The reproduction view of Sistersville, West Virginia was drawn by Thaddeus Mortimer Fowler and published by T. M. Fowler & James B. Moyer in 1896. Sistersville was established in the early 1800's by enterpriser Charles Wells as a ferry town along the Ohio River that was called Wells Landing. The ferry carried goods and travelers across the river to Fly, Ohio, which it still does today. Upon Wells’ death, his two daughters inherited his vast estate and quickly plotted out parcels of land for investors. The town was officially incorporated in 1839 as Sistersville, after the two Wells girls.
The Ohio River Railway reached town in 1884, opening up new opportunities. Oil was discovered throughout the region in 1891 and the small village ballooned in size to about 10,000. At the time of this map’s publishing, Sistersville was enjoying its oil boom with most local concerns having to do with its extraction. This heyday lasted until the early 1900's. The popular Hotel Wells was built in 1895 at the corner of Brown Betty and Charles Streets.
The map from 1896 includes labeled streets, buildings, oil derricks, shipping traffic and railroad line.
Features numbered references to the following locations:
1. High School.
2. Hotel Wells.
3. Hotel Olston. G. B. Thompson, Proprietor.
4. New Arlington Hotel. James F. Dolan, Proprietor.
5. Riverview Hotel. W. P. Bowman, Proprietor.
6. O. R. R. R. Station.
7. Carter Oil Co.
8. Riverside Mills. E. Roome, Proprietor.
9. Jumbo Manufacturing Co.
10. Leidecker Tool Co. General Mfg. & Repair Shop for oil well tools.
12. Sistersville Oil & Gas Well Tube Works. John Finlayson.
13. Russell Planing Mill Co.
14. Gold & Jones Tank Manufacturers.
15. Stoner Machine Shop.
16. Eureka Laundry. N. B. Barber, Proprietor.
17. Sistersville Laundry. E. V. Coffie, Proprietor.
18. Thistle Station Eureka Pipeline.
19. Catholic Church.
20. Episcopal Church.
21. Methodist Church.
22. Baptist Church.
23. Presbyterian Church.
24. Sistersville Steam Ferry Boat Orion. |
