It was so peaceful and informative walking around this place of the past. I'm so glad they kept the buildings and redid what they could ! If you guys enjoyed this walk around Thurmond. Leave a thumbs up 👍 Let me know what you guys thought about the place?
To the left side of the bank of Thurmond there was a building that has been torn down for years. In that building, my grandfather owned a grocery store in the 1930 s.
Iam sure our families knew each other. When we went there when I was a child the people there still knew the names and places my mother asked about. Small town living.
I love to think about all the lives that were lived there. All those people that, for all they knew, their town would be functioning normally for many generations. But unbeknownst to them, it came to an end.
My aunt and uncle I hear actually owned the island out in the river. I have not looked in to who owns it now. My uncle worked in the train depot and lived in one of the brick houses on main St. My grandfather's family was dirt poor. They didn't even own dirt. Till after the depression. I think my grandfather was the first to have property in Ohio. But they never gave up maybe they were richer than they knew because I look at my children and grand children and see that same determination in them. I will pull this up when iam with my mom and iam sure I will get more details than there is space to write them.
West Virginia is truly a beautiful state. I live fairly close to a town called Piedmont, and though it's not there yet, it's on it's way to becoming a ghost town. It's quite creepy to walk around, but very fun to explore.
I live 45 minutes from Morgantown about a half hour from Pittsburgh and absolutely love West Virginia. However, it breaks my heart that ad beautiful as it is, there's many people suffering there financially. There's just no more jobs. Once such a prosperous place with coal mining now so many of the mines have been shut down. It is breathtakingly beautiful but that part is tragic in my opinion. It's often so neglected by politicians too of course... But those mountains, damn. Old & gorgeous
@@agent_ninety9 You're so right! West Virginia is beautiful. But it's sad to see poor families and their children around every corner. Oftentimes the only meals some of these kids get to eat is at school. Not to mention the opioid crisis. But despite all of that, I've met some of the most kind, amazing people here. It's so interesting to hear their stories. It's by far one of the prettiest states I've seen. I hope things get better for the people here. I'm still very proud to call it my home :)
@@keylimekid6269 As you should! I get so pissed when I hear about people making fun of it. On the bike (meaning the motorcycle) I can't tell you how many times we have rode down there and driving through there, traveling somewhere, it's always beautiful and breathtaking! I don't want to get into politics, I have good friends that r coal miners here in the Pittsburgh area, at one time all those areas were flourishing and it's devastating to see when your town is boarded up. I know for example when we lose one business in my little town how sad the feeling is. Regardless if you believe in God or not, I have to say, God bless those people there. Always neglected by politicians, sometimes picked on (when they have no idea and couldn't walk a day in their shoes!) Luv to you & WV!
@@agent_ninety9 You're too kind! I hope you find many more wonderful adventures in WV. I feel like you'd love Dolly Sods and Seneca Rocks! Very close to my home. God bless :)
@@keylimekid6269 wow great to know thank you for the insight will definitely have to check it out I'm going to screenshot this so I remember!!! I can't remember the real beautiful overlook that we rode our bikes too it was fall also and our Indian summer so the leaves were perfect. It was gorgeous. It's a very famous overlook and I can't remember it!
Nice to see history preserved. So many old historical places are left to rot and are vandalised. Here in the UK we have purpose built working museums people can visit and go back to the Victorian/industrial times. The shops are open with people dressed in period clothes selling period type goods to make money to keep these outdoor museums going and show Britain's heritage. Good video. Really enjoyed it
It's really nice to know they have invested money to preserve this town. Most old, uninhabited places are just left to rot until there's nothing but shambles left. Somebody somewhere realized that alot of people find enjoyment visiting old towns like this, and got the ball rolling to secure money to keep this place up a little bit, or at least enough to enjoy the old vibe of the town. Kudos to that person or group of people.
Thurmond is part of New River Gorge National Park. I think the Park Service does a good job of helping visitors appreciate the history of this little coal town.
@DEZZNUTZ 1001 At least the money was spent here instead of overseas Oscar the Grouch (just kidding on the last part, I hear you though, but it's still better that the money stays in our country) Best wishes from upstate NY!!!
There is a town that is still used as a tourist attraction called Cass that is pretty similar to Thurmond. It's between 1-2 hrs from Beckley, which is roughly 15 minutes south from Thurmond. If you ever get back down this way and have the time you should check it out. They do have a old train they use to give rides into the mountain on which is pretty cool. It's worth the visit.
I’m a Kentucky native & there is just something so hauntingly beautiful about these old coal towns. I would love to see you explore more of the Appalachian region!
I instantly recognised the final gun fight scene of Matewan on the railroad tracks outside the bank! Great movie, great retelling of this true and heroic event by real American working class heroes and trade unionists. 👏👏👏🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
@@greigmcarthur3821 I did too. Great movie for those who have never seen it. Same director, John Sayles, directed Eight Men Out around the same time (and around the same subject era) about the Chicago Black Sox scandal.
We happened upon this Beautiful town on a trip from Myrtle Beach to Ohio. It was by far the highlight of the entire road trip. For anyone who loves a great day stop, this is it. We adventured up the residential road behind the commercial buildings, alot of beautiful old houses, the train station/museum is great, as was the curator, the church is amazing, the Bridge and views are unbelievable, the state park along the river is nice, and the hiking rail trails were awesome. It was all kid friendly (3 and 5 at that point). I cant wait to go back again!!
The architecture back then was so much more beautiful than the cold, towering structures of today. They had character and life. I feel nostalgia for a time I never lived in.
My Wife and I started exploring WV about five years ago. When we first went to Thurmond there weren't no trespassing signs or under surveillance signs. You could actually enter a lot of the old houses through the windows. We got to explore inside the bank. It was pretty awesome. Now vandals have ruined it.
@@Miami543210 Thurmond’s importance started to deteriorate when roads arrived in 1917. Around that time, two major fires, one that burned through the south side of Thurmond in 1922 and the Dunglen Hotel fire in 1930, destroyed much of the town’s infrastructure and many establishments moved away. The final blow to the rail industry in Thurmond came in 1949 when the C&O Company purchased its first diesel engine and began phasing out its steam engines. There are only about a dozen people living there now. There were 462 people in 1930.
@DEZZNUTZ 1001 So maybe it should have been left for the greedy rapacous boomers to inest in military armaments, overpriced rentals and pensions fit for kings that have left the rest of us in poverty. And I´m not even a Zoomer!
It’s a coal tipple not topple. I worked on a movie that was shot in Thurmond called Matewan and I grew up not too far there where there still is a coal fired power plant. We used to tour the power plant (John Amos) for field trips when I was a youngin’. There was this amazing apparatus that would flip the coal hopper car to dump it and then place it back on the tracks…. Shoot I can’t remember if it took the car off or flipped the car and track together - I was in grade school.
In our country people will never ever ever abandon such a place. It is so much beautiful and the houses are so much beautiful. Since this Ghost town is in West Virginia. This is good news cuz one of my professor is also from west Virginia. He is teaching at Marshall university HUNTINGTON west Virginia...I hope one day I'll come to this beautiful place and will start living here...❤
It's too bad that so many people moved out of small towns, like this, only to end up in big cities. I live in North Dakota, where there are well over 100 ghost towns. Some are still fairly intact, while others are completely gone, with the exception of the Cemetery, like the town of Epworth. It is so sad to see these towns either completely abandoned or all but completely abandoned. A good example of a ND ghost town is Belden. My Great Grandparents homesteaded a few miles from Belden, when they came to America in 1904 & 07. After my Great Grandpa died, in 1932, my Grandpa took over the farm. My Great Grandma remarried. After my Step Great Grandpa died, in 1946, she moved into Belden, where she lived until she died, in 1961. At its peak, in the 1940s - 50s, it was a town of a bit less than 100 people, with 2 General Stores (Husa's & Kivi's), a Post Office, a town hall & a church. My Great Uncle operated a Gas Station/Repair Shop, which was 1½ miles north of town, until he died in 1982. Since he never married, his nephew then took it over. Kivi's General Store was much smaller than Husa's. It closed in the early 1960's. Husa's General Store was like Godsey's General Store, on "The Waltons". They sold everything, including clothing & household goods to gas & basic auto parts/tires. It was still a nice little town in the 1970s, but by then there was only 7 families left. In 1984, it was unincorporated. Husa's General Store closed in 1987 & burned down a few years later. In the mid 2000s, the Post Office Building, which closed in the mid 1980s, was remodeled & turned into a convenience store & still is open, but it isn't even close to what Husa's General Store was. My Great Aunt lived in their house, until she went in the nursing home, in 2004. Their son, that operated his Uncle's gas station/repair shop, lived in his Grandma's house until he died, in a truck accident, in 1989. When I was in Belden, in 2019, I was saddened to see that my Great Grandma's house had completely collapsed & my Aunt's house was also about falling down. The town is pretty much abandoned, with the exception of the store, the church, a few houses that are still lived in, a small hunting lodge & an oil field service co. office, which were both built during the oil boom of the 2010s, where Husa's General Store had stood. There are still 3 families in Belden. In 1953, my Grandparents retired & moved into the County Seat of Stanley, which is 13 miles north of Belden. My family has lived here since, with the exception of a few years, when we had to move, due to my Dad's work. There are over 2 dozen ghost towns within 75 miles of Stanley. Every time that I have been to one of them, it's a sadder site than the time before. I remember when many of them were still active little towns. Of course that is by ND standards, were the average population of towns is 1,000 - 2,000 & we consider a city anything over 15,000. Stanley was a quiet town of about 1,200 people, in 2005. Then, just over 5 years later, the oil boom hit. In about 4 months we had an influx of 5,000+ people, the majority of which were living in temporary trailer courts, motorhomes, tents or even their cars/trucks. The boom went bust just as fast. The only people that stayed were the workers that were needed to maintain all of the oil wells & infrastructure. Now Stanley is about 2,700. In 2020, the population of ND was about 780,000. However, due to the current federal government killing the oil industry, about 10,000 people have left ND, since then. There are now even more Ghost Towns. They are Company Towns, called Man Camps. They had everything a regular town has, some of which were 1,000 people or more. Now they are just block after block of empty trailers, that are falling apart. Many towns have abandoned neighborhoods. Here in Stanley there is a subdivision, that has 4 apartment buildings that were never finished before the boom went bust. They are just standing as an eyesore. Thurmond is a good example of what happens to a town when a boom goes bust. Unless, we get the oil & coal industry back, there will be many more ghost towns, in ND, in another 20 - 30 years. If the oil industry is completely killed, Stanley could have a population of 500 or less by 2050. 😥
Amtrak still stops there for some reason but a combination of factors emptied Thurmond. In the 1930s, the Great Depression killed one bank and caused the other to move. Thurmond's rail yard was built to handle steam locomotives, and that facility withered as trains switched to diesel. Key buildings, including the hotels, were destroyed in fires and never rebuilt.
I live in a small town. Amtrak stops here too. I always want to ask someone why? I walked in one day. The station has a waiting room and ticket machine.
I think it's a good idea to still leave these as options, but why would you stop if you don't have somebody on the schedule as either departing or boarding there? Maybe they have to stop for other traffic ahead, and they just stop at that station?
It's so quiet with just the birds cheeping.Very peaceful. Amtrak train still stop here so you can take a trains to Washington DC if you want and other points north. Coal trains and freights still come through as well.
What a beautiful little town!! I love the train station!! the scenery is absolutely amazing, all the greenery and big mountains. Great video once again. Hope you had a great time exploring this little town :o)
Looks like home, which is what drew me to this video. Then I heard it was a coal town in WV and wondered if it really was near my home. I'm from Greene County in PA, (can drive into WV in 5-10 minutes from my family home) and this is basically the aesthetic of everywhere. Makes me so nostalgic. Thanks for the explore.
@@The_TOD_1 wow you're in such a small town! Baltimore is way bigger! It's sad because the economy is suffering and I had to move to Richmond Virginia! I'm a single dad and I had to move for my kids!
@@Jeremy_Zack_Lucas At 59, in 2020, I elected to retire from a federal government position. Although I was in the suburbs of Baltimore, it was still getting too violent and too dangerous. I moved to Hundred because my oldest brother lives nearby, and he's the chief of police of a neighboring town. And I got a beautiful A-frame home on a mountain. Now I have to find a warm beach home to avoid these winters 🤦♂️🤪😂
My first thought was N&W (one of my favourite railroads), didn't think C&O....I imagine that N&W, B&O, C&O and possibly WM (another favourite railroad) were close to each other in some places....great video! Greetings from a Swede in Glasgow, Scotland....
So glad you are exploring this ghost town, so much history there. I about choked laughing 😃 though when you were looking in that one building and said this dates back 50 years, I certain that building probably dated back over a hundred years. When I visited Thurmond over 40 years ago most those buildings were in the same shape as you found them. Keep exploring ☺️ and sharing your journeys.
I was here with the Motorcycle club that I was in, and it was an amazing walk through the entire area. Will be going back sometime in a much smaller group. Visiting Hawks Nest, Seeing the New River Gorge and all those areas around that are just so amazing. Highly recommend anyone to go through.
Eerie, peaceful and food for imagination of a long gone era. Would have been cool to be able to walk up on the conveyor and see whats at the other end. 😃
The coal tipple is in Nuttallburg up the New River from Thurmond. The road leading to the Tipple is one of the neatest you'll ever find. Tons of history there.
Super interesting and looks stunning! In the UK those houses would be converted and listed on Air BnB for $300 per night! Run a few steam trains as well! 🚂
I grew up near this area,my mother was born on berry mountain. I use to run here from harvey, 6miles away in track and field training. I enjoyed this training route very much. Thank you for sharing
When I saw the thumbnail for your video, I immediately thought of "Matewan" - the fantastic John Sayles movie, a large part of which was filmed in Thurmond in the 1980s. As you walked through downtown, I remembered the famous gunfight scene in the movie - one of the best gunfight scenes ever done in cinema. I'm from Kentucky, and I had relatives who were part of the coal mining industry in eastern KY. There was a time when eastern KY and West VA were full of "boom towns" - Thurmond was one, as was Packard, KY - birthplace of actress Patricia Neal - also a ghost town.
The Thumbnail of this video really caught me off guard. I took almost the same photo on my film camera last year. Glad to see someone dug deeper into the history of this town and made an awesome video out of it.
I truly enjoy your hiking tours of abandoned sometimes historic, towns. Exploring quite places excites me. I lived in Virginia for approximately twenty-five years. I now live in Douglas County, Colorado. Please let me know if you come out to CO. I'd love to meet up with you to go exploring.
When you look at the beautiful scenery and what would have been some very beautiful homes all this seems both a horrible shame and waste. Places like these are something we never see here in Australia. Thanks so much for sharing.
I can never understand why someone would live in a city if they could live in a wonderful rural location like this. Maybe that's just because I'm a misanthrope but I would sooner have 5 neighbours than 5 million.
For me, as I have grown up in an area with not the most people (not very small, but still considered a small town), I often find myself marveling in the spectacle of cities with the idea of millions of people coming together in one place. I especially had that feeling when I spent a year in Beograd, Serbia, and I often just found the sight of so many people in one place and the history that all those people and those before them contributed to the city to be very interesting.
Wow really love the video! Thurmond looks so much nicer than when I was there. Gosh must have been 40 + years ago now ! My grandfather and and his mom and dad came to Ohio from Thurmond in a covered wagon they were so poor it’s all they had . The fire that destroyed the town destroyed all the records they had no birth certificates so they had no way to prove who they were. They had to go back and get signed wittiness who could verify who they were. No joke. My grand father went back when he was in his 20’s to work the coal mines during the depression but some thing happen while he was thee so he came back to Ohio. All he would say was it was a hard way to make a living if you lived very long. Video really brought back memories and I will take my grandson back to see it one day. Glad they are taking care of it.
Those buildings looked really cool. I bet they were really neat looking on the inside, especially the bank. But I bet they were all cool looking. Great explore!!
I love seeing this place it's funny how people just pack up and leave It's a really cool place to live All the nature around you I believe it's about 4or5hours away from me I've got to check this place out in the summer maybe see if their is a hotel around and spend a week end Thanks bro Fireman 🔥🔥🔥
@@largol33t1 Yep industries move on or collapse altogether. It's a global disease which will never end. Money runs dry and people have to move on aswell. It's sad but life sucks we can't have it all. It would be a great explore and it looks in very good condition considering vandals usually appear before nature takes over.
Well people do move when there is no work I will give you that But Iam retired and their are ways to go shopping Train and or car If i lived there this is what i would do Plant a garden big enough to can food for the winter Also go hunting and or fishing If somebody puts there mine too it they can do it When i was a child my parents planted Fields of food Had a cow chicken's and a few pigs rabbit's like a small farm I don't watch TV so alot of time on my hands But thanks for your apinion
Yes i to am retired and most of my family had farms and we also planted field's and caned for the winter we also had pigs and chickens and a cow here name was Betsy Mom and dad played getar a fiddle we learned how to entertain our selves and make toys to play with It's great seeing other people tell a bit about them selves Thanks for your input Fireman
Whoa, the music at the beginning gave me goosebumps🥰 and matches perfectly to this video. And this is now my favorite Video. What a beautiful town. So peaceful, this is a place where I'd like to stay.❤ Thank you for sharing Devin
I'm actually a signal maintainer for what used to be the DT&I...... Henry Ford's railroad in Michigan. Tons of traces of him around here. I found this video really cool!
I agree they should make the buildings accessible to the public. Not just unlocked and unsupervised leaving them vulnerable to vandalism. I’m certain there would be historians who would volunteer their time to sit in each building or better yet, give tours at posted hours during the day or on weekends.
Unless they stopped recently, Amtrak stops at Thurmond station. Never really knew why. People have to drive there to board or Deborah. There's not a lot of people in the county. I remember Thurmond as the fewest passengers boarding per year for the whole system.
The end was the best part I thought .. Henry ford era thats freaking awesome ! As a child I would have been sooooo bored there. As an adult I would have a whole day there… hahah. Love the video thank you brother ! Love life !
Cool Video. Love history stuff like this. Amazing how things change in just some decades. And it's so nice to see that some people take the time and make videos for share such interesting places with the whole world. :)
So nice the vandals have not wrecked the place with rocks and graffiti. I visit so many ghost towns and that is universally the case. Great video. No music too, well done.
SO as I saw this video. My first words were "BEAUTIFUL" seems so peaceful. God I would love to restore one of those building's there into a huge lofts and live there! Have the first two floors as a huge vintage/antique shop. Seeing how I am a clock/watch smith, third gen. I think it would be a great place to be! I wouldn't care about profit either! Long as I owned the building and could keep it up I would be happy. Honestly I would probably take in work from surround county's, cities and other towns like I do here! Everyone seems to be looking to have a clock or watch or some sort of time piece restored, repaired and or cleaned, "ultrasonic cleaner for all the gears screw and so on" oiled and adjusted. This is such a wonderful place!
Was there back in 1978, spent night in the Hotel & had a very good steak dinner, but it was kind of creepy, especially in the Deliverance & Slasher movie era. Not sure of population back then, but i recall seeing about 15-20 people when i was there. Went white water rafting the next day & then spent evening at a winery in Shenandoah Valley. Beautiful country & people.
I'm assuming this is along the New River? I remember the guide on our raft mentioning about the longest card game in history. Also, is this the location where the town ran a steam locomotive onto the bridge during a flood in an attempt to save the bridge only for it and the locomotive to be washed into the river? I remember floating over the locomotive while passing on the raft. Fascinating history in that valley.
THANK YOU WHAT A GREAT VIDEO!!!! SO SAD FOR THIS TOWN.. AT LEASE THERE FIXING IT UP , THE WOODS ARE SO GREAT TO LOOK AT THE WALK WAS GREAT AND SEEING THAT WOOLIE BEAR CATERPILAR (WE CALLED IT WHEN I WAS A KID)THEY ARE SO SOFT AND GREAT ..THEY TURN INTO A BUTTERFLY IN TIME .. THANKS AGAIN..
I remember I my Dad having Coal trucked in from PA to burn in our fireplace... It burned pretty evenly with a consistent heat and I did enjoy the smell it gave off :)
