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Communities in West Virginia offer residents a welcoming atmosphere, affordable cost of living, and a strong sense of connection to nature and neighbors alike. From charming small towns to vibrant cities like Charleston and Morgantown, West Virginia communities provide friendly neighborhoods, excellent schools, and access to outdoor recreation right at your doorstep. Residents enjoy a slower pace of life, surrounded by the state’s beautiful mountains, rivers, and forests, as well as rich local culture, historic sites, and community events that bring people together.

 

With safe streets, local businesses, and a true spirit of Appalachian hospitality, living in West Virginia communities means enjoying a high quality of life and a supportive, tight-knit environment where everyone feels at home. Be sure to visit our Communities Travel Guide for information about communities in West Virginia.

A model walks the runway during a fashion show. A West Virginia University researcher says the rise of weight-loss medications is coinciding with a retreat from size inclusivity in the fashion industry. (Photo by Yogendra Singh/Unsplash)
Communities

Weight-loss drugs are changing American bodies; Fashion may be changing with them

by Bianca Bosworth

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — As weight-loss medications such as Ozempic and Wegovy reshape the bodies of millions of Americans, their influence may be reaching beyond doctors’ offices and into closets, fashion studios and clothing stores. A West Virginia University fashion researcher says the rapid rise of the medications coincides with a retreat from the body-size inclusivity … Read more

A bull elk stands in the southern West Virginia coalfields, where the state's restored elk population is beginning to roam farther from its established range. (Photo: W.Va. Dept. of Commerce)
Communities

West Virginia elk are roaming farther as restored herd grows

by Will Reedy

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia’s restored elk are beginning to roam farther from the southern coalfields where they were reintroduced, even as the state prepares to welcome visitors for another season of guided elk-viewing tours. The W.Va. Division of Natural Resources announced Sunday that tickets are available for its 2026 Elk Management Tours, which begin Sept. … Read more

Dolly Parton poses for an RCA Records publicity photograph in 1970. Parton later founded the Imagination Library, which now provides free books to more than 46,000 children in West Virginia. (Public domain)
Communities

Dolly Parton put books in the hands of 46,000 West Virginia children. Thousands more remain unenrolled

by Clyde Craig

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — More than 46,000 West Virginia children are receiving free books through Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, an Appalachian literacy effort that will continue after the singer and philanthropist’s death this week. But nearly as many eligible West Virginia children are not enrolled. The latest county-by-county figures published by the W.Va. Department of Education … Read more

Autumn Leaves In The Canaan Valley in West Virginia
Communities

West Virginia vacation guide wins national award after 350,000 copies distributed

by Clyde Craig

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia’s 2026 Vacation Guide has won a national tourism marketing award as distribution of the printed publication has climbed past 350,000 copies, the West Virginia Department of Tourism said. The guide received a 2026 U.S. Travel ESTO Award for Excellence in Print Marketing, department spokesperson Lindsey Funk announced Wednesday. The award … Read more

Sunlight filters through a forest canopy. WVU researchers are using artificial intelligence to help scientists understand how forests respond to environmental change in near real time. Photo by John Towner
Communities

Forests ‘breathe’ 24 hours a day; West Virginia scientists want to watch it happen

by Clyde Craig

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Across the Appalachians, forests that can appear timeless are constantly changing, exchanging carbon, water and energy with the atmosphere as trees and other vegetation respond to sunlight, rain, drought and changing weather. Scientists can measure that activity as often as 20 times every second. Understanding what all those measurements mean, however, can … Read more