Alderson Academy in WV

Alderson Academy in Wv

The historic building has been home to nearly every type of educational institution possible, and none of them with any lasting success. Opened as a private school for young men and women in the town of Alderson, West Virginia, it thrived for a short period until public high schools became more popular, offering the same education for the low price of zero dollars.

The academy began to struggle, until someone had the bright idea to offer two-year college level courses, and it became a junior college in 1918. The four-story brick building that still (barely) stands today was completed in 1924. Six years later, it transformed yet again into a senior college, but faced financial hardship once more in the Great Depression and was eventually abandoned.

From 1935 to 1953, the building sat vacant while interested parties attempted and failed to find a use for the space. It finally opened as the Mountain State Baptist High School, but that institution, too, struggled and failed, closing in the 1980s. After that, the building was used as rental apartments into the mid-’90s, when it was once more deserted. Now it lies abandoned, with no future plans—a haunting ruin of its turbulent past

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Alderson Academy came about when the Baptist Association saw the need for a secondary school for its boys and girls. Alderson Academy opened in the fall of 1901. The Alderson family strongly supported the effort, with Emma Alderson serving as vice-principal for a number of years. Historydescribed the academy as "a home school," one that "seeks to surround its students continually with such influences as will implant and develop those intangible but indispensible graces that mark the nature and bearing of the true lady and gentleman."

In 1911 the Baptist association took over the running of the school, and so it took the name of Alderson Baptist Academy. In 1918 after adding college-level classes, it added Junior College to its name.

The Boardwalk shows a student body of around 115--only 12 of whom were college students. Faculty totaled 18: six taught the typical academic courses for grades 9-14. Six were music or art teachers, three taught domestic or manual-training courses; two taught normal courses (new that year); one taught Bible.

Graduating class of around 1914. Photo courtesy of West Virginia and Regional History Center WVU Libraries.

Most students were members of either the YMCA or YWCA. The Ministerial Students Association had a membership of 14. More than a third of the student body were voice students, allowed the school to perform an operetta. Students in the expression program performed a senior play.

Other school activities included the fall hike, the Christmas party, the Mother Goose party, the Senior party and the Junior-Senior reception.

As enrollment increased, the school's indebtedness increased. When the Great Depression came, the Baptist Association determined not to try to support two higher education institutions in West Virginia and so merged Alderson Academy with Broaddus College at Philippi. That merged institution continues as Alderson-Broaddus University, located at Philippi.

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Alderson Baptist Academy and Junior College

Alderson, West Virginia

1901-1932

Both e-yearbook and Ancestry.com have digital copies of the 1924 Boardwalk, the school yearbook. History of Education in West Virginia has a history of the school to 1904. Abandoned.com has a photo essay on the school and the building.

Bricks and Mortar

Until 1922 ABA occupied a three story frame building purchased from J. G. Alderson. Located on three acres of land, It contained both classrooms and girls' dormitory rooms. The grounds also included a boys dormitory and a gymnasium. In 1922 The school purchased 36 acres north of Alderson and built a modern neoclassical brick building with a front and two wings. Its size reflected the "high hopes" of the school according to the National Register application. One former student noted that the building featured "simply acres of oak flooring and solid oak doors and cornice mouldings, and a beautiful 2 story stained glass window on the central stairway."

The campus was used for a time by Armstrong College. After sitting empty, it was later used by Mountain State Christian High School from 1953 until the 1980's. It is now abandoned and deteriorating. The stained glass window was taken to the Philippi campus of Alderson-Broaddus University and installed in Burbick Hall.