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i recently purchased the henry etz mansion in wheeling wv and i am looking for info on the house and the etz family, henry etz, harold etz etc. anyone have any info on this?
Sounds like a genealogy chase is in order...find his grave...find his family...are any still living...wouldn't they had some history...sounds like a detective story here and one worth a chronicle...Hope he is a steamboat captian with more than one family on the river...could be a cigar merchant...lumber merchant...Wheeling had them all...how old is the house...some building records might be still available at city hall...how about the federal/state program to record the buildings of the area...was done through WVU??
I love this thread...wish I could really help...
possible secret passages and hiding places...nooks and crannies in the attic and basement...look everywhere in that old house...staircase finnals were a place for documents and treasure..hearths...fabulous! so lucky you!
If they had a mansion, I would think they are mentioned somewhere in WV history. You may want to go to the local library and see if they have anything that is not online.
thanks for your reply, i do know he was an optometrist and the home was built in 1897 and was the 2nd home built on the sale of the woods farmland which became an upscale area. the home is in really good shape although it is in the process of being painted, in 1974 it was converted to apartments but all the wood work the huge stained glass windows in the foyer and the stairs and mantle hearths etc were preserved. its going to be a honor and labor of love to bring it back to the original look although it will still remain apartments which i live in one . the house is still very grand with professional tenants which makes it nice, as for nooks and crannies the only i have found is an attic above the 3rd floor which i have yet to get into. thanks yours and the other posts help, i had already check the ohio county website, its a great resource.
Chance of a lifetime, Yinz...we all know that and wish you well.
I was under one of those old goodies one time and found a whiskey bottle from the 1800's...had some left as the bottle had been placed on its side and kept the cork moist...have it here in the cabin with the other old stuff...reminder of older, better times...Isn't that what we see deeply in those old houses...a more simpler time and life...something of peace and being able to re-live it in some way...a shelter from the stress and time stealing?
And I sold one of those houses once...in the attic was a baby carriage...tucked away..fringe on the top...about 1880's.
In the yard as I gave the young couple the keys, I said to the lady, "There's a little forgotton treasure in the attic..." She sold it for $300...??? Who can figure!
His family moved from Gaithersburg MD to Jefferson County about 10 years ago. They bought an old stone farmouse on Rt. 230 heading towards Sheperdstown (from Charles Town). They spent a good amount of time putting work into the old place, restoring it to original condition.
The young man, maybe 13 at the time, was finding loose floorboards in the sitting room and securing them down when he found a couple that were really loose. He pulled them up and found a metal box between the floor joists. Inside the box he found things like letters or trinkets, but the real prize was wrapped in an oiled cloth- A Colt Navy 1860 cap and ball revolver!
His dad let him keep it for the hard work he was doing with the old house. What a cool find.
Several years ago I came across the word "Hoopies", as a word used to describe rural West Virginians being country bumpkins. I had forgotten about it since nobody down here in SWV uses the word. I read a online newspaper from the Northern Panhandle today and in the comments section I noticed Hoopies used a few times. I read further on the origins of Hoopies and where it was derived from and meaning.
Is Hoopies a pretty common word to describe people from WV/Ohio Valley? Is it offensive or just in the context it is used? Similar to us to being called Hillbillies down here? I don't take any offense to being called Hillbilly, nor anybody I know. Just curious, Hoopies intrigues me.
Several years ago I came across the word "Hoopies", as a word used to describe rural West Virginians being country bumpkins. I had forgotten about it since nobody down here in SWV uses the word. I read a online newspaper from the Northern Panhandle today and in the comments section I noticed Hoopies used a few times. I read further on the origins of Hoopies and where it was derived from and meaning.
Is Hoopies a pretty common word to describe people from WV/Ohio Valley? Is it offensive or just in the context it is used? Similar to us to being called Hillbillies down here? I don't take any offense to being called Hillbilly, nor anybody I know. Just curious, Hoopies intrigues me.
CoW, I grew up in Wetzel County (which may or may not be part of the NP) in the 50s and 60s, and can't recall ever hearing the word "hoopie". Then again, we were pretty far from Homer Laughlin. Like you, I did some reading... I find it interesting that there's some dispute about whether a hoopie is better than a hillbilly, or worse.
Here in YinzerLand, I've only heard it used by a couple of the edgier radio talk show hosts, usually when they want to stir something up before a WVU-Pitt game.
I think we should embrace hoopie as we do hillbilly, as part of our heritage and culture, and representative of the hard work our forebears performed.
It was once a word in history that referred to barrel makers who put hoops around the staves to make the product. It isn't used in modern times except by pseudo elitist Pitt fans who want to make stereotypcially derogatory comments about their neighbors in West Virginia. It shows their total ignorance and stupidity, which should not be surprising to those of us who have spent any time around the moronic reprobates.
As they use it, it is comparable to an ethnic slur.
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Question for my Northern WV/Ohio Valley posters?
