MOUNTAIN STATE TIMO NOOT KEIO KALLAS LAURI KABUR March 11, 2011 WEST VIRGINIA Orissaare Gymnasium

Facts & Figures STATEHOOD June 20, 1863 ; 35th state CAPITAL Charleston (since 1869) LARGEST CITY Charleston (population 51,702) TOTAL AREA 24,230 sq mi; 62,755 sq km POPULATION 1,810,354 INDUSTRY tourism, coal mining, chemicals, metal manufacturing, forest products, stone, clay, glassmaking AGRICULTURE p oultry and eggs, cattle, dairy products, apples

History The earliest Indians in the area that is now West Virginia were the moundbuilders who occupied the land. The uncharted and unexplored region was granted to the London Company by King James I in The state’s first white settlers arrived in Other settlers followed, many of them German or Scotch-Irish. The early history of the state is closely tied to that of Virginia, of which West Virginia was once a part. The first major land battle fought between Union and Confederate soldiers in the Civil War was the Battle of Philippi on June 3, The first state sales tax in the United States went into effect in West Virginia on July 1, West Virginia is the only state with two panhandles.

A Closer Look at West Virginia THE MOUNTAIN STATE is a rough-and-tumble landscape of steep ridges and deep valleys that is sometimes called the Colorado of the East. The thickly forested Appalachians acted as a barrier, keeping people from the east away.Native Americans defendes their hunting grounds against the newcomers, but gave up after a 1774 defeat. The State Bird - cardinal The State Plant - rhododendron

Appalachians

Mining and Natural Resources Coal mining was West Virginia’s no.1 priority since the discovery of coal on the Coal River in Generations later the hard worked had begun to show as West Virginia ranked first in nation in coal production. The most important mined product in the state was bituminous coal. West Virginia produces large quantities of natural gas from gas fields that lie beneath the Appalachian Plateau. Timbering, which had spread throughout the region by the turn of the century, remains a major industry.

Glassmaking Then & Now Glassmaking has long been a source of income and pride for West Virginia. Early glass molds were made of iron and cast by factories with no particular connection to the glass industry. Often these companies sold the same molds to different glass factories, resulting in different glassmakers offering the same glass product patterns and designs. After 1900, glass factories began to make their own molds on site.

West Virginia Today Nowadays tourism is the chief business in West Virginia. Tourists seeking for a thrill can go kayaking on the Gauley River, among many other recreational activities. The recreational opportunities in West Virginia are varied, ranging from magnificent national forests to health spas. Favorite sports include fishing, hunting, skiing, rock climbing, skating and base jumping. West Virginia Mountaineers

Bridge Day BASE JUMPING, an activity that is legal only on Bridge Day each October, is very popular among residents and tourists alike.

Switzerland of America This is another nickname given because of the mountainous terrain of West Virginia. Early settlers tended to compare mountainous areas of the new land to the mountains of Switzerland and, so, many states, including Colorado, Maine, New Hampshire, and New Jersey have, at one time or another, been labeled the "Switzerland of America”.

Fun Trivia State motto: Montani semper liberi “Mountaineers are always free” Home to the grandson of George Washington’s The capital hasn’t always been Charleston; both Charleston and Wheeling aspired to be the state`s capital, and for years the capital shuttled back and forth In 1877 a special election was called to decide the issue. Coal House, the only residence in the world built entirely of coal, is located in White Sulphur Springs. The house was occupied on June 1, The first brick street in the world was laid in Charleston

Fun Trivia West Virginia has the oldest population of any state. The median age is 40. On January 26, 1960 Danny Heater, a student from Burnsville, scored 135 points in a high - school basketball game earning him a place in the Guinness Book of World Records. One of the longest suspension bridges in the world, built in 1849, is called “Wheeling´s Rainbow”. It was the first bridge over the Ohio River.

The Sites of West Virginia Some really lovely sites worth visiting

References 1. Bockenhauer, M.H. And Cunha, S.F., 2004, Our Fifty States, National Geographic Society, Washington, D.C., 240 p. 2. Clack, G., 1997, Portrait of the USA, United States Information Agency, 96p. 3. Encyclopedia Americana (volume 28) international edition, 2004, Scholastic Library Publishing, Inc., Connecticut, 689 p. 4. Hudson, P. and Ballard, S.L., 1998, The Smithsonian Guides to Historic America ( the Carolinas and the Appalachian states), Stewart, Tabori & Chang, New York City, 485 p. 5. WikiPedia 6. World Wide Web

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