The Colorful Corpse of Spring Valley Country Club near Huntington, WV
The Spring Valley Country Club main entrance hall.
THE PLACE
The abandoned Spring Valley Country Club sits just off Spring Valley Drive, smack in the middle of the space between Ceredo, WV and Huntington, WV. There are only a few structures- the main 3 story CC building, the pool house, tennis courts, and what is presumably an old storage shed in a state of advanced decay.
Once a place to relax and cool off, the pool now bakes in the WV summer heat.
THE STORY
Spring Valley Country Club opened its doors in 1926. It was a regulation sized 18-hole golf course and club. As destroyed as the complex is, one would expect it to have been derelict for many years... but this is not the case. The club was put on the market by shareholders in November of 2007 due to declining membership. The pool went unused for two years, and the tennis courts seldom saw any play, according to the Herald-Dispatch, a local Huntington newspaper. There also used to be a pro shop, locker rooms, and a dining area with a bar.
This large carpeted room could've been a day room or the dining area.
HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
Despite seeming like such a remote place in the present, Spring Valley had a handful of big names play its short, hilly layout in its heyday. Despite what it lacked in acreage, it was lauded as being a challenge for golfers of any skill level. Denny Shute of Huntington, who had learned the game from his father- the Spring Valley club pro at the time, would go on to the PGA Tour and win 15 times, including three majors. Sam Snead set the club record in 1949, a 17-under-par 263. He also beat the famous Arnold Palmer here in 1960. Yup. The one the drink is named after.
Some areas of the former club are in better condition than others.
UNDERGROUND ART CULTURE
Something I've found interesting in my many trips to this place is the ever-changing graffiti art that riddles the walls. Local artists have created graffiti of all sizes and colors. Typically this might signal gang activity, but the only gang related imagery that I have been able to identify has been that of white supremacists. SS and swastikas can be found in every corner, although most of the other artists' tags seem to indicate that they disagree with the symbolism. It's an unfortunate presence in this part of the states... and perhaps a reason why more and more of the region is abandoned every year.
E[art]h
PRESERVATION
As I mentioned earlier, one would expect such a place to have been abandoned for ages. The only remnants of what used to go on inside these walls are a few shoes and pamphlets deep in some of the basement rooms. There are no doors left locked, no areas high or low that have not been broken into by force. Walls have been torn down. Not a single window in the building is intact. Ceiling tiles, insulation, even beams from wall frames have been torn out. There are countless holes in the roof. At this rate, the Spring Valley Country Club will not be standing much longer. Every time I visit, I find it in further disarray.
This staircase was clear of all debris the first time I visited here. I don't know what part of the structure those beams came from.
The KY/WV/OH tri state area is one of the most abandoned places in the United States. Everyone's headed off to the coast to chase dreams or escape the Opioid crisis. That makes it a hub for people like us- the ones who love to explore and discover the history of what was. To stand in a place that others have stood and to learn a little bit about how their lives may have been similar to or different from our own. If you visit the Spring Valley Country Club after reading this, please treat it with respect.
Peace.
