The City of Lewisburg and the New River Community and Technical College will be honored Friday, Nov. 22, for their efforts in preserving and re-using the historic old Greenbrier County Public Library building for the new college library. The city and college will receive the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia’s 2013 Most Significant Save of an Endangered Property Award. The award is given each year to a deserving individual, business, or organization that has saved a property listed on the West Virginia Endangered Properties List, a collection of historic structures, buildings, and sites threatened by demolition and/or disuse.
The 1834 library building, located in Lewisburg, was added to the endangered list in 2010 because of deterioration. The interior floors had buckled due to water intrusion, and water pipes had burst from lack of heat. It also needed a new roof and rehabilitation of windows and bathrooms. Since being listed, the city and college have partnered on this re-use project for the library, which housed the “Library and Study for the Supreme Court ofAppeals of Virginia” prior to West Virginia statehood in 1863. Additionally, the building served as a Union hospital and barracks and still has soldier’s inscriptions on the interior walls.
The award ceremony will begin at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 22, and it will be held in the Student Lounge of the New River Community and Technical College’s Greenbrier Valley Campus in Lewisburg. It will be followed by a reception and preservation tours of the library building. The event is free and open to the public.
Preservation Alliance of West Virginia is the statewide nonprofit dedicated to the support and promotion of historic preservation. It administers the West Virginia Endangered Properties Program, which aims to highlight and provide support to at-risk historic resources. For more information, contact info <<pawv.org or visit www.pawv.org.