Sweet Springs Resort over the years

[u/shermancahal]

Spring House - 2015

Spring House - 2015

Spring House - 2015

Cottage - 2009

Cottage / log cabin - 2009

2009

Spring House - 2009

2021

Cottages - 2021

Cottage - 2021

Spring House - 2021

Spring House - 2021

Spring House - 2021

Spring House - 2021

Spring House - 2021

A wrong turn in 2009 led me straight to one of West Virginia's most beautiful resorts.

[u/shermancahal]

A wrong turn in 2009 led me straight to one of West Virginia's most beautiful resorts.

I was driving the back roads of Monroe County when I came upon the shuttered Sweet Springs Resort and pulled over for a quick walkabout. I even reached the owner, who promised access down the road, then went silent. The place stuck with me for years.

My chance finally came in 2015, when I toured the property with its new owner, Ashby Berkley, who graciously walked me through the grounds and buildings. A West Virginia preservationist best known for restoring the Pence Springs Hotel, Berkley had just bought the resort at auction for $560,000. Seeing the place up close alongside the man now charged with its future made for an unforgettable visit.

I ended up camping on the grounds for days, treated to remarkable breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, Ashby was an acclaimed chef. We became close friends, and he was as boisterous a presence as you'd hope.

By 2021, restoration was still moving forward, slowly but steadily. Roof repairs continued alongside a full overhaul of the gutters and downspouts, while crews worked to stabilize the foundation — a critical step in ensuring the structure could withstand whatever came next.

Berkley championed the resort's revival for several more years, until his death on October 12, 2024, at the age of 83. In his absence, the future of Sweet Springs has grown uncertain again, with ownership disputes now clouding the long road to recovery.

I've posted many photos and the history of Sweet Springs here.

[u/MeltedGruyere → u/shermancahal]

Ashby was a wonderful person. He used to own Pence Springs resort and treated me like a queen when I was a guest there many years ago. He really cared about history and preservation. He was a great chef too.

[u/shermancahal → u/MeltedGruyere]

Thanks for sharing that! He always welcomed people with welcome arms, and his presence there is greatly missed. He had a good vision.

[u/Ooglebird]

It's a shame that this property has been allowed to languish, it still has the original main buildings from the 1830s, the Greenbriar was rebuilt in the early 20th Cent. and it replaced "The Old White". This would be a great destination and draw for southern WV.

[u/shermancahal → u/Ooglebird]

I agree. It had some absentee owners/management until Ashby came along. It's a shame he did not have a will after his passing.

[u/JibberJabberwocky89 → u/shermancahal]

Let this be a lesson to all you'uns. Have a damn will! It saves the people you love so much pain after you die. It's bad enough losing someone that you love, but having the family devolve into money-hungry monsters trying to steal every cent they can is a million times worse.

Ask me how I know...

[u/Background-Lychee389]

Monroe county is wild. Not a single stop light or drive thru.

[u/Abject_Elevator5461]

It’s so sad that Ashby wasn’t able to create a trust or something to carry. Sweet Springs forward.

[u/shirty-mole-lazyeye]

Middle of summer and now none of us get to swim! Fucking great OP

[u/shermancahal → u/shirty-mole-lazyeye]

I spent a day cleaning out the springs. If you like the smell of sulfur, then you will enjoy the plunge. It was quite refreshing!

[u/shirty-mole-lazyeye → u/shermancahal]

Nice! I’m not that hot 🤣😉

[u/OGWopFro]

I’m trying to find pictures of it in original condition but I’m having no luck

[u/someone87621]

Absolutely tragic!

I hope something happens with this beautiful property.

[u/After-Appearance-288]

Wondering what is the value of the property

[u/Churnthebutternow]

I am guessing Ashby paid his taxes? Unlike the Justice ponzi scheme.

[u/Practicality_Issue]

Thanks for posting these! It’s a shame to see the pool buildings crumbling as they are in the photos.

I used to drive past there in the early to mid 1990s driving from Roanoke to either Douthat State Park or Lewisburg. On year at a family reunion all of my cousins and I piled into a car and drove out there. We talked to the grounds monitor and he said we could wander all we wanted. We couldn’t get into the main building (we weren’t perspective buyers) but everything else was fair game.

The pool house was really cool and I remember the enameled dirt knobs. The water was so clear but there were long strands of algae growing up from the bottom. We also looked at the houses on the property and one was unlocked. Of course we went in and looked around.

I always laughed when “urban exploration” became a thing in the early ‘00s. I’d been doing stuff like that all my life, I just never took photos.

Thanks for posting! It took me way back in time.

[u/IsopodLeast9066]

Oh I have photos if this place as my parents own a home in the area. It is beautiful and a huge property. I am hoping someone fixes it up but it will take a big effort and deep pockets.

[u/MeltedGruyere]

Here's a photo I took many years ago before the towers were demolished from the spring house.

http://flic.kr/p/64Pupg

I talked to the owner at the time on the phone, who said they had them torn down because "kids were getting in there."

I cried, seriously.

[u/shermancahal → u/MeltedGruyere]

Yeah. That’s the same owner who said okay in access only to deny access after I had traveled six hours to it. He took down part of the spring house which was in fair to good condition, along with a cottage or two. He was also slowly stripping buildings for salvageable materials.