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Warwood: a Walking Tour of its History and Architecture
Item 20 of 23
Theodore Gabriel Cupp started the T.G. Cupp Company, a roofing & metal business, in Warwood around 1917. In 1922, after his son Edwin entered the business, he renamed the company as T.G. Cupp & Sons. He and his wife lived at 2508 Vance Avenue, while his son lived next door at 2506 Vance Avenue. Before the company relocated to 55 N. 28th Street, they spent several decades at this facility, formerly the site of the Montiegel Dye Works building.

Facing NE, taken Feb 2017, photo courtesy of Christina Rieth

Facing NE, taken Feb 2017, photo courtesy of Christina Rieth
Theodore Gabriel Cupp moved to 2510 Vance Avenue from Somerset, PA, and started his company in 1916. He closed up shop to help at Louis Bennett's aircraft factory in World War I, but he also closed temporarily during World War II to teach welding at the naval base in Warwood. 

The house is located in Warwood, Wheeling's northern most neighborhood. the neighborhood is named after Henry Warwood, who founded the Warwood Tool Company in 1854 in Martins Ferry. The company was relocated to Warwood in 1907.

As early as 1795, Thomas Glenn is the first known owner of the land; he bequeathed the land to his son, William, sometime before 1795. Farmers initially settled in the region north of Wheeling for its rich, fertile soil.

Farmland in Warwood made way to industrial and residential development at the turn of the century. Foreseeing the potential of Warwood’s future, R. J. McCullagh founded the Warwood Land Company in 1903. The company sold the lots at a very low price at the time, starting at $300 each. The land was far less susceptible to floods than other parts of Wheeling, and streetcars ran between Warwood and Wheeling every 15 minutes, which became excellent selling points for prospective residents. Working-class families who came to the area sought employment at the industrial plants and built their residences, businesses, and churches nearby. Coal mines were abundant in Warwood, and an oil boom hit Warwood in 1911.

Warwood became an incorporated community on May 26, 1911, and as part of the “Wheeling Greater Movement”, Wheeling annexed the Warwood neighborhood in 1919.

Hinrichs Bissett, Mabel, & Bertha Cupp Jones. "Warwood: a History, 1669-1975." Ernest St. C. Benfield, 1993.
Rieth, Christina. "Warwood: a Walking Tour of its History and Architecture". Wheeling Heritage, 2017.