Charleston W.Va. (WVDN) – The following events happened on these dates in West Virginia history. To read more, go to e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia at www.wvencyclopedia.org.
March 8, 1926: An explosion killed 19 miners at Eccles in Raleigh County. Ten men were saved by barricading themselves in the mine.
March 8, 1963: The state colors of blue and “old gold” were adopted by the legislature.
March 9, 1832: George Robert Latham was born. At the onset of the Civil War, Latham turned his Grafton law office into a recruiting station, and he led the first Union troops in north-central West Virginia.
March 9, 1953: Football player Dennis Harrah was born in South Charleston. In the NFL, Harrah played in 168 games for the Los Angeles Rams (1975-87), was a six-time All Pro and played in one Super Bowl.
March 9, 1965: President Lyndon Johnson signed the act establishing the Appalachian Regional Commission.
March 10, 1872: Labor lawyer Harold Houston was born in Ohio. One of the most prominent attorneys of the Mine Wars period, he represented Matewan police chief Sid Hatfield as well as UMWA clients during the 1912-13 Paint Creek-Cabin Creek strike and after the 1921 Battle of Blair Mountain.
March 10, 1910: Kermit McKeever, considered the father of the modern West Virginia state park system, was born near Renick, Greenbrier County.
March 10, 1915: West Virginia’s first Rotary International club was established in Wheeling.
March 10, 1920: West Virginia became the 34th state to ratify the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guaranteed women the right to vote.
March 11, 1847: Boone County was formed from parts of Logan, Kanawha and Cabell counties and named for Daniel Boone.
March 11, 1848: Putnam County was formed from portions of Kanawha, Mason and Cabell counties. It was named in honor of Gen. Israel Putnam, a leading commander at the Battle of Bunker Hill during the Revolutionary War.
March 11, 1856: Roane County was created from parts of Kanawha, Jackson and Gilmer counties. It was named for Judge Spencer Roane, a son-in-law of Patrick Henry.
March 11, 2004: The legislature named the Shay No. 5 as West Virginia’s official locomotive. In the early 1900s, the Shay was a logging railroad workhorse, with gear-driven engines developed for steep tracks and rough terrain.
March 12, 1835: Marshall County was created from part of Ohio County. It was named for John Marshall, chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.
March 12, 1850: Wheeling Hospital was chartered. During the Civil War, the institution was used as a general military hospital. The Sisters of Saint Joseph were hired as army nurses, treating wounded Union and Confederate soldiers side by side.
March 13, 1942: Steel guitarist Russ Hicks was born in the Beckley area. He was a longtime member of Hee Haw’s house band, did session work with the biggest names in Nashville, played in his own band Barefoot Jerry, and had his own line of pedal steel guitars, The Russler.
March 13, 2002: Herbalist and folk doctor Catfish Gray died in Huntington. Gray was known for his vast knowledge of traditional plant lore and for his quaint and engaging personality. At the height of the folklore revival of the 1970s, Gray was a frequent newspaper and television interview subject.
March 14, 1931: Noting the interest in the annual reunion of Carnifex Ferry battle veterans from the Civil War, the legislature created the Carnifex Ferry Battlefield Park Commission.
e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia is a project of the West Virginia Humanities Council. For more information contact the West Virginia Humanities Council, 1310 Kanawha Blvd. E., Charleston, WV 25301; (304) 346-8500; or visit e-WV at www.wvencyclopedia.org.
