We all know that West Virginia and its people have a rich history, but what about its prehistory? What was this state like millions of years ago? Here are a few answers you might not have known.

If you were to walk this area millions of years ago, even thousands of years ago, you would be treading through a land very different from today.
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Before it become wooded, West Virginia was a dry and lifeless tundra, but it would not stay that way forever. Eventually, lush forests grew to cover the region.
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Millions of years ago, most of West Virginia was an ancient coal forest, comprised of evergreens, which eventually became hardwood forests and Appalachian mixed mesophytic forests. But it was covered in much more water. What ran through the state was a vast network of rivers and tributaries known as the Teays River network. The area also had a few glacial lakes.
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Many ancient animals lived here as well. Though we do not have any evidence of dinosaurs, we do know this state was home to the giant ground sloth and many of the worlds first amphibians, such as the Proterogyrinus and the Diploceraspis. Wooly mammoths, caribou and mastodon also roamed this area.
Later, during the age of Mammals, the region became populated by semi-nomadic tribes of Archaic Indians, including the Adena people, and paleo-indian cultures, such as the Clovis and Plano cultures. The climate became warmer during this period (8000-2000 B.C.E.) allowing the people to thrive.
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Thus far, archaeologists have discovered thousands of ancient sites and artifacts across the state, and many burial mounds that still exist to this day.

How many of these facts did you already know? Feel free to comment below and join the discussion.

To learn more about West Virginia, check out these 7 historical villages that will take you back in time.

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