• Home
  • GALLERIES
  • WV Books
    • West Virginia Beauty - Familiar & Rare
    • Mail Pouch Barns of West Virginia
    • Wild & Wonderful the Wildlife of West Virginia
    • Lab Work - working like a dog
    • Wonders of West Virginia
  • Workshops
  • Bio
  • contact
  • Search

West Virginia Attractions

Tourist attractions and places & things of interest in WV
Read More
WheelingBargeSunset
471 / 483

WheelingBargeSunset

  • "The Charleston" locking through the Winfield Locks & Dam on the Kanawha River.
  • ToddLangGVBC
  • TransAlleghenyLunaticAsylum-sjs-2015-001
  • TransAlleghenyLunaticAsylum-sjs-2015-002
  • TransAlleghenyLunaticAsylum-sjs-2015-003
  • TransAlleghenyLunaticAsylum-sjs-2015-004
  • TransAlleghenyLunaticAsylum-sjs-2015-005
  • DCIM\100MEDIA\DJI_0224.JPG
  • Wheeling was discovered by the Zane Brothers in 1769 via an overland route to the Ohio from the junction of the Youghiogheny and the Monongahela Rivers. Wheeling had a deep port and river transportation was nearly always possible. This helped the city grow slow.<br /> <br /> The early 1800s brought peace with the Indians as well as the building of the first National Road. Because the road granted access to the west the calling of free land was heard by all. Quickly the west began to grow as did Wheeling, it's main route of supply.<br /> <br /> Because the city was a major destination and of course a major westward bound gateway, the citizens of Wheeling utilized unrivaled technology and built a bridge of magnificent proportions to be opened November 7, 1849. Without a penny of federal or state money it would be equivalent to a town of 10,000 raising $65 million to build a structure of unproven methods today.<br /> <br /> Three years later, in 1852, the B&O arrived linking Wheeling to Baltimore, it's sister city. In 1860 Wheeling was the second largest city in the state of Virginia. 1861 saw the start of the Civil War and Wheeling became the capitol of Virginia. Then on June 20, 1863 it became the capitol of a new northern state, West Virginia.<br /> <br /> The city grew and prospered for 25 years. In 1885 the right to vote was given to Stonewall Jackson's men. Ill feelings towards Wheeling began to stir and quickly strengthened culminating in the movement of the capitol to a small town in central West Virginia called Charleston where it remains today. Wheeling never recovered from this loss and so never reached its full potential to become a great American city.<br /> <br /> Even with the loss of the capitol, the city grew well into the 20th century. It was truly a Victorian city. With the grand homes built throughout the area, the downtown was in a constant state of change through the 1920s.<br /> <br /> By the 1930s the city couldn't handle the requirements and the investments to its industry began to disappear. The peak population of 70,000 dropped 7% by the 1970s, and steadily declined to a population of approximately 30,000 today.<br /> <br /> To many this is indeed a sad story, but every cloud has a silver lining. Our story is that Wheeling is a living treasure of the nation's history. Here is where the pipeline was open to the settling of the west. Here is where the industrial revolution took place. Here is where one can still see in its near entirety, the Victorian Era. The city's decline was dramatic and painful, but it preserved the nation's history, as if it were in a time capsule, and tells America's story better than any other place could.
  • WestVirginiaStateFair-54
  • WheelingBargeSunset
  • WheelingSuspensionBridge-2
  • WhippleCoStore-02
  • WindGeneratorsTuckerCo,WV-13
  • WOOD COUNTY, WV COURTHOUSE<br /> Construction on the current Wood County Courthouse began in 1899. It took nearly two years at a cost of $100,000 to complete the huge, five-story structure.<br /> <br /> Built with native sandstone, the Courthouse is an excellent example of modified Richardsonian Romanesque architecture. The exterior is highlighted with ornate turrets, balconies, stilted arches, a bell tower and unique, symbolic carvings. An intricate marble fountain featuring a bust of former State Circuit Judge James Monroe Jackson was erected near the building's west entrance in 1901.
  • Ravenswood native, Dave Jones bought a small lathe that was motor less and tinkered around with it until he got it going. He ended up using an old washing machine motor to spin the lathe. Dave has since acquired other lathes – including a variable speed Nova 3000 – but he still has his original lathe and uses it sometimes for small objects. For years he’d been doing woodworking on cabinets, furniture and cradles, but now he does only woodturning. <br /> Dave has worked with walnut, maple, oak and even box elder, but he especially enjoys working with woods that are spalted. Spalting occurs when wood starts to decay and the fungi attacking the piece form small pockets throughout the grain. “I love to see what patterns can be developed through wood grains that have spalting.” <br /> Dave echoes what many in his group admit: “I am never out of wood living in West Virginia. Friends and relatives always seem to have trees around their houses that they are trying to haul off. I’m glad to help them out.” Dave’s specialties are lidded pots and natural-edge bowls or cylindrical containers. If possible, he will leave the original bark on the wood to create especially striking work. Dave won a ribbon at the Mountain State Craft Fair, (Cedar Lakes Conference Center), for work he created from one spalted maple burl.
  • West Virginia Motor Speedway has quickly become one of the premier racing facilities in the country. From its beautiful terraced hillside seating to the high speed, high banks the 5/8-mile speed plant brings only the bravest competitors and thousands of thrill seeking fans.
  • WVNationalCemetery
  • West Virginia Penitentiary<br /> <br /> After West Virginia seceded from Virginia in 1863, the new state had to quickly address the need for public institutions. In 1866, an act of the state legislature directed the purchase of a plot of land in Moundsville for the state penitentiary. Moundsville was chosen as the site due to its proximity to the then-state capitol in Wheeling. <br /> The North Wagon Gate was the first building of <br /> the complex to be constructed. It served as living quarters for the 150 inmates who worked to construct the state's second oldest public building. The hand-cut sandstone used to build the walls was quarried nearby.<br /> <br /> The first phase of the West Virginia Penitentiary <br /> was completed in 1876 at a total cost of $363,061. The complex surrounded the North Wagon Gate and included north and south cellblock areas, an administration building and a home for the warden and his family located in the center towering 4-story section of the gothic structures.<br /> <br /> The building extended 682 feet across the front<br /> and was engulfed by 24-foot high walls that are<br /> 6-feet in width at the base and tapered to 18 <br /> inches at the top. The facility opened for full <br /> operation in 1876 with 251 male inmates.<br /> <br /> Once the construction of the Penitentiary was<br /> complete, the inmates were then focused on jobs that must be completed in order to support any community. A variety of industries were located within the walls of the prison including a <br /> blacksmith, wagon shop, carpentry shop, brickyard, stone yard, paint shop, tailor, bakery and hospital.<br /> <br /> The first execution at the Penitentiary took place in 1899 when the state took over the responsibility from the countries. During the history of the prison, a total of 94 men were executed. From 1899-1949, eighty-five men were hung, and, from 1951-1959, nine men were electrocuted.
  • West Virginia Penitentiary<br /> <br /> After West Virginia seceded from Virginia in 1863, the new state had to quickly address the need for public institutions. In 1866, an act of the state legislature directed the purchase of a plot of land in Moundsville for the state penitentiary. Moundsville was chosen as the site due to its proximity to the then-state capitol in Wheeling. <br /> The North Wagon Gate was the first building of <br /> the complex to be constructed. It served as living quarters for the 150 inmates who worked to construct the state's second oldest public building. The hand-cut sandstone used to build the walls was quarried nearby.<br /> <br /> The first phase of the West Virginia Penitentiary <br /> was completed in 1876 at a total cost of $363,061. The complex surrounded the North Wagon Gate and included north and south cellblock areas, an administration building and a home for the warden and his family located in the center towering 4-story section of the gothic structures.<br /> <br /> The building extended 682 feet across the front<br /> and was engulfed by 24-foot high walls that are<br /> 6-feet in width at the base and tapered to 18 <br /> inches at the top. The facility opened for full <br /> operation in 1876 with 251 male inmates.<br /> <br /> Once the construction of the Penitentiary was<br /> complete, the inmates were then focused on jobs that must be completed in order to support any community. A variety of industries were located within the walls of the prison including a <br /> blacksmith, wagon shop, carpentry shop, brickyard, stone yard, paint shop, tailor, bakery and hospital.<br /> <br /> The first execution at the Penitentiary took place in 1899 when the state took over the responsibility from the countries. During the history of the prison, a total of 94 men were executed. From 1899-1949, eighty-five men were hung, and, from 1951-1959, nine men were electrocuted.
  • No Comments
  • Photo Sharing
  • About SmugMug
  • Browse Photos
  • Prints & Gifts
  • Terms
  • Privacy
  • Contact
  • Owner Log In
© 2023 SmugMug, Inc.