The Riverside Hotel of Bickley Mills, Virginia — Did You Know?

© JERRY F. COUCH

SEVERAL YEARS AGO while researching another topic, I came across the letterhead stationery pictured below.

I knew there had been a Riverside Hotel in St. Paul (pictured below) but I didn’t know there had been a hotel of the same name on the outskirts of Bickley’s Mills as well. So, I did more digging.

What I learned was that the hotel at Bickley Mills was originally built as a residence by Capt. Henry Hopkins Dickenson when he returned to Russell County after the Civil War. He and his brother, John T. Dickenson later built a general store beside the house for their firm, “Dickenson Brothers.”

The Riverside hotel in Bickley Mills was located on the present-day River Road near the spot where Mill Creek flows into the Clinch. Its days as a hotel peaked in the 1890’s when the Norfolk & Western Railway’s Clinch Valley Division between Bluefield and Norton was being built. Even before the N & W’s problematic Bull Hill tunnel was completed, rail passengers could travel to the blossoming town site that would subsequently be known as Castlewood. And they could also travel to the new towns known as Minneapolis and St. Paul.

The N & W brought “men of the grip” (traveling salesmen) into the community in larger numbers than ever before. Freight could now be shipped to railroad depots in new Castlewood and St. Paul. Bulky goods that would previously have been shipped by rail to Abingdon and then hauled by wagon to Bickley Mills and the surrounding area became more readily and reliably available. Sewing machines, pianos, pump organs, gaudy machine-made furniture – all these new-fangled things began to appear in local homes. The railroad brought the industrial age to the doorsteps of local farm families. With an increase in the speed of travel, the railroad altered people’s perception of geographical boundaries.

When the N & W trestle that spanned the Clinch was being built near the Riverside Hotel, its construction was a source of fascination for local residents. They, along with the hotel’s lodgers would gather on the hotel’s large double porches to watch the progress. It was the talk of the town.

To expand the Riverside Hotel’s capacity, additional guest rooms were built over the Dickenson Brothers store. Due to the hotel’s limited capacity, some members of the bridge construction crew rented rooms in private homes. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say they rented bed space. People in those days didn’t expect the degree of privacy we take for granted today. It was not uncommon for strangers to share a bed in a hotel or boarding house room containing multiple beds.

The money the lodgers spent brought a welcome increase to the community’s prosperity. Nothing like this would be seen again until the construction of the power plant at Carbo in the 1950’s, and the construction of the power plant at Virginia City a few years ago.

After the railroad was completed, Bickley Mills gradually ceased to be the hub of the community. It had been supplanted by what we refer to today as “Old Castlewood.” Progress had reduced the Riverside Hotel to being somewhat off the beaten path of travelers. In time, the store building was torn down and the hotel reverted to its original status as a private residence. Later, it became the home of the Bartee family.

*NOTE: The site once occupied by the long-gone Riverside Hotel is private property. Please respect the owner’s rights and do not trespass.

MRS. BARTEE CELEBRATES HER 91ST BIRTHDAY

In February of 1974, Mrs. Myrtle Bartee was interviewed at her home (the former Riverside Hotel) by Ann Gregory, editor of the Clinch Valley Times. The occasion was Mrs. Bartee’s 91st. birthday. Here’s a transcription of that interview:

There was a special celebration at Mrs. Myrtle Bartee’s house on the River Road near Old Castlewood on Valentine’s Day, but it wasn’t a Valentine party. Mrs. Bartee celebrated her 91st. birthday with a small party, but was kept busy most of the day with her regular activities. she is currently busy making some spring dresses for herself on her Singer treadle sewing machine. Other daily duties include all her housekeeping, cooking, and laundry. Mrs. Bartee also enjoys knitting, crocheting, and quilting, but one of her favorite spare time activities is reading. She especially enjoys reading about presidents and their families, and just finished Eleanor and Franklin.

Mrs. Bartee rode horseback to Bristol for her marriage to Jack Bartee in 1898. She was 15. Left a widow at age 33, she reared their three sons, Charles, Ernest, and Howard. The three sons are now deceased, but Mrs. Bartee has two grandchildren, Jack Bartee of Carterton, and Mary Margaret LaForce of Defiance, Ohio, and five great-grandchildren.

The Bartee House has an interesting history. It was built by Captain Henry Dickenson when he returned from fighting in the Civil War. The huge nine-room house was originally heated by wood fires in the many fireplaces, but later converted to coal, and now has an oil furnace. Just for comfort, though, Mrs. Bartee keeps a good old-fashioned feather bed!

Mrs. Bartee lives alone, except for a teenaged neighbor who spends the nights with her, but she manages better than most of us at her daily chores. She has to wear glasses for close work, but delights in telling the story about the time, some years ago, when she shot and killed a hawk in flight.

Castlewood is a better place for having a lady like Mrs. Bartee. Her many busy years provide a sense of fulfillment; her good library provides a source of satisfaction for her inquiring mind; her wonderful sense of humor provides her with delight in all her friends and each day of her life.

The following Clinch Valley Times photos of Mrs. Bartee and her family were taken the same day Mrs. Bartee was interviewed:

*The following short biographical sketch of Henry Hopkins Dickenson was transcribed from The Heritage of Russell County, Virginia 1786-1986 Volume I.

Born near Carterton, Virginia, he was one of 13 children of Charles Carroll Dickenson and Catherine Counts Dickenson.

Married Cornelia Winston Quarles of Bedford, Va. October 5, 1868. To this union were born Charles, Ella, Alberta, Giles, Edward, and Kate.

In 1861 when only 24 years old, he organized in Rusell County, Company A, 29th Virginia Infantry Volunteers, Col. Moore’s Regiment, Gen. John D. Course’s Brigade, Pickett’s Division, Longstreet’s Corps. of the Army of Virginia. He was elected captain of said Company and served in it for four years until the surrender at Appomattox.

By a friend, E. S. Finney, these words were written concerning the Confederate service of Capt. Dickenson: “As an officer he was kind and considerate to his men, modest in the full discharge of his duty; brave and fearless in battle; a leader, loved by General and private and one who commanded the respect of all. At the battle of Drury’s Bluff, by order of his General, he led a most difficult and dangerous charge into the enemy’s lines, was the first man to reach their breastworks, dauntless and gallantly called on his men to support him, and routed the enemy. This, too, after the efforts of other brave men who had failed or had given their lives in the effort. For his gallantry and bravery, Gen. Course publicly commended him.”

After the Civil War, he conducted a General Store in Castlewood until 1881; at which time he ran for and was elected Clerk of the Court of Russell County. He was elected to a second term, then retired to private life.

He was a business, civic, and political leader in Russell County until his death at the age of 63 in November 1903.

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