Eggleston
Located on the New River, Adam Harmon first settled Eggleston in 1745 making it the first permanent settlement in Giles County. Harmon first named it Gunpowder Springs because of the odor from a sulfur spring located here. Adam Harmon’s settlement became a convenient rest stop for countless people moving westward. Many emigrants, attracted to the area, made their home here in Eggleston. Artifacts, however, have been found along the springs, streams, and river that prove Indians did live in Eggleston long before the white men came. Adam Harmon also found Mary Ingles here as she made her famous escape from the Indians.
A resort was first established in Eggleston in the early 1830s. The spa was called Hygeian Springs. The massive cliffs throughout the resort were given classical names like “Caesar’s Arch,” “Pompey’s Pillar,” and “Vulcan’s Forge.”
Sometime in the 1850s Dr. Chester Bullard, a physician and a founder of Christian Churches, preached a sermon from the top of Vulcan’s Forge, and from then on it was known as “Bullard’s Rock.” Later Dr. Chapman took over the resort and named it the New River White Sulfur Springs. He built a new hotel and a dance pavilion as well.
During the Civil war, unlike many resorts, the resort came through but without any customers. In 1867, Captain William Eggleston replaced Dr. Chapman on the east side of the river, changing the name to Eggleston Springs. A confederate journalist named Edward Pollard thought the springs was “the most delicious and comfortable of resorts in the mountain regions of Virginia.” He also called it the “Rhine of Americas,” and said “that one could sup on broiled pheasants, drink the most famous of whiskey toddies, and go to sleep on the bank of the New River.”
In 1881 the New River Extension of Norfolk and the Western Railway began construction on the opposite side of the river from the resort. Four or five landowners owned the western side of the river; the major owners were David Straley, George Walker, and John Stafford. The railroad construction brought numerous workers and a few homebuilders to this part of Giles County. In spite of gigantic rock formations, which caused a great setback in construction, the railroad was completed in 1883.
In this same year the first post office was established with its first postmaster, David Straley. In 1886 Eggleston Springs was officially named Eggleston. Business flourished around this time, especially mercantile establishments. At one time there were six mercantile centers in Eggleston, each doing exceptional business.
The Eggleston depot became an important means for distributing to all the southern parts of Giles, from Newport to White Gate. Stock pens and loading platforms were kept busy. A canning factory, barrel factory, mill, livery stable, garage, shoe shop, millinery shop, ice cream parlor, jeweler, and bank all existed during this prosperous time. In 1902, the hotel at the resort in Eggleston was replaced with a new one.
Shortly after in 1909, Virginian Railway laid tracks on the eastern side of the river. The hotel moved farther up hill to steer clear of the railroad. Unfortunately, the loud trains and smoke discouraged guests from coming to the resort. In the 1930s the resort’s business came to a halt and it was later torn down. The last standing building of the resort known as the dance hall was burned later in the 1940s. Floods in 1911 and again in 1940 played a big role in destruction of the Eggleston stores.
Eggleston has changed from a frontier settlement into a lovely resort area, then to a busy town and back to a peaceful village. With the hotel gone, schools gone, and most businesses gone, Eggleston now has a store, garage, post office, three churches, a population of approximately 300, and a rich history. People still go to Eggleston for fishing and camping in and on the New River where they can enjoy the beauty of the outdoors along with the convenience of a small town’s peacefulness.