Those of us in West Virginia know all about how the state got its start during the Civil War, but not many people know that it almost became a slightly different state, many years earlier.

At the time of the Revolutionary War, it was proposed that the area that is now West Virginia, as well as some additional land, should become a new state called Westylvania.
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The area included what is now West Virginia, parts of southwestern Pennsylvania, and parts of Kentucky, Maryland, and Virginia.
The Eastern border of the proposed state was defined by the Allegheny Mountains.
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People west of the mountains felt that they were too far from their state governments, and didn't feel properly represented.
If it had been accepted, Westylvania would have been the 14th state after the original 13 colonies.
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There was an especially strong push to establish Westylvania after the Mason-Dixon line was fully mapped.
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Before that, the Pittsburgh area was widely considered to be part of Virginia. Many people were dismayed to find themselves Pennsylvanians in reality.
Hugh Henry Brackenridge, a Pittsburgh lawyer, was strongly opposed to the idea of a new state, and convinced the Pennsylvania Assembly to declare that any promotion of Westylvania would be considered treason.
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Westylvania advocates would face the death penalty.
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The Pennsylvania government also sent secret agents to the people in the Western counties to talk them out of their desires for a new state.
Pittsburgh is of course still part of Pennsylvania, but West Virginia eventually got its wish to be a new state during the Civil War.
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153 years later, and we're still here and full of love for our Mountain State.

For more interesting history of West Virginia, check out these 8 things that most peope don’t know originated in West Virginia.

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