Wheeling, West Virginia
Encyclopedia
Wheeling is a city in Ohio
and Marshall
counties in the U.S. state
of West Virginia
; it is the county seat
of Ohio County. Wheeling is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area
. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 28,486 (31,059 in Ohio County, 360 in Marshall County).
Wheeling was originally a settlement in the British
Colony of Virginia
and later an important city in the Commonwealth of Virginia until 1861 when the western counties of Virginia seceded from the state. Wheeling was the location of the Wheeling Convention
, which established the state of West Virginia, and was the first capital of West Virginia. The capital moved so often in its early years that it was nicknamed the "floating capital". In 1870, the State Legislature designated Charleston as the capital city. In 1875, the Legislature reversed their decision and voted to return the Capital to Wheeling. This was appealed by the citizens of Charleston and finally settled by the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals in favor of Wheeling. In 1877 the Legislature ordered an election to be held for the citizens of West Virginia to select a permanent location for the capital, choosing between Charleston, Martinsburg and Clarksburg. By proclamation of the governor, the official move took place eight years later, and in 1885 the capital moved from Wheeling to Charleston, where it has remained.
and the Ohio River
. Originally explored by the French, Wheeling still has a lead plate remnant buried by Céloron de Blainville in 1749 at the mouth of Wheeling Creek. Later, Christopher Gist
and even George Washington
surveyed the land in 1751 and 1770, respectively.
explored the Wheeling area and established claim to the land via "tomahawk rights
" (a process of deadening a few trees near the head of a spring, and marking the bark with the initials of the name of the person who made the claim). He returned the following spring with his wife, Elizabeth, and his younger brothers, Jonathan and Silas, and established the first permanent settlement in the Wheeling area. The settlement was called Zanesburg. Other notable families joined the settlement, including the Shepherds (see Monument Place
), the Wetzels, and the McCollochs (see McColloch's Leap
). In 1793, Ebenezer Zane divided the town into lots, and Wheeling was officially established as a town in 1795 by legislative enactment. The town was incorporated January 16, 1805. On March 11, 1836, the town of Wheeling was incorporated into the city of Wheeling.
By an act of the Virginia General Assembly
on December 27, 1797, Wheeling was named the county seat of Ohio County
.
. In 1777, Native American of the Shawnee
, Wyandot and Mingo
tribes joined to attack settlements along the Ohio River
. Local men later joined by recruits from Fort Shepherd (in Elm Grove) and Fort Holliday defended the fort. The native force subsequently burned the surrounding cabins and destroyed livestock.
During the first attack of the year, Major Samuel McColloch led a small force of men from Fort Vanmetre along Short Creek
to assist the besieged Fort Henry. McColloch was separated from his men and was chased by attacking Indians. Upon his horse, McColloch charged up Wheeling Hill and made what is known as McColloch's Leap
300 feet (91.4 m) down its eastern side.
In 1782, a native army along with some British soldiers attempted to take Fort Henry. During this siege, Fort Henry's supply of ammunition was exhausted. The defenders decided to dispatch one of its men to secure more ammunition from the Zane homestead. Betty Zane
volunteered for the dangerous task. During her departing run, she was heckled by both native and British soldiers. Upon successfully reaching the Zane homestead, she gathered a table cloth and filled it with gunpowder. During her return, she was fired upon but was uninjured. It is believed that one bullet did, in fact, pierce her clothing. As a result of Zane's heroism, Fort Henry remained in American control.
extended to Wheeling linking it more to Ohio, Pennsylvania, and the North in terms of trade. An industrial or mercantile middle-class developed that either felt disinterest or hostility to slavery and the Wheeling Intelligencer paper represented anti-secession sentiment. This led to the city being a good place for the separation of the state from Virginia at the aforementioned Wheeling Convention
.
Another element that influenced anti-slavery or anti-secession sentiment in the city was the growing German population. The Germans of Wheeling organized the "First West Virginia Artillery" to oppose the Confederacy and played a role in the initial movement of separating the state from Virginia. The Germans also had non-political influences, such as the "German Singing Societies" the first of which began in 1855.
and steel concerns. As it grew it developed an area of fine housing around Wheeling Island
, but slums also grew.
According to the United States Census Bureau
, the city has a total area of 15.8 square miles (41.0 km²), of which 13.9 square miles (36.0 km²) is land and 1.9 square miles (4.9 km²) (12.07%) is water.
Wheeling is located in northern West Virginia
, on what is known as the northern panhandle. It is directly across the river from the state of Ohio
and only 11 miles (17.7 km) west of Pennsylvania
. It is a part of the Tri-State area of Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, which is commonly referred to as the Ohio River Valley Region or "The Ohio Valley".
Wheeling Creek
flows through the city, and meets the Ohio River
in downtown Wheeling.
The city is located both on the West Virginia side of the Ohio River and on an island in the middle of the river called Wheeling Island
.
of 2000, there were 31,419 people, 13,719 households, and 7,806 families residing in the city. The population density
was 2,258.4 people per square mile (872.1/km²). There were 15,706 housing units at an average density of 1,128.9 per square mile (436.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.72% White, 4.99% African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.91% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.16% from other races
, and 1.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.58% of the population.
There were 13,719 households out of which 23.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.8% were married couples
living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.1% were non-families. 38.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.89.
In the city the population was spread out with 20.6% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 24.5% from 45 to 64, and 21.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 84.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $27,388, and the median income for a family was $38,708. Males had a median income of $30,750 versus $22,099 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $17,923. About 13.1% of families and 18.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.3% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.
was the site of the Wheeling Convention
From 1861–1863, the building housed heated debates on the Virginia Ordinance of Secession
, the First Constitutional Convention of West Virginia, and naming the State.
Wheeling is home to Centre Market, formerly Wheeling's market house. Built in 1853, the market house and the surrounding area are today home to shops and restaurants.
The first, official memorial monument in the state of West Virginia, dedicated specifically to Vietnam War veterans, was dedicated in Wheeling, with full military honors, in a Memorial Day, 1986 ceremony.
The monument sits before the flagpole, in the turnaround near the main shelter of Bethlehem Community Park in the village of Bethlehem, just southeast of Wheeling.
The roughly 6' granite memorial consists of a large, bronze dedication plaque with the names of KIAs from the Wheeling/Ohio Co. region. Below the dedication plaque is a bronze map of South Vietnam, complete with names of 28 major cities.
and Wheeling Park
. Ohio County is also home to six golf
courses including designs by renowned golfer Arnold Palmer
and architect Robert Trent Jones
. The Wheeling Suspension Bridge
, which was once the longest suspension bridge
in the world, connects downtown Wheeling to Wheeling Island.
In October 2007 the City of Wheeling opened the State's first concrete skateboard park. The 12000 square feet (1,114.8 m²) facility was designed and built by world-renowned skatepark builder, Grindline, of Seattle, Washington. The park consists of 60% bowls and 40% street elements and is located within the Chambers Ballfield Complex in the Elm Grove section of the City. An addition to the street section of the park was completed by Grindline in November 2009 and a covered shelter, restrooms, and webcam are scheduled to be installed in early 2010. The park is lighted and open 24/7.
. There also exist several parochial and private schools, including Wheeling Central Catholic High School
and the Linsly School.
, a private Jesuit
university and the only Catholic college in the state of West Virginia, is located in Wheeling. The main campus of West Virginia Northern Community College
has recently been expanding throughout downtown Wheeling and focuses on job training and community development. Also located within close proximity to the city are West Liberty University (formerly West Liberty State College), a four-year university
, and private Bethany College
, giving area residents a wide variety of educational options.
. The Capitol, opened in 1928, featured a 2,450 seat auditorium. The Capitol was home to a popular radio program in the early forties, It's Wheeling Steel, featuring musical performances by workers at a local steel plant. The Capitol also featured country artists such as Johnny Cash, June Carter-Cash, Merle Haggard, Tammy Wynette, and the Joneses. Currently, the Capitol welcomes musical performances of all types. It is, once again, the performance hall of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra
, having returned on September 25, 2009. It has also served as the home for Jamboree USA
. The Capitol is the largest theatre in the state of West Virginia
, with some 2,500 seats. The then-Capitol Music Hall was sold by Clear Channel Communications
to LiveNation in the Spring of 2005. After LiveNation purchased the Capitol, it remained largely dormant although a few limited engagements were held. Moreover, in August 2007, the Capitol was closed due to several fire and building code violations. On February 5, 2009, the Wheeling Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) announced that it would purchase the then-Capitol Music Hall from Live Nation at a cost of $615,000. The purchase was finalized on April 3, 2009. http://www.theintelligencer.net/page/content.detail/id/520347.html?nav=515
Wheeling is also home to the Victoria Theater
, which is the oldest theater in West Virginia. The Victoria is a 700 seat Victorian style theater. It served as home to the WWVA Jamboree
program from 1933–1936, and was recently home to the "Wheeling Jamboree", a local initiative started in 2009 and modeled after the original WWVA Jamboree (which changed its name in the 1960s to Jamboree U.S.A.). The original WWVA Jamboree ran from 1933–2007, making it the second longest running country radio program and a variety show in the country after the Grand Ole Opry
.
Held in nearby Belmont County, Jamboree In The Hills
draws over 100,000 country music fans to the Wheeling area every July.
During the summer months the Wheeling Heritage Port is the home to numerous festivals, concerts, movie nights, celebrations, a regatta and numerous visits from the Delta, Mississippi and American Queens. It holds over 8,000 spectators and has become a focal point to the City.
's Towngate Theatre in Center Wheeling has, for over 35 years, produced and shown plays. Located across the street is the Independent Theatre Collective, which performs at the former Second Presbyterian Church.
hockey
team. The Nailers play in the WesBanco Arena
(formerly the Wheeling Civic Center), and participate in the North division, American Conference of the ECHL
. High school football
and soccer are played at Wheeling Island Stadium
. Formerly home to the Ohio Valley Greyhounds
, Wheeling became home to a second team in 2009. The team, known as the Wheeling Wildcats
, played in the Continental Indoor Football League but folded after the 2009 season.
located on Wheeling Island
. Formerly known as Wheeling Downs, the facility features live greyhound
racing, slots
, poker
games, and casino-style table games.
held special elections on June 9, 2007, to approve the legalization of table games within the respective counties. The Ohio County measure passed, but the Jefferson County one failed. A similar measure was successfully adopted in Hancock County
on June 30, 2007.
In addition to the Pittsburgh outlets the Wheeling television market is served by CBS affiliate WTRF-TV
Channel 7, PBS affiliate W41AA
Channel 41, and NBC affiliate WTOV-TV
Channel 9 in nearby Steubenville, Ohio
. The city is served by cable television provider Comcast
and parts of the city are also served by Centre TV.
Wheeling is home to WWVA
1170 AM, the state's only 50,000 watt AM station that can be heard throughout the East Coast
at night. WVLY 1370 AM and WKKX
1600 AM provide local news, sports, and talk. On the FM dial WVKF
95.7, WKWK 97.3, WOVK 98.7 and WEGW 107.5 provides the area with various music genres. The Wheeling area is also the home of WVJW-LP, a listener supported commercial-free station which also serves as the local Pacifica
affiliate. Pittsburgh's radio stations also provide Wheeling with coverage. A number of translators and repeater stations provide NPR
and American Family Radio networks. Wheeling also has a student run radio station, WPHP 91.9, which is run by Wheeling Park High School students. WPHP plays top 40 songs and also covers all of the Wheeling Park Patriots football games and basketball games.
The city is home to The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register newspapers. Both papers are owned by Ogden Newspapers Inc., which is also based in Wheeling. The Intelligencer is published weekday mornings and Saturdays, while the News-Register is published weekday afternoons and Sundays. The Times-Leader of Martins Ferry, Ohio, another Ogden Newspapers Inc. paper, also covers Wheeling issues. In Wheeling magazine is published quarterly and covers society and events in Wheeling.
and its spur Interstate 470 run through the city east-west and link it with suburban Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to the east and Ohio to the west. U.S. Route 40
/National Road
links downtown with residential neighborhoods to the east. West Virginia Route 2 connects Wheeling with Moundsville
to the south and Weirton
to the north. U.S. Route 250 also runs through the city.
The Fort Henry Bridge
and Vietnam Veterans Memorial Bridge
carry I-70 and I-470 respectively over the Ohio River. The historic Wheeling Suspension Bridge
, completed in 1849, which was part of National Road (see early pic.), now carries cars and light trucks as well as pedestrian traffic between downtown and Wheeling Island. The Wheeling Tunnel
provides carries I-70 through Wheeling Hill.
. The bus terminal, the Robert C. Byrd Intermodal Transportation Center, was built with $11.1 million in federal funds.
Regional transportation through West Virginia and Eastern Ohio is provided by the East Ohio and Ohio Valley Regional Transit Authorities, which shares the Intermodal Transportation Center as its hub for its Hub-and-Spoke routes throughout the area.
Ohio County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 47,427 people, 19,733 households, and 12,155 families residing in the county. The population density was 447 people per square mile . There were 22,166 housing units at an average density of 209 per square mile...
and Marshall
Marshall County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 35,519 people, 14,207 households, and 10,101 families residing in the county. The population density was 116 people per square mile . There were 15,814 housing units at an average density of 52 per square mile...
counties in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
; it is the county seat
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
of Ohio County. Wheeling is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area
Wheeling metropolitan area
The Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of two counties in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia and one in Ohio, anchored by the city of Wheeling...
. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 28,486 (31,059 in Ohio County, 360 in Marshall County).
Wheeling was originally a settlement in the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Colony of Virginia
Colony and Dominion of Virginia
The Colony of Virginia was the English colony in North America that existed briefly during the 16th century, and then continuously from 1607 until the American Revolution...
and later an important city in the Commonwealth of Virginia until 1861 when the western counties of Virginia seceded from the state. Wheeling was the location of the Wheeling Convention
Wheeling Convention
The 1861 Wheeling Convention was a series of two meetings that ultimately repealed the Ordinance of Secession passed by Virginia, thus establishing the Restored government of Virginia, which ultimately authorized the counties that organized the convention to become West Virginia. The convention was...
, which established the state of West Virginia, and was the first capital of West Virginia. The capital moved so often in its early years that it was nicknamed the "floating capital". In 1870, the State Legislature designated Charleston as the capital city. In 1875, the Legislature reversed their decision and voted to return the Capital to Wheeling. This was appealed by the citizens of Charleston and finally settled by the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals in favor of Wheeling. In 1877 the Legislature ordered an election to be held for the citizens of West Virginia to select a permanent location for the capital, choosing between Charleston, Martinsburg and Clarksburg. By proclamation of the governor, the official move took place eight years later, and in 1885 the capital moved from Wheeling to Charleston, where it has remained.
Discovery
The origins of the name "Wheeling" are disputed. One of the more credible explanations is that the word comes from the Lenni-Lenape phrase "wih link", which meant "place of the head." This supposedly referred to a white settler who was scalped and decapitated. His severed head was left on display at the confluence of Wheeling CreekWheeling Creek (West Virginia)
Wheeling Creek is a tributary of the Ohio River, 25 miles long, in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia in the United States, with a watershed extending into southwestern Pennsylvania. Via the Ohio River, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area of...
and the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
. Originally explored by the French, Wheeling still has a lead plate remnant buried by Céloron de Blainville in 1749 at the mouth of Wheeling Creek. Later, Christopher Gist
Christopher Gist
Christopher Gist was an accomplished American explorer, surveyor and frontiersman. He was one of the first white explorers of the Ohio Country . He is credited with providing the first detailed description of the Ohio Country to Great Britain and her colonists...
and even George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
surveyed the land in 1751 and 1770, respectively.
Establishment
During the fall of 1769, Ebenezer ZaneEbenezer Zane
Ebenezer Zane was an American pioneer, road builder and land speculator. Born in what is now Moorefield, West Virginia , Zane established the settlement known as Fort Henry in Wheeling, Virginia on the Ohio River...
explored the Wheeling area and established claim to the land via "tomahawk rights
Tomahawk rights
Tomahawk right was a means by which settlers during early period of frontier settlements in the United States would claim title to a tract of land...
" (a process of deadening a few trees near the head of a spring, and marking the bark with the initials of the name of the person who made the claim). He returned the following spring with his wife, Elizabeth, and his younger brothers, Jonathan and Silas, and established the first permanent settlement in the Wheeling area. The settlement was called Zanesburg. Other notable families joined the settlement, including the Shepherds (see Monument Place
Shepherd Hall (Monument Place)
Shepherd Hall is a historic home listed on the National Register of Historic Places in the city of Wheeling in the U.S. state of West Virginia...
), the Wetzels, and the McCollochs (see McColloch's Leap
McColloch's Leap
McColloch's Leap was a feat performed during a September 1777 attack by Native Americans on Fort Henry, site of present-day Wheeling, West Virginia, during the American Revolutionary War....
). In 1793, Ebenezer Zane divided the town into lots, and Wheeling was officially established as a town in 1795 by legislative enactment. The town was incorporated January 16, 1805. On March 11, 1836, the town of Wheeling was incorporated into the city of Wheeling.
By an act of the Virginia General Assembly
Virginia General Assembly
The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the oldest legislative body in the Western Hemisphere, established on July 30, 1619. The General Assembly is a bicameral body consisting of a lower house, the Virginia House of Delegates, with 100 members,...
on December 27, 1797, Wheeling was named the county seat of Ohio County
Ohio County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 47,427 people, 19,733 households, and 12,155 families residing in the county. The population density was 447 people per square mile . There were 22,166 housing units at an average density of 209 per square mile...
.
Fort Henry
Originally dubbed Fort Fincastle in 1774, the fort was later renamed Fort Henry in honor of Virginia's American Governor Patrick HenryPatrick Henry
Patrick Henry was an orator and politician who led the movement for independence in Virginia in the 1770s. A Founding Father, he served as the first and sixth post-colonial Governor of Virginia from 1776 to 1779 and subsequently, from 1784 to 1786...
. In 1777, Native American of the Shawnee
Shawnee
The Shawnee, Shaawanwaki, Shaawanooki and Shaawanowi lenaweeki, are an Algonquian-speaking people native to North America. Historically they inhabited the areas of Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Western Maryland, Kentucky, Indiana, and Pennsylvania...
, Wyandot and Mingo
Mingo
The Mingo are an Iroquoian group of Native Americans made up of peoples who migrated west to the Ohio Country in the mid-eighteenth century. Anglo-Americans called these migrants mingos, a corruption of mingwe, an Eastern Algonquian name for Iroquoian-language groups in general. Mingos have also...
tribes joined to attack settlements along the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
. Local men later joined by recruits from Fort Shepherd (in Elm Grove) and Fort Holliday defended the fort. The native force subsequently burned the surrounding cabins and destroyed livestock.
Short Creek, West Virginia
Short Creek is an unincorporated town in Brooke County, West Virginia, USA. It also includes the dwellings along the creek from the Bottom of Dean's Hill and the Bottom of West Liberty Hill to the mouth of Short Creek at the Ohio River....
to assist the besieged Fort Henry. McColloch was separated from his men and was chased by attacking Indians. Upon his horse, McColloch charged up Wheeling Hill and made what is known as McColloch's Leap
McColloch's Leap
McColloch's Leap was a feat performed during a September 1777 attack by Native Americans on Fort Henry, site of present-day Wheeling, West Virginia, during the American Revolutionary War....
300 feet (91.4 m) down its eastern side.
In 1782, a native army along with some British soldiers attempted to take Fort Henry. During this siege, Fort Henry's supply of ammunition was exhausted. The defenders decided to dispatch one of its men to secure more ammunition from the Zane homestead. Betty Zane
Betty Zane
Elizabeth "Betty" Zane McLaughlin Clark was a heroine of the Revolutionary War on the American frontier. She was the daughter of William Andrew Zane and Nancy Ann Zane, and the sister of Ebenezer Zane, Silas Zane, Jonathan Zane, Isaac Zane and Andrew Zane...
volunteered for the dangerous task. During her departing run, she was heckled by both native and British soldiers. Upon successfully reaching the Zane homestead, she gathered a table cloth and filled it with gunpowder. During her return, she was fired upon but was uninjured. It is believed that one bullet did, in fact, pierce her clothing. As a result of Zane's heroism, Fort Henry remained in American control.
Industrialization and anti-secession sentiment
In 1853 the Baltimore and Ohio RailroadBaltimore and Ohio Railroad
The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was one of the oldest railroads in the United States and the first common carrier railroad. It came into being mostly because the city of Baltimore wanted to compete with the newly constructed Erie Canal and another canal being proposed by Pennsylvania, which...
extended to Wheeling linking it more to Ohio, Pennsylvania, and the North in terms of trade. An industrial or mercantile middle-class developed that either felt disinterest or hostility to slavery and the Wheeling Intelligencer paper represented anti-secession sentiment. This led to the city being a good place for the separation of the state from Virginia at the aforementioned Wheeling Convention
Wheeling Convention
The 1861 Wheeling Convention was a series of two meetings that ultimately repealed the Ordinance of Secession passed by Virginia, thus establishing the Restored government of Virginia, which ultimately authorized the counties that organized the convention to become West Virginia. The convention was...
.
Another element that influenced anti-slavery or anti-secession sentiment in the city was the growing German population. The Germans of Wheeling organized the "First West Virginia Artillery" to oppose the Confederacy and played a role in the initial movement of separating the state from Virginia. The Germans also had non-political influences, such as the "German Singing Societies" the first of which began in 1855.
Post-Civil War growth
Although it permanently lost its place as capital in 1885, Wheeling continued to grow after that. In the late nineteenth century it served as a prime industrial center for the state. Noted business of the era included the Bloch Brothers Tobacco CompanyBloch Brothers Tobacco Company
The Bloch Brothers Tobacco Company of Wheeling, West Virginia, are best known for their Mail Pouch Tobacco. Mail Pouch was a popular chew advertised on thousands of barns, most of which were located in the rural Ohio Valley. Each barn had an end or side painted with the tobacco logo...
and steel concerns. As it grew it developed an area of fine housing around Wheeling Island
Wheeling Island
Wheeling Island is the most densely populated island in the Ohio River. It lies within the city of Wheeling in Ohio County, West Virginia, in the United States. The 2000 census showed a resident population of 3,142 persons on the island, which has a land area of 1.514 km²...
, but slums also grew.
Geography
Wheeling is located at 40°4′13"N 80°41′55"W (40.070348, -80.698604).According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 15.8 square miles (41.0 km²), of which 13.9 square miles (36.0 km²) is land and 1.9 square miles (4.9 km²) (12.07%) is water.
Wheeling is located in northern West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
, on what is known as the northern panhandle. It is directly across the river from the state of Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
and only 11 miles (17.7 km) west of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. It is a part of the Tri-State area of Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, which is commonly referred to as the Ohio River Valley Region or "The Ohio Valley".
Wheeling Creek
Wheeling Creek (West Virginia)
Wheeling Creek is a tributary of the Ohio River, 25 miles long, in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia in the United States, with a watershed extending into southwestern Pennsylvania. Via the Ohio River, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, draining an area of...
flows through the city, and meets the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
in downtown Wheeling.
The city is located both on the West Virginia side of the Ohio River and on an island in the middle of the river called Wheeling Island
Wheeling Island
Wheeling Island is the most densely populated island in the Ohio River. It lies within the city of Wheeling in Ohio County, West Virginia, in the United States. The 2000 census showed a resident population of 3,142 persons on the island, which has a land area of 1.514 km²...
.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 31,419 people, 13,719 households, and 7,806 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 2,258.4 people per square mile (872.1/km²). There were 15,706 housing units at an average density of 1,128.9 per square mile (436.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.72% White, 4.99% African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.91% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.16% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 1.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.58% of the population.
There were 13,719 households out of which 23.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.8% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.1% were non-families. 38.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.89.
In the city the population was spread out with 20.6% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 24.5% from 45 to 64, and 21.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 84.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.6 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $27,388, and the median income for a family was $38,708. Males had a median income of $30,750 versus $22,099 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $17,923. About 13.1% of families and 18.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.3% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.
Government
Under West Virginia law, cities may adopt the Manager-Mayor Plan. The elected mayor presides over meetings of the Wheeling City Council, which has six members elected from geographic wards. City Council members serve four-year terms. The City Council also confirms executive nominations for members to various boards which have limited regulatory authority including the Planning Commission, the Board of Zoning Appeals, and the Traffic Commission. The City Manager serves as Chief Executive and Administrative officer for the city. The current Mayor of Wheeling is Andy McKenzie, and the current City Manager of Wheeling is Robert Herron. The current members of City Council are Gloria Delbrugge (1st Ward), Vernon Seals (2nd Ward), Robert E. "Herk" Henry (3rd Ward), James Tiu (4th Ward), Don Atkinson (5th Ward), and Vice-Mayor Eugene Fahey (6th Ward). City elections were held on May 13, 2008, and the current term began on July 1, 2008. City elections will be held again in 2012.Attractions
Historical Buildings
The city of Wheeling has a rich and varied history. West Virginia Independence HallWest Virginia Independence Hall
West Virginia Independence Hall is located in Wheeling, West Virginia, where it was built in 1860, under the supervision of architect Ammi B. Young...
was the site of the Wheeling Convention
Wheeling Convention
The 1861 Wheeling Convention was a series of two meetings that ultimately repealed the Ordinance of Secession passed by Virginia, thus establishing the Restored government of Virginia, which ultimately authorized the counties that organized the convention to become West Virginia. The convention was...
From 1861–1863, the building housed heated debates on the Virginia Ordinance of Secession
Ordinance of Secession
The Ordinance of Secession was the document drafted and ratified in 1860 and 1861 by the states officially seceding from the United States of America...
, the First Constitutional Convention of West Virginia, and naming the State.
Wheeling is home to Centre Market, formerly Wheeling's market house. Built in 1853, the market house and the surrounding area are today home to shops and restaurants.
The first, official memorial monument in the state of West Virginia, dedicated specifically to Vietnam War veterans, was dedicated in Wheeling, with full military honors, in a Memorial Day, 1986 ceremony.
The monument sits before the flagpole, in the turnaround near the main shelter of Bethlehem Community Park in the village of Bethlehem, just southeast of Wheeling.
The roughly 6' granite memorial consists of a large, bronze dedication plaque with the names of KIAs from the Wheeling/Ohio Co. region. Below the dedication plaque is a bronze map of South Vietnam, complete with names of 28 major cities.
Parks and Recreation
Wheeling features several municipal parks including Oglebay Resort & Conference CenterOglebay Park
Oglebay Park is a self supporting public municipal park, the only one of its kind, located on the outskirts of Wheeling, West Virginia on . The park has been open to the public since 1928 when the park's governing body, the Wheeling Park Commission, began operations at the former estate of Earl W....
and Wheeling Park
Wheeling Park
Wheeling Park is a park located in Wheeling, West Virginia. The park first opened in 1925. The park was originally only open during the warmer months...
. Ohio County is also home to six golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
courses including designs by renowned golfer Arnold Palmer
Arnold Palmer
Arnold Daniel Palmer is an American professional golfer, who is generally regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of men's professional golf. He has won numerous events on both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour, dating back to 1955...
and architect Robert Trent Jones
Robert Trent Jones
Robert Trent Jones, Sr. was a golf course architect who designed about 500 golf courses in at least 40 US states and 35 other countries all around the world...
. The Wheeling Suspension Bridge
Wheeling Suspension Bridge
The Wheeling Suspension Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the main channel of the Ohio River at Wheeling, West Virginia. It was the largest suspension bridge in the world from 1849 until the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge was opened in 1851. It was designed by Charles Ellet Jr., who also worked...
, which was once the longest suspension bridge
Suspension bridge
A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck is hung below suspension cables on vertical suspenders. Outside Tibet and Bhutan, where the first examples of this type of bridge were built in the 15th century, this type of bridge dates from the early 19th century...
in the world, connects downtown Wheeling to Wheeling Island.
In October 2007 the City of Wheeling opened the State's first concrete skateboard park. The 12000 square feet (1,114.8 m²) facility was designed and built by world-renowned skatepark builder, Grindline, of Seattle, Washington. The park consists of 60% bowls and 40% street elements and is located within the Chambers Ballfield Complex in the Elm Grove section of the City. An addition to the street section of the park was completed by Grindline in November 2009 and a covered shelter, restrooms, and webcam are scheduled to be installed in early 2010. The park is lighted and open 24/7.
Education
K–12
As elsewhere in West Virginia, K–12 schools are organized at the county level of government. The public school system, Ohio County Schools, consists of 14 schools. There are nine elementary schools, four middle schools, which include Triadelphia Middle which has been nominated for the blue ribbon school award, and Wheeling Park High SchoolWheeling Park High School
Wheeling Park High School is a high school in Wheeling, West Virginia, United States, and is the only public high school serving Ohio County, West Virginia. Park, as it is sometimes called, is home to roughly 2,000 students in grades 9-12....
. There also exist several parochial and private schools, including Wheeling Central Catholic High School
Wheeling Central Catholic High School
Wheeling Central Catholic High School is a parochial, Roman Catholic high school in Wheeling, West Virginia. It is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston.-Graduation Requirements:*English - 4 credits*Social Science - 4 credits...
and the Linsly School.
Colleges and Universities
Wheeling is the hub of higher education in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia. Wheeling Jesuit UniversityWheeling Jesuit University
Wheeling Jesuit University is a private, co-educational Roman Catholic university in the United States. Located in Wheeling, West Virginia, it was founded as Wheeling College in 1954 by the Society of Jesus . Today, Wheeling Jesuit University is one of 28 member institutions of the Association of...
, a private Jesuit
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
university and the only Catholic college in the state of West Virginia, is located in Wheeling. The main campus of West Virginia Northern Community College
West Virginia Northern Community College
West Virginia Northern Community College is a public, multi-campus community college with the main campus located in downtown Wheeling, West Virginia, United States...
has recently been expanding throughout downtown Wheeling and focuses on job training and community development. Also located within close proximity to the city are West Liberty University (formerly West Liberty State College), a four-year university
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
, and private Bethany College
Bethany College (West Virginia)
Bethany College is a private liberal arts college located in Bethany, West Virginia, United States. Founded in 1840, Bethany is the oldest institution of Higher Education in West Virginia.-Location:...
, giving area residents a wide variety of educational options.
Music
Wheeling has an old-style theater named the Capitol TheatreCapitol Theatre (Wheeling, West Virginia)
right|thumb|150px|Capitol Theatre, WheelingThe Capitol Theatre is the largest theatre in West Virginia and a landmark building in the national historic district of downtown Wheeling. For many years it has served as the home of Jamboree USA and the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra...
. The Capitol, opened in 1928, featured a 2,450 seat auditorium. The Capitol was home to a popular radio program in the early forties, It's Wheeling Steel, featuring musical performances by workers at a local steel plant. The Capitol also featured country artists such as Johnny Cash, June Carter-Cash, Merle Haggard, Tammy Wynette, and the Joneses. Currently, the Capitol welcomes musical performances of all types. It is, once again, the performance hall of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra
Wheeling Symphony Orchestra
The Wheeling Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra based in Wheeling, West Virginia. Since its founding in 1929, the orchestra has mostly performed at the Capitol Music Hall. But in May 2007, the "Capitol" closed its doors unexpectedly, forcing the Symphony to look for a new home. Temporary...
, having returned on September 25, 2009. It has also served as the home for Jamboree USA
WWVA Jamboree
WWVA Jamboree, renamed Jamboree U.S.A. in the 1960s, and the Wheeling Jamboree in 2009, is a pioneering American radio show that featured country music from 1933–2008, and again since January 2009...
. The Capitol is the largest theatre in the state of West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
, with some 2,500 seats. The then-Capitol Music Hall was sold by Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
to LiveNation in the Spring of 2005. After LiveNation purchased the Capitol, it remained largely dormant although a few limited engagements were held. Moreover, in August 2007, the Capitol was closed due to several fire and building code violations. On February 5, 2009, the Wheeling Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) announced that it would purchase the then-Capitol Music Hall from Live Nation at a cost of $615,000. The purchase was finalized on April 3, 2009. http://www.theintelligencer.net/page/content.detail/id/520347.html?nav=515
Wheeling is also home to the Victoria Theater
Victoria Theater (Wheeling, WV)
First opening its doors in 1904, Victoria Theater is the oldest operating theater in West Virginia. Located in the registered historic market district of the city of Wheeling, the Victoria is a ~800 seat Victorian style theater with many Beaux-Arts design influences...
, which is the oldest theater in West Virginia. The Victoria is a 700 seat Victorian style theater. It served as home to the WWVA Jamboree
WWVA Jamboree
WWVA Jamboree, renamed Jamboree U.S.A. in the 1960s, and the Wheeling Jamboree in 2009, is a pioneering American radio show that featured country music from 1933–2008, and again since January 2009...
program from 1933–1936, and was recently home to the "Wheeling Jamboree", a local initiative started in 2009 and modeled after the original WWVA Jamboree (which changed its name in the 1960s to Jamboree U.S.A.). The original WWVA Jamboree ran from 1933–2007, making it the second longest running country radio program and a variety show in the country after the Grand Ole Opry
Grand Ole Opry
The Grand Ole Opry is a weekly country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, that has presented the biggest stars of that genre since 1925. It is also among the longest-running broadcasts in history since its beginnings as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM-AM...
.
Held in nearby Belmont County, Jamboree In The Hills
Jamboree in the Hills
Jamboree in the Hills, also known as the "Super Bowl of Country Music," is an annual four-day-festival of country music in the rolling hills of Morristown, Ohio in Belmont County...
draws over 100,000 country music fans to the Wheeling area every July.
During the summer months the Wheeling Heritage Port is the home to numerous festivals, concerts, movie nights, celebrations, a regatta and numerous visits from the Delta, Mississippi and American Queens. It holds over 8,000 spectators and has become a focal point to the City.
Theater
Fans of theater have several options in Wheeling. The Capitol Theatre hosts numerous touring musical performances. In addition, the Oglebay InstituteOglebay Institute
Located in Wheeling, West Virginia, Oglebay Institute is a 501 non-profit organization incorporated in 1930.-History:The organization’s founder, Earl W. Oglebay willed his country estate to the City of Wheeling for use “...as a public park for the enjoyment, recreation and education of the greatest...
's Towngate Theatre in Center Wheeling has, for over 35 years, produced and shown plays. Located across the street is the Independent Theatre Collective, which performs at the former Second Presbyterian Church.
Sports
Wheeling is also home to the Wheeling NailersWheeling Nailers
The Wheeling Nailers are an ECHL ice hockey team based in Wheeling, West Virginia. They are the ECHL affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Montreal Canadiens of the NHL and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and the Hamilton Bulldogs of the AHL....
hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team. The Nailers play in the WesBanco Arena
WesBanco Arena
WesBanco Arena is a multi-purpose arena, in Wheeling, West Virginia. It was built in 1977 at a cost of $7 million. It is home to the Wheeling Nailers ice hockey team and the Ohio Valley Athletic Conference wrestling tournament.It can also be used for conventions, trade shows, concerts, banquets...
(formerly the Wheeling Civic Center), and participate in the North division, American Conference of the ECHL
ECHL
The ECHL is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Princeton, New Jersey with teams scattered across the United States...
. High school football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and soccer are played at Wheeling Island Stadium
Wheeling Island Stadium
Wheeling Island Stadium is a stadium located on Wheeling Island in Wheeling, West Virginia. The stadium seats 12,220 in two stands along either sidelines, the end zones are empty. Wheeling Island Stadium usually hosts High school football and soccer events but can host concerts, hosting REO...
. Formerly home to the Ohio Valley Greyhounds
Ohio Valley Greyhounds
The Ohio Valley Greyhounds were a professional indoor football team. They began play in 1999 as the Steel Valley Smash, a charter member of the IFL. After the league folded, they moved to the NIFL, became a charter member, and renamed themselves as the Ohio Valley Greyhounds...
, Wheeling became home to a second team in 2009. The team, known as the Wheeling Wildcats
Wheeling Wildcats
The Wheeling Wildcats are a professional indoor football team located in Wheeling, West Virginia and beginning play in the CIFL's 2009 season. The team will fill the void left by the demise of the Ohio Valley Greyhounds, who played their final down of football in 2007...
, played in the Continental Indoor Football League but folded after the 2009 season.
Live Racing and Gaming
Wheeling is the home of Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-RacetrackWheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack
Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack is located on Wheeling Island in the middle of the Ohio River, which is a part of the city of Wheeling, West Virginia...
located on Wheeling Island
Wheeling Island
Wheeling Island is the most densely populated island in the Ohio River. It lies within the city of Wheeling in Ohio County, West Virginia, in the United States. The 2000 census showed a resident population of 3,142 persons on the island, which has a land area of 1.514 km²...
. Formerly known as Wheeling Downs, the facility features live greyhound
Greyhound
The Greyhound is a breed of sighthound that has been primarily bred for coursing game and racing, and the breed has also recently seen a resurgence in its popularity as a pedigree show dog and family pet. It is a gentle and intelligent breed...
racing, slots
Slot machine
A slot machine , informally fruit machine , the slots , poker machine or "pokies" or simply slot is a casino gambling machine with three or more reels which spin when a button is pushed...
, poker
Poker
Poker is a family of card games that share betting rules and usually hand rankings. Poker games differ in how the cards are dealt, how hands may be formed, whether the high or low hand wins the pot in a showdown , limits on bet sizes, and how many rounds of betting are allowed.In most modern poker...
games, and casino-style table games.
Table Gaming
In accordance with House Bill 271 adopted on March 8, 2007, Ohio County and Jefferson CountyJefferson County, West Virginia
Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 53,498. Its county seat is Charles Town...
held special elections on June 9, 2007, to approve the legalization of table games within the respective counties. The Ohio County measure passed, but the Jefferson County one failed. A similar measure was successfully adopted in Hancock County
Hancock County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 32,667 people, 13,678 households, and 9,506 families residing in the county. The population density was 394 people per square mile . There were 14,728 housing units at an average density of 178 per square mile...
on June 30, 2007.
Media
Due to its close proximity to Pittsburgh, Wheeling is heavily influenced by that city's broadcast media outlets, which are easily received in the area. Besides broadcast stations Wheeling's cable providers also carry Fox Sports Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh-centric news/talk channel PCNC as its "home" sports and information sources.In addition to the Pittsburgh outlets the Wheeling television market is served by CBS affiliate WTRF-TV
WTRF-TV
WTRF-TV is the CBS-affiliated television station for the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia and the Allegheny Plateau of Eastern Ohio that is licensed to Wheeling, West Virginia. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 7 from a transmitter in Bridgeport, Ohio. Owned by West...
Channel 7, PBS affiliate W41AA
West Virginia Public Broadcasting
West Virginia Public Broadcasting is the Public Broadcasting Service member Non-commercial educational Public television state network in West Virginia, whose primary station is WPBY, based in Charleston, West Virginia. Its studios are located at 600 Capitol Street...
Channel 41, and NBC affiliate WTOV-TV
WTOV-TV
WTOV-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for the Ohio Valley that is licensed to Steubenville & Wheeling. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 9 from a transmitter in Mingo Junction, Ohio. Owned by Cox Enterprises, the station has studios in Steubenville. Syndicated...
Channel 9 in nearby Steubenville, Ohio
Steubenville, Ohio
Steubenville is a city located along the Ohio River in Jefferson County, Ohio on the Ohio-West Virginia border in the United States. It is the political county seat of Jefferson County. It is also a principal city of the Weirton–Steubenville, WV-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area...
. The city is served by cable television provider Comcast
Comcast
Comcast Corporation is the largest cable operator, home Internet service provider, and fourth largest home telephone service provider in the United States, providing cable television, broadband Internet, and telephone service to both residential and commercial customers in 39 states and the...
and parts of the city are also served by Centre TV.
Wheeling is home to WWVA
WWVA (AM)
WWVA is an AM radio station that broadcasts on a frequency of 1170 kHz with studios in Wheeling, West Virginia, USA, and towers formerly located in St. Clairsville, Ohio, before they were destroyed in an August 2010 storm...
1170 AM, the state's only 50,000 watt AM station that can be heard throughout the East Coast
East Coast of the United States
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, refers to the easternmost coastal states in the United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. The term includes the U.S...
at night. WVLY 1370 AM and WKKX
WKKX
WKKX is a News/Talk formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Wheeling, West Virginia, serving Wheeling in West Virginia and St. Clairsville in Ohio. WKKX is owned and operated by RCK 1 Group, LLC.-Programming:...
1600 AM provide local news, sports, and talk. On the FM dial WVKF
WVKF
WVKF is a radio station broadcasting a contemporary hit radio format. Licensed to Shadyside, Ohio, USA, the station serves the Wheeling, West Virginia, area. The station is currently owned by Clear Channel Communications...
95.7, WKWK 97.3, WOVK 98.7 and WEGW 107.5 provides the area with various music genres. The Wheeling area is also the home of WVJW-LP, a listener supported commercial-free station which also serves as the local Pacifica
Pacifica Radio
Pacifica Radio is the oldest public radio network in the United States. It is a group of five independently operated, non-commercial, listener-supported radio stations that is known for its progressive/liberal political orientation. It is also a program service supplying over 100 affiliated...
affiliate. Pittsburgh's radio stations also provide Wheeling with coverage. A number of translators and repeater stations provide NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
and American Family Radio networks. Wheeling also has a student run radio station, WPHP 91.9, which is run by Wheeling Park High School students. WPHP plays top 40 songs and also covers all of the Wheeling Park Patriots football games and basketball games.
The city is home to The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register newspapers. Both papers are owned by Ogden Newspapers Inc., which is also based in Wheeling. The Intelligencer is published weekday mornings and Saturdays, while the News-Register is published weekday afternoons and Sundays. The Times-Leader of Martins Ferry, Ohio, another Ogden Newspapers Inc. paper, also covers Wheeling issues. In Wheeling magazine is published quarterly and covers society and events in Wheeling.
Transportation
Roads and bridges
Interstate 70Interstate 70 in West Virginia
Interstate 70 in the U.S. state of West Virginia crosses the Northern Panhandle region, through Ohio County and the city of Wheeling. The shortest segment of I-70 in any state it crosses is the segment in West Virginia, spanning across the panhandle...
and its spur Interstate 470 run through the city east-west and link it with suburban Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to the east and Ohio to the west. U.S. Route 40
U.S. Route 40
U.S. Route 40 is an east–west United States highway. As with most routes whose numbers end in a zero, U.S. 40 once traversed the entire United States. It is one of the original 1920s U.S. Highways, and its first termini were San Francisco, California, and Atlantic City, New Jersey...
/National Road
National Road
The National Road or Cumberland Road was the first major improved highway in the United States to be built by the federal government. Construction began heading west in 1811 at Cumberland, Maryland, on the Potomac River. It crossed the Allegheny Mountains and southwestern Pennsylvania, reaching...
links downtown with residential neighborhoods to the east. West Virginia Route 2 connects Wheeling with Moundsville
Moundsville, West Virginia
Moundsville is a city in Marshall County, West Virginia, along the Ohio River. It is part of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 9,998 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Marshall County. The city was named for the Grave Creek Mound. Moundsville was settled in...
to the south and Weirton
Weirton, West Virginia
Weirton is a city located in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia, United States. Most of the city is in Hancock County, with the remainder in Brooke County. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 20,411...
to the north. U.S. Route 250 also runs through the city.
The Fort Henry Bridge
Fort Henry Bridge
The Fort Henry Bridge is a crossing of the Ohio River main channel in Wheeling, West Virginia. The tied-arch bridge carries two lanes in each direction of Interstate 70 , U.S. Route 40 , and US 250. The bridge opened after four years of construction work on September 8, 1955, costing $6.8...
and Vietnam Veterans Memorial Bridge
Interstate 470 Bridge
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Bridge is a four-lane arch-suspension bridge in the United States. It carries Interstate 470 over the Ohio River between Bridgeport, Ohio and Wheeling, West Virginia.-History:...
carry I-70 and I-470 respectively over the Ohio River. The historic Wheeling Suspension Bridge
Wheeling Suspension Bridge
The Wheeling Suspension Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the main channel of the Ohio River at Wheeling, West Virginia. It was the largest suspension bridge in the world from 1849 until the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge was opened in 1851. It was designed by Charles Ellet Jr., who also worked...
, completed in 1849, which was part of National Road (see early pic.), now carries cars and light trucks as well as pedestrian traffic between downtown and Wheeling Island. The Wheeling Tunnel
Wheeling Tunnel
Twin tunnels form the Wheeling Tunnel in Wheeling, Ohio County, West Virginia. The tunnels are long, cutting though Wheeling Hill, and each carries two lanes of Interstate 70 and U.S. Route 250. The tunnels originally took three years to construct, costing $6.9 million...
provides carries I-70 through Wheeling Hill.
Bus transportation
Bus transportation to points throughout North America is available from Wheeling through Greyhound LinesGreyhound Lines
Greyhound Lines, Inc., based in Dallas, Texas, is an intercity common carrier of passengers by bus serving over 3,700 destinations in the United States, Canada and Mexico, operating under the well-known logo of a leaping greyhound. It was founded in Hibbing, Minnesota, USA, in 1914 and...
. The bus terminal, the Robert C. Byrd Intermodal Transportation Center, was built with $11.1 million in federal funds.
Regional transportation through West Virginia and Eastern Ohio is provided by the East Ohio and Ohio Valley Regional Transit Authorities, which shares the Intermodal Transportation Center as its hub for its Hub-and-Spoke routes throughout the area.
Companies based in Wheeling
- Orrick, Herrington & SutcliffeOrrick, Herrington & SutcliffeOrrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP is an international law firm founded in San Francisco. Orrick traces its roots back to 1863, making it the oldest continuously-operating law firm in San Francisco, and the second-oldest privately-held company in San Francisco after Levi Strauss & Co....
(Global Operations Center) - WesBancoWesBancoInitially chartered on January 20, 1870 as "The German Bank," WesBanco is a bank holding company headquartered in Wheeling, West Virginia. The bank is the namesake of the WesBanco Arena which is home to the Wheeling Nailers hockey team....
Banks - Stone & ThomasStone & ThomasStone & Thomas was a United States chain of department stores. Based in Wheeling, West Virginia, the chain had stores located in West Virginia, Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio. The company was bought out in 1998 by Elder-Beerman, an Ohio-based chain of department stores.-History:Stone and Thomas was...
(defunct department store chain formerly headquartered in Wheeling) - Wheeling-Pittsburgh SteelWheeling-Pittsburgh SteelWheeling-Pittsburgh Steel was a steel manufacturer based in Wheeling, West Virginia, which is located at the edge of the Pittsburgh metropolitan area...
- Swisher International GroupSwisher International GroupSwisher International Group, with executive offices located in Darien, Connecticut, and operational headquarters located in Jacksonville, Florida, is the world's largest cigar company as measured by units sold and is America’s largest cigar exporter, shipping to nearly 90 countries. Brands include...
(makers of Mail Pouch tobacco) - Marsh WheelingMarsh WheelingMarsh Wheeling was founded by Mifflin M. Marsh in 1840. Located in Wheeling, West Virginia, it was the oldest cigar manufacturing company founded in the United States. After beginning production and sale from his home, Mr. Marsh developed the company and opened a factory first on Water Street and...
(America's oldest cigar manufacturing plant)
Notable People from Wheeling
- Leon "Chu" Berry, jazz saxophonist
- Leo BradyLeo BradyLeo Brady was a multidimensional American writer and theater artist who also achieved great success as a teacher of young playwrights....
, playwright, novelist, and director - Adelbert R. BuffingtonAdelbert Rinaldo Buffington-Biography:He was born at Wheeling, West Virginia, and graduated at West Point in May 1861 . He was brevetted major in 1865, and was commander successively of the United States ordnance depots at Wheeling, W. Va., and of the arsenals in New York, Baton Rouge, Watertown, Mass., Watervliet,...
, United States ArmyUnited States ArmyThe United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
general - Bobby CampoBobby CampoRobert Joseph "Bobby" Camposecco is an American actor. Known for his appearances in CSI: Miami, Mental, Legally Blondes and Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, he is also known for his most successful main role in the 2009 horror film The Final Destination.-Biography:Campo was born in Wheeling,...
, actor - Jack CanfieldJack CanfieldJack Canfield is an American motivational speaker and author. He is best known as the co-creator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul book series, which currently has nearly 200 titles and 112 million copies in print in over 40 languages...
, motivational speaker - John Corbett, actor
- Billy CoxBilly CoxWilliam "Billy" Cox is an American bassist, best known for performing with Jimi Hendrix.-Early years:Born in Wheeling, West Virginia, Cox was raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and attended Schenley High School. He first met Jimi Hendrix in the early 1960s, when they were both in the United States...
, Bassist - Faith DanielsFaith DanielsFaith Daniels became nationally known for her role in anchoring some of America's most popular news and talk show programs....
, network broadcaster - Rebecca Harding DavisRebecca Harding DavisRebecca Blaine Harding Davis was an American author and journalist. She is deemed a pioneer of literary realism in American literature. She graduated valedictorian from Washington Female Seminary in Pennsylvania...
, author - Joyce DeWittJoyce DeWittJoyce Anne DeWitt is an American actress most famous for playing Janet Wood on the ABC sitcom Three's Company.-Early life:...
, actress - Joanne DruJoanne DruJoanne Dru was an American film and television actress, known for such films as Red River and All the King's Men.-Career:...
, actress - William L. ElkinsWilliam Lukens ElkinsWilliam Lukens Elkins was an American businessman, inventor, and art collector.-Career:Although his father was a native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, William Elkins was born in Wheeling, West Virginia. He started his working life at a grocery store in Philadelphia where his family had returned to...
, 19th Century business tycoon - Doug Fetherling, writer
- Walter L. FisherWalter L. FisherWalter Lowrie Fisher was United States Secretary of the Interior under President William Howard Taft from 1911 to 1913....
, U.S. Secretary of the Interior - Kelsy Fowler, Broadway actress
- Gene FreeseGene FreeseEugene Lewis Freese is a former third baseman in American Major League Baseball for 12 seasons . A journeyman, he played for the Pittsburgh Pirates , St. Louis Cardinals, Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago White Sox , Cincinnati Reds and Houston Astros, batting .254 with 115 home runs in 1,115 games...
, baseball player - Jack GlasscockJack GlasscockJohn Wesley "Jack" Glasscock was an American shortstop in Major League Baseball who played for several teams from 1879 to 1895 and was the top player at his position in the 1880s during the sport's bare-handed era...
, Major League BaseballMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
player - Chuck HowleyChuck HowleyCharles Louis "Chuck" Howley is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League...
, football player - Alvan MacauleyAlvan MacauleyJames Alvan Macauley, Sr. was the president of Packard Motor Company from 1916 until 1939.-Early life and education:Alvan, as he preferred to be called, was born in Wheeling, West Virginia to James A. Macauley and Rebecca Jane Mills. Macauley's father was a veteran of the American Civil War and...
, president of PackardPackardPackard was an American luxury-type automobile marque built by the Packard Motor Car Company of Detroit, Michigan, and later by the Studebaker-Packard Corporation of South Bend, Indiana...
1916-1939 - Keith MaillardKeith MaillardKeith Maillard is a fiction author and poet.Maillard has lived in various places in the United States and Canada.He attended West Virginia University and was host of a Boston campus radio programme.He moved to Canada in 1970, attaining citizenship in 1976.In the early 1970s, Maillard worked as a...
, writer - Bill MazeroskiBill MazeroskiWilliam Stanley Mazeroski , nicknamed "Maz", is a former Major League Baseball player who spent his entire career with the Pittsburgh Pirates...
, Hall of Fame second baseman - Darvin MoonDarvin MoonDarvin Moon is an American self-employed logger and amateur poker player who was the runner-up of the 2009 World Series of Poker US$10,000 no-limit Texas hold'em main event. It was his first time playing in the World Series of Poker...
, 2009 World Series of Poker main event finalist - Cy MorganCy MorganHarry Richard Morgan born in Pomeroy, Ohio was a pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the St. Louis Browns , Boston Red Sox , Philadelphia Athletics , and Cincinnati Reds ....
, a Major League BaseballMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
pitcherPitcherIn baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the... - Bob NeyBob NeyRobert William Ney is an American politician from the U.S. state of Ohio. A Republican, Ney represented Ohio's 18th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 until November 3, 2006, when he resigned...
, former U.S. Representative from Ohio - Tim O'BrienTim O'Brien (musician)Tim O'Brien is an American country and bluegrass musician. In addition to singing, he plays guitar, fiddle, mandolin, banjo, bouzouki and mandocello...
, bluegrass musician - Brad PaisleyBrad PaisleyBrad Douglas Paisley is an American singer-songwriter and musician. His style crosses between traditional country music and Southern rock, and his songs are frequently laced with humor and pop culture references....
, country singer - Walter ReutherWalter ReutherWalter Philip Reuther was an American labor union leader, who made the United Automobile Workers a major force not only in the auto industry but also in the Democratic Party in the mid 20th century...
, labor leader - Eleanor SteberEleanor SteberEleanor Steber was an American operatic soprano. Steber is noted as one of the first major opera stars to have achieved the highest success with training and a career based in the United States.-Biography:...
, American operatic sopranoSopranoA soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately middle C to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which usually encompasses the melody...
associated with the Metropolitan OperaMetropolitan OperaThe Metropolitan Opera is an opera company, located in New York City. Originally founded in 1880, the company gave its first performance on October 22, 1883. The company is operated by the non-profit Metropolitan Opera Association, with Peter Gelb as general manager... - Robert E. L. StriderRobert E. L. StriderRobert E. L. Strider was the President of Colby College, Maine, United States, from 1960-1979.-Early Life:Born in Wheeling, West Virginia, Strider was the son of the Rev. Robert E.L. Strider, later bishop of the Diocese of West Virginia; and Mary Holroyd Strider, who died at his birth...
, President of Colby CollegeColby CollegeColby College is a private liberal arts college located on Mayflower Hill in Waterville, Maine. Founded in 1813, it is the 12th-oldest independent liberal arts college in the United States... - Nan WynnNan WynnNan Wynn was an American big-band singer and actress from Wheeling, West Virginia.She recorded with well-known orchestras, including those of Teddy Wilson, Freddie Rich, Raymond Scott and Hal Kemp.-Films:...
, big-band singer and actress - John YarnallJohn YarnallJohn Joliffe Yarnall was an officer in the United States Navy during the War of 1812 and the Second Barbary War.Born in Wheeling, Virginia , Yarnall was appointed midshipman in the Navy on 11 January 1809...
, naval officer during War of 1812 - Robert NuttingRobert NuttingRobert Nutting is a businessman and sports team owner. He is currently Chairman of the Board and principal owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates, a Major League Baseball team. His other business activities include serving as CEO of Ogden Newspapers Inc...
, Principal Owner of the Pittsburgh PiratesPittsburgh PiratesThe Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
Wheeling in fiction
- In the 2005 movie, "Walk the Line," Johnny Cash and June Carter performed at the Capital City Music Hall in downtown Wheeling while on tour. Both singers were having marital problems and rumors about their relationship were starting to surface. In one scene, Johnny and June are in a Wheeling five and dime store buying something for one of their kids (a fishing pole) and June mentions that some people in Wheeling have been making snide comments about her reputation.
- Wheeling is referred to in Bat Boy: The MusicalBat Boy: The MusicalBat Boy: The Musical is a musical with a book by Keythe Farley and Brian Flemming and music and lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe, based on a June 23, 1992 Weekly World News story about a half-boy, half-bat, dubbed "Bat Boy", found living in a cave....
as the nearest large town to Hope Falls, where the story takes place. It is also the home of the mysterious 'Institute', representatives of which come to capture the protagonist in the show's finale just moments too late. - Wheeling is referred to in an episode of The WaltonsThe WaltonsThe Waltons is an American television series created by Earl Hamner, Jr., based on his book Spencer's Mountain, and a 1963 film of the same name. The show centered on a family growing up in a rural Virginia community during the Great Depression and World War II. The series pilot was a television...
, called "The Deed", set in and around Schuyler, VirginiaSchuyler, VirginiaSchuyler is a census-designated place in Nelson County, , Virginia, United States, close to Scottsville...
, when Richard ThomasRichard Thomas (actor)Richard Earl Thomas is an American actor, best known for his role as budding author John-Boy Walton in the CBS drama The Waltons.- Early life :Thomas was born Richard Earl Thomas in New York,...
' character "John Boy" travels 335 miles (539.1 km) to the 'Big City' of Wheeling in 1934 (during the Great DepressionGreat DepressionThe Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
) to help raise $200 for his family to gain a deed to prove ownership of their mountain property. During his stay, John Boy rooms at a boarding house on Market Street. - Wheeling is referred to in an episode of the sitcom Family TiesFamily TiesFamily Ties is an American sitcom that aired on NBC for seven seasons, from 1982 to 1989. The sitcom reflected the move in the United States from the cultural liberalism of the 1960s and 1970s to the conservatism of the 1980s. This was particularly expressed through the relationship between young...
, set in Columbus, OhioColumbus, OhioColumbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
, when Michael J. FoxMichael J. FoxMichael J. Fox, OC is a Canadian American actor, author, producer, activist and voice-over artist. With a film and television career spanning from the late 1970s, Fox's roles have included Marty McFly from the Back to the Future trilogy ; Alex P...
's character Alex P. KeatonAlex P. KeatonAlex P. Keaton is a fictional character on the American television sitcom, Family Ties, which aired on NBC for seven seasons, from 1982 to 1989. Family Ties reflected the move in the United States away from the cultural liberalism of the 1960s and 1970s to the conservatism of the 1980s...
says, "let's go down to Wheeling, West Virginia," because the legal drinking age in West Virginia at the time was eighteen, while in Ohio the drinking age had been raised to twenty-one. - Billy JoelBilly JoelWilliam Martin "Billy" Joel is an American musician and pianist, singer-songwriter, and classical composer. Since releasing his first hit song, "Piano Man", in 1973, Joel has become the sixth best-selling recording artist and the third best-selling solo artist in the United States, according to...
's hit song "The Ballad of Billy the KidThe Ballad of Billy the Kid"The Ballad of Billy the Kid" is a Billy Joel song from the album Piano Man. It is a fictionalized story of Billy The Kid. In an interview from 1975, Joel admitted,"Basically [the song] was an experiment with an impressionist type of lyric...
" identifies the birthplace of the ballad's antagonist as Wheeling. - In Season 2 of The West Wing, the episode "In This White House" names Wheeling as a location where two would-be assassins purchased firearms in their mission to kill the show's President, Josiah BartlettJosiah BartlettJosiah Bartlett was an American physician and statesman, delegate to the Continental Congress for New Hampshire and signatory of the Declaration of Independence...
. NBC later apologized for the reference and agreed to make two other mentions of Wheeling in a more positive light. One included a reference as a flyover location in a scene set on Air Force OneAir Force OneAir Force One is the official air traffic control call sign of any United States Air Force aircraft carrying the President of the United States. In common parlance the term refers to those Air Force aircraft whose primary mission is to transport the president; however, any U.S. Air Force aircraft...
. - John Corbett's character, Chris Stevens (Chris in the Morning), in Northern ExposureNorthern ExposureNorthern Exposure is an American television series that ran on CBS from 1990 to 1995, with a total of 110 episodes.-Overview:The series was given a pair of consecutive Peabody Awards: in 1991–92 for the show's "depict[ion] in a comedic and often poetic way, [of] the cultural clash between a...
is from Wheeling. John Corbett is from Wheeling in real life, and would often briefly mention something about Wheeling on the show. "Uncle Roy Bauer", "Chuck Vincent" and "Earl P. Duffy" are character names Chris Stevens refers to on Northern Exposure. They also happen to be real people Corbett grew up with. Roy Bauer was a high school friend, Earl P. Duffy was the Dean of Discipline at Wheeling Central Catholic High School (the school Corbett attended). - The 1971 film Fools Parade both takes place and was filmed in Moundsville, West Virginia which is a few miles down river from Wheeling. In the movie a fancy dressed hired killer, played by Morgan Paull, declares that after they finished that nights work he was, "Going to Wheeling to sing on the radio!"
- "Life in the Iron Mills", a short story by Rebecca Harding DavisRebecca Harding DavisRebecca Blaine Harding Davis was an American author and journalist. She is deemed a pioneer of literary realism in American literature. She graduated valedictorian from Washington Female Seminary in Pennsylvania...
, was set in the factory world of nineteenth century Wheeling, Virginia, now Wheeling, West Virginia. It was her first published work, and it appeared anonymously in April 1861 in the Atlantic Monthly where it caused a literary sensation with its powerful naturalism that anticipated the work of Theodore DreiserTheodore DreiserTheodore Herman Albert Dreiser was an American novelist and journalist of the naturalist school. His novels often featured main characters who succeeded at their objectives despite a lack of a firm moral code, and literary situations that more closely resemble studies of nature than tales of...
and Emile ZolaÉmile ZolaÉmile François Zola was a French writer, the most important exemplar of the literary school of naturalism and an important contributor to the development of theatrical naturalism...
. The story is emphatically on the side of the exploited industrial workers, who are presented as physically stunted and mentally dulled but fully human and capable of tragedy. - Whatever is a 1998 independent film, shot mostly in Wheeling, about teenagers facing the difficulties of growing up in Northern New Jersey.
- A West Virginia–centric episode of Murder, She WroteMurder, She WroteMurder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
, "Coal Miner's Slaughter", has Megan Mulally's character passing the bar exam in Wheeling. - "Wheeling, West Virginia" was a hit song for Neil SedakaNeil SedakaNeil Sedaka is an American pop/rock singer, pianist, and composer. His career has spanned nearly 55 years, during which time he has sold millions of records as an artist and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collaborating mostly with lyricists Howard...
in 1970. The song tells of an actor from Wheeling who works at MGM and has changed not for the better from the person who grew up there. The song was recorded in the Sydney, Australia suburb of Pyrmont. What is now the IGA Supermarket was previously the recording studios & offices of Festival Records. Some of the artist who recorded there include Normie Rowe, Billy Thorpe, Kylie Minogue, The Bee Gees, Ray Brown & The Whispers, Tony Worsley & The Fabulous Blue Jays, Jimmy Little, Noelene Batley, Mike Furber, Olivia Newton-John, The Dave Miller Set, Johnny Young, Wild Cherries and Jeff St John. - "Eliza and the house that Jack built", a novel by Hungarian writer Albert Wass takes place in the Wheeling area, around the end of the 19th century. The story is about the pioneers and immigrants, who have settled there - about their struggle to build a new life through hard work.
- Fort WheelingFort WheelingFort Wheeling, or simply Wheeling, is the title of a comics series set in colonial North America, by Italian comics creator Hugo Pratt.-Publication history:Wheeling first appeared in the Argentine comics magazine Misterix in 1962...
, a comicsComicsComics denotes a hybrid medium having verbal side of its vocabulary tightly tied to its visual side in order to convey narrative or information only, the latter in case of non-fiction comics, seeking synergy by using both visual and verbal side in...
series by the Italian comics author Hugo PrattHugo PrattHugo Eugenio Pratt was an Italian comic book creator who was known for combining strong storytelling with extensive historical research on works such as Corto Maltese...
, deals with events taking place in the Wheeling area during the American revolution.
Further reading
- Duffy, Sean, & Rinkes, Paul, Wheeling: Then & Now. Mount Pleasant, S. Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2010.
- Fones-Wolf, Ken, “‘Traitors in Wheeling’: Secessionism in an Appalachian Unionist City,” Journal of Appalachian Studies, 13 (Spring–Fall 2007), 75–95.
- Minder, Mike. Wheeling’s Gambling History to 1976. Wheeling: Nail City Publishing, 1997.
- Schramm, Robert W. The Linsly School. Mount Pleasant, S. Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2003.
External links
- City of Wheeling, West Virginia Official Site
- Wheeling Convention and Visitor's Bureau
- Memorials, monuments, statues & other outdoor art in & around Wheeling (with pictures)
- The Highlands Shopping and Entertainment Complex
- Listing of all major events in Wheeling WV, especially the Wheeling Heritage Port
- Wheeling National Heritage Area
- History of Ohio County, WV
- Wheeling Area Genealogical Website
- West Virginia Department of Transportation - Wheeling-Ohio County Airport
- Wheeling Island
- Website of the Wheeling Police Department
- The Intelligencer and The News-Register
- Ohio County Public Library
- History of Wheeling City and Ohio County, West Virginia compiled by the Hon. Gibson Lamb Cranmer
- Creative Impressions Publisher of Wheeling Island: A Photographic History by Robert W. Schramm