Dave and Gail McMillion stand on the front porch of their 1910 home on West High Street. Courtesy photo

Since this column featuring Shepherdstown’s historic homes began, the focus has been on 18th and 19th century structures that make up what many consider the town’s historic identity – but our history continued to evolve in the 20th century. Techniques that increased automobile production and availability in the 1910s had a profound impact on communities across the nation, including creating a market need for selling cars. 206 West High Street, constructed in 1910, was impacted by this change in market forces.

The owner of the home on West High Street, Charles VanMetre, was the manager of the National Highway Garage on South Princess Street between Union Alley and East Washington Street. It must have been newsworthy in those early days of automobile sales, when VanMetre sold an automobile. The April 2, 1914 Shepherdstown Register reported that he had sold an Overland touring car with 35 horsepower, full electrical equipment, self starter, electric lights and generator for $1,075 (what would be roughly $35,000 today). One year before, the Register reported that VanMetre attended an exhibition in Philadelphia of Maxwell automobiles, for which he was the local agent.

In early March 1910, VanMetre purchased the lot at 206 West High Street from Maria Rickard for $380, and quickly commenced his home’s construction. The result was a handsome two story wood frame house with German siding, standing-seam metal roof and Queen Anne style architectural elements — assymetrical façade and a mix of materials which include shingled gables, a bracketed porch, a bay and overhanging eaves.

Current owners Dave and Gail McMillion bought the house in 2006, making only modest changes.

“We liked this house, because it was move-in ready and our antique oak furniture would look great [in it],” noted Dave.

In 2020, they repainted the house themselves, choosing a deep green color that projects richly and boldly. Now in the process of painting the interior, they agreed that the wallpapers added by former owners Sue and David Kemnitzer (1995-2000) would remain. They also removed several layers of linoleum, in restoring the original kitchen wood floors.

“We don’t mind not having central air, since we like keeping the windows open to fully experience what’s happening outside,” Gail said, “Though, we admit to having two window units for the hottest days.”

The McMillions met each other at the Mecklenburg Inn on German Street in 2005. They married three years later in 2008. A South Charleston native, Dave was a news and feature writer at the Hagerstown Herald-Mail for 30 years. Before moving to Shepherdstown, he lived on a 19th century farm near Martinsburg with his first wife. Gail, originally from Baltimore, moved here, where her first husband was a member of a bluegrass band, in 1984. For many of those years, she lived near the grade school raising her four children. She worked for 20 years in the victim advocate office of the Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.

One of the features that attracted them to their home, was the property itself – 200 feet deep, about one-half acre and quiet. To the rear of the house is a small rental cottage with brick, wood frame and cinder block sections and a standing seam metal roof. Looking at Sanborn insurance maps, the cottage appears to have been completed in the years after 1933. Current residents of the cottage are Payton (self-described artist and mother) and Daniel Cardis (wood crafter with the National Park Service Historic Preservation Training Center). In the late 1990s, the Kemnitzers added a metal gazebo structure for the rear garden, imported from Holland, to tie the home and cottage together and create an outdoor dining area. Dave built a handsome chicken coop near the rear of the property but abandoned its use, fearing chickens roaming the yards of neighbors.

Given the prices paid for the property in the deed search, it is doubtful that a structure existed before 1910. However, prominent citizens owned the land, including Conrad Byers, who owned the property from 1780 until 1803 and was one of Shepherdstown’s original trustees after the Virginia Assembly granted residents the power to form a government and elect their own officers in 1793. John Baker, who owned the property from 1803 until 1829, was a local attorney who represented Virginia in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1811-1813. Baker also served as one of Aaron Burr’s attorneys in his 1807 treason trial.

The McMillions have seven cats (Maggie, Margaret Louise, Sasha, Charlie, Frankie, Piper and Mitzie) living with them in the house. A few stray cats can be found, at any one time, using the property as their home. This seems in keeping with their personalities, in preserving the welcoming and warm vibe that their early 20th century home naturally projects and that they are meticulously preserving, enhancing — and very much enjoying.

Historic Shepherdstown board member Greg Coble wrote this column, with research and editorial assistance of fellow board members Marellen Aherne and Terry Fulton. Historic Shepherdstown is a nonprofit group dedicated to preserving Shepherdstown’s unique architectural character and building public understanding of the town’s distinctive history through its museum and other programs. Become a member at https://historicshepherdstown.com.