Willow Glen

Willow Glen is located at 147 Bethany Pike, just beyond Woodsdale proper. It was the home of Johnson C. and Agra Bennett McKinley; its name is said to reflect a nearby ravine that is shaded with willow trees. 

 

The National Register of Historic Places Nomination from 1983 includes the following description: 

"The house is of the grand manner; it reflects the architectural scale and eclectic taste favored by industrial magnates who employed architects of the late 19th and early 20th century to design residences appropriate to the rising station of America’s ‘captains of industry.’… Willow Glen is significant because it represents one of West Virginia’s best surviving examples of early 20th century baronial architecture. The massive sandstone house [begun in 1914] required six years to construct; it was not opened until 1920. The mansion’s spacious room arrangements include a 2-story entrance rotunda, a grand salon, an English-style library, and 30 or so additional chambers aligned within two massive wings forming a ‘L’-layout on a wooded hillside in the manner of a European villa. [The architect was Fred Dempwolf of York, Pennsylvania.]" [i]

 

McKinley (1877 – 1927) was a Parkersburg native who lived in Kansas during much of his childhood. He was named after the nationally prominent U.S. Senator, Johnson N. Camden, the West Virginia Democratic Party boss and ‘Robber Baron’ – era businessman. [ii] Returning to the state in 1893, he became involved in the coal business and was credited with organizing at least eight of northern West Virginia’s major coal companies. He was also involved in politics and was called one of the foremost Democrats of the state.[iii]

 

Agra Bennett McKinley was the daughter of Louis and Sallie Maxwell Bennett of Weston.[iv] She grew up in privileged surroundings and was named Agra for the Indian city where the Taj Mahal is located. On her 18th birthday she was presented at the court of King George V and Queen Mary; her life-size portrait from that time graces Willow Glen. Agra’s marriage to Johnson McKinley in 1914 took place in Washington, DC and was attended by such personages as President Woodrow Wilson and William Jennings Bryan. She is said to have filled Willow Glen with valuable art objects and furnishings acquired during her extensive travels.

 

After Johnson McKinley’s early death at age 50, Agra continued to live in Willow Glen. The home has remained to this day in the McKinley family. At one time it was open to the public for tours. The brochure below, submitted by Nancy Suponcic, contains additional information.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[i] Collins, Rodney S. National Register of Historic Places nomination for Willow Glen, 1983.

 

[ii] Collins, Rodney S. National Register of Historic Places nomination for Willow Glen, 1983.

 

[iii] Wheeling Register, July 9, 1927.

 

[iv] Sallie Maxwell Bennett was from Wheeling, the daughter of Mary and James Maxwell (a successful financier and businessman). The Maxwell Center and Bennett Square are now located on the site of her childhood home. Her son Louis II, Agra’s brother, was a member of the Fortieth Squadron of the British Air Force and was killed in action in 1918. Memorials to him include a stained glass window in Westminster Abbey and the “Aviator” statue at Linsly.