Are most people in Appalachia of Scottish ancestry? (Charleston, Wheeling: schools, shop)

[tallydude02]

Originally Posted by shy chic

The Shenandoah Valley are of Virginia also has a large German population (German ancestry). Would West Virginia be considered northern or southern Appalachia(or maybe central)?

According to the ARC, none of West Virginia is in southern Appalachia. The northern 2/3 is in Northern Appalachia and the remaining is in Central Appalachia.

[Bobilee]

Traditionally WV is considered part of the southern Appalachians, or Mountain South. The ARC is a bureaucratic pork processing plant. My family came into West Virginia in the early 19th C. from east Virginia, I could find no other relatives from other states until the late 19th C. The Virginia names were Adkins, Ross, Crabtree, Ferguson, Jamieson, Arrington, Muncy, Bolling.

[CTMountaineer]

Originally Posted by Threerun

I don't think there is a 'typical' West Virginia. Each region is sort of unique in it's own right. The Eastern Panhandle had some German influence- The Mecklenberg Inn at Shepherdstown, some of the stone homes built by German masons. Scots-Irish are smattered everywhere, Italians in North Central, English roots elsewhere.

It's, dare I say, multicultural? (Waits for stoning to begin, lol)

Ohio and Marshall counties, especially Ohio County, was predominantly German. Monongalia and Preston counties had very strong German influence... spillovers from PA and MD (settled by German Catholics).
There are easily as many folks of German ancestry in those areas as there are Scots Irish. the Irish and Italians came in a little later to work in the mines and remained. The Eastern Panhandle has a lot of folks of English heritage as is common for Virginia east of the Blue Ridge. WV south of North Central and the Northern Panhandle and west of the Alleghenies is of mostly Scots Irish heritage.

[SeanAaron]

Tell an Irishman he's only European and see what you get, lol

^ That's only what happens if I call him English, lol but then again that's what happens when a Scot is called English as well lol

[David Kennedy]

Still fightin' words over here after 200 years...and Irishman is an Irishman and a Scot is a Scot...

[vec101]

One side of my family: Scottish, Irish, English
Other side: German, Dutch

Evidently not all those Scotts and Irish were still fighting

[shy chic]

I believe the surname Scruggs is common in southern WV as well as Virginia.I think(although not sure) it's Scottish. I'm not Scottish,but have a little English and Irish and Native American ancestry. I'm mainly German and Italian though.
One of my cousins married a man with that surname(she formerly lived near Beckley,now lives close to Roanoke,VA) and even in the northern part of the state I knew two people with that name who were not related.

[GraniteStater]

We have a good deal of Scots-Irish here in NH as well. The most common ancestries around here are: French, English, Scottish, Irish, German, as well as French Canadian.

[CTMountaineer]

We are rapidly forming our own ethnic nationality in this country that is a composite of just about everywhere, but at the same time like nowhere else.
Being American is distinct, and that includes being distinct from the Canadians who sound and look a lot like us but attitudinally are in a whole different world. The border has been in place for almost a quarter millenium and fortunately for us it kept a lot of the crazy north of it.

[7th Direction]

Originally Posted by Hinton Bound

WV is the only state entirely in Appalachia. I do recall seeing a documentary (Nat. Geo, or Discovery I think) that said a majority of the early settlers to WV were Scottish. I think they took to the rugged terrain and climate, as it wasn't too far from what they were used to in the Scottish Highlands.

Not far off, considering the Appalachians and the Scottish Highlands used to be one mountain chain!