bramwell – Seeing how an historic hotel could be preserved was one part of a tour Monday when one of West Virginia’s congressional representatives visited a town many coal millionaires once called home. U.S.
Rep Carol Miller, R-WV, came to the town of Bramwell to see the historic Pence Hotel, the neighboring Bramwell Theater and see the changes going on downtown. The Bramwell Foundation, which owns the hotel and theater, is seeking funding to help stabilize and preserve both structures. “The Bramwell Foundation was organized in 1997,” said Howard Troutner, the foundation’s president.
“It’s purpose was to buy up abandoned or vacant properties in Bramwell that were on the federal list of historic places. Our purpose was to restore them back to functioning businesses or functioning whatever they were originally built for. For example, we own the Masonic Building and we restored the Masonic Building with a grant of $110,000.
We still own the Pence Hotel and we also own the Bramwell Theater. Both of those buildings have been vacant for over 20 years.” A structural engineer who inspected the Pence Hotel said it was “in imminent danger of collapse,” Troutner said.
The three-story hotel’s first floor has slipped off its supports, causing it to start collapsing on both sides and causing the other floors to move out of alignment, he said. U.S.
Rep. Carol Miller, R-W.Va, looks at the view Monday morning during the town of Bramwell’s Foundation’s Revitalization .