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David Sibray

David Sibray is the founder, publisher and editor-in-chief of West Virginia Explorer, a news and travel magazine devoted to the state’s history, tourism, outdoor recreation and economic development. For more information, he may be reached at 304-575-7390 or at editor@wvexplorer.com
Visitors descend into Organ Cave in Greenbrier County, one of the many West Virginia caverns around which generations of history, tradition and folklore have accumulated. Photographer to be determined.
Caving

West Virginia cave lore—strange stories from beneath the Mountain State

by David Sibray

GRAFTON, W.Va. — West Virginia is riddled with caves, rock shelters, sinking streams, and dark openings in the mountains, so it is perhaps no surprise that generations of stories have accumulated around them. Some involve pioneers. Others involve Native Americans, soldiers, abolitionists, hunters, and fugitives. There are tales of murder, gunpowder-making, and men hiding underground. … Read more

Professional staff members of the West Virginia Hospital for the Insane in Weston pose outside the institution circa 1894–1900. Dr. Lorilla F. Bullard, who testified during the 1899 investigation of Superintendent W.E. Stathers, is standing at front left. The historic photograph has been digitally enhanced for clarity to improve accessibility for readers with limited vision. (West Virginia and Regional History Center, WVU Libraries)
Health and Medicine

Women accused the head of West Virginia’s famous asylum. Then came a mysterious train trip, controversial verdict

by David Sibray

WESTON, W.Va. — In 1899, the directors of West Virginia’s hospital for the mentally ill concluded a highly publicized investigation into allegations of improper conduct by Superintendent W.E. Stathers, finding him not guilty after days of testimony from female employees and other witnesses. The decision followed testimony about alleged unwanted advances, visits to women’s rooms, … Read more

The Greenbrier rises above the grounds at White Sulphur Springs, W.Va., in this historic photograph. The resort traces its origins to 1778 and has played roles in American history ranging from the Civil War to World War II and the Cold War. (Courtesy West Virginia & Regional History Center, WVU Libraries)
History / Prehistory

The Greenbrier is back in the national news. Here are five remarkable facts from its 248-year history

by David Sibray

WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — The Greenbrier is entering another chapter in its remarkable history after Friday’s completion of a $500 million joint venture that gives a New York investment firm a controlling interest in the historic West Virginia resort. Kennedy Lewis Investment Management will hold a 51% controlling interest in The Greenbrier, while the … Read more

The ruins of William “Coin” Harvey’s Monte Ne resort stand along the shore of Beaver Lake in Arkansas, remnants of the ambitious community he developed in the Ozarks in the early 20th century.
History / Prehistory

The West Virginian who ran for president—and built a pyramid for the end of civilization

by David Sibray

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — One hundred seventy-five years ago this week, a boy was born along the Kanawha River in Putnam County who would become a bestselling author, a nationally known economic crusader, a presidential candidate, and, eventually, the architect of an extraordinary concrete monument intended to explain to people in the distant future why American … Read more

Former West Virginia Gov. William Wallace Barron became the central figure in one of the state’s most extraordinary political scandals after his 1968 acquittal on federal conspiracy charges was followed by revelations that the jury foreman had been bribed. The illustration combines archival images of Barron with imagery recalling the federal trial in Charleston.
History / Prehistory

The West Virginia governor who was acquitted—then admitted the jury had been bribed

by David Sibray

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Fifty-eight years ago this week, one of the most extraordinary political corruption cases in West Virginia history began in a federal courtroom in Charleston, where a former governor and five other men stood accused in a conspiracy involving state contracts, secret payments and money moving through corporations hundreds of miles away. The … Read more

Union soldiers reached the Mercer Saltworks on the New River during the early hours of Aug. 10, 1862, finding its steam engine running and its enormous salt pans boiling before destroying the works by fire. (WVExplorer illustration)
History / Prehistory

A future U.S. president sent 150 soldiers to destroy this West Virginia saltworks

by David Sibray

HINTON, W.Va. — In the darkness of Aug. 10, 1862, about 150 Union soldiers moved through the mountains of southern West Virginia toward an isolated industrial complex along the New River, carrying orders from an Ohio officer who would eventually become president of the United States. Their objective was the Mercer Saltworks, a salt-producing operation … Read more

Paddlers make their way down the Greenbrier River in southeastern West Virginia, where cool mountain water, forested shorelines and higher elevations have long provided an escape from the summer heat. (Photo courtesy Kirstin Cole)
Travel / Transportation

‘Coolcations’ are surging as travelers escape the heat. West Virginia’s Greenbrier Valley is ready

by David Sibray

LEWISBURG, W.Va. — At the southern end of the Allegheny Mountains, where the Greenbrier River enters a landscape of bluegrass pastures, mineral springs and cavernous limestone, a West Virginia valley is finding itself particularly well suited to one of the travel industry’s fastest-growing summer trends. They are called “coolcations”—vacations chosen at least partly to escape … Read more

o ensure students feel at home on campus during the upcoming school year, WVU Welcome Week offers a little something for all students to enjoy through engagement and entertainment. (WVU Photo)
Higher Education

Thousands of WVU students are returning to Morgantown during Welcome Week

by David Sibray

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Thousands of West Virginia University students will begin returning to Morgantown next week as residence hall move-ins get underway and the university launches nearly two weeks of Welcome Week activities surrounding the start of the fall semester. The university’s Welcome Week schedule runs Aug. 12-23 and includes activities for commuter students, residence … Read more