A History of Phoebe Needles
For over a century the Phoebe Needles has been a vibrant center of the
community. It began in 1901 with a vision of Mr. Esom Sloan and
the Rev. William T. Roberts. They built a mission school for mountain
children and a church on the site where the current Center exists
today. The Phoebe Needles Center is owned by the Episcopal Diocese
of Southwestern Virginia.
A two story school was built
in 1902. The first floor
had two classrooms and the
upstairs provided housing
for two teachers. Emmanuel
Church was built in 1903.
The school provided education
for the mind, body and
spirit for as many as 120
children at a time. In 1911 a
larger house was built for the
teachers. This house exists today as the oldest building on the property,
and serves as the rectory.
A snowstorm destroyed Emmanuel
Church in 1914. Construction
on the new church,
Saint Peter’s, was begun in 1915 and put into use by 1921; although it was not completed until after 1924.
In 1917, Arthur C. Needles,
President of the Norfolk and
Western Railroad, donated the money to build a new school. The
school was named in memory of his daughter, Phoebe, who died of
meningitis at age six. Mr. Needles founded the Phoebe Needles
Hall Corporation and served as president of the board until his death in
1936.
Twelve teachers served the school
during its 40 plus years of operation.
Miss Caryetta Davis (or “Miss
Etta” as she was known) served as
principal for 30 years.
A mission center was operated by
Episcopal deaconesses (trained by
the United Thank Offering) for 20
years after the school closed. They
provided social services for people throughout the community. In the
late 70’s, the Center began operating as a conference center. An expansion
and renovation program began in 1998 to upgrade the facilities
allowing the Center to host a wider variety of groups and serve a greater
number of people.