Chipley Houses in Moorefield
Post by: Susan Chipley
Town: Morgantown
Website: Chez Mama
When I noticed that Bryan had chosen “Structures” as a topic for PWV, I instantly knew what I wanted to write about. Moorefield is in Hardy County, about 12 miles from Petersburg, my hometown. I have spent lots of time in Moorefield, as my grandparents lived there and I had many aunts and uncles who lived there as well. My great-great-great grandfather, Captain John J. Chipley, built two beautiful homes right in Moorefield. He was Captain of the Company H, 25th VA Volunteer Infantry and Company B, 62nd VA Volunteer Infantry for the Confederate army during the Civil War. He built his first house, which is on Rt. 55 (Virginia Ave. in Moorefiled). I absolutely love this house. It is beautiful.
The second house is on the corner of Winchester Ave. and Chipley Lane. It was built in 1905, and remained in the Chipley family until 1970. My dad grew up in this house, and when he was in college my grandparents decided it was too much house for the two of them. They sold it to a friend, Kenneth Chambers, who operated the house as a funeral home. (He and his wife lived in the house as well.) My grandparents bought a house directly behind it. I learned to ride a bike in the parking lot of the funeral home, and played in and around the house often. In the mid-80s, the Chambers sold the funeral home, and it has been operating as the Elmore-Chambers funeral home since then.
Moorefield is a very nice, small West Virginia town. It is full of large, beautiful homes. Many of them pre-date the Civil War. Most of the homes are very well-kept. Every year, during the last weekend of September, Moorefield has Heritage Weekend. It is a celebration of the history of Hardy County. Many of the homes are open for tours, with guides who know the history of the homes. It is very cool, and I would recommend a trip to Moorefield for Heritage Weekend. They always have a great quilt show, Civil War re-enactments, and a large arts and crafts show where artisans from all over West Virginia show and sell their goods.
May 12th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
Those are gorgeous buildings! The history behind them is even better! I’ve never been to that town. This blog has inspired me to take some day trips with the kids this summer, just to visit some of these sites.
May 12th, 2008 at 8:16 pm
Moorefield is a nice little town. If you’re ever there, you must get a bite to eat at O’ Neills restaurant. They have THE BEST homemade desserts. As for the houses, I dream of owning the brick one. If I ever came into a bunch of money (haha, like that’s going to happen!), I’d offer the current owners some crazy amount for the house.
May 13th, 2008 at 12:24 pm
The biggest problem with Moorefield is that it smells like dead chickens. And that’s actually a substantial problem in my opinion. Maybe you get used to it?