David Sibray
Though its speakers are aging and declining in number, there are still places in West Virginia where folks speak in what’s known as the Southern Mountain Dialect, more often called Appalachian Speech. Professor Wylene Dial was one of several authorities on the matter and studied it after she arrived in West Virginia in 1945 to … Read more
DUNKARD BOTTOM, W.Va. — The history of West Virginia is filled with stories of religious diversity — of hermits and prophets who escaped the clamor and confines of civilization. Beyond the edge of the American frontier, in what would become West Virginia, the mountains west of the Blue Ridge promised both freedom and isolation in … Read more
BURNING SPRINGS, W.Va. — Curious motorists traveling the valley of the Little Kanawha River southwest of Parkersburg may or may not stop at historic Burning Springs. There, a defunct country museum filled with oil-drilling paraphernalia may cause curious travelers to slow down, but too few stop. The museum itself is a bit of a mystery. … Read more
MARLINTON, W.Va. — Wherever you turn in West Virginia, you’re bound to find remarkable rocks, cliffs, and boulders, and some of them may appear bizarrely unnatural. One such astonishing garden of boulders hidden in the mountains of Pocahontas County appears so unnatural that it’s hard to believe human hands haven’t carved their surfaces. Geometric forms—cones, … Read more
PETERSTOWN, W.Va. — Diamonds don’t exist naturally in West Virginia, yet one of the largest ever found was discovered in a horseshoe pit in Monroe County in 1928. Geologists are still unable to explain how it got there, and speculation has never died. The Punch Jones Diamond—also known as the Horseshoe Diamond—remains the largest alluvial … Read more
Historians once assumed that West Virginia had been shaded by a vast unbroken forest, but an expert on old forests in the Mountain State says the region was, instead, a patchwork landscape of woodlands and fields opened by Native Americans. “I’ve heard it said that a squirrel could run limb-to-limb across West Virginia without touching … Read more
THURMOND, W.Va. — Perhaps no small town in West Virginia has gained the worldwide notoriety that the tiny Town of Thurmond has enjoyed. A ghost town located deep in the heart of America’s newest national park, the community has long captured the imaginations of historians and photographers. A railroad boomtown that now includes only seven … Read more
Though it might sound cliche, time really does stand still in the Indian Creek valley in southern West Virginia. A winery has opened. Farmers are experimenting with new crops. A small retirement community has been established where the old school once stood. But for the most part, little has changed, and most residents like it … Read more
A labyrinth of uncharted caverns extends for hundreds of feet beneath much of the scenic farmland in eastern West Virginia, and while some of the state’s show caves are well known to visitors, this secret world goes largely overlooked. The subterranean world beneath Monroe County came into focus earlier this winter when two dogs that … Read more
Gov. Jim Justice and the W.Va. Department of Tourism today announced that West Virginia has been selected as one of the best places to go by both Frommers and USA Today. This recognition follows a series of recent notable announcements by Condé Nast Traveler, Lonely Planet, and TIME Magazine, which together rank West Virginia as … Read more
