Semi-Centennial History

Of West Virginia

By James Morton Callahan

593 pages, indexed

Illustrated with nearly 80 photos, drawings and diagrams

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Published 1913

To celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the statehood of West Virginia in 1912, the Semi-Centennial Commission decided that a history of the state would be a fitting and permanent tribute. The work was put into the hands of James Morton Callahan, professor of history and political science in the West Virginia University. As author of the historical sketch and editor of the various special articles on the development and resources of the state, all credit is due Professor Callahan for the comprehensive volume just published by the Commission.

Professor Callahan's own part of the work,-a history of the state in all its phases, comprised in fourteen chapters,-is a masterly conden- sation of a wide range of facts and incidents. Dealing first with the geographical conditions of West Virginia, Professor Callahan lays the foundation for the subsequent social, economic, and industrial opportunities.

The early history of West Virginia is closely allied with that of Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Kentucky. The early life and vigor of all these states were furnished by the same bold army of pioneers,

"the rear guard of the Revolution and the advance guard of the Republic," as Professor Callahan calls them. Their life and hardships are here portrayed, and the long forgotten names of these settlers and their first villages are preserved here. Owing to the condensation necessary to a history of this type, this romantic and interesting period of the country's development has been shortened into practically a list of pioneers, settlements, and dates.

The second part of the volume consists of a number of articles on various phases of the state life contributed by authorities. The means of communication, the varied industries, the political development, and the educational evolution are each forcefully and expertly presented. Frequent photographs of places of historical interest add to the attractiveness of the book. There are also many valuable and important maps showing better than any wordy description certain conditions, physical, industrial, and social. Some are copies of old maps, others were made by Professor Callahan himself. Most of the pictures were furnished by the West Virginia Geological Survey. A very complete bibliography of the author's sources and authorities is added which will prove particularly useful to students.

The whole work is a veritable storehouse of facts which must be preserved to nourish that state pride and loyalty so necessary to all successful countries. This loyalty and patriotism  already breathes from every page in the volume, and shows the fibre of the men who labored so earnestly to produce it.

 INTRODUCTION 1
I. GEOGRAPHIC CONDITIONS 6
II. THE STRUGGLE FOR POSSESSION AND EVOLUTION OF SETTLEMENTS  
III. EARLY INDUSTRIAL AND SOCIAL LIFE   48
IV. HISTORIC' HIGHWAYS   90
V. THE FIRST RAILROAD  110
VI. SECTIONALISM: POLITICAL AND CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
VII. FORMATION OF THE NEW STATE  141
VIII. THE STRATEGY OF WAR    152
IX. POLITICAL PROBLEMS AND RECONSTRUCTION   161
X. THE CONSTITUTION OF 1872   172
XI. THE INDUSTRIAL AWAKENING 183
XII. SOCIAL AND INSTITUTIONAL HISTORY  223
XIII. POLITICAL HISTORY 241
RETROSPECT AND PROSPECT 256
POEM ON WEST VIRGINIA By Herbert Putnam  258
APPENDIX A. WHEELING-PITTSBURG STRUGGLE FOR
HEADSHIP of THE OHIO 262
APPENDIX B. ADDITIONAL SOCIAL STATISTICS 274
APPENDIX C. IMPORTANT STATE PAPERS 280
BIBLIOGRAPHY 284
INDEX 295

Special Contributed Articles On
Development and Resources of West Virginia
TRANSPORTATION- AND RAILROADS 305
IMPROVEMENT OF PUBLIC HIGHWAYS 309
POSTAL DEVELOPMENT 310.
DEVELOPMENT OF TELEPHONE SERVICE 316
COMMERCIAL ORGANIZATIONS IN WEST VIRGINIA 319
THE FOREST AND TIMBER INDUSTRIES 322
FISH AND GAME   328
DEVELOPMENT OF AGRICULTURE  331
DEVELOPMENT or HORTICULTURE IN WEST VIRGINIA 342
INDUSTRIAL STATISTICS 346
COAL, OIL AND GAS DEVELOPMENT  352
MINERAL RESOURCES 359
WATER POWER RESOURCES 391

COLONIAL ORIGINS OF WEST VIRGINIA'S POLITICAL
INSTITUTIONS 437