Thurmond West Virginia and the story of scale

OFICIALLY: Thurmond is a town in Fayette County, West Virginia, United States, on the New River. The population was five at the 2020 census. During the heyday of coal mining in the New River Gorge, Thurmond was a prosperous town with a number of businesses and facilities for the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway.

Reality Check 2022: Thurmond is possibly one of the most photographed of coal towns and appears in almost countless Youtube videos about it being a ghost town. The term ghost town is the red headed bastard step child of photography. Will I see a ghost? Is it haunted? Etc etc etc. BECAUSE so much of what was Thurmond is gone, JUST enough remains to have people crawl all over it and find that ghost. Some also liken it to the wild west, where gambling and prostitution went wild. The truth as far as I have been able to find is that a certain Concho coal company along with many others was nearby and Thurmond was a perfect hub. It had a huge hotel, a bank and pretty much anything a large town would want.  YES there are endless stories of gambling and many other countless tales of debauchery. It is also an active station on the AMTRAK Cardinal line as well as maintained in the National Park System. Wow, thats so ghostly and mysterious.....not. Was there gambling and debauchery? I hope so. Facing death at a coal mine or boredom everyday could really warp anyone.

IS IT haunted? Beats me. IS IT a ghost town? My answer is sure, why not. IS IT a mysterious place? NO. It was a major industrial hub and train station that withered on the vine as the coal went away and its location made it remote. Most of the ghost hunter videos are pure fiction and at best speculation. This was a major location, that performed a specific function for an industry that died in that area. IS IT beautiful and filled with history? YES. At the time of these photos my son was younger and he reminded me in his actions of why I photograph these places: Its fascinating. This is a DRAFT series, I will be making further edits. 

This is a story of scale. How small do we feel when we see what used to be? Where did they all go? Feel free to leave comments. You may see the full size of any picture by clicking on it. Prints can be purchased for a fee. You can e mail me to discuss a fee.