West Virginia and Regional History Collection

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The West Virginia and Regional History Collection is the world's largest collection of West Virginia related research material. It is located in the Wise Library at West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia. According to the university, the collection includes over 4,500,000 manuscript documents, 30,000 books, 15,000 pamphlets, 1,200 newspapers, 100,000 photographs and prints, 5,000 maps, and 25,000 microfilms, oral histories, films and folk music recordings. It is often called simply the "West Virginia Collection."

[edit] Overview

The collection covers all aspects of West Virginia history from the formation of the state during the American Civil War, its political development, and its economic and industrial heritage. Contained in its Civil War collection are numerous journals from soldiers, personal papers from many of the states early politicians, and a rare 35-star American Flag, one of only 5 known to still exist. This flag is traditionally thought to have been carried to West Virginia by soldiers returning to Shepherdstown from the Battle of Gettysburg.

The Collection can trace its creation to the 1920s when WVU history professor Charles Ambler began to actively seek support for the preservation of state historical records and resources. In 1930 the University set aside space for storage and offices to support the Collection's first manuscript acquisition, the "Waitman Willey Papers". Waitman Willey was an early Senator for West Virginia and the man who proposed the formation of the state on May 29, 1862 to the United States Senate.

Throughout 1931, Ambler travelled through West Virginia and inventoried hundreds of small local manuscript collections stored in attics and churches across the state. Amongst these collections located, many were donated to the university including the papers of Henry Gassaway Davis, Francis H. Pierpont, and Johnson Newlon Camden, all key political figures in West Virginia history.

Eventually, with the addition of Monongalia and Ohio County records, as well as numerous city records from throughout West Virginia, the Collection began to grow rapidly. It advanced again with the acquisition of the papers of Governor Arthur I. Boreman and several of his successors. Money provided by President Franklin Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration, the first archival assistants were hired and in 1935 the first full time archivist was hired.

In the 1940s and 50's the Collection continued to grow with photographs, rare books, periodicals, and multimedia being added. An active collecting program resulted in the Collection growing from 375 holdings in the 1930's to over 1,500 by 1970. It doubled again by 1990 and continues to grow as West Virginia's leading historical reference center.