INSTITUTE, W.Va. – West Virginia State University (WVSU) has been awarded a  $398,000 grant from the United States Department of Interior National Park Service (NPS) as part of a program to assist in the preservation of properties included on the National Register of Historic Places.  

 The funds from the NPS will go toward physical preservation work on two buildings that the university owns in the Malden Village Historic District in Malden, West Virginia. 

“We are thankful to the National Park Service and to United States Senator Shelley Moore Capito, Congresswoman Carol Miller and former Senator Joe Manchin for their support in helping the university to secure this grant,” said WVSU President Ericke S. Cage. “These historic properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places played a vital role in the history and evolution of the Kanawha Valley’s early salt industry, and we are hopeful this investment will help us to maintain these properties for the benefit of future generations.”

The grant funding will be used for work on two structures, the Hale House and the Norton House, in Malden.  

The historic Hale House was built in 1838 and was the one-time home of influential 1800’s Kanawha Valley business and political leader Dr. John Hale. After consolidating various properties between Malden and Charleston by 1860, Hale was the owner of possibly the largest salt works in North America, supplying the thriving meat-packing center of Cincinnati.  The university  conducted archeological field schools on the grounds of the Hale House in 2023 and 2024. 

The Norton House is the oldest frame house in Malden, built circa 1840 by father and son Moses and James Norton, trusted bookkeepers for the area’s salt makers. 

The grant will fund roof repairs, electrical and plumbing work at both structures.

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– WVSU –