Trump-Lilly Farm

Trump-Lilly Farm is a preserved Appalachian subsistence farmstead on the east side of Sewell Mountain above the New River. The farmhouse, fenced yard and outbuildings make this a look at a whole working landscape, not a grand house or indoor museum. It suits visitors who enjoy the everyday history of a rural place and don't mind a rough approach road.

From WV-20 near Hinton, take WV-26/River Road north; after Madam's Creek Bridge, turn left onto Freezeland Mountain Road. The farm turn is unsigned, so get directions and a road-condition update from a ranger at Sandstone Visitor Center before setting out. The narrow gravel road climbs steeply through sharp turns. Most vehicles can usually make it, but after heavy rain or in wet conditions, high clearance or four-wheel drive may be needed. There is a small parking lot. The visit is outdoors; building interiors are not open to visitors.

The two-story farmhouse has a chestnut-log core, later poplar-clapboard siding, a sandstone chimney and an attached kitchen. A hand-riven oak picket fence encloses the yard. Nearby meat shed, granary, spring house, laundry shed and barns show how work was divided across the farm. A small parking lot is available; bring water and food for this remote stop.

The household grew apples and vegetables and kept Poland China hogs, chickens, sheep and three or four milk cows. Lamb sales helped pay taxes and school costs; wool could be made into clothes or traded, while salted pork and root-cellar produce carried food through winter. The orchard once held about a dozen apple varieties. Electricity and refrigeration did not reach the house until the 1940s, so the buildings and fields are part of the story of how a family made a living here.