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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.

Campers gather around a fire in a West Virginia forest.
Communities

New River college offering two-day survival skills course

by Clyde Craig

Enhance your survival skills and knowledge during a two-day course offered in May at New River Community and Technical College’s campus in Nicholas County at Summersville, West Virginia. Students will receive instruction on how to survive in emergency situations and learn how settlers lived without modern conveniences and technology, according to Jenni R. Canterbury, the … Read more

No longer industrially viable, West Virginia brownfield sites are eligible for assistance.
Communities

Brownfield assistance center calls for community applicants

by Clyde Craig

Is your community suffering from the appearance of its old industrial or commercial sites—otherwise known as brownfields? The West Virginia Brownfields Assistance Center at West Virginia University is seeking communities that would like to apply for up to $5,000 in redevelopment assistance. According to Patrick Kirby, a spokesman for the Foundations for Overcoming Challenges and … Read more

A field of hemp in West Virginia greets the dawn.
Communities

Hemp licenses triple in West Virginia in 2019

by Bianca Bosworth

The West Virginia Department of Agriculture issued 158 individual licenses under its new industrial hemp program for 2019—more than triple the amount issued in 2018. The licenses included 71 applicants who marked processing as part of their submission and a proposed total acreage to be grown by licensees is 2,531, according to Commissioner of Agriculture … Read more

A historic stone barn awaits the harvest in West Virginia's eastern panhandle.
Communities

W.Va. Dept. of Agriculture releases new five-year plan

by David Sibray

The West Virginia Agriculture Advisory Board has released a five year-strategic plan for West Virginia agriculture, which Commissioner of Agricultural Ken Leonhardt says he hopes to initiate immediately. Titled “A Shared Agenda for Growing West Virginia’s Agricultural Economy,” the plan focuses on several areas—connecting producers to market opportunities, creating infrastructure needed to grow the agriculture … Read more

Passengers pass a wreck along the old Buffalo Creek & Gauley Railroad.
Communities

Rail excursion gaining ground in scenic W.Va. valley

by David Sibray

Thousands of miners and loggers once lived in the little valley through which West Virginia’s newest rail excursion runs. Trout swim and deer browse where a century ago striking miners bombed the line that rail-bikes and little engines now follow. Peace, quiet, and history are chief reasons more than 1,200 guests pedaled or boarded open … Read more

Pendeleton County, Potomac Branches Region
Communities

New national heritage area to attract travel, investment

by David Sibray

A new national heritage area established in March will attract financing and tourism to eastern West Virginia and western Maryland—a region that encompasses millions of acres of forest and some of the state’s best-known scenic landscapes. The Smoke Hole Countryside[/caption] Phyllis Baxter, executive director for the heritage area, says visitors and residents can expect to … Read more

West Virginia Explorer news briefing skills are now available on Alexa devices.
Communities

WVExplorer news briefs now provided on Alexa devices

by Bianca Bosworth

WVExplorer now offers news briefings through Alexa devices, allowing the leading publisher of West Virginia news and travel information to reach beyond the thousands of daily visitors it already reaches. According to publisher David Sibray, the owners of devices such as Amazon Echo, Echo Auto, Amazon FireTV Stick, Amazon FireTV, and Amazon Fire TV Cube … Read more

It Pays To Be In The Zone 1
Communities

Many Greenbrier, Pocahontas businesses eligible for benefits

by Clyde Craig

Many businesses in Greenbrier and Pocahontas counties may be eligible for benefits as a result of their locations in federally designated “Historically Underutilized Business Zones” or “HUBZones.” The Robert C. Byrd Institute is joining the U.S. Small Business Administration and Greenbrier Valley Economic Development Corporation March 26 in presenting a free workshop on the matter … Read more