9 Quirky Facts About West Virginia That Sound Made Up, But Are 100% Accurate
There is SO MUCH to know about our beloved Mountain State … so much history. So much beauty. So much tragedy. So much significance. Here are nine quirky facts about West Virginia that sound hard to believe but are absolutely true (at least as far as we can tell)! How many of these fun facts about West Virginia have you already heard before?
The first Mother’s Day service, organized by West Virginian Anna Jarvis to honor her own mother and all mothers, took place in 1908 in Grafton, West Virginia at St. Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church, which today is the International Mother's Day Shrine.
The first Father's Day celebration in America occurred in Fairmont, West Virginia in honor of the 250 fathers who died in the horrific Monongah Mining Disaster leaving 1,000 children fatherless.
The very first Golden Delicious apple tree was discovered growing in Clay County in 1912. It was acquired by Stark Brothers Nursery, and the rest is history.
His name was Carter G. Woodson, and he attended high school in Huntington, West Virginia, but he was forced to work a few years in the mines, first. After high school, Woodson went on to teach at West Virginia Collegiate Institute, now West Virginia State University.
In fact, West Virginia is often referenced when giving Americans an idea of the size of this European country that's been in the news so much recently.
The highest interstate bridge is the Phil G. McDonald Bridge that carries I-64 over Glade Creek near Beckley, West Virginia. The single-span arched bridge, otherwise known as the New River Gorge Bridge, carries U.S. Route 19 across the New River.
The lake is called Trout Pond, and it's located near Wardensville, West Virginia in the Trout Pond Recreation Area.
Although Jesse James himself (pictured here) wasn't there (at least as far as we know) when the Huntington Bank was robbed in September of 1875, four members of his gang were, including his brother Frank.
It's 12 feet high, 44 feet wide, and perched along U.S. 30 near the Chester, West Virginia exit ramp.
And there you have it! Nine things you may not have known before about West Virginia. Of course, nine isn’t very many, when you think about it; there are plenty of other unbelievable facts about West Virginia that didn’t make this particular list…
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