158 South Main Street – West Coast Lumber - Ernestine Snow

A Trailblazer’s Legacy

We are honoring some of the women who helped shape Brooksville into the charming town it is today. Here, at the West Coast Limber Yard, we’re honoring Ernestine Snow (neé Kitchen), a woman whose strength, grace, and quiet leadership left a mark on Hernando County as deep as the roots of its ancient oaks. 

Ernestine Snow, born around 1908, was part of the storied Ederington and Snow families, tied to the historic Chinsegut Hill Manor House, just five miles northeast of Brooksville. Her family’s roots run deep—her ancestor, Francis Higgins Ederington, bought the manor in 1851, naming it Mount Airy. By 1866, Ernestine’s grandmother, Charlotte Ederington, married Dr. James Russell Snow, a South Carolina dentist, and they renamed the estate Snow Hill. They raised a big family, including Ernestine’s father, Frank Snow, who lived to 94. Ernestine grew up in this historic home, one of six generations to call it theirs, surrounded by citrus groves and tales of survival through the Great Freeze of 1895, when Snow Hill’s trees helped restart Florida’s citrus industry. 

Ernestine’s own story shines through her marriage to Colonel Roy Snow, a decorated World War II and Korean War hero who earned the Silver Star, Bronze Star, and Purple Heart. Roy, born in 1916, served as a captain in the 30th Infantry and later as a Hernando County Commissioner, leaving a legacy through Snow & Bell, Inc., a family business still running in Brooksville today. Ernestine, as his partner, was the backbone of their family, raising children and managing the household while Roy served in war and public office. She lived through the Great Depression, when the Snows and their kin, the Robins family, gave nearly $250,000 to save Brooksville’s First National Bank from collapsing in 1929, showing the kind of community spirit Ernestine carried forward. Though specific details about her personal deeds are scarce, we do know that Ernestine and her brother, Gene, were close. She partnered with him to purchase West Coast Lumber, here at 158 South Main Street, in 1945. Her role as a matriarch in a prominent family and a female business owner speaks volumes.

As a woman of her time, Ernestine’s contributions were woven into the everyday fabric of Brooksville—supporting her family’s business, nurturing the next generation, and upholding the heritage of Chinsegut Hill. The manor, now a historic site and museum at 22495 Chinsegut Hill Road, hosted luminaries like Thomas Edison and Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, and Ernestine’s presence helped preserve its legacy. Her life, alongside Roy’s, bridged Brooksville’s pioneer past with its modern growth, from the days of horse-drawn wagons to the citrus boom that earned the town its “Home of the Tangerine” title.

Standing here, thinking about Ernestine, you can picture her helping her brother Gene, here at the Lumber Yard, or her tending to the Snow Hill estate, welcoming neighbors, or sharing stories of Brooksville’s early days. She was a quiet force, a woman who held her family and community together through war, economic hardship, and change. Let’s tip our hats to Ernestine Snow, a true Brooksville trailblazer whose legacy lives on in the hills and hearts of Brooksville. 

Citations 

Chinsegut Hill Manor House, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinsegut_Hill_Manor_House.[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinsegut_Hill_%28Florida%29)

Chinsegut Hill: Where History Meets Hospitality, Florida Backroads Travel, https://www.florida-backroads-travel.com.[](https://www.florida-backroads-travel.com/chinsegut-hill.html)

Hernando County: Our Story by Alfred A. McKethan, 1989, Hernando Historical Museum Association, https://www.hernandohistoricalmuseumassoc.com.

Who Were the McKethans?, Hernando Sun, January 5, 2021, https://www.hernandosun.com.