If you grew up listening to the lore of old-timers in southern West Virginia, chances are you’ve heard of mysterious stone walls atop Armstrong Mountain, a stone’s throw from the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. Handed down as fireside tales, stories of their construction and strange purpose may have become the stuff of … Read more
Older folks who live in the valley of Paint Creek may recall legends about how the stream was named: an ancient warpath followed it through the mountains, and warriors celebrated their battles by painting trees along the trail a bloody red. According to late archaeologist Sigfus Olafson, the stories were true. The route was actually … Read more
It might sound like a joke, but it’s true that a circus clown helped relocate the West Virginia capital from Wheeling to Charleston, its present location, in the late 1800s. They say that finding a location for the seat of government had been a bit of a circus anyway, and the capital city had shifted … 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
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
Historians working with a landmark tavern near America’s newest national park are clarifying the role of Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson at the site, which served as a headquarters for northern and southern armies during the Civil War. To speak more clearly to younger audiences, Drew A. Gruber, executive director of Civil War Trails Inc., says his … Read more
More than a century has passed since West Virginia native Anna Jarvis planned the first Mother’s Day service, and the second Sunday of May has never been the same. Here are five things you may not know about the big spring holiday that’s rooted in the Mountain State. 1. Spring 2021 marks West Virginia’s 113th … Read more
A team of horses races across winding mountain roads, urged onward by the crack of a stage driver’s whip. Inside the coach, six weary passengers started their two-day journey at 1 p.m. that afternoon. They are tired and hungry and are eagerly awaiting their next stop, where they can disembark, stretch their legs, get some … Read more
The tale of the Flatwoods Monster has attracted the curious to West Virginia since 1952 after rumors of an alleged encounter with an alien exploded across the national airwaves. And interest in the tale has never quite died down. According to the legend, on a September evening in the hills above Flatwoods, West Virginia, a … Read more
