“You don’t see people raising turkeys now. When I grew up, everyone had turkeys,” recalls Layuna Rapp, who grew up on a family Dairy Farm outside of Frankford, W.Va. This photo is dated 1900 in Lewisburg. The turkeys were probably being driven down the road from a farm in Greenbrier or Monroe County to be […]
“In its day a fashionable spa, one of the oldest in the South, now drowses by the roadside, lost in dreams of a glamorous past. Renowned as Old Sweet, it opened as a watering place in 1792.”- West Virginia Writers’ Project, 1941.
Listen to a 102 year old resident of Sweet Springs, Pauline Baker, who learned to swim in the pure, blue water at the once famous resort.
In 2013, park superintendent Mike Smith organized a series of four memorial hikes to the top of the top of Droop Mountain to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the battle. In June and July, Dan Schultz and I joined the hikers as they made their way up Droop Mountain on the first two of these […]
About a year ago, a new historical marker sign went up in front of the Tucker County Court House, in Parsons, West Virginia along U.S. Route 219. The sign commemorates an exceptional story in West Virginia history, when a brave African American school teacher stood up to her local school board and sued them for […]
This past weekend the little town of Helvetia tried its best to frighten away Old Man Winter at its Fasnacht festival. Hundreds of people thronged the streets of the remote Swiss community, many of them squeezing into the community hall for the square dance. People this year had large, papier-mâché masks that resembled long nosed-monsters, […]
High above the farmed and forested valleys below, a weight lifts from the shoulders of almost every traveler upon entering the Highland Scenic Highway, nestled atop Elk and Cranberry Mountains. Suitable for leisurely drivers, hikers, mountain bikers and backpackers, and worthwhile for any traveler interested in seeing one of the most enchanting mountain highways in the country. The Scenic Highway has access to scenic overlooks and the birthplace of the pristine Williams and Cranberry Rivers.
Not long ago, it was common for nearly every small community to have their own general store, or two, or three. At the center of the store there would be an old potbelly stove, glowing with heat, that drew people together. Some of the most vivid memories are of candy jars, fresh sliced bacon, buckets […]
Joe Riley grew up in a farming family in Stomping Creek, West Virginia. After graduating from West Virginia University, Joe became an Agriculture teacher and taught for 17 years before becoming principal of Marlinton Middle School. Joe runs his family farm with his wife and children, working long hours before and after his school job. […]
Along the highway in Pocahontas County, West Virginia sits a pink,15 foot Tepee. Shrouded in local mystery, no plaque or sign is out front to explain just what it is, but chances are if you’ve driven past the thing, it’s caught your eye. It is located along US 219 up Elk Mountain about five miles […]
Here is another episode in our series about mountain lion and panther sightings in West Virginia. In the early 1900s in Monroe County, a mountain lion stole the straw hat right off the head of Clarence Mohler. His grandson, Craig Mohler, editor of The Monroe Watchman, told me this story last year when we were […]
Click the map to download a high-resolution copy of the Traveling 219 map, or pick up a hard copy at one of many locations along U.S. Route 219. You may also view our interactive map of Traveling 219 stories [HERE].
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