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History · Oakvale

Oakvale’s history is
mostly unwritten

The public archives hold no old photos of Oakvale. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.

0old images & papers
7recent photos

The story

from WikipediaRead it all ↗

Oakvale was originally known as "Frenchville" after an early settler, Captain Napoleon French. It was renamed Oakvale after the dense stands of oak trees that grew in the valley. The town incorporated in 1907.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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Start Oakvale’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Oakvale’s history is told.

0 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Famous people from OakvaleWriters, athletes, leaders and more who were born in Oakvale.Meet them →
By decade

Oakvale, decade by decade

Before
2000
No old photos in the archives yetWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
Today7 photos
Oakvale-train-station-wvCommonsOakvale-train-station-wv2018Oakvale-WV112-sign-wvCommonsOakvale-WV112-sign-wv2018Oakvale-Town-Hall-wvCommonsOakvale-Town-Hall-wv2018Oakvale-RR-tracks-wvCommonsOakvale-RR-tracks-wv2018Oakvale-NW-caboose-wvCommonsOakvale-NW-caboose-wv2018Oakvale, West VirginiaCommonsOakvale, West Virginia2016WVMap-doton-OakvaleCommonsWVMap-doton-Oakvale2004
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Oakvale is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Oakvale has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Col. William Henderson French House in Athens, 5.3 miles away.

Oakvale and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Oakvale. Tap a dot.
Col. William Henderson French HouseMercer Street Historic DistrictVirginian Railway Yard Historic DistrictDr. James W. Hale HousePrinceton Post OfficeMercer County Courthouse

Closest to Oakvale

Col. William Henderson French HouseAthens · Building5.3miMercer Street Historic DistrictPrinceton · Built 19086.8miVirginian Railway Yard Historic DistrictPrinceton · District7miDr. James W. Hale HousePrinceton · Building7.3miPrinceton Post OfficePrinceton · Building7.4mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Col. William Henderson French House’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Oakvale?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Oakvale’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Athens📜 Glen Lyn📜 Princeton📜 Narrows

From Wikimedia Commons (7). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

The door’s open

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/18 · 2025-01-01
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