Darkesville, West Virginia

Darkesville Historic District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
Location:	US 11 at Middle Creek, Darkesville, West Virginia
Coordinates:	39°22′27″N 78°1′25″W / 39.37417°N 78.02361°W / 39.37417; -78.02361Coordinates: 39°22′27″N 78°1′25″W / 39.37417°N 78.02361°W / 39.37417; -78.02361
Architect:	Multiple
Architectural style:	Greek Revival, Gothic, Federal
Governing body:	Private
MPS:	Berkeley County MRA
NRHP Reference#:	80004410[1]
Added to NRHP:	December 10, 1980

Darkesville is an unincorporated community in Berkeley County, West Virginia, United States. Established in 1791,^[2] Darkesville has been nationally recognized as a historic district.^[3]:7

A post office and school (now closed) once operated in Darkesville.^[4][5]

Geography

Darkesville lies between Inwood and Martinsburg along U.S. Route 11.^[6] The community's elevation is 531 feet (162 m), and it is located at about 39°22′25″N 78°1′30″W / 39.37361°N 78.025°W / 39.37361; -78.025 (39.3738500, -78.0248602).^[2]

Middle Creek flows through the center of Darkesville.^[6]

Name

Darkesville is named for William Darke, a Virginia military officer who had his headquarters in the community.^[3]:7 Throughout its history, Darkesville has been known by multiple names and a wide variety of spellings. An 1895 atlas included the community as "Buckletown," and later variants included "Buckellstown," "Buckels Town," "Buckelstown," "Buckle Town," and "Bucklestown." "James Town" and "Locke" have also been applied to the community. Its current name has also been spelled "Darkes" and "Darkville".^[2]

Historic district

In 1980, the community was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a historic district.^[1] Darkesville was recognized for its historic architecture, which includes approximately twenty-five buildings constructed as log cabins in 1810 or earlier.^{[3]:2, 12, 13}

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2009-03-13. http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/natreg/docs/All_Data.html. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Darkesville, West Virginia
3. ^ ^{a b c} Wood, Don C. National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Darkesville Historic District. National Park Service, c. 1980.
4. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Darkesville Post Office
5. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Darkesville School
6. ^ ^{a b} DeLorme. West Virginia Atlas & Gazetteer. 4th ed. Yarmouth: DeLorme, 2007, 30. ISBN 0-89933-327-3.