Oak Hill (West Virginia)

Oak Hill is a city of 7,589 people (as of 2000) in West Virginia. The largest city in Fayette County, it was incorporated in 1905.

Get in

Oak Hill is located on US-19 off I-77 and I-79, between Beckley and Sutton. Coming from the north, take I-79 exit 57; from the south, take I-77 exit 48.

A taxi from Yeager Airport in Charleston to Oak Hill will cost you around $120; from Beckley will cost around $50.

Get around

• Mountain Transit Authority, 1096 Broad Street in Summersville, [phone] or [phone]. Daily bus service throughout Fayette County, as well as Greenbrier, Nicholas, Pocahontas and Webster counties.

See

• Fayette County Convention and Visitors' Bureau, 310 Oyler Avenue, ☎ [phone]. (updated Aug 2017)
• Main Street is the heart of downtown and the location of many area shops and restaurants. Storefronts are decorated with fodder shocks and bows during the autumn, and icicle lights and greenery at Christmas.
• 🌍 Lewis House, 214 W Main Street, ☎ [phone]. Established in 1903, the Lewis House was formerly a funeral home but now serves as a museum space that also hosts classes. 
• The Hank Williams Memorial is a plaque dedicated to the country music singer, who was pronounced dead in Oak Hill on January 1, 1953.
• The Oak Hill railroad depot, part of the area's coal heritage, was built by the White Oak Railway around 1905. It closed in the 1980s but is now undergoing renovation.
• Whipple Company Store, 612 and Scarbro Road, ☎ [phone]. WV-in Scarbro. An impressive wooden structure built in the 1890s for the mining company; the store sold merchandise until the late 1980s, even after the mine closed in 1957. Today the building is a museum about the history of coal mining, coal miners, and their families. 
• The small village of Minden (Minden Road, off WV-16) was a mining town in 1899, and still features examples of the company-built miners' homes. The mines themselves closed in the 1950s, and today the village - although it's only about 5 minutes outside Oak Hill - has a very different look than most small country towns. If you pay it a visit, drive slowly - the roads are narrow, with homes crowded close in, and young children are often playing in the streets.

Do

Whitewater Rafting

Most of the whitewater rafting companies base themselves in adjacent Fayetteville, but if you don't want to go that far, there's one option in town.

• ACE Adventure Center, ☎ [phone], toll-free: +1-888-ACE-RAFT (223-7238). Minden Road in Minden. Offers part-day, full-day, double-run, overnight, and two-day trips on the New and Gauley Rivers, as well as horseback riding, mountain biking, kayaking, rock climbing, cave exploration, Alpine tower, paintball, fishing expeditions and massage. Lodging, shower and restroom facilities, dining hall and two stores on-site. $49 - $250. 

Golf

• White Oak Country Club, 1 Country Club Road, ☎ [phone]. Open February 1 to December 31. 9 holes, par 35. Built in 1922. $25 - $30. 

Events

• Oak Leaf Festival. Held in early September. Karaoke, parades, fireworks, crafts and vendors, car and bike show, art show, Saturday night cruise-in, street dances, chili cook-off, pageants, live entertainment. 

Buy

• Pea Ridge Garden and Gifts, 401 Pea Ridge Road, ☎ [phone]. Gardens and gift shop featuring aromatherapy, herbal products, books, teas, English teapots, gift baskets, garden accessories, and herb plants. 

Eat

• Chico's Restaurante, 2027 E Main Street, ☎ [phone]. Try the margaritas. 
• Dairy Queen, 1005 E Main Street, ☎ [phone]. Try the pepperoni bread. 
• Earlier Times Steak House, 110 W Main Street, ☎ [phone]. Locally-owned and -operated, decorated with historical pictures and memorabilia of southern West Virginia. Live entertainment on weekends. Handcut black Angus steaks, baby back ribs, hamburgers, seafood. 
• OK Chinese Restaurant, 12a Fayette Square Shopping Center, [phone]. Daily buffet.
• Three Gables Club, [phone]. Since 1935.

Drink

Sleep

• Holiday Inn New River Gorge, 340 Oyler Avenue, toll-free: [phone]. 119 rooms. Indoor pool, whirlpool, two-story fitness center, racquetball court, game room. On-site restaurant (Dory's Grille) and lounge (Rafters Lounge). $89 - $109. 
• Comfort Inn, 9020 Fayette Landings Shopping Center, ☎ [phone], toll-free: [phone]. (updated Mar 2019)

Connect

• 🌍 Oak Hill Public Library. (updated Mar 2019)

Go next

• Fayetteville is practically adjacent to Oak Hill on US-19.
• Beckley is about 20 minutes south on US-19.
• Summersville is about 30 minutes north on US-19.
• Lewisburg is a little over 1 hour east on US-60 and I-64.
• Charleston is a little over 1 hour west on I-64 and I-77.
• Bluefield is a little over 1 hour south on I-77.