Cass is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...

(CDP) and

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

on the

Greenbrier River The Greenbrier River is a tributary of the New River (Kanawha River), New River, long,McNeel, William P. "Greenbrier River." ''The West Virginia Encyclopedia''. Ken Sullivan, editor. Charleston, WV: West Virginia Humanities Council. 2006. . in ...

in Pocahontas County,

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

, United States. The population was 38 at the 2020 census. The community, founded in 1901, was named for Joseph Kerr Cass, vice president and cofounder of the West Virginia Pulp and Paper Company.

History

Cass was created in 1901 as a

company town A company town is a place where all or most of the stores and housing in the town are owned by the same company that is also the main employer. Company towns are often planned with a suite of amenities such as stores, houses of worship, schoo ...

for those who worked for West Virginia Pulp and Paper Company, logging the nearby

Cheat Mountain Cheat Mountain is an exceptionally high and rugged ridge situated in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It is about long (north to south) and more than five miles (8 km) wide at its widest. Its highest point is at its so ...

. The cut logs were brought by rail to the town, where they were processed for use by paper and hardwood-flooring companies throughout the United States. Cass's skilled laborers, who worked in the mill or the locomotive repair shop, lived with their families in 52 white-fenced houses, built in orderly rows on a hill south of the general store. In 1960 the mill closed. In 1963, the state bought the logging railroad and converted it into a tourist attraction, carrying passengers into the vast

Monongahela National Forest The Monongahela National Forest is a U.S. National Forest, national forest located in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, US. It protects over of federally managed land within a proclamation boundary that includes much of the Po ...

. In the late 1970s, the state bought most of the town and its buildings for the new Cass Scenic Railroad State Park. In 1982 the mill burned down. The Cass Historic District was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1980.

Current status

The community has a general store, a restaurant, a history museum, and 20 houses refurbished for tourist lodgings. Cass Scenic Railroad State Park runs from the town to the halfway point called Whittaker Station. Here a restored loggers' camp has been created on the mountain. Then the railroad continues up the Mountain to Bald Knob (the third highest peak in West Virginia). On Fridays the trains make runs to the ghost town of Spruce, West Virginia (currently not in service). A small number of privately owned homes remain in the area of the community, while the majority of land and homes in Cass is owned by the State of West Virginia. Cass is the northern terminus of the Greenbrier River Trail. Cass Cave, located in Cass, contains the highest subterranean waterfall in West Virginia and

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, Lacy Suicide Falls.

In popular culture

* The town was featured on Travel Channel's '' Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern''. * The town was featured in the 2013 movie

Angel's Perch Angel's Perch, at above sea level is the 11th highest peak in the Pioneer Mountains of Idaho Idaho ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest and Mountain states, Mountain West subregions of the Western United State ...

. * In 2018, the town was featured in an episode of the PBS series '' Travels with Darley''.

Demographics

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Pocahontas County, West Virginia Census-designated places in West Virginia Logging communities in the United States Logging railroads in the United States Company towns in West Virginia Populated places established in 1901 1901 establishments in West Virginia Former municipalities in West Virginia Populated places on the Greenbrier River