Thomas, West Virginia
| Thomas, West Virginia | |
|---|---|
| City | |
East Avenue in Thomas in 2006
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 Location of Thomas, West Virginia |
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| Coordinates: 39°8′53″N 79°29′50″W / 39.14806°N 79.49722°WCoordinates: 39°8′53″N 79°29′50″W / 39.14806°N 79.49722°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | West Virginia |
| County | Tucker |
| Area | |
| • Total | 4.51 sq mi (11.68 km2) |
| • Land | 4.46 sq mi (11.55 km2) |
| • Water | 0.05 sq mi (0.13 km2) |
| Elevation | 3,035 ft (925 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 586 |
| • Estimate (2012) | 567 |
| • Density | 131.4/sq mi (50.7/km2) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 26292 |
| Area code(s) | 304 |
| FIPS code | 54-80020 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1555802 |
Thomas is a very small city and former coal town in Tucker County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 586 at the 2010 census.
Thomas was platted in 1884. Thomas was named for Thomas Beall Davis (1828-1911), brother of Senator Henry Gassaway Davis. The Davis brothers, in 1883, opened a mine near Thomas and had coal ready to ship when their railway arrived a year later. By 1892, Davis Coal and Coke was among the largest and best known coal companies in the world and employed 1,600 people. At the peak of its operations in 1915, there were nine producing mines within a mile of the company's office in Thomas.
Immigrants flocked to the area as miners, railroad laborers, or merchants. The Company employed a man named Wladyslaw Dackiewicz as an interpreter. He could speak, read, and write eight languages and his services were much in demand with the influx of immigrants.
In 1901, in less than two hours, nearly half of Thomas (83 buildings) was destroyed by a fire. The town was quickly rebuilt with fine hotels and a new opera house. The Cottrill Opera House had a saloon on the first floor which was by far the most elegant of the eight bars located on Front Street. In 1909, Front Street (also known as First Street, Main Street, and East Avenue) was laid with brick to become the first paved street in the county.
Thomas claimed the grandest railway station between Cumberland, Maryland, and Elkins, West Virginia. Built of brick in 1901. It was destroyed by a tornado in 1944.
In 1921, coke production ceased and mining operations have diminished.
The Cottrill Opera House, Davis Coal and Coke Company Administrative Building, Fairfax Stone, and Thomas Commercial Historic District are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
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Wikipedia