Mount St. George, located east of Wellsburg, Brooke County, was one of the grandest private estates built in West Virginia during the 20th century. Originally the home and working farm of James B. Vandergrift, a Pittsburgh steel heir, the property was first called Vancroft. The sprawling mansion, completed in 1904, features low roof lines, a stone turret, stone chimneys, and a recessed balcony and porch at the gabled entry. The house is approached by a grand colonnaded arbor, or pergola, the largest such structure in the state. The estate includes an oval race track, a clubhouse with a pit for cockfights, a fieldstone grotto, and several other residences.
In 1922, the property was acquired by the Catholic Knights of St. George, turned into a home for aging clergy and friends, and renamed Mount St. George. Through the years several additions expanded the property. The Knights of St. George merged with the William Penn Association, which closed the facility in 1992. In 1998, the Catholic Knights of America, a fraternal benefits company, purchased the property, reopening an assisted living facility ‘‘for Catholics and their Christian friends.’’ It has since closed.
At the time of the purchase by the Catholic Knights of America, the property consisted of the mansion and much of the original furniture and furnishings, additions built in 1926 and 1975, three private residences, a farm shed, retreat house, storage building, barn, lodge building, and private cemetery. Mount St. George was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.
As of 2023, the private property is listed for sale for a reported $3.2 million.
Read the National Register nomination.
This Article was written by J. W. George Wallace
Last Revised on September 21, 2023
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Cite This Article
Wallace, J. W. George "Mount St. George." e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia. 21 September 2023. Web. 15 November 2024.
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