Community

New Paragraph

Community

Be a part of it all

Community

Be a part of it all

MAIN STREET SAINT ALBANS

Article in West Virginia Executive Magazine

https://wvexecutive.com/main-street-usa-new-life-in-saint-albans/

George Washington Monument Restored

The original Saint Albans High School opened in 1924. This historic monument was erected in 1932 by the state of West Virginia in front of the original Saint Albans High School on Kanawha Terrace. It commemorates George Washington’s April 1784 acquisition of a 2,000 acre tract of land bordered by the great Kanawha and Coal Rivers.

The monument stayed on site in when the original high school building became Saint Albans Junior High after a new high school was built in 1954. It remained the junior high school until it closed in June 1990. The building caught fire in 2018 and was eventually torn down in the summer of 2023. It was then that the monument was removed from the property and saved.

The monument was recently restored by the SAHS Alumni Association and placed back home in front of the new high school on Kanawha Terrace a mile east from the original location. Mayor Scott James; Principal Jaclyn Swayne; former principals, teachers and students; the Chamber of Commerce, and community members gathered on February 4^thto witness the restoration and the return of the beautiful historic monument to the front lawn of the school.

Saint Albans alumnus Steve Sisson drew this pen and ink art of the former high school/ junior high school and came from Ripley with his wife, Debbie to attend the ceremony.

Patty Swango of the Saint Albans High School Alumni Association had the idea to restore the monument and oversaw the project from beginning to end. Patty is a graduate of the school and is a remarkable community volunteer for the City and Chamber of Commerce.

Principal Jaclyn Swayne and Mayor Scott James spoke at the dedication which had a turnout of five dozen alumni/community members and two dozen current SAHS students. It was a great day in Saint Albans and a great day to be a Red Dragon!

Our Connection with Saint Albans, Maine

Saint Albans residents Trish and Glenn Roberts and former residents Mark and Beth Gipe Keffer recently visited Saint Albans, Maine while on vacation in New England. They took with them several issues of our chamber newsletter, My Saint Albans, to share around town. Here are a few pictures from our namesake town, along with City Hall Manager Larry Post. Our October newsletter will feature these pictures on the cover!

Joe Dobbs Square on Olde Main Plaza

Mayor Scott James dedicated the new square.

Joe Dobbs' son Dale and daughter Sue and her husband AJ

came to Saint Albans to be introduced to the community

and to thank the mayor and the sign designer, Aaron Brown of 1863WV,

for the beautiful sign and the square dedicated to their father.

Dale looks so much like his dad, and Sue was wearing one of her dad's hats!

It was so nice having them on the square!

Saint Albans Safe Haven Baby Box

On August 12, Saint Albans had a blessing for the new Safe Haven Baby Box installed at the Saint Albans Fire Department. It is the product of our caring community. Thanks to Chapman Technical Group for their $18,000 donation that made this possible. Thanks to all of the community members who also donated and who came out to celebrate this wonderful addition to our town. The founder and CEO of Safe Haven, Monica Kelsey, came to Saint Albans to celebrate with us! As a baby, she was abandoned-- which set her life purpose. There are now 256 Safe Haven baby boxes in America, in 19 states.

Saint Albans Junior High School

Cornerstone and Time Capsule

Take a Walk on the Wild Side

Nature Hike and Activities at City Park

Adopt A Little Corner of Town

RAILS Train Day Festival

Fourth Street Train Depot Historic District

Main Street Festivals

YakFest ArtiGras Fall Y'all and Chili Cook-off

Founders Day Heritage Day Christmas in Saint Albans

Cars and Coffee Halloween Pub Crawl Mountaineer Main Street

Parades

Founders Day SAHS Homecoming Veterans Day Christmas

Saint Albans High School Prom

A Night On Main Street

Festival of Lights

Saint Albans City Park

Each year during the month of December

City of Lights

Saint Albans Businesses and Homes Celebrate Christmas

The Arts

The Alban Arts and Conference Center

The historic Alban Movie House was purchased by the Saint Albans Regional Development Authority in 2008 and was renovated into the Alban Arts and Conference Center. The theater produces six shows a year and hosts the Alban Arts Academy. An amphitheater at Saint Albans City Park is home to outdoor drama. The city celebrates an annual ArtiGras Festival.

History

Saint Albans Historical Society

Saint Albans has eleven sites on the National Register of Historic Places. The Saint Albans Historical Society frequently conducts historic walking tours and the annual Holiday Homes Tour. The archeological site along the Kanawha River is one of the oldest in the United States with points dating back 7,000 years. The Saint Albans Area Chamber of Commerce is supportive of the Historical Society's purpose and goals-- including its annual Founders Day Festival, Morgan's Kitchen Fall Festival, and the wide array of December events in conjunction with Christmas in Saint Albans.

Saint Albans City Parks

City Park

Ravens Park

C Street Park

Roadside Park

Ordnance Park

Baier Street Park

Benedict Circle Park

College Hill's Walk Park

Recreation

Saint Albans rests at the confluence of the Kanawha and Coal Rivers, where boat enthusiasts enjoy a wide range of water activities: pleasure boating, jet skiing, stern wheeling, flatware kayaking, fishing, tubing, and more. The city administers seven parks where residents and visitors can enjoy disc golf, swimming, picnics, playgrounds, seasonal events, and more.