West Virginia culture is a captivating blend of rich Appalachian traditions and vibrant high culture infused with the jazz of surrounding U.S. cities like Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C. The state is renowned for its deep-rooted Appalachian heritage, which is showcased through folk music, storytelling, and traditional crafts such as quilting and woodcarving. Visitors can experience this authentic culture at local festivals and heritage museums throughout the Mountain State. At the same time, West Virginia also embraces high culture, with world-class performances at the West Virginia Symphony Orchestra, acclaimed theater productions at the Greenbrier Valley Theatre, and art exhibitions at the Huntington Museum of Art. This unique mix of mountain traditions and refined artistic offerings makes West Virginia a true cultural gem in the heart of Appalachia.
If you’re a West Virginian who came of age after 1971, chances are you can hardly remember a time when John Denver’s “Take Me Home, Country Roads” wasn’t the state’s unofficial anthem. Though not officially adopted as a “state song” until 2014, it was, seemingly, performed at every event everywhere in the state. It became … Read more
BECKLEY, W.Va. — While recent bigfoot sightings in southern West Virginia have gained national attention, one investigator says it’s no surprise, given the number of sightings he’s cataloged in the southern mountains. Investigator Les O’Dell says he’ll attest to the trustworthiness of a recent report of an encounter in October 2019 near the New River … Read more
MOUNT HOPE, W.Va. — Due to its remarkable fertility, the valley of Dunloup Creek in south-central West Virginia was once called by settlers “Egypt.” But pioneers discovered something even more remarkable when they arrived—a prehistoric ruin built by an earlier culture, and only a few recollections of the ancient stone works survive. The legendary ruin … Read more
Bluefield State College announced today the founding of the Pete Sternloff Center for West Virginia Musicology, which will archive and promote the history of music created and performed in southern West Virginia. College President Robin Capehart says the center will fill a much-needed gap in the preservation of and education about the music that flourished … Read more
Thanks to the Internet, almanacs aren’t printed as they once were, but in West Virginia, where communications were hampered by the mountains, these useful guides were vital to farmers and all who depended on their brand of calendared information. Wheeling, in what’s now the northern panhandle of West Virginia, was a principal source of printed … 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
West Virginia will suffer six more weeks of winter, French Creek Freddie predicted on Wednesday during a Groundhog Day celebration at the West Virginia Wildlife Center in Upshur County. Freddie, the state’s most popular weather-predicting groundhog, came out of hibernation on Wednesday to provide his annual forecast to fans and followers in attendance. “Freddie was … 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
Nature has always been a key component of the mission at the Huntington Museum of Art in Huntington, West Virginia. With a nature trail, plant conservatory, and wheelchair-accessible sensory trail on the property, it celebrates nature and strives to educate. But while the exhibition of art is chief among the missions that may spring to … Read more
Until just after the Civil War, large parts of the valley of the Ohio River in what’s now West Virginia were controlled by pirates. Sparsely settled, these marauders in watercraft hid easily in the river’s coves, sporadically raiding ships and riverside communities. The opportunity to plunder along the route, far from civil authority, was extremely … Read more
