By Hanno Kirk
This is the first of several articles on the history of Lewisburg and the pivotal role played by the two educational institutions founded by John McElhenny in the development and growth of Lewisburg. It is also the story of the Lewisburg Foundation, which helped revive Lewisburg after the 1972 closure of both the Greenbrier Military School (GMS) and the Greenbrier College for Women.
As we move into the year 2025, it is a time to reflect on the reawakening and vibrancy of Lewisburg after the 1972 closure of both the Greenbrier Military School (GMS) and the Lewisburg Female Academy, later renamed Greenbrier College for Women. The Reverend John McElhenny, who served as pastor of Old Stone Presbyterian Church for 60 years from 1808, was a great supporter of education for both boys and girls. He set about establishing two schools, one for boys and another for girls. Both were either owned or under the direction of the Presbytery until after McElhenny died in 1871. Both schools changed their names and ownership several times. The girls’ school known as Greenbrier Academy became known as the Lewisburg Female Institute and then later as the Greenbrier College for Women. The boys’ school also underwent several name changes and became the Greenbrier Military School (GMS). Both original schools had wooden structures which burned down, and were replaced with brick structures, which we now know as the Greenbrier Community College, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine (WVSOM).
From 1922 to 1971 GMS was run by successive members of the Moore family. They were successful in promoting the school for the academic year, and summer camping programs at Shaw-Mi-Del-Eca along the banks of the Greenbrier River. Starting in World War II, the US Army provided military instructors for GMS, with a view towards having the graduates become Army officers. This augmentation of the GMS faculty brought in federal funding which helped to finance capital improvements to the physical infrastructure.
The two schools provided a balance of educating both male and female students. They also balanced each other in providing partners for dances, proms, as well as Sunday religious services. Every Sunday evening the cadets in uniform would march in formation down Washington Street in Lewisburg to the Old Stone Church for evening services. They took their seats in the left balcony. The girls across the street from the church would walk down the broad steps and walkway and cross the street. Dressed in their Sunday finest dresses, they filed into the church and up the stairs to the opposite balcony. Ogling each other and flirting across the Sanctuary created a certain frisson during the service. Although they enthusiastically sang the hymns, one can only imagine how much attention they paid to the sermons.
The presence of the two schools provided a major economic and intellectual stimulus to the small village of Lewisburg. Enrolment at both schools fluctuated some, but from the early 1920s to the early 1960s, there were generally between a 500-700 students total in the two schools. Many of these came from wealthy parents in the region, and also from diplomats and foreign countries.
Shops sprouted along Washington Street. Clothing stores sprang up to cater to the needs of the two schools. The women needed dresses, gowns and shoes. The boys needed uniforms, overcoats, shoes and boots. The parents of the students would come into town, to help select and pay for the clothing needs of their children, and as the stores increased the variety and quality of their wares, they would purchase things for themselves, or as gifts. These parents also needed overnight accommodation and places to eat.
Without electrical refrigeration in the early days, the two schools daily needed fresh meat, dairy, poultry, vegetables, and fruit to feed the students, staff and faculty. A local cottage industry developed consisting of farmers, dressmakers, and cobblers. Both schools employed local staff ranging from cooks, maintenance, construction crews who built the various structures of the two schools over time.
The recruitment of educated instructors from near and far raised the cultural level of the community. As Lewisburg became the county seat with its courthouse, the lawyers and judges associated with it brought more professionals into the community. In the 19th century, Lewisburg also catered to wealthy people who traveled by carriage to the various healing springs and spas in the Greenberry Valley area. In sum. Lewisburg was doing well economically and intellectually, benefiting from the presence of the two schools, the County Courthouse, and the proximity of the healing spas.
The tranquility and relative wellbeing of this era was disrupted by the Civil War. At the beginning of the war Lewisburg was part of Virginia and thus was part of the Confederacy. It pitted the Confederate loyalists against those who wanted to be in the Union. Battles were fought in and around Lewisburg, and the town changed hands several times. Both schools closed down. With the formation of West Virginia and its admission to the Union in 1863 as the 35th State, West Virginia gained representation in Congress. Thus, West Virginia avoided the bitter legacy of Reconstruction imposed upon the former Confederate states of the South.
Life in Lewisburg gradually returned to normal. Both GMS and Women’s College reopened still under the sponsoring umbrella of the Presbytery. Both institutions dropped their affiliation with the Presbyterian Church in 1920. The cadets and the females from the school continued the tradition of attending Old Stone Church every Sunday evening. Both schools flourished into the early 1960s. In 1966 the federal military staff was withdrawn from GMS, leaving a funding loss. There was a gradual drop in enrolment starting the mid-1960s, which accelerated during the Vietnam War. By 1972 neither institution had enough students to justify continuing operations. Both schools closed. The popularity of military style summer camps declined at the same time, and Sha-Mi-Del-Eca also closed temporarily. The property of the military school was deeded over to the new West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine (WVSOM). Private investors, led by Eugene McClung, acquired the Sha-Mi-Del-Eca camp facility ran it until 1977. The stately edifice of the Women’s College was taken over by the West Virginia Department of Human Services (DHS) to serve as a residential treatment center for persons with mental illness or disability.
In the next installment we will look at the drastic negative economic impact on Lewisburg of the closure of the two schools. It will tell the story of a dozen Lewisburg citizens who took on the challenge of reviving the community. It is the story of the Lewisburg Foundation, formed by these civic minded people, who planned and financed projects that were instrumental in beautifying Lewisburg, reviving the local economy, and enriching the cultural life of the community.
Hanno W. Kirk, PhD, LICSW, is the principal author of Psychosocial and Behavioral Aspects of Medicine, and after retiring from active college teaching and touring all-day seminars, he provided neurofeedback from 2006 until his retirement in 2022 at his private practice in Lewisburg. He has been a presenter at major national and international conferences on biofeedback and neurofeedback and is involved with several area groups including the Greenbrier Valley Chorale and The Lewisburg Foundation.