Charleston, the capital of West Virginia, is located at the Elk and Kanawha rivers’ confluence. Before European explores and settlement, many indigenous peoples’ villages lined the river at the city’s site.
Charleston is part of Kanawha County. The word Kanawha derives from the region’s Iroquoian dialects meaning “Waterway” or “Canoe Way.”
Fort Lee, a frontier fortress in the late 1700s, stood near the present downtown Charleston site. Founded in 1788 as “Charles Town,” it was named by town founder George Clendenin for his father, Charles Clendenin.
After the American Revolutionary War, settlers began making their way out from the early settlements in the east, and the name was changed to Charleston in 1818.
Settlers slowly migrated into the western part of Virginia, looking for opportunities. Capitalizing on its many resources, Charleston became an important part of West Virginia history.
Early industries important to Charleston included salt and the first natural gas well. Later, coal became central to economic prosperity in the city and the surrounding area.
Today, trade, utilities, government, medicine, and education are central to the city’s economy.
Museums in Charleston, West Virginia
- Avampato Discovery Museum
- Sunrise Museum
- West Virginia State Museum
- South Charleston Museum
- Clay Center for the Arts & Sciences
- Craik-Patton House
- Samuel Shrewsbury, Sr. House National
Museums in Charleston, West Virginia
- City: Charleston
- State: West Virginia
- Country: United States
- Founded: 1788
- Incorporated: 1794
- Population: 0.2 million, Metro
Museums in Charleston, West Virginia – Map
Museums in Charleston, West Virginia – Virtual Tour
Museums in Charleston, West Virginia – Virtual Tour
Museums in Charleston, West Virginia – Virtual Tour
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Museums in Charleston, West Virginia
New York Museums – Virtual Tours
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Museums in Charleston, West Virginia
Washington, D.C. Museums – Virtual Tours
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- International Spy Museum
Museums in Charleston, West Virginia
Museums in Charleston, West Virginia
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“Truth is stranger than fiction, but it is because Fiction is obliged to stick to possibilities; Truth isn’t.”
– Mark Twain
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Photo Credit: Snoopywv / CC BY-SA (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) ; Peter Fitzgerald / CC BY-SA (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5); Andre Carrotflower / CC BY-SA (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)
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