Arbovale was named for one of the first settlers
in this valley, Micheal Arbogast, who was given a land grant in the 1800's.
The first post office was established June 20, 1899.
The first postmaster was Christopher C. Arbogast. At that time our mail
was carried by horseback from Hightown, Virginia by the way of the Stauton-Parkersburg
Turnpike to Travelers Repose. From there it was carried by mule to Arbovale
and on to Cass. The saddlebags of mail had to be held high when the mule
waded across the Deer Creek and Greenbrier River.
The first contractor to carry mail by mule was Charles
Lee Burner. His carriers were Charley Hidy, Charles Maverly, Harry O'Brien,
and Madison Mullenax. After the roads were better, they used horse and
buggy to transport the mail.
In 1901 the first train came to Cass, and the new
road was built in 1905. Thereafter the mail was taken from Arbovale to
Cass by truck; two trips a day -- one in the morning to meet the train
for incoming mail, and one in the evening for outgoing mail. The carriers
were John Williams, Joe Hamed, Cecil Arbogast, Mrs. Markwood Gum, James
Simmons Sr., James Simmons Jr., and Dewy Ervine.
At that time there was also a mail route from Arbovale
to the top of Buffalo Mountain, and back. This was carried by horseback
for many years, sometimes in temperatures of twenty below zero, with four
to six feet of snow. On some days the man and the horses just couldn't
get the mail around. The carriers were Martin Judy, Lee Ervine, and Herbert
Sutton. At that time twenty families lived on Buffalo Mountain; only three
are left now.
Unfortunately, on February 19, 1998 the U.S. Postal
Service abruptly closed the Arbovale post office, on the grounds that the
building in which it was housed was unsafe. To my knowledge there are
no active plans to replace or repair the facility. Post services have been
transfered to the Green Bank office. Thus endith almost 100 years of
operations.
The following is a list of Postmasters from 1899
to 1998:
Postmasters | Appointment Date |
Christopher Arbogast | June 20, 1899 |
Henry M. Hannah | Fenruary 10, 1904 |
David O. Woods | January 16, 1905 |
Jesse Lee Lambert | August 2, 1909 |
Miuta S. Woods | June 17, 1911 |
Edward B. Lambert | September 24, 1918 |
George P. Kerr | May 7, 1920 |
Mrs. Lillian C. Sutton | January 22, 1923 |
Mrs. Marie Ervin | October 1, 1947 |
Leonard C. Wenger | February 19, 1954 |
Beatrice B. Sheets | August 25, 1954 |
Evelyn F. Sutton | February 6 1958 |
Bernice E. Taylor | October 18, 1980 |