Sandstone, West Virginia Explained

Sandstone
Settlement Type:Unincorporated community
Pushpin Map:West Virginia#USA
Pushpin Map Caption:Location within the state of West Virginia
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:United States
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Name1:West Virginia
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Summers
Unit Pref:Imperial
Population As Of:2000
Population Density Km2:auto
Timezone:Eastern (EST)
Utc Offset:-5
Timezone Dst:EDT
Utc Offset Dst:-4
Coordinates:37.7708°N -80.8914°W
Postal Code Type:ZIP codes
Postal Code:25985
Blank Name:FIPS code
Blank1 Name:GNIS feature ID

Sandstone (also New Richmond or New River Falls) is an unincorporated community in Summers County, West Virginia, United States. It lies along West Virginia Route 20 and the New River to the north of the city of Hinton, the county seat of Summers County.[1] Its elevation is 1,352 feet (412 m).[2] It has a post office, with the ZIP code of 25985.[3]

Historic variant names were New River Falls and New Richmond.[4] Sandstone takes its name from an old sandstone quarry.[5]

Sandstone is the birthplace of Cornelius Burdette, winner of an Olympic gold medal during the 1912 Summer Olympics. Part of Paramount's 1994 film Lassie was shot here.

Sandstone Falls

Sandstone Falls is located on the New River to the south of the community.

Sandstone Visitors Center

The Sandstone Visitors Center[6] was built by the National Park Service in order to provide outreach and awareness to the various environmental issues along the New River Gorge. It is located 1 mile off the Sandstone Exit on I-64 not far from the Mary Draper Ingles crossing. The facility is earth friendly with local and recycled materials comprising its structure, and native plants in a xeriscaping project absorb rainfall and thermal heat. An interactive museum is part of the draw for its thousands of visitors.

Notes and References

  1. Rand McNally. The Road Atlas '04. Chicago: Rand McNally, 2004, p. 112.
  2. , Geographic Names Information System, 1980-06-27. Accessed 2008-01-18.
  3. http://www.zipinfo.com/cgi-local/zipsrch.exe?cnty=cnty&zip=25985 Zip Code Lookup
  4. Book: Kenny, Hamill. West Virginia Place Names: Their Origin and Meaning, Including the Nomenclature of the Streams and Mountains. 1945. The Place Name Press. Piedmont, WV. 553.
  5. Book: History of Summers County from the Earliest Settlement to the Present Time . J.H. Miller . Miller, James Henry . 1908 . 357.
  6. http://www.nps.gov/neri/planyourvisit/sandstone.htm NPS.gov