Published: March 19, 2009 10:42 pm      

Sophia moving forward with trolley tours idea

Despite a recent controversy over the purchase of a trolley by the Town of Sophia, officials say the town is moving forward with its plans for trolley tours.

“We have plans to use the trolley for tours,” said Phyllis Rose with the Sophia Building Commission. “This is part of our efforts with heritage tourism and growing the town’s economy.”

Rose says with the trolley tours Sophia can offer scenic and historical trips through “the Winding Gulf Smokeless Coalfields in Sophia.”

“It’s like coming home, with antique/collectible shops, restaurants and welcome home friendliness,” she said.

Rose says the tours will take riders past five coal camps.

“The coal camp in Helen is one of the largest in West Virginia,” she said. “The new miners memorial is also located there.”

Rose believes Sophia has several opportunities to market the town, which is registered with the National Register of Historic Places.

“With the opening of the new ATV trail system (Burning Rock Off-road Park) off Tams Mountain near Sophia, I think we are going to see an increased number of visitors and tourists coming here,” she said. “Sophia has so many historical sites and stories from the past. I think Sophia is well placed to take advantage of it.”

Carved out of a once-thriving coal mining area, the 8,000-acre Burning Rock park opened last July.

As far as heritage tourism opportunities for Sophia, Rose says the ATV trail system is only one part.

“With a large part of travelers visiting friends and family in the Sophia area, we also want to take a closer look at the reunions market,” she said. “Thousands and thousands of people are out there with roots to this area and we want them to consider having their reunions in a place that has historical significance to their families.”

Mayor Harry Taylor says the town is focusing on several projects to take advantage of the trend toward heritage tourism.

“Heritage tourism is growing faster than any segment of the tourism industry,” he said. “We believe these tours will create economic development for the town and the region.”

Taylor said the 1993 trolley was purchased from Gatlinburg, Tenn., for $10,000.

“It is geared for the mountains and that is why we selected this particular trolley,” he said. “It holds 27 riders and is handicapped-accessible.”

Taylor said the tour route will go along the Coal Heritage Trail, along W.Va. and Robert C. Byrd Drive. He is hopeful the tours will begin by Memorial Day.

“We will probably have a morning trip and an afternoon trip,” the mayor said. “It will be funded by riders. We are still working out the details of the funding and the route schedules.”

Rose says there are many people who want to see historical places, like old coal camps, churches and schools.

“We may be used to seeing them, but people from other parts of the country and world are fascinated by all of it,” she said.

“At one time in the Winding Gulf area, there were 55 or more coal camps. In each coal camp, there was up to 300 houses. It has been several generations since then, so if you estimate the numbers of people with a heritage and history connected to this area, it would be in the thousands, if not millions.”

— E-mail:

fpace@register-herald.com