Vol. V No. 45
January 16, 1990
From the Greenbrier
Valley of West Virginia
I!
I!
m
Old bandstand at Sweet Chalybeate.
' Chas. A. Goddard
Water rushes out of lime-
Caves at a rate of 800 gallons
-- more than one million
a day --- and at a year-round
~rature of 72 degrees Fahren-
first enters the bathing pools
reserved for ladies and for chil-
and then into the gents' pool.
ago, before anyone now living
remember, the dividing
for the pools were taken
the " e '
g nts pool", the wa-
Sweet Chalybeate go
a COnduit and into the near-
I a winter's day the water at
.~t Chalybeate feels much
er than it actually is. The pres-
37-year-old Myron Pier-
Went swimming on Christmas
Day, when the air temperatures
were well below zero. "You get used
to it. I have a system. When you get
out of the water you put your coat
and boots on and make a mad dash
for the house where it's warm!"
Sweet Chalybeate Springs is lo-
cated on Virginia Route 311, about
a mile from Sweet Springs, and
about 1/2 mile from the border of the
two Virginias.
"The first story I've heard about
this place was that George Wash-
ington came through here one day
on horseback. The story, if you want
to believe it, is that Washington's
horse was bitten by a rattlesnake.
Well, old George thought his horse
had had it, so he just turned him
loose. The story goes that the horse
waded into the spring and was im-
mediately cured!" Mr Pierson smiles
as he relates this story and looks a
little incredulous himself.
"What I do know about this place
is that it was a very popular spa for
the wealthy Southern folks -- espe-
cially from South Carolina. White
people first came here about 1836.
It was known as Red Springs then,"
Mr Pierson said. The name Sweet
Chalybeate did not come into gen-
eral use until about 1900, according
to author Stan Cohen in his book
"Historic Springs of the Virginias".
Red, or Sweet Chalybeate,
Springs never had the renown en-
joyed by other spas such as White
Sulphur and Hot Springs, but "it was
the party place until the Civil War,"
Mr Pierson relates. "There were
stage lines running to Crows and a
rail line near here. They even had a
whiskey distillery! rve seen some of
the bottles they used."
Sweet Chalybeate limped along
after the Civil War and finally closed
as a spa in 1918. It has had a num-
ber of owners over its long history.
Mr Pierson, a trim and athletic man
--"an avid sportsman and lover of
the outdoors"-- is the spring's latest
owner. He purchased the property
about two years ago from the
Greenbrier Presbytery. The church
received Sweet Chalybeate as a
gift from its previous owner.
At first, before actually buying the
property, Mr Pierson was the un-
likely caretaker. "Unlikely", because
he holds an undergraduate degree
in political science from West Vir-
ginia University, a Doctor of Juris-
prudence from John Marshall L.aw
School, and a LLM (Master of Laws
Degree) from the Atlanta Law
Myron Pierson, proprietor of Sweet Chalybeate Springs, at home.
"1 graduated from Greenbrier Mili-
tary School in 1971. I went there
from the seventh grade through high
school. I really liked the individual
attention we got there, but I hated
the hair cut inspection." Mr Pierson
shakes his long brown hair as he
speaks. "During the summers for
more than nine years I would come
back to Greenbrier County and work
as a lifeguard at Blue Bend. I did
this because I wanted to be near the
School. "1 needed a respite from At-
lanta. The glamor of the rat race had
worn off. I used to come up here for
a few weeks at a time. I'd mow the
lawns and do some repair work to
the two houses and the log cabin. It
wasn't long before I knew I wanted
to be here all the time." Mr Pierson
continues to practice law --- mainly
disability and social security insur-
ance cases-- in Lewisburg where
his parents live.
forest and spend my days outside. I
always said I wanted to be a profes-
sional pool bum, and look at me
now."
During the summer months, Mr
Pierson is constantly minding the
pools at Sweet Chalybeate. He sells
season membership passes to fami-
lies and individuals and offers spe-
cial rates for picnics and night swim-
ming. '1 really only have two main
See "Sweet Waters", pg. 2-A
Junior High Schools
ii''. -,
the Future?
~enbrier Center in Lewisburg,
S. Rowan Memorial Home
prmgs, and Denmar Hos-
---- all state-owned
institutions --- have
targeted by the state for radi-
!nge or even possible closing.
doesn't mean that these fa-
Will necessarily cease to ex-
Garcelon, public relations
the West Virginia Depart-
of Health and Human Serv-
told the Mountain Messenger
had inquires from several
about the possible pri-
and operation of the
The private companies
PrOvide the same services
the state now does. Green-
the Rowan Home, and
Could be the same as they
Lre __. just under private owner-
latest barrage of speculation
Andrew S. Rowan Memorial Home
concerning the future of the institu-
tions came from Governor Gaston
Caperton in his State of the State
message January 10, when he
called for the closing of Greenbrier
Center and Andrew S. Rowan Me-
morial Home. An act of the legisla-
ture is required before any opera-
tional change or possible sale could
take place.
"For instance," Ms Garcelon said,
"concerning Greenbrier Center. If a
private company were to take over
there they would probably build a
new building to house the 56 clients.
The old main building has problems
with the heating and plumbing sys-
tems and there is a lot of asbestos
in the structure." Asbestos has been
declared a health hazard by the fed-
eral government and masswe clean-
up programs have been undertaken
in order to reduce the health threat
posed by the mineral. The cost of
"asbestos containment is phenome-
nally high," Ms Garcelon said.
"To my knowledge, we have had
no inquires from individuals, private
companies, or municipal govern-
ments concerning other possible
uses for these three facilities," Ms
Garcelon stated.
"In a parallel case, we (the state
Department of Health and Human
Services) ceased to operate the old
Spencer State Hospital. It is just sit-
ting there with a few state employ-
ees maintaining the buildings. The
City of Spencer is negotiating to pur-
chase the buildings and grounds.
They plan to then lease it to a pri-
vate company for a prison. The mat-
ter is before the legislature right
now. They are the only ones who
can make the decision."
Greenbrier Center, established
by the state as a training center for
mentally retarded children in 1972
i
i
Photo courtly Dr Robert P, Conte
9
currently houses 56 adult patients
and employes 116 support staff.
Prior to the state purchase, Green-
brier Center was a private girl's
school.
Andrew S. Rowan Memorial
Home was established as a home
for the aged in 1945. It was once a
spa and hotel. Now there are 109
residents and 93 state employees
there.
Denmar Hospital at Hillsboro is
an intermediate nursing care for 116
patients. It is certified for a capacity
patient load of 175. Currently there
are 161 state employees at Denmar
even though it is budgeted for 171.
Denmar was established as a tuber-
culosis sanatorium in 1937. It is Io~
cated on 185 acres of prime farming
land in southern Pocahontas
County.
By Jonathan Wright
The junior high grades of Crich-
ton, Smoot, and Williamsburg
schools would be eliminated under a
plan tentatively approved by the
Greenbrier County Board of Educa-
tion January 9.
Dwindling enrollments at the
three schools and the need to save
money in the face of decreased
state funding are the major reasons
cited by Board mer~bers! in the deci-
sion. Superintendent of Schools
Steve Baldwin says the plan would
provide financial relief while the
Board awaits possibl~ approval for
an more extensive consolidation
plan voted on in November.
Public hearings at each of the af-
fected schools will be conducted by
the Board before it takes a final vote
on the matter February 20. The first
will be at Smoot February 12 at 7
p.m., the second at Williamsburg
February 13 at 7:30 p.m., and the
last at Crichton February 14 at 7
p.m.
Not knowing when and if the
countywide junior high school con-
solidation will be approved for fund-
ing, the School Board developed the
limited three-school plan to take ef-
fect July 1 of this year. If the other
approach were to be approved in
the meantime, the present plan
would likely be changed, according
to Mr Baldwin.
The plan affects only students in
grades seven through nine. Crichton
students would attend Rainelle Jun-
ior High School, Smoot students
would attend Rupert Junior High
School, and Williamsburg students
would be split nearly equally be-
tween Renick and Lewisburg junior
high schools. Present junior high en-
rollments stand at 77 at Crichton, 71
at Smo.~t, and 47 at Williamsburg•
Accc~ding to information provided
in a School Board study, within five
years tt;e moves would ~ave
$482,420 at Crichton, $510,795 at
Smoot, and $533,495 at Wil-
liamsburg, a total of over $1.5 mil-
lion.
Each school would lose between
four and five professional staff r.lem-
bers. Present teaching personnel
would be transferred to other
schools in the county.
Since the 1980-81 school year,
countywide enrollment has dropped
from 7,399 to its present 6,149. It
dropped 241 last year and 240 this
year, according to Mr Baldwin. State
funding provides three times the
per-student funding for each spe.
cial-education student. With those
See "Schools", pg. 2-A
