Landgraff is an unincorporated community in McDowell County

McDowell County, West Virginia

McDowell County is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. The land that became McDowell was originally part of Tazewell County, Virginia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 22,113. Its county seat is Welch. McDowell county is the southern-most county in the state, geographically...

, West Virginia

West Virginia

West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...

. It is located along U.S. Route 52

U.S. Route 52 in West Virginia

U.S. Route 52 skirts the western fringes of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It runs from the Virginia state line near Bluefield, where it is concurrent with Interstate 77, in a general northwest and north direction to Interstate 64 at Kenova...

 and Elkhorn Creek

Elkhorn Creek

Elkhorn Creek is an stream running through several counties in central Kentucky in the United States. It derives its name from the shape, as seen on a map, of its main stem with its two primary forks....

 approximately 6.4 miles (10.3 km) east of the county seat of Welch

Welch, West Virginia

Welch is a city located in McDowell County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. The population was 2,406 at the 2010 census. Incorporated as a city in 1893, it is the county seat of McDowell County.-History:...

.

History

Landgraff is one of many historical coal camps in the famed Pocahontas coalfield

Pocahontas coalfield

Pocahontas Coalfield, which is also known as the Flat Top-Pocahontas Coalfield, is located in Mercer County/McDowell County, West Virginia and Tazewell County, Virginia. The coal seams—Pocahontas No. 3, No. 4, No. 6, and No...

. The town is named after Constance Landgraff Andrews, the wife of a coal company executive. The Empire Coal Company Store

Empire Coal Company Store

Empire Coal Company Store was a historic company store building located at Landgraff, McDowell County, West Virginia. It was a one- to two-story frame building on a brick foundation with a hipped roof....

, listed on the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

, was located in Landgraff but has since burned down. The Landgraff Post Office closed in 1951, and the town lost its zip code. The population of Landgraff in the 1960s was approx. 700.
The Empire Coal and Coke Company Miner's Clubhouse, built in 1922 of brick to replace a wooden structure that had burned down, is on the West Virginia "Coal Heritage Trail" (America's Byways). It was flooded in the 2001 and 2002 floods that devastated southern West Virginia, was restored in 2002, and opened as the "Elkhorn Inn and Theatre", an historic inn (named for Elkhorn Creek that runs behind the Inn) that is the state's only "Coal Heritage Trail" property offering lodging and dining. The Inn houses a small museum with mine scrip (company-printed coinage used to pay miners until the 1960s), books, documents, coal core samples, photos, artwork, and other memorabilia on the area's history of railroading and coal mining. The famed "Pocahontas" line of the Norfolk Southern Railroad (formerly Norfolk Western) runs along Route 52 past the Inn. The Landgraff Mine coal tipple was located a short distance from the Inn.

Landgraff today

In 2001 and 2002, a pair of devastating floods along Elkhorn Creek destroyed much of the town. Today, one of the only surviving buildings is the former Elkhorn Coal miner's clubhouse, which now serves as a private bed and breakfast

Bed and breakfast

A bed and breakfast is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast, but usually does not offer other meals. Since the 1980s, the meaning of the term has also extended to include accommodations that are also known as "self-catering" establishments...

. Coal trains continue to rumble through the heart of the area on Norfolk Southern Railway

Norfolk Southern Railway

The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I railroad in the United States, owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. With headquarters in Norfolk, Virginia, the company operates 21,500 route miles in 22 eastern states, the District of Columbia and the province of Ontario, Canada...

's (former Norfolk and Western Railway

Norfolk and Western Railway

The Norfolk and Western Railway , a US class I railroad, was formed by more than 200 railroad mergers between 1838 and 1982. It had headquarters in Roanoke, Virginia for most of its 150 year existence....

) Pocahontas Division.

External links

• Elkhorn Inn and Theatre - surviving structure in town