Today in Wheeling History: November 26—Washington Hall, a multi-purpose public building constructed by the Washington Hall Association to house retail shops, events, concerts and exhibitions, and which later served as the birthplace of West Virginia statehood, opens (1853).
Washington Hall in Wheeling, Virginia (now West Virginia) opened on November 26, 1853, at the Northeast Corner of 12th and Market, with a concert by Mr. Turner attended by a large crowd. The building was constructed by the Washington Hall Association, incorporated in 1850, with the intent to use the first floor for retail shops, the second floor for public events like lectures, concerts and exhibitions, and the third floor for other unspecified purposes. The original Washington Hall building, designed in a Gothic Revival style, was destroyed in a fire in 1875. A second Washington Hall with a Grand Opera House was then constructed in 1877 in a High Victorian Gothic style. After being purchased by a bank in 1898, the building underwent a major redesign by architect Frederick Faris in 1911 into a Classical style structure that still stands today as the Laconia Building. Most famously, Washington Hall was the site of the First Wheeling Convention from May 13-15, 1861, a key event leading to West Virginia statehood during the American Civil War.
To learn more: (https://tinyurl.com/2wy2tnz5) (https://tinyurl.com/muwp79bj) (https://tinyurl.com/5ccmkucf)
Photo credits: Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV
Washington Hall in Wheeling, Virginia (now West Virginia) opened on November 26, 1853, at the Northeast Corner of 12th and Market, with a concert by Mr. Turner attended by a large crowd. The building was constructed by the Washington Hall Association, incorporated in 1850, with the intent to use the first floor for retail shops, the second floor for public events like lectures, concerts and exhibitions, and the third floor for other unspecified purposes. The original Washington Hall building, designed in a Gothic Revival style, was destroyed in a fire in 1875. A second Washington Hall with a Grand Opera House was then constructed in 1877 in a High Victorian Gothic style. After being purchased by a bank in 1898, the building underwent a major redesign by architect Frederick Faris in 1911 into a Classical style structure that still stands today as the Laconia Building. Most famously, Washington Hall was the site of the First Wheeling Convention from May 13-15, 1861, a key event leading to West Virginia statehood during the American Civil War.
To learn more: (https://tinyurl.com/2wy2tnz5) (https://tinyurl.com/muwp79bj) (https://tinyurl.com/5ccmkucf)
Photo credits: Ohio County Public Library Archives, Wheeling WV
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