By Charles Morris
West Virginia—the only state formed by Presidential decree—became a state on June 20, 1863. In the midst of the Civil War, with skirmishes and battles surrounding them, the state’s founding fathers worked through major decisions about electing officials, writing a constitution, choosing a site for the state capitol and the many other details of becoming a new state.
To mark the state’s 150th birthday, the West Virginia Division of Culture and History is preparing to celebrate the state’s sesquicentennial with an exhibit that highlights West Virginia’s people, places and events through the decades from 1863 to the present. The division’s museum staff has carefully searched through more than 60,000 artifacts in the state museum collection to select items for the exhibit.
The sesquicentennial exhibit, called West Virginia 150, will be located in the Theater and Balcony galleries of the West Virginia Culture Center at the State Capitol Complex and will focus on 150 people, places and things that helped shape West Virginia during the last 150 years.
