Moundsville, West Virginia: Difference between revisions

 

==History==

In 1771, English colonists Samuel and James Tomlinson built a cabin at what later became Moundsville, although they did not overwinter, and in fact left for several years after attacks by Native Americans. Elizabethtown, as Tomlinson's community was called, was incorporated in 1830 and would become the county seat upon the creation of Marshall County in 1835. Nearby, the town of Mound City was incorporated in 1832. The two towns combined in 1865.<ref>Marshall County Historical Society. ''History of Marshall County, West Virginia.'' Marceline, Mo.: Walsworth, 1984. p. 975.416 M367m.</ref> In 1852 a line of the [[Baltimore and Ohio Railroad]] opened, connecting the eastern rail network with the Ohio and Mississippi riverboat system; Moundsville was an important port until 1861, when the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] shut down the river system and caused major damage to the railroad.{{Citation needed|date=September 2020}} Fostoria Glass Company (specializing in hand-blown glassworks) was headquartered in Moundsville from 1891 to 1986. The retired [[West Virginia State Penitentiary]] operated in Moundsville from 1867 to 1995.<ref>{{cite book| last= Bumgardner |first= Stan |editor= Ken Sullivan| title= The West Virginia Encyclopedia |year= 2006 |publisher= West Virginia Humanities Council |location=Charleston, W.Va. |isbn= 0-9778498-0-5 |pages= 505 |chapter=Moundsville Penitentiary}}</ref> On August 4, 1927, [[Charles Lindbergh]] landed [[Spirit of St. Louis|The Spirit of St. Louis]] at Langin Field in Moundsville.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.wvculture.org/history/thisdayinwvhistory/0804.html| title = On This Day in West Virginia History - August 4}} </ref>

 

==Geography==

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the city has a total area of {{convert|3.36|sqmi|sqkm|2}}, of which {{convert|2.91|sqmi|sqkm|2}} is land and {{convert|0.45|sqmi|sqkm|2}} is water.<ref name="Gazetteer files">{{cite web|title=US Gazetteer files 2010|url=https://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/files/Gaz_places_national.txt|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=2013-01-24|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120702145235/http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/files/Gaz_places_national.txt|archive-date=2012-07-02}}</ref>

 

* [[Ed Pastilong]], football player, coach, and college athletics administrator, WVU's Director of Athletics for 21 years

* [[Ted Valentine]], NCAA men's basketball referee and 2005 [[Naismith Award|Naismith College Official of the Year]].

 

==In popular culture==

In 2018, documentary filmmakers David Bernabo and John W. Miller released ''Moundsville'',<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://weelunk.com/moundsville-the-happy-the-sad-the-past-the-future-summed-up-in-documentary/|title="Moundsville" — the Happy, the Sad, the Past, the Future Summed Up in Documentary – Weelunk|last=Edinger|first=Nora|language=en-US|access-date=2019-01-12}}</ref> a documentary about the history of Moundsville.