West Virginia

West Virginia can be found in the Appalachian and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. It is bordered by Pennsylvania to the north and east, Maryland to the east and northeast, Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, and Ohio to the northwest. West Virginia is the 10th-smallest state by area and ranks as the 12th-least populous state, with a population of 1,793,716 residents. The capital and largest city is Charleston.

West Virginia was admitted to Union on June 20, 1863. It was a crucial border state during the war. It was the first state to be formed by secession from a Confederate State, the second state to separate from a state following Maine’s separation from Massachusetts, and one among two states that were admitted to the Union during Civil War. Although some of its residents were slaves, most of them were yeoman farmers. The delegates provided for the gradual elimination of slavery in the new state constitution. The state legislature abolished slavery in its state and ratified the 13th Amendment, which abolished slavery nationwide on February 3, 1865.

The Northern Panhandle of West Virginia is located adjacent to Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia to create a tri-state area. Wheeling and Weirton are just across the border from Pittsburgh. Huntington, in the southwest, is close to Ohio, Kentucky, and Martinsburg and Harpers Ferry, in the Eastern Panhandle area, are considered part the Washington metropolitan area between Maryland and Virginia. West Virginia is included in many U.S. geographic regions, including the Mid-Atlantic and the Upland South. It is the only state that is entirely within the Appalachian Regional Commission’s service area. The area is often called “Appalachia”.