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Wednesday, April 2, 2025

History

Welcome to the History news directory at West Virginia Explorer, where you’ll find an archive of the most recent West Virginia history news published at West Virginia Explorer.

Heroic statue recalls role of Union-loyal "mountaineers" in Civil War

Mountaineer Statue Detail in West Virginia
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Historian and journalist Jim Comstock battled ceaselessly to keep alive the memory of the West Virginia "mountaineer"— the independent, Union-loyal resident...

Park to commemorate the 165th anniversary of John Brown’s Raid

Attack At Harpers Ferry
HARPERS FERRY, W.Va. — The National Park Service is hosting special events in West Virginia's eastern panhandle to commemorate abolitionist John Brown’s attempt to...

Roosevelt's first social experiment attracts visitors to rural West Virginia

The center hall at Arthurdale , West Virginia
ARTHURDALE, W.Va. — The Kingwood Pike climbs slowly from the valley of the Monongahela River at Morgantown into the Allegheny highlands atop the Chestnut...

Two historical Black buildings in Bluefield added to National Register

David Sibray Visits Hotel Thelma in West Virginia
BLUEFIELD, W.Va. — At the corner of Logan and Wayne streets on the north side of town sit two nondescript buildings, one brick and...

Lost West Virginia saltworks are known to only a few adventurers

David Sibray inspects stonework in a thicket near the old saltworks.
MERCER SALT WORKS, W.Va. — The legend of the lost Mercer Saltworks near the New River in West Virginia may be remembered now by...

Historic spring, cabin undetected near busy W.Va. expressway interchange

Phipps Cabin On Harper Road in West Virginia
BECKLEY, W.Va. — A stone's throw from one of the busiest traffic centers in West Virginia, a spring house and one-room cabin are all...

Scientists say carvings in southern W.Va. are Native American, not Irish

Lynco Petroglypth in West Virginia
LYNCO, W.Va. — Scientists studying ancient carvings in West Virginia say stories that propose a non-native origin for prehistoric landmarks ignore evidence and may...

Archaeologists debunk myth of prehistoric giants in West Virginia

An 1907 article in the Wheeling News helped popularize the ancient giants myth.
MOUNDSVILLE, W.Va. — After learning about my series of articles on West Virginia prehistory in West Virginia Explorer Magazine, Olivia Jones, an adjunct anthropology instructor...

Mystery surrounds W.Va. tale of frontier slave who defended fort

A historic marker recounting a version of the Dick Pointer tale stands near his monument.
LEWISBURG, W.Va. — Settlers who pushed westward across the Alleghenies in the 1700s engaged in a deadly gamble. Despite the threat of attack by...

The Great Seal of West Virginia—what its many strange symbols mean

An illustration of the West Virginia Coat of Arms includes elements set for by the state in 1863.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The Great Seal of West Virginia may be as fascinating to some West Virginians as the U.S. dollar bill is for...

Historians find evidence of famous visitor at West Virginia tavern

William Clark documented his stay at the Halfway House in a diary.
ANSTED, W.Va. — Historians investigating the history of a landmark tavern in southern West Virginia have uncovered evidence that explorer William Clark, of the...

Hikers, paddlers may visit lost "Island of the Dead" in the...

Headstones hide in the dim light of wooded Red Ash Island in the New River Gorge.
THURMOND, W.Va. — Victims of a smallpox pandemic that swept through the New River Gorge in the late 1800s may have been buried in...

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