. The brick company’s 41½ acre tract stretched from here to the river where it’s kilns were located (see #19, “Chilhowie Brick Plant”). Part of the clay field was later used for school baseball and football games and other community activities. The field is currently being used as a Chilhowie Little League baseball field.

This house was built in 1917-18 by Mrs. Ezra Neff. James Bonham, one of the Bonham Brothers apple business owners, and his wife, Okie Neff Bonham, lived here. The house is still in the Bonham Family. (Privately owned)

Everett Bonham, another of the Bonham Brothers apple business owners, built this home in 1931. It is also owned by a Bonham descendent. (Privately owned)

“White Hall” was built in 1819. John Sanders was a land owner and an early settler in Chilhowie. Silkworm culture was known to be a part of the White Hall property. Susan Sanders was the first woman in Smyth County to have a legal license to run a tavern. Today, White Hall Apartments are located on the site.

This outdoor shopping center houses several retail merchants, including a jeweler, computer store, coin shop, car wash, discount store, and a bank.

Chilhowie High (1958) and Middle Schools (1991) are located across the street on the south side of Lee Highway.

This modern facility was formerly known as the Hotel Poole, a very popular hotel built by J. B. Poole in the 1940’s.

This site was formerly occupied by the Chilhowie Brick Plant, then Town House Hosiery Mill, Buster Brown Mfg. Co. and today the Berry Truss & Component Shop, Inc. The photograph shows the original Brick Plant with round kilns as seen from the south side of the river.

Built in 1931, this is Chilhowie’s third high school building. It was used as Chilhowie Middle School after a new high school was built on Lee Highway in 1958. While renovations are still being completed throughout the building, the Chilhowie Public Library, a branch of Smyth-Bland Regional Library, was established in the west side of the building in 2003.

711 Chilhowie Street was originally deeded to T.D. Bennett by the Southern Clay Manufacturing Company in 1903.

According to tax records, the house was probably constructed in 1904 or 1905, the year in which taxes were first paid on the dwelling. The property is commonly known as the “old Bennett House.” (Privately owned)

This house was built by M.C. Morris on a lot that, like the Bennett House, was formerly owned by the

CHILHOWIE HISTORIC DISTRICT

Southern Clay Manufacturing Company. Although the house changed ownership a number of times during the first half of the 20thcentury, it has been owned by a great granddaughter of M.C. Morris since 1959.

The property at 509 Chilhowie Street was deeded to James and Sally Vance by the Southern Clay Manufacturing Company in 1903. Two rooms of this house were originally used by Dr. Apperson as an office on the Apperson property and were moved to this site during construction of the McCormick house. Mr. and Mrs. Frank McCormick bought the house in 1907 and, as their family grew, added rooms and the back porch, first in 1912 and later. In 1926 when town water was first available the McCormicks were among the first families in the area to have running water with a bath. By 1930 the house had expanded to include five bedrooms, a kitchen, dining room, living room and family room. The Chilhowie Baptist Church, Greever Clinic, and Providence Presbyterian Church are also on Chilhowie Street.

Town Hall was completed in February, 2002. It accommodates the business of town government and the police department. The previous Town Hall (223 East Lee Hwy) was built in 1941 and at one time housed the town government, police department and the volunteer fire department.Government in Chilhowie is organized by the Mayor-Council Plan with six council members and a mayor. The Police Department consists of a Chief of Police and five police officers.

This modern five-bay brick building, constructed in 1985-86, houses the Chilhowie Fire Department and Emergency Medical Services. The Department consists of well-trained volunteer firemen and rescue personnel, and maintains a modern fleet of fire trucks and rescue equipmentto meet most emergencies.

Listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places, the Chilhowie Historic District is a two-block section of Main Street featuring vintage two and three-story brick commercial buildings. The first business in Chilhowie was a Pottery Plant built by Minter Jackson in 1879. The plant was located on land behind the W.H. Copenhaver Hardware building (#36). In the late 1800’s when Main Street developed, the Christian Church was on the west end, where the back parking lot of Greevers Drug Store is now, and the Baptist Church was onthe east end where Superior Mills’ parking lot is located today.

The James D. Tate Motor Company building was constructed in the early 1920’s. The Vance Company purchased it in 1930 to use as a farm machinery buildingand office. Presently it is used by Superior Mills to manufacture socks. (Privately owned)

The Chilhowie Drug Company building was completed in 1916. The Chilhowie Masonic Lodge #25 met for many years in the room upstairs over the Drug Company. This twostory brick building features jack arches with keystones, an arched-topped parapet, and a decorative tile floor entry. Formany years Greevers Drug Store operated from this building before moving to its present location on Lee Highway. Today the building houses The Town House Gallery, a trading post and antique shop. (Privately owned)

The Bonham Motor Company garage was built in the 1920’s by H.L. Bonham and operated by his son, Sam Bonham. In addition to having a good reputation for repairing motor vehicles, it became a gathering place for men who enjoyed swapping stories around its potbellied stove. Checker games were played year round and friendly challenges were made to play croquet at homes in and around Chilhowie in the twilight hours of long summer days. Today the building is occupied by D&D Awning Company. (Privately owned)

This building was constructed in 1915 with two front entrances and an internal staircase which leads to the second floor. Its second story windows consist of a central window flanked by two groups of three windows. The right side of the building was occupied by the Chilhowie Post Office and the left side by the J.S. Snavely Store. Today the right side of the building is occupied by The Art Place, a community-based art group that provides gallery and studio space for southwest Virginia artists, as well as music and dance classes and exhibits from the Smyth County Historical and Museum Society. (Privately owned) The Snavely Store sold dry goods and groceries from its side of the building. At one time an interior doorway connected this side of the building with the Post Office to allow easy passage for Mr. Snavely who also served as Postmaster. Today this part of the building houses The Book Nook. (Privately owned)

The National Bank of Chilhowie was organized in 1905 and this building erected in 1909. The bank operated here until 1970 when it moved north one block to the corner of Lee Highway and Whitetop Avenue (Route 107). This twostory, three-bay brick building was designed in a combination of early 20th century Revival styles using classical motifs in the modillion cornice and modified windows with decorative geometric patterned brickwork. Treat yourself to a walk inside this building to see the vault and other features from the days it was used as a bank. Today this building is the office of Bonham Engineering, Inc. (Privately owned)

Further west on the same side of Main Street, just past the back parking lot of Greever’s Drug Store, is the former site of a shoe shop, two small stores, a barber shop, and a building which is now occupied by Crouses Hunter’s Paradise. (Privately owned).

The Train Depot was built in 1890, 34 years after the completion of the railroad through Chilhowie in 1856. The town was called Greever’s Switch after Bob Greever who was the depot’s first station agent. The depot was demolished in the 1980’s andthe site is presently owned by the Smyth Farm Bureau.

The Chilhowie Mill was built in 1882 by James D. Tate and remodeled in 1897. The original mill was destroyed by fire in the late 1980’s and was replaced by Rouse Oil Service and a convenience store. The milling company office, constructed in the early 20th century, is the only structure that remains. (Privately owned)

The W. H. Copenhaver Hardware Store building which originally occupied this site was destroyed in 1909 when all the buildings in this block burned to the ground.

All those buildings faced the railroad but their 1910 replacements were turned to face what became our current Main Street. The Copenhaver building has two stories and Luxfer glass transoms across its front. The second story window casingsare arched and have keystones and concrete sills. The building was once used as a Piggly Wiggly grocery store and today is occupied by Curves, a fitness center for women, and Robyn’s Nest Realty, Inc. (Privately owned).

This three-story brick building was constructed in 1911 by H. L. Bonham for use in his apple business and was used continuously for that purpose until 1989. It has a flat roof, simple parapet, segmented-arched windows and a modern store front. Cold storage warehouses were built in 1917 between this building and the railroad over what once was the location of the town’s public water well. (Privately owned).

This building is a good example of a regionally popular commercial building from the early 20th century.

It has a modern store front with arch-headed windows. A replica of the original transom of ribbed glass extends across the first floor front. In 1926 the building was sold to John Aker Williams who used it to house the Chilhowie Furniture Company and Mortuary. Today the building is used as a party and meeting facility operated by the Town House Grill. (Privately owned)

This two-story brick building still has its early plate glass store front and textured, red brick façade. A decorative green tint can be seen in every tenth course of brick. Groceries, clothing, general merchandise and yard goods were sold here. The building has also been occupied by an ice cream parlor and, in the 1950’s, Singleton’s Department Store. Today ithouses the Town House Grill, a fine-dining restaurant.

The Vance Hardware Co. was started in the 1890’s to serve the farming community. Additions were made to the original building in 1902, 1907, and 1926. The 1907addition is the two-story brick portion visible from Main Street. This building is a good example of a more modern, utilitarian warehouse design and included an elevator. Its original beams and support structure are clearly visible just inside the building’s west side entrance. The building is now the home office and business headquarters of Berry Home Centers. (Privately owned)

Railroad Street was once known as “Society Row” after many fashionable homes were built beside and facing the railroad following its construction in 1856. Most of the homes in this section of Chilhowie were destroyed or so damaged in 1977 by two floods that 52 families had to be relocated. The Chilhowie Recreation Park was built where most of the homes once stood. The park provides picnic shelters, tennis courts, basketball courts, a baseball play area, swings and slides for young children, and areas for hiking, jogging, bicycle riding and fishing. Reverend George Washington Lomans, son of a freed slave, built a church beside Railroad Street in 1900. In 1916 the First Missionary Baptist Church was built adjacent to the Lomans family home. The bell from the original church is still used in thepresent brick church, First Baptist Church, which was built in 1955. Reverend Lomans preached on Sundays and operated a very successful store for 85 years.

• Return to White Top Avenue.

42. Chilhowie Cemetery

This cemetery is approximately 300 feet north of the oldest colonial building site in Chilhowie, the site of Town House (#3). The earliest dated marker in this cemetery bears the name John Sanders, a settler who died and was buried here in 1830.

44. Sulphur Springs Meeting House (1806-1893)

The Sulphur Springs Meeting House, the first Methodist Church in Chilhowie, was located on the westside of the road, directly across from the cemetery. It was built of logs, but around 1880 was encased in brick. It was visited by Bishop Francis Asbury and other early Methodist circuit riders. Colonel W.P. Thompson gathered his regiment here in 1812. Elizabeth Henry Russell, sister of Patrick Henry, often worshipped here and the Meeting House was the home church of the Rev. R. Gannaway. In 1893 the church was moved to its present location on Old Stage Road (#7).

• Continue approximately one-quarter mile to Lee Highway.

49. Greever Cemetery – This is the burial place of

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