west virginians? what the heck are you? (Clarksburg: mineral rights, live)

[Bobilee]

Pardon me for harping on history as much as I do, but I think it important. It should be remembered by all West Virginians that there were TWO West Virginias. The West Virginia which Lincoln signed into existence lasted less than a decade. It should be remembered that most West Virginians were denied the vote by Wheeling. In 1870-71, by court order, all West Virginians were given back their vote, and what did they do? They took the Wheeling state Constitution and trashed it, they trashed most of the Wheeling government and moved the state capital to Charleston. The state created by the Civil War was destroyed by West Virginians in 1872, when they approved the new state Constitution, which was written mostly by former Rebels, and which is the current Constitution. What happened to the Union men who were supposed to be the leaders of the new state? Well, John Carlile, the man most responsible for breaking up Virginia, repudiated the new state in 1862, telling his fellow US Senators that Wheeling did not represent West Virginia. Governor Boreman ran for the US Senate and was defeated by former Confederate Senator Allen T. Caperton. Boreman left political life for a private law practice. And Waitman T. Willey, the man most responsible for completing the partition of Virginia after Carlile abandoned it, ended his days as a clerk of the county court in Monongalia County. West Virginians live under a cloud of myth, it is an historical myth, but a myth nonetheless.

[David Kennedy]

Bobilee: West Virginia is ready for a true history of the state...could you write that book?

[Colby "The Punk" Wells]

Originally Posted by KimberRN

We're Appalachian American .....haha....

I'm from WV ...but I've lived in SC and Calif and been all over.....WV is more connected to the southern way of life and I consider us a southern state if categorized....If Va is a southern state then so is WV..... We are geographically below the Mason-Dixon....

When the voting for secession occurred, Union soldiers were standing at the polls and it is said not all votes were counted ...in other words, the Union counted them as they wanted..... West Virginian's did not secede from Va because of slavery.....The "western" part of Va had long been at odds with the tidewater area of Va because of taxes...this had been going on since the early 1800s....long before talks of the Civil War........The war gave western Va the opportunity they were looking for....to become their own state.....

I live near Charleson and would say the city has a southern atmosphere when compared to a northern city.... However I think all of West Virginia has it's own culture "appalachian".......friendly, honest, hardworking, and genuine....no BS is tolerated and easily detected.....

Someone posted on here that West Virginian's are "click-ish".....This is true.......This is bred in us from years of mountain isolation......The terrain was rugged and you only had your family, friends, neighbors, church.....So they became dependent on each other....and the bond was and is still strong today.........WVians are wary BUT friendly to outsiders until we figure out what you want....Once you get the "ok".....you're a friend for life!!!

I couldn't have said it better myself. Excellent post.

[poppimds007]

Wv's were virginian's till the uncivil war.They someone said lets seperate from Va.Only problem was they could'nt think of a name.Hey lets call ourselves west virginians since where west of Va. OK sounds good to me.and here they are.

[Katie1]

Hey Pop did you miss history class!!

[daves_daily]

I am no longer a "resident" of WV. I was born in Parkersburg, and that was my home of record during my 25 years in the service, but now I live in SoCal, so somehow I am no longer a West Virginian.

Never was really, and in my opinion, and I know this will really rub some folks the wrong way - neither is anybody else. It was all Virginia when my family came here. There was Southern, Northern, and Western VA.

I realize WV is a state, sort of, didn't go through the normal protocol for becoming one, but I honor that. West Virginia is a state because we say so, and that's good enough for me. But just because you put West in the name doesn't mean it ain't Virginia and it doesn't mean that ya'll aren't Virginians too. Because you are, like as not.

My folks fought on both sides of the War Between the States. So what? What matters is who you are now, what if your kin were French then, or what if they were a felon, who cares? You are not what they were. But I will say one thing's for sure; I will always be a Virginian.

Family motto. It was all Virginia then.

Heritage. 33RD VA, CSA, Jackson’s Own
p.s. We're not from P-Burg, from Calhoun, just in case you got it in your head my attitude comes from being urban, we're from "Booger Hole" West, By God or by choice, Virginia

[daves_daily]

Originally Posted by Katie1

Hey Pop did you miss history class!!

Amen

[mkfarnam]

Is W.VA> considered part of the "Rust Belt"?

[mkfarnam]

No, I guess not,

[Texasturkey]

Originally Posted by mkfarnam

No, I guess not,

It was to my knowledge that there was not a West Virginia before the Civil War. There was Virginia, which was a New England colony. The land that was West Virginia prior to the Civil War was territory or parts of other states. Or, it was included with Virginia . During Civil War or after , it became West Virginia. I do not remember exactly. I would need to do some historical research.