I had been in that house 1 million times when Governor Smith lived there. It was beautiful and very well maintained. It’s a shame what these people have done to it.
It's more of a shame that it's his surviving family let the house deteriorate the way it has. I've been in the house as well, I was a friend of his 2 sons (sorta). I remember this beautiful Hammond organ ( it was the console version of the B3, IIRC) in the lower level. I don't think anyone played it.
Well let's see. So mom and dad now have to work full time just to pay taxes and regulations to a corrupt system, so dad is no longer around because mom found somebody else that makes more money and divorced dad because he was always working. But you assholes want to fight each other instead of overthrowing your oppressors. So here we are and here we'll stay.... See how that works????
I'm from Beckley...this house has always been so beautiful and a wonderful memory seeing it as a fixture in Beckley while I was growing up. Last night...this house was filmed burning to the ground. We've had a LOT of vandalism in our area lately, including Sunset Memorial Cemetery where my husband and our loved ones are buried. Many headstones were overturned and the mausoleum was damaged horribly. Locals are wondering if the fire at the mansion last night is related. Just so sad people can do this.😢 Edit: I'm realizing several people posted about the fire. So sad that humans lower themselves to do things like this.😢
@@marshaannswaggerty8608 we are sorry to hear about the destruction of the cemetery where your family is buried. There are some truly awful people out there and it is disturbing.
This is heartbreaking. I’m from WV I don’t understand why the state or the county didn’t restore this place before this happened and turn it into a museum or community center and really restore it for the greater good and had grants coming into this place and for the property it truly upsets and disgust me seeing this and the house really isn’t all that old a true shame seeing this. So horrible 😢 thanks for sharing this ❤️👍👍
I went to school with his grandson, idk why this home was abandoned, he has family here. It was my uncle's orange house that sat right across from there that they moved to Dry Hill Rd, where cracker barrel is now. When I was little I used to hear my uncle talking about Mr. Smith, they had been friends.
I was riding back from Virginia last night to Ohio and we drove by the fire. It was a massive fire when we saw it. I found your video and enjoyed learning about the place. Good work.
i grew up out Dry Hill rd. when i was little you could not see the house from the road , across the street used to be Grady Witlock's house he had the Ford dealership in Beckley. The Man that built this house also built the house across the street from me and it is still occupied. Thanks for the look inside be safe and have fun.
I used to deliver pizzas in Beckley West Virginia in the early and mid two thousands. Every once in a while at night I would have a delivery to the house in the video. At that time period the house was hidden by forrest surrounding it with a large shaded yard. The house was very well kept. I’m not for sure who the family was living there at the time, but they were always kind and tipped good. One thing that stands out in my memory was my Dad telling Me the owner had a Lamborghini Countach.
@@williamdixon7401 thank you for your comment, we are just getting hit up on this video. We are glad that you were able to share some memories at this place before it became abandoned.
It’s currently on fire (10-20-24) a lot of vandalism going on in the area the past couple days. The cemetery was damaged the day before right past the mansion.
There is someone that was living there a little before you filmed this he was arrested not long ago for it. He’s one of the homeless people I know here In Beckley. We use to see him all the time at the gomart across the street. We live not far from that house
Unfortunately it's actually because there's copper in the walls with the piping and everything else that will sell as "scrap" to get them money. It's not a hate thing, it's an opportunity at "free" money. Still sad, such a beautifully designed home.
I live here near it from the story I was told it was deemed a historical site but if it is unrepairable they can demolish it so the current owner who chopped all the trees down is waiting it out to tear down and sell as prime real estate its in a desired area for businesses and that's why its just left to rot but I would have loved to completely restore it if the county paid for the restore but that will never happen
IM A LIMEY IN THE UK . IM SURE CANADA & USA HAVE THE SAME HOMELESS PERSON PROBLEM AS US . WHY DONT GOVERNMENTS TAKE DERELICT BUILDINGS REFURBISH THEM TO A VERY BASIC STANDARD (DRY w POSS HEAT COMING FROM SOLAR PANELS) . SURELY THIS WOULD TAKE BODIES OFF THE STREETS ?
I live here near it from the story I was told it was deemed a historical site but if it is unrepairable they can demolish it so the current owner who chopped all the trees down is waiting it out to tear down and sell as prime real estate its in a desired area for businesses and that's why its just left to rot but I would have loved to completely restore it if the county paid for the restore but that will never happen
I just watched this video last week, I live in the area. Sad to say but it unfortunately burnt down last night (10/20/24) ..even with all the destruction, it still had so much beauty. I am very sad to see it go.
It’s sad to report, but this mansion burnt down a few days ago. The police are investigating it. It could have been a beautiful historical landmark for our community.😢
Hullet Smith was the governer that owned this house. e. I used to hang out there with his granddaughter back in the late 80's early 90's. Mr. Smith died in 2012. After his passing in 2012, the circa 1953 residence was sold to Governor Jim Justice-owned Bellwood Corporation with the intent of redeveloping the parcel into a mix of commercial, retail, and professional spaces, single-family homes, multi-family apartment complexes, and senior living facilities, and a nine-hole golf course. The project has stalled because of a back-and-forth over tax increment financing.
@@thesmithfamcoven I am glad we were able to film the video prior to this event happening. I hope that we can preserve at least some of its memory through this video.
It would have been a library or office, not a bar. The table with the hole and the “shear” was a sewing machine. The house has clearly been destroyed in the search of copper to sell. I just drove by today. There are only 2 garage doors now and the exterior looks even worse. There’s nothing redeemable about this place.
a previous governer lived in the house way back in the day which made the house a historic place that couldnt be demolished i feel like jim burned it down so he could destroy it he has always planned of a casino there thats why he purchased it
I got footage of this place from 3 years ago and never did anything with it it's a old house nothing special..and it wasn't that bad of shape .but obviously the local scumbuckets have destroyed it..
It's a beautiful home. But I don't know how a governor could spend so much money on a house while his town is rotting. It's telling why the front of his house is facing away from the town below. He didn't even wanna look at his town. All that money could have been spent on a humble home and the rest towards funding the community and rebuilding and revitalizing the place. It explains why the house has been vandalized, probably a bunch of angry locals fed up with this hilltop monstrosity, a reminder of where their taxes went.
Would love to see this place restored to its former glory. Great video yall. Hope a great team comes through with some talented contractors and fixes it completely. Prayers 🙏👌 for the entire state of West Virginia actually. Needs attention from the think tank specialists in America. Asap. Prayers 🙏 really are important for the changes to begin. .in Jesus Christ Holy Name Amen immediately lift up West Virginia residents and families somehow amen 🙏 Lord God Almighty REBUKE SATAN OCCULT MEMBERS and REFRESH THE INNOCENT PEOPLE WHO DEFINITELY TRYING TO HOLD IT DOWN. AMEN YES MA'AM YES IMMEDIATELY AND COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND THAT.❤👌🙏😇🦁🇺🇸🐦⬛💯🆗😊⚡🤷🗣️🔨
The landscape can be fixed so that it would be beautiful. Plant an orchard in the back of the home with maple and pine trees in the front of the house.
I had been in that house 1 million times when Governor Smith lived there. It was beautiful and very well maintained. It’s a shame what these people have done to it.
Makes me so sad :(
It's more of a shame that it's his surviving family let the house deteriorate the way it has. I've been in the house as well, I was a friend of his 2 sons (sorta). I remember this beautiful Hammond organ ( it was the console version of the B3, IIRC) in the lower level. I don't think anyone played it.
You would have had to go in the house every day for 2,739 years to achieve that.
@@BlackMan614I went there today, and pieces of a big organ was outside in the yard😔
I'm from Spencer WV. I was at that house about 40 years ago. It was beautiful back then. I'm so disappointed seeing this place ran down like this
I wish I could have seen it back then
It burned today.
Why do people (aka punks) feel the need to destroy and graffiti these houses. What a waste of a once beautiful house. 😔
They have no manners and no pride about themselves and no self respect, and no respect for others belongings.
Because they are punks
funny you made this comment. My wife and I were watching this video and I said the same thing several times.
Well let's see. So mom and dad now have to work full time just to pay taxes and regulations to a corrupt system, so dad is no longer around because mom found somebody else that makes more money and divorced dad because he was always working. But you assholes want to fight each other instead of overthrowing your oppressors. So here we are and here we'll stay....
See how that works????
What about trespassing though ? I guess that’s OK. Full disclosure I could not resist looking around places like this when I was a kid.
I'm from Beckley...this house has always been so beautiful and a wonderful memory seeing it as a fixture in Beckley while I was growing up. Last night...this house was filmed burning to the ground. We've had a LOT of vandalism in our area lately, including Sunset Memorial Cemetery where my husband and our loved ones are buried. Many headstones were overturned and the mausoleum was damaged horribly. Locals are wondering if the fire at the mansion last night is related. Just so sad people can do this.😢 Edit: I'm realizing several people posted about the fire. So sad that humans lower themselves to do things like this.😢
@@marshaannswaggerty8608 we are sorry to hear about the destruction of the cemetery where your family is buried. There are some truly awful people out there and it is disturbing.
This is heartbreaking. I’m from WV I don’t understand why the state or the county didn’t restore this place before this happened and turn it into a museum or community center and really restore it for the greater good and had grants coming into this place and for the property it truly upsets and disgust me seeing this and the house really isn’t all that old a true shame seeing this. So horrible 😢 thanks for sharing this ❤️👍👍
You’re welcome! And I can’t believe that it is only 70 something years old so it did not last long
Jim Justice owns it- he doesn’t care about anything in WV unless he can profit from it
@@carolinec2145I Agree w/U 100%, Jim Justice is only out 4 himself just like all the other Cracked Politics.👏🏼👏🏼👍🏼
I went to school with his grandson, idk why this home was abandoned, he has family here. It was my uncle's orange house that sat right across from there that they moved to Dry Hill Rd, where cracker barrel is now. When I was little I used to hear my uncle talking about Mr. Smith, they had been friends.
This mansion burned last night :( thank you for this video I hope no one was hurt in the fire
@@KaylaAdams-e3s I’m glad we were able to film and explore before this happened.
I was riding back from Virginia last night to Ohio and we drove by the fire. It was a massive fire when we saw it. I found your video and enjoyed learning about the place. Good work.
@@ZimZam6GT thank you, buddy. I appreciate that and thanks for watching!
Just seen new video and it's on fire again. Someone keeps setting it
i grew up out Dry Hill rd. when i was little you could not see the house from the road , across the street used to be Grady Witlock's house he had the Ford dealership in Beckley. The Man that built this house also built the house across the street from me and it is still occupied. Thanks for the look inside be safe and have fun.
@@curttabor2827 thank you for your comment, we are glad you enjoyed the video
I used to deliver pizzas in Beckley West Virginia in the early and mid two thousands. Every once in a while at night I would have a delivery to the house in the video. At that time period the house was hidden by forrest surrounding it with a large shaded yard. The house was very well kept. I’m not for sure who the family was living there at the time, but they were always kind and tipped good. One thing that stands out in my memory was my Dad telling Me the owner had a Lamborghini Countach.
@@williamdixon7401 thank you for your comment, we are just getting hit up on this video. We are glad that you were able to share some memories at this place before it became abandoned.
Thankful you posted this. It's on fire right now 😢
I cannot believe that. That is so tragic. I believe we have one of the only videos exploring inside but I hate that this has happened.
I'm so grateful.
It’s burning now as I type this :( so so sad. truly a piece of beautiful history…I always wanted to see inside, so cool you guys got to do this
@@rosaxv_1820 I’m glad we were able to film inside to preserve some of its memory
You really don't need the beats bro.😊
It’s currently on fire (10-20-24) a lot of vandalism going on in the area the past couple days. The cemetery was damaged the day before right past the mansion.
@@patrickpowell3365 that’s insane. So sad that it’ll never be explored ever again
@@AmericanXplorers I agree, beautiful architecture that never got another chance, least the video shows it’s dilapidated beauty of what once was.
They are thinking those are the people who did i, it was so sad passing by it seeing it burn like that
Could you refresh my memory as to where this was? I always thought his house was one going up Harper Rd on the left, but this doesn’t look like that.
@@melodydaniel8630 that is the one, maybe it’s the lighting and angle of the photo
Amazing We build these great big beautiful homes just let them sit and rot while people are going homeless Friggin unreal and disgusting .
@@Deanna-lh5jy this is literally unexcused usable, and it’s frustrating to me as well. Such a huge waste.
this house is right up the street from me and ive always wondered what it looked like inside. thanks so much for the video 🤘🏻
@@abbiegreen817 we are so glad you enjoyed our video!! Thank you for watching!!
What a dirty shame to destroy something so big and beautiful.
@@lindamiller15 we completely agree
The bright blue bathroom tile and that bathtub were still recognizable after the intense fire😔 such a beautiful home and destroyed
There is someone that was living there a little before you filmed this he was arrested not long ago for it. He’s one of the homeless people I know here In Beckley. We use to see him all the time at the gomart across the street. We live not far from that house
That is wild, I’m not surprised that someone was living there. It definitely makes sense
Great video, I added to my WV list 😃
You need to go soon before they tear it down!
@@AmericanXplorers Uh oh they are demolishing Duval pk-8 now you for got to visit 😮😢
@@DrivinTesla where is that at?
@@AmericanXplorers oh no…I’m in New England 🙁 If you guys ever come up this way I can throw you some spots.
@@TheBlindPhotographer1 we sure will! We plan to visit there possibly this year
I have a hard time wandering why these houses are abandoned,no relatives,state won't step in🤔
I will never understand why people feel compelled to demolish things.
I hate it because we lose all of the history and memories that come with it.
I feel they destroyed because it's of hate and it's definitely self-gratification for the wicked
Unfortunately it's actually because there's copper in the walls with the piping and everything else that will sell as "scrap" to get them money. It's not a hate thing, it's an opportunity at "free" money. Still sad, such a beautifully designed home.
I know exactly where this place is pass it all the time. how cool
Thank you!!
im born in Bluefield wv, if i ever got a million dollars ima definitely getting this place, in beckly
It's on fire right now 😭
True shame the community made no effort to preserve this masterpiece
This is a shame how they let this beautiful home get to this point of no return sell the place than just letting it rot.
@@juanap2230 I completely agree! It’s unfortunately far too late now
I live here near it from the story I was told it was deemed a historical site but if it is unrepairable they can demolish it so the current owner who chopped all the trees down is waiting it out to tear down and sell as prime real estate its in a desired area for businesses and that's why its just left to rot but I would have loved to completely restore it if the county paid for the restore but that will never happen
If that's the house that sits next to Harper Road in Beckley, I've driven by it many times. It's sad that it's empty and in that shape.
@@tracilynn3 that’s the same house for sure
Yes. This sits on Harper road. Shame it's gotten in such a state of disrepair
IM A LIMEY IN THE UK . IM SURE CANADA & USA HAVE THE SAME HOMELESS PERSON PROBLEM AS US . WHY DONT GOVERNMENTS TAKE DERELICT BUILDINGS REFURBISH THEM TO A VERY BASIC STANDARD (DRY w POSS HEAT COMING FROM SOLAR PANELS) . SURELY THIS WOULD TAKE BODIES OFF THE STREETS ?
Any backstory as to why the house was never sold or restored before vandals took over?
I live here near it from the story I was told it was deemed a historical site but if it is unrepairable they can demolish it so the current owner who chopped all the trees down is waiting it out to tear down and sell as prime real estate its in a desired area for businesses and that's why its just left to rot but I would have loved to completely restore it if the county paid for the restore but that will never happen
I just watched this video last week, I live in the area. Sad to say but it unfortunately burnt down last night (10/20/24) ..even with all the destruction, it still had so much beauty. I am very sad to see it go.
As are we. We are thankful to have seen it before this happened. Another beautiful structure gone.
Sadly, this place caught fire October 20, 2024. Footage of the local fire departments responding have circled social media since last night.
It’s sad to report, but this mansion burnt down a few days ago. The police are investigating it. It could have been a beautiful historical landmark for our community.😢
Hullet Smith was the governer that owned this house. e. I used to hang out there with his granddaughter back in the late 80's early 90's. Mr. Smith died in 2012. After his passing in 2012, the circa 1953 residence was sold to Governor Jim Justice-owned Bellwood Corporation with the intent of redeveloping the parcel into a mix of commercial, retail, and professional spaces, single-family homes, multi-family apartment complexes, and senior living facilities, and a nine-hole golf course. The project has stalled because of a back-and-forth over tax increment financing.
I bet she was a spoiled brat.
@@Commentleaver-c6x no. Quite the opposite.
@@Michelle0670 that’s surprising coming up in a wealthy family like that.
Just went in there today, it’s so much more damaged now…
@@emy39668 that’s what someone else just commented! That’s so sad!
@@AmericanXplorers that beautiful spiraled stair case is basically gone. People have since set random places of the building on fire…
@@AmericanXplorersupdate, the whole thing has been burnt down…so sad
Sadly, this house burnt down tonight. I went to Google to find info on it when I heard it was burning and found your video.
@@thesmithfamcoven I am glad we were able to film the video prior to this event happening. I hope that we can preserve at least some of its memory through this video.
That beautiful house was just burned down like a week ago, such a sad sight
@@KeithBailey-r7y that is so very sad to hear. Such a huge loss
It would have been a library or office, not a bar. The table with the hole and the “shear” was a sewing machine. The house has clearly been destroyed in the search of copper to sell. I just drove by today. There are only 2 garage doors now and the exterior looks even worse. There’s nothing redeemable about this place.
@@spoiledpink7 so sad to hear of it’s condition now. Once such a prominent home now left for dead.
They finally finished it off. It's on fire 😭
Its really not too far gone its just noone wants to save it
I agree! It would be a lot of work to get it going but would be absolutely worth it
Well, it didn’t get torn down but burned. Too bad. I saw it a couple months ago and wondered why there was such a huge house in all that development.
a previous governer lived in the house way back in the day which made the house a historic place that couldnt be demolished i feel like jim burned it down so he could destroy it he has always planned of a casino there thats why he purchased it
I have lived in homes built in 1920’s that looked better than that in WV’s coal fields.
We could not believe how poor of condition this place was in. We were very surprised
Jim burnt it down last night
If it was built in 1954, it's 70 years old. That's the year I was born
Wow, you’re right!
Williamson was furnace/a.c. unit cover
What happened that they abandoned it?
Well well well. You said after y’all explore and put it out there they get torn down… it burnt down now…
It burnt down I live 5 minutes away from it😢
@@brianacorey6141 that is so so sad. I’ve read that there have been a lot of problems in the area this week. Be careful!
I live in Charleston homeless take over empty homes. They build fires to stay warm that causes house fire
j'adore
I got footage of this place from 3 years ago and never did anything with it it's a old house nothing special..and it wasn't that bad of shape .but obviously the local scumbuckets have destroyed it..
I happen to live around this area and tonight we was driving down haper road and this mansion is currently on fire burning to the ground
@@Makotocook85 that is so tragic
@@AmericanXplorers it truly is 😔
This house turned down over the weekend and was a total loss.
They burned this house down this past Sunday night😔
Only proves you can't take it with you when you check out.
@@patrickreedy1176 that is so true but it can be passed down or given to others.
This place burned down 3 days ago it's been burning for days
The man who burned it just got charged yesterday
@@emy39668 who did they say it was?
How long has it been abandoned?
Several years now, possibly over a decade
And now magically houses or commercial development will appear in its place.
Its gone. It burned today.
@@moustangmike yes, we have been seeing it on the news! So so sad!
Whats sad is taxpayer money more than likely funded this home and it sits empty.
That house sadly just caught on fire and is currently on fire
@@tuckerlambert3189 that is awful 😢 I’ve heard that there has been a lot of vandalism in Beckley lately
@@AmericanXplorers yeah , the cemetery up the road was hit hard the other day ,grave stones layed over and a lot more
Heyyyy. I’m from Beckley this place was stunning but it’s ruined now. #stopgraffiti
@@Evny_on_paws awesome! Nice to meet you! Hope you enjoyed the video. Wish this home wasn’t destroyed like this
The house burned down last night. It’s gone.
@@Michelle0670 that is so sad to hear. I think we have one of the only videos ever exploring inside.
Someone caught it on fire last night.
@@TheWvubaby yes, I heard. I cannot believe that. I hope that they figure out who has been doing that in the area..
@@AmericanXplorers it was a Correctional officer at Southern Regional Jail that did it!! I thought maybe homeless.
It's a beautiful home. But I don't know how a governor could spend so much money on a house while his town is rotting. It's telling why the front of his house is facing away from the town below. He didn't even wanna look at his town. All that money could have been spent on a humble home and the rest towards funding the community and rebuilding and revitalizing the place. It explains why the house has been vandalized, probably a bunch of angry locals fed up with this hilltop monstrosity, a reminder of where their taxes went.
When he was Governor, the town was booming. The house was always surrounded by trees and noone could see it.
Just wanted to let y'all know this house burnt down last night.
With the number of homeless people these days I'm surprised you don't run into more squatters
I know! We’ve only dealt with that a couple of times surprisingly
It’s on fire right now
@@-.Your_doing_great.- that is crazy. That place has been through so much lately
@@AmericanXplorers watching it rn. I've got a vid posted
@@-.Your_doing_great.- just watched it. Be safe out there!
@@AmericanXplorers will do!
@@AmericanXplorers I’ve got another one now. It’s pretty much put out
So what county is this at.
Raleigh county.
I was in the house for a meeting it was beautiful. Hate to see what happened
@@SusanneSimms I wish I could’ve seen it while it was at his peak
People lived in there
copper pipe for drugs!
im 10 min away lol
Don’t add your own graffiti!!!!
Would love to see this place restored to its former glory.
Great video yall.
Hope a great team comes through with some talented contractors and fixes it completely. Prayers 🙏👌 for the entire state of West Virginia actually.
Needs attention from the think tank specialists in America. Asap.
Prayers 🙏 really are important for the changes to begin. .in Jesus Christ Holy Name Amen immediately lift up West Virginia residents and families somehow amen 🙏 Lord God Almighty REBUKE SATAN OCCULT MEMBERS and REFRESH THE INNOCENT PEOPLE WHO DEFINITELY TRYING TO HOLD IT DOWN.
AMEN YES MA'AM YES IMMEDIATELY AND COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND THAT.❤👌🙏😇🦁🇺🇸🐦⬛💯🆗😊⚡🤷🗣️🔨
It has be burnt down..10-21-24
Nothing extraordinary, landscape is NOT even pretty.
I disagree but everyone is entitled to their opinion. I think it’s a beautiful house.
Landscape lol???
Yeah and the driveway sucks too huh.
@@AmericanXplorers Was at 1 time, before the developers came in & offered big bux for land, to build malls, fast food places, stores & gas stations.
The landscape can be fixed so that it would be beautiful. Plant an orchard in the back of the home with maple and pine trees in the front of the house.
@@judypierce7028 so much potential with it
You did have permission, right?