Bluefield can
trace its origin to 1780 when John Davidson and Richard
Bailey built a fort in this area.
In the 1880's
coal was discovered in Pocahontas, Virginia. Later the
Norfolk and Western Railway extended lines up East River
from Glen Lynn, Virginia. The first carload of coal was
delivered to Norfolk, Virginia , in 1883, from Higginbotham
Summit. In 1884, the name was shortened to Summit. A post
office was established in 1886-1887, and the name was
changed to Bluefield. Supposedly Mrs. Hattie Hannah is
responsible for this name change because of the luxurious
growth of chicory and bluegrass in the region. Bluefield
was incorporated in 1889, and is the highest city in the
state at 2,655 feet above sea level. Coal was the chief
business here from the 1880's to the 1970's.
Bluefield's
first building booms began in 1895. The 1920's period was
one of the greatest booms in residential development. The
second residential boom followed the Depression. Bluefield
boomed again during World War II and the post war era and
reached its highest point in 1950.
Many of
the stockholders and officers of the West Virginia Cole
Realty Corporation made their residences in South Bluefield
and here will be found many of
the premier residential structures of the early 20th
century.
Alex B.
Mahood, architect, contributed immensely to Bluefield's
development. Mr. Mahood studied at the Ecole Des Beaux Arts
in Paris, France. Many of his residential works are in the
South Bluefield area.
On September
29, 1992, Bluefield was notified that 250 residential homes
were listed on the National Register of Historic Places by
the United States Department of the Interior. The four
areas are Country Club Hill Historic District, Jefferson
Street Historic District, South Bluefield Historic District,
and the Upper Oakhurst Historic District. These four
residential districts are in addition to the Downtown
Historic District. Since that time, and with its later
revitalization, the Bluefield Historical Society has sought
to promote this area.
