Beckley Courthouse Square Historic District

{{short description|Historic district in West Virginia, United States}}

{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}

{{Infobox NRHP

| name = Beckley Courthouse Square Historic District

| nrhp_type = hd

| nocat = yes

| image = Raleigh County Courthouse Beckley.jpg

| caption = Raleigh County Courthouse, July 2007

| location = Roughly bounded by Prince, Kanawha, Church, Lebanon, Howe, McCreery and Earwood Sts. and Alaska and First Aves., Beckley, West Virginia

| coordinates = {{coord|37|46|36|N|81|11|16|W|display=inline,title}}

| locmapin = West Virginia#USA

| architect = Mahood, Alex B., et al.; Multiple

| architecture =

| added = August 31, 1994

| area = {{convert|70|acre}}

| refnum = 94000722{{NRISref|2009a}}

}}

The Beckley Courthouse Square Historic District is a {{convert|70|acre|adj=on}} historic district in Beckley, West Virginia, United States that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1994.

The listing included 100 contributing buildings, including one or more designed by architect Alex B. Mahood.{{cite web |last1=Valente |first1=Kim A. |title=Beckley Courthouse Square Historic District |url=https://wvculture.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Beckley-courthouse-square-historic-district.pdf |website=West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History |publisher=National Park Service |access-date=18 November 2024 |date=April 1994}}

In a 2010 interview, David Sibray, chairman of the Beckley Historic Landmarks Commission, said the commission's purpose is to protect the city's historic resources, and it oversees the development of downtown Beckley's [historic district]. Sibray noted there are several motivations for preserving Beckley's history, including maintaining the historic aesthetic.{{cite web|url=http://www.register-herald.com/local/x1930918168/Preservation-can-provide-opportunities |title=Preservation can provide opportunities |author=Taylor Kuykendall |publisher=Register-Herald|date=November 13, 2010}}

In 2015 the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia (PAWV) declared the district among the most endangered historic resources in West Virginia. The recognition was the result of years of inappropriate alterations to contributing buildings in the district, which the State Historic Preservation Office concluded had threatened the district's integrity. The alliance declared in its assessment that the threat was the result of the nonfeasance of the city landmarks commission.[http://www.wvgazettemail.com/article/20150306/ARTICLE/150309495 "Beckley Downtown Historic District tops state Endangered Properties List", by Rick Steelhammer, March 6, 2015]{{Cite web |url=https://preservationallliancewv.wordpress.com/2015/08/13/beckley-courthouse-square-assessment-and-recommendations-report-published/ |title="Beckley Courthouse Square assessment and recommendations report published", August 13, 2015 |access-date=September 7, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151122150615/https://preservationallliancewv.wordpress.com/2015/08/13/beckley-courthouse-square-assessment-and-recommendations-report-published/ |archive-date=November 22, 2015 |url-status=dead }}