The Ghost Town of THURMOND, WV - A Good Town Gone Bad

Thurmond, West Virginia was built as a railroad town along the New River at a junction for the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad. First settled in the 1870's and growing as more trains came in, the founder of the town, William Thurmond, tried to keep the town clean and upright. However in the early 1900's, a seedy hotel opened up just across the river, and their "anything goes" attitude gave Thurmond a notorious reputation of treachery and murder.

The town began dying in the 1930's but never became truly abandoned. Even today, 5 people still call Thurmond their home. Thurmond is also located within one of America's newest National Parks - so new that it wasn't even a park yet when we shot this.

Trains still pass through the town and we got to see some incredibly long consists roll through, then we went up to do a bit of urban exploration in the abandoned houses behind the main commercial row.

If you do visit Thurmond, please be respectful of the history and any "no trespassing" signs. Report any vandalism and help preserve the site so that future generations can come and explore.

[alexanderthurmond]

Thank you for making a video about this. My relatives are the Thurmond’s of Virginia and it’s very cool to see a documentary about their life!

[herbrv]

My family was from Thurmond. My paternal Grandmother, Wealtha Harvey was the last funeral at the Thurmond Union Church. My Dad's sister, Dixie (Harvey) Parrish owned the Captain Thurmond Home until her death in Dec. 1970. When I returned from Vietnam, I too, went back to Thurmond to live. First at Aunt Dixie's, then to the little two room shanty behind the Thurmond Bank and later to another house in Thurmond. I have the Thurmond Bank statement and receipts (hand written) where my Grandmother paid on her house. I also have the receipt from Collins Funeral home for my Grandfather's 1949 Funeral. Also several photos that are rarely seen on Thurmond sites.

[woodyjr]

Back in the early 90's, I worked for an environmental remediation firm. When the engine house caught fire, it was obviously was extinguished. However, the fire continued to smolder and burn below ground due to the old wooden ties and all the coil spoil in the area. My company was called on to remedy the situation as the underground fire was slowly creeping towards the CSX mainline. The fire was threating to shut off the million dollar coal trains passing through daily. To yield the fire from spreading, we installed a bentonite slurry wall between the mainline and the fire towards the river, keeping the fire from spreading. We then excavated the smoldering area, removed all the RR ties, and extinguished the balance of the fire. A super interesting place and project that we worked on. Because it was remote, we relied upon a lot of locals and their businesses to support us with equipment and supplies. Wow did the locals have so many stories about the place and the people!

[marvwatkins]

I like the way Tom superimposes old photos over existing scenes. Quite well done.

[ckind]

6:58 "the hotel burned down, which interrupted the poker game" the dry delivery of that line got a good laugh from me 😆
Really well done video!

[ReptileRedux]

I love the atmosphere of this channel.
No sensationalism in the titles or thumbnails... just quality, interesting information.
Thanks for all the great work.

[twowickie]

Genuinely difficult to believe this is an amateur video. I feel like this is something I could catch on PBS. Wonderful work, both in front of camera and behind. Kudos.

[timothylegg]

Back in 1982, my mother had a wreck in this town. She was driving up a street in a 69 Ford and there was a chain across the road. One of the poles was ripped from the ground and an irate man came out and said he owned the street. My mother challenged him that in the US, no one owns public roads, even if you bring a chain across it and he is responsible for the vehicular damages. He ran off to "call the police" and we never saw him again.

[donalmeadows]

Thank you both for "respectfully" sharing the History of Thurmond WV. I was born and raised in Charleston WV. When one is a West Virginian, your always a Mountaineer.

I remember (I'm 77 now) an uncle that was an Engineer operating a coal fired steam locomotive in the 1940's and 50's. He worked out of the Raleigh Yard just outside of Beckley WV. I wish everyone that shares West Virginia's History was as respectful as you. COAL, the railroads and coal miners were/are responsible for aiding in building America. (Steel industry, heating, coal generated electricity and more)
Again, thanks.

[rebeccafantstegall]

Now THIS is what YouTube should be used for. Excellent!! I could watch videos like this all day. Love the history.👏👏👏👏👏

[dawnmorris]

My husband and I visited Thurmond a few years ago. We were visiting New River and just love to drive around. This is a fascinating place and there are still people living there, up behind all these buildings.

[keithhodgson]

From a UK perspective this is a fascinating story about a town unknown to us. Especially like the way old photos are superimposed on current visuals. Many thanks - most enjoyable.

[powdies]

This is the sort of YouTube Explorer video many others should aspire to! Respectful, informative and fascinating. I loved the superimposition of historic photos over contemporary scenery. Overall quality material. Thanks! I'll be watching more of your stuff.

[BikesNThings]

I remember coming across this place on a solo motorcycle trip around WV. Won't forget Thurmond any time soon. Absolutely beautiful country, and no better of a place to get lost if you asked me. Fantastic video as always.

[locofoto]

I'm a Mexican immigrant living in Chicago and I'm fascinated by documentaries such as this one. You're doing a superb job, please keep putting out content like this one. I subscribed!

[Frenchylikeshikes]

This video is extremely well made and narrated. Very interesting to hear about this time period, and that city I had never heard of in my life before.

[zweispurmopped]

The tale of the town was fascinating, the pictures of the abandoned houses left me deeply melancholic. Houses in dire need of life in them. This is the kind of places where ghosts would roam.

[rispatha]

In 1980 my foster father took me on a camping trip around the railroad areas of WV, PA, OH and we stopped in Thurmond to see the sights. The general store and restaurant were still open and I had one of the best steaks I had ever eaten in my life at that time. The residents were very friendly and were always willing to sit and talk about the history of the town. Many of the residents also said that they would more than likely be the last of them since their children had no interest in remaining there. There really was nothing there for anyone anymore beyond the historical and nostalgic value of the location. Even back then during our 4 hours visit there at least 8 trains had run through. To a railroad buff this would make a great addition to a train layout especially int he hey days of the steam engine era.

[Timrathmore]

This was an absolute treat. You are a Modern day historian. Railroading is tied into West Virginia more than I could have imagined plus a plethora of other things that distinguish the state from others.

[JawTooth]

I filmed that at about the same time that you did. Since you were there they have started removing the track closest to the train station and they have built a new Amtrak station for boarding.