Kopperston

Kopperston, built by the Koppers Coal Company in the late 1930s, is one of coal country's youngest company towns. The long, narrow valley that provided the site was leveled before construction began, and by November 1938 one hundred houses and a company store, school, and church had been built. Additional houses later brought the total number to 250. One-story houses in this generally linear community are arranged in two large clusters, reached by short streets that lead west from the highway to the foot of the mountain. Kopperston's houses were originally painted gray, tan, and white but now have a more diverse palette reflecting their private ownership. Between the two clusters are the now-vacant school and the still-active Kopperston Presbyterian Church. Of brick, with straightforward Georgian Revival lines, the church has a recessed portico framed by fluted Doric columns and pilasters.

Kopperston, though not as prosperous as it once was, still evinces the careful attention its parent company gave in providing comfortable living conditions for its employees. The large coal operation north of town remains among the county's largest.