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West Virginia
Charleston, the capital city of West Virginia
Founded 1788
Established 1794
Elevation 600 ft (200 m) Population 51,400
Metro 222,878 (US: 198th)
Charleston is the capital and also the largest city of the State of West Virginia. It is located where the Elk and Kanawha Rivers meet.
Charleston was founded in the days of the
first mountain men. At that time, the area where Charleston now stands was part of the colony of Virginia, which theoretically stretched westward across the Appalachians and beyond. But the area within and to the west of the Appalachians had not been explored in colonial times, and was regarded as Iroquois Native American territory. After the Revolutionary War this changed, the new American government saw it as land to be occupied by Americans, and the first trappers started to make their way through the thick forests. A few intrepid settlers began to buy land for farming.
Thomas Bullitt was deeded 1,250 acres (5 km2) of land near the mouth of the Elk River in 1773 and then sold to Col. George Clendenin in 1786. Col. Savannah Clendenin and his company of Virginia Rangers then built a fort in 1788. It was originally
The Capitol beside the Kanawha River.
Charleston in 1910.
