About this property
Wildwood, also known as the General Alfred Beckley Home, is a historic home located at Beckley, Raleigh County, West Virginia. The house is open as the Wildwood House Museum and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. General Alfred Beckley (1802–88) wanted his home to be the center of what he envisioned for Beckley, West Virginia which he founded in 1838. Although his town was a piece of paper in 1838, it would later become the county seat of Raleigh County, West Virginia, which was also founded by Beckley in 1850. His house was built in 1835–36, initially as an unpretentious double log cabin. "I took possession of a double log cabin built for me in the fall of 1835 by Mr. John Lilly Sr. of Bluestone.." Originally, the residence was named Park Place. According to Alfred Beckley, "I changed the name of my residence from 'Park Place', a name given it by my kinsman, Clarkson Prince to that of 'Wildwood'". The current appearance of Wildwood began in 1874 with remodeling by Alfred Beckley. This included the addition of a kitchen and dining room to the back of the house. The log cabins exterior was also covered in white clapboard. This was replaced in the 1970s with aluminum siding. Most of the original pine floor exists, and wood beams have been exposed within parts of the house to demonstrate its log cabin origins. There have been plans to restore the structure to its original 1874 appearance. Wildwood House Museum Archived 2012-12-27 at the Wayback Machine - City of Beckley
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Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Questions about this property
When was Wildwood listed on the National Register?
Wildwood was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 24, 1970.
What type of historic resource is Wildwood?
Wildwood is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Wildwood?
The period of significance for Wildwood is recorded as the civil_war era.
Can I research the history near Wildwood?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Wildwood will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
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