BETTY WOODS “SNOOKIE” NUTTING

A lifelong Wheeling resident, Nutting was well-known locally and nationally for her historic preservation efforts. She inspired a generation of preservationists with her enthusiasm and sound advice — often rolling up her own sleeves to help.

Born Feb. 2, 1936, she was the daughter of Robert McLain Woods and Sara “Betty” Elizabeth Shirk Woods. She graduated from Triadelphia High School in 1954, attended Mary Washington College in Virginia, and completed her undergraduate studies at Wheaton College in Massachusetts in 1958, earning a bachelor’s degree in biology with a minor in art and architecture.

In 1960, she married the late G. Ogden Nutting, longtime publisher of The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register and a community leader. Together, they formed a dynamic and influential partnership, each leaving a distinct mark on the city of Wheeling and the state of West Virginia. While her husband led in journalism, business and philanthropy, Nutting focused her talents and energy on saving, restoring, and interpreting historic buildings and places.

In 1970, Nutting co-founded the Friends of Wheeling, West Virginia’s first historic preservation organization, with a mission to “protect, preserve, and promote the historic, educational, and cultural heritage of the city of Wheeling.” Through Friends of Wheeling and the “Operation Look-Up” series published in The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register highlighting the city’s unique architectural details, she helped cultivate an appreciation for historic preservation and encouraged others to see possibility where many saw decay. She also served for more than two decades as president of the Victorian Wheeling Landmarks Foundation.

In 2017, the Wheeling Hall of Fame inducted Nutting in the Public Service category for “her groundbreaking leadership in the preservation of Wheeling’s architectural heritage.” Nutting’s husband, G. Ogden Nutting, entered the Hall of Fame in 2013 in the Business, Industry and Professions category, making them the first married couple in the Hall of Fame as individual honorees and for different contributions to the city.

At the state level, she was instrumental in forming and serving as the first president of the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia, helping to establish a unified voice for historic preservation across the state. Nutting also served five terms on the West Virginia Archives and History Commission. In 2016, the West Virginia Division of Culture and History presented a special award to Nutting and created a lecture series in her honor at West Virginia Independence Hall in Wheeling.

Nutting twice was named a Distinguished West Virginian by two different governors — first in 2013 by Earl Ray Tomblin, a Democrat, and again in 2023 by Jim Justice, a Republican.

At the national level, Nutting served nine years as the West Virginia adviser for the National Trust for Historic Preservation, a national non-profit chartered by Congress to “protect significant historic places and revitalize communities through preservation.”

A lifelong competitive tennis player and expert skier who loved to travel the world with her family and friends, Nutting also was the organist and choral director at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Wheeling for many years.

Along with her parents, Nutting was predeceased by her husband G. Ogden Nutting in 2023; her brother Robert McLain Woods II and his wife Jacquelin Ann Kennedy Woods; and her brother-in-law William Courtney Nutting. She is survived by her two sons William O. Nutting and his wife Veronica Zoani Quinterno, and Robert M. Nutting and his wife Leslie; five granddaughters: Cameron Nutting Williams; Taylor Nutting Gurbacs and her husband Gabor; Lachlan Nutting; Veronica Nutting; and Alexia Nutting; one grandson: Ogden William Nutting; and three great-grandchildren: Nolan Williams, Olivia Williams, and George Gurbacs. She also is survived by her sister-in-law Pauline Bray Nutting and two nephews: Robert McLain Woods III and Christopher Kennedy Woods and his wife Jennifer, along with their children Carter Woods and Emily Woods.

The family would like to extend its appreciation to Dr. Michael Wayt, Visiting Angels, and Later Alligator for their caring and love over the past two and one-half years.

There will be no visitation or public service. Those desiring to do so should make contributions to the church or charity of their choice.