From the desk of Bob Enoch: WAS WOOD COUNTY CREATED IN THIS HOUSE? Cut-line for photo: A photo in the November 11, 1951 described the above house and building as such: Built in 1798 by Col. Hugh Phelps, the stucco structure at the right, which originally was brick, is Wood County’s oldest home. Center section, which replaced original destroyed in fire during the Civil War, is being remodeled in modern style. Left is the old slave cabin. Photo courtesy Artcraft Studio The Parkersburg News article of November 11, 1951 articles continues in part: Villers Family Is Remodeling Oldest House in Wood County It is Wood County’s oldest house- built 153 years ago when 1,000 acre farms were nothing to get excited about and wild animals roamed the woods and the Indian menace something not long past. Today (1951) it is home to Mr. and Mrs. W.T. Villers and their sons Billy Joe, 14, and the twins, Larry and Jerry, who will be eight years old. It is located in South Side at Fort Neal. They are the fourth owners of the old home built by Col. Hugh Phelps back in 1798 when Wood county was part of Harrison county (Virginia). Villers has wanted the old home for a long time, ever since he came to Wood County from Wirt county 22 years ago, and his wife, the former Blanche Hall of Wirt county, is as delighted as he with the purchase. They list the previous owners as Col. Thomas Tavenner, who bought it in 1824, and his descendents, the last of whom included the late Ray Tavenner, and Mr. and Mrs. E.G. Nolf, who bought the home in 1940. Mrs. Nolf was the former Lulu Creel who grew up in the area and as a child played with some of the Tavenner children. Col. Hugh Phelps, the builder, was a Pennsylvanian by birth who came south on a surveying trip to settle in this part of the country when he was only 17 years old. The year was 1783. Four years later he was married to one of the daughters of Capt. James Neal, Hannah Neal; a girl two years his junior. They had 10 children. Phelps took an active part in the formation of Wood county and it was in his old home that the meeting was held in the summer of 1799 which resulted in establishment of the county that fall. Controversy Surrounded Earlier Courthouses, excerpts from an article in the Parkersburg Sentinel, November 11, 1977 By Mary Merville, Sentinel Reporter In the 178 year history of Wood County controversy over location or salvaging the structures for historical purposes has repeatedly surrounded its five courthouses, the first of which remains standing today at 2401 Camden Avenue in South Parkersburg. To prepare for building the home, huge walnut and oak trees were cut down. The smoothed stumps can be seen beneath the six-inch wide floor boards in the home. For $25 it was built from smooth, red bricks which were forged on ground owned by Phelps and placed three thick to make 15-inch walls. While Phelps owned the spacious house and over 900 aces of ground, he saw Parkersburg secure enough settlers to justify its becoming a separate county from Harrison. In 1798 the Virginia Assembly appointed justices, distinguished county boundaries and authorized the new county to select a courthouse site “at or near the center of the county as situation or convenience would permit.” The following year, the appointed justices held their first meeting in Col. Phelp’s two story home which was large enough to accommodate the gathering. However, even during the earliest meetings at the Phelps’ home, contention arose concerning where to build a more permanent courthouse, according to the first “Semi Centennial History of West Virginia” published in 1913. Old House Tells Story, excerpts from, Parkersburg Sentinel, March 19, 1984 By Kathy Curkendall, Sentinel Reporter The Tavenner house, the oldest house in Wood County, is full of Life- the Life family. L.R. and Bonnie Life are residents of the house at 2401 Camden Avenue at Tavenner Heights with their son, Jeff. Mrs. Life has watched as the house has undergone structural changes over the years, but she still has her memories of visiting the Tavenner’s when she was a girl. “I’ve always loved this house, but I don’t really know why. I had even at one time tried to talk to my dad into buying it, but he wouldn’t, so when my husband and I got the chance, we bought it.” “I used to come over and visit the three women, Elizabeth, Beth and Hattie Tavenner,” Mrs. Life said, “I was the only young child in the neighborhood and the big kids didn’t want me to run around with them so I would go over and visit the women. “They would talk about a lot of things, especially the history of the house. I wish now I would have listened a little closer to what they said.” A representative of the State Department of Culture and History said the Tavenner house is considered the oldest house in Wood County because it is still standing on its original foundation while the log cabin (the Cooper cabin in City Park) does not. This is the house that the Wood County Historical Society is raising funds to purchase. We need your help? Please send donations to: WCHPS, PO Box 565, Parkersburg, WV 26102 or call Bob Enoch at 304-483-9863 for questions or comments.
Posted on: Sat, 27 Dec 2014 16:18:07 +0000
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