Heres one for the West Virginan\'s/and friends
Subject: INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA:
1. West Virginia is the only state to be created from another state
(Virginia...in 1863).
2. Berkeley Springs, a resort town, has more massage therapists than
lawyers.
3. Berkeley Springs is the only place in the U.S. to boast: "George
Washington bathed here."
4. WV has had the nation's lowest crime rate for the past 26 years.
5. During the Cold War, a sprawling 112,000 sq. ft. bomb shelter was built
to shelter members of congress in the event of a nuclear attack. It's
located beneath the famous Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs, WV.
6. White Sulphur Springs has the only private residence in the US that is
made out of coal.
7. The city of Bluefield, WV bills itself as "America's Air-conditioned
City." They back up their boast by serving free lemonade anytime the
temperature reaches 90 degrees.
8. St. Andrews Methodist Church in Grafton was the site of the first
Mother's Day celebration in 1908.
9. Two West Virginia men have built castles for their wives. Stephen
Elkins built "Halliehurst" in 1890 for his wife Hallie Davis Elkins...the
only woman in American history to be the daughter, the wife, and the mother
of a US senator.
10. In 1885, whiskey distiller Taylor Suite began building
Berkeley Castle for his new bride, Rosa Pelham, who was 31 years his junior.
He died in 1908, a year before the project was finished. Rosa completed
the castle but went
on to squander her inheritance on extravagant living and wild parties and
ended up losing the castle and living in a shack and raising chickens to make
ends meet.
11. Philippi, WV was the site of the first land battle of the
Civil War.
12. In 1921, West Virginia became the first state to have a sales tax.
13. The mother of Abraham Lincoln, Nancy Hanks, was born near Romney, WV.
14. The largest single shipment of matches... 20 railroad cars full... was
sent from Wheeling, WV to Memphis, TN in 1933.
15. In 1947, Chuck Yeager, a native of Hamlin, WV, became the first person
to fly faster than the speed of sound.
16. The Old Stone Church, in Lewisburg, was built in 1796 while George
Washington was President and has been in continuous service ever since. (It
is Presbyterian)
17. At the end of the "Guilded Age" in the late 1890's, the town of
Bramwell, WV had more millionaires per square mile than any other city in the
U.S. Many of their mansions have been restored and can be visited by the
public.
18. With an average altitude of 1,500 feet, WV is the highest state east of
the Mississippi.
19. The first brick street in the world was laid in the city of Charleston
in 1873.
20. The first concrete street in the world was laid in the town of Webster
Springs, WV in 1903.
21. Indirect artillery fire (action against an unseen target) was used for
the first time in military history at the Battle of Fayetteville on May 20,
1863 by a 19-year old Confederate, Sgt. Milton Humphreys. Virtually all
modern artillery fire is now indirect fire.
22. James Rumsey of Shepardstown, WV invented the first steamboat. After
he died suddenly in England, while raising funds for his project, his friend,
Robert Fulton, took his plans and completed the work and is now credited with
the invention of the first steamboat.
23. In 1956, Cecil Underwood (age 34) became the youngest governor in the
U.S. In 1996, Underwood ran again and became the oldest governor in the U.S.
24. The hardwood flooring in the famous Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York
was manufactured by the Meadow River Lumber Co. of Rainelle, WV.
25. West Virginia has the oddest shape of any state. This was because
Union officials, during the Civil War, arranged all the pro-Union counties of
Virginia into a state which then seceded from that Confederate State.
And may we add, Mingo County, WV, the Heart of the Billion Dollar Coal Field
is home of the "Coal House", which holds the Chamber of Commerce. It is
located in the county seat, Williamson and is constructed entirely of local
coal cut into blocks.
26 West Virginians became the only Americans to be threatened by the use of
US Military aircraft (the Martin Bomber, the B-1) deployed from Langley Field
VA by order of the president to quell the "Battle of Blair Mountain" in
September 1921.
And lastly, WV was the first state to utilize food stamps!
Are You From WV?
Subject: INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT WEST VIRGINIA:
1. West Virginia is the only state to be created from another state
(Virginia...in 1863).
2. Berkeley Springs, a resort town, has more massage therapists than
lawyers.
3. Berkeley Springs is the only place in the U.S. to boast: "George
Washington bathed here."
4. WV has had the nation's lowest crime rate for the past 26 years.
5. During the Cold War, a sprawling 112,000 sq. ft. bomb shelter was built
to shelter members of congress in the event of a nuclear attack. It's
located beneath the famous Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs, WV.
6. White Sulphur Springs has the only private residence in the US that is
made out of coal.
7. The city of Bluefield, WV bills itself as "America's Air-conditioned
City." They back up their boast by serving free lemonade anytime the
temperature reaches 90 degrees.
8. St. Andrews Methodist Church in Grafton was the site of the first
Mother's Day celebration in 1908.
9. Two West Virginia men have built castles for their wives. Stephen
Elkins built "Halliehurst" in 1890 for his wife Hallie Davis Elkins...the
only woman in American history to be the daughter, the wife, and the mother
of a US senator.
10. In 1885, whiskey distiller Taylor Suite began building
Berkeley Castle for his new bride, Rosa Pelham, who was 31 years his junior.
He died in 1908, a year before the project was finished. Rosa completed
the castle but went
on to squander her inheritance on extravagant living and wild parties and
ended up losing the castle and living in a shack and raising chickens to make
ends meet.
11. Philippi, WV was the site of the first land battle of the
Civil War.
12. In 1921, West Virginia became the first state to have a sales tax.
13. The mother of Abraham Lincoln, Nancy Hanks, was born near Romney, WV.
14. The largest single shipment of matches... 20 railroad cars full... was
sent from Wheeling, WV to Memphis, TN in 1933.
15. In 1947, Chuck Yeager, a native of Hamlin, WV, became the first person
to fly faster than the speed of sound.
16. The Old Stone Church, in Lewisburg, was built in 1796 while George
Washington was President and has been in continuous service ever since. (It
is Presbyterian)
17. At the end of the "Guilded Age" in the late 1890's, the town of
Bramwell, WV had more millionaires per square mile than any other city in the
U.S. Many of their mansions have been restored and can be visited by the
public.
18. With an average altitude of 1,500 feet, WV is the highest state east of
the Mississippi.
19. The first brick street in the world was laid in the city of Charleston
in 1873.
20. The first concrete street in the world was laid in the town of Webster
Springs, WV in 1903.
21. Indirect artillery fire (action against an unseen target) was used for
the first time in military history at the Battle of Fayetteville on May 20,
1863 by a 19-year old Confederate, Sgt. Milton Humphreys. Virtually all
modern artillery fire is now indirect fire.
22. James Rumsey of Shepardstown, WV invented the first steamboat. After
he died suddenly in England, while raising funds for his project, his friend,
Robert Fulton, took his plans and completed the work and is now credited with
the invention of the first steamboat.
23. In 1956, Cecil Underwood (age 34) became the youngest governor in the
U.S. In 1996, Underwood ran again and became the oldest governor in the U.S.
24. The hardwood flooring in the famous Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York
was manufactured by the Meadow River Lumber Co. of Rainelle, WV.
25. West Virginia has the oddest shape of any state. This was because
Union officials, during the Civil War, arranged all the pro-Union counties of
Virginia into a state which then seceded from that Confederate State.
And may we add, Mingo County, WV, the Heart of the Billion Dollar Coal Field
is home of the "Coal House", which holds the Chamber of Commerce. It is
located in the county seat, Williamson and is constructed entirely of local
coal cut into blocks.
26 West Virginians became the only Americans to be threatened by the use of
US Military aircraft (the Martin Bomber, the B-1) deployed from Langley Field
VA by order of the president to quell the "Battle of Blair Mountain" in
September 1921.
And lastly, WV was the first state to utilize food stamps!
Are You From WV?
