List of historical highway markers in Hampshire County, West Virginia
Encyclopedia
This is a list of historical highway markers in Hampshire County
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta 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...

.

West Virginia Memory Project markers

These markers were erected as part of the West Virginia Highway Historical Marker Program, which is currently managed by West Virginia Archives and History, a part of the West Virginia Division of Culture and History.

Capon Springs

Title: Capon Springs
Capon Springs Resort
Capon Springs, also known as Frye's Springs and Watson Town, is a national historic district in Capon Springs, West Virginia that includes a number of resort buildings ranging in age from the mid-nineteenth century to the early twentieth century...



Inscription: Capon Springs bears Indian name meaning the "Medicine Waters." Discovered in 1765. Famous resort of early days. President Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce
Franklin Pierce was the 14th President of the United States and is the only President from New Hampshire. Pierce was a Democrat and a "doughface" who served in the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate. Pierce took part in the Mexican-American War and became a brigadier general in the Army...

, Daniel Webster
Daniel Webster
Daniel Webster was a leading American statesman and senator from Massachusetts during the period leading up to the Civil War. He first rose to regional prominence through his defense of New England shipping interests...

, and his guest, Sir Henry Bulwer
Henry Bulwer, 1st Baron Dalling and Bulwer
Henry Lytton Earle Bulwer, 1st Baron Dalling and Bulwer GCB, PC was a British Liberal politician, diplomat and writer.-Background and education:...

, the British Minister, were among guests.

Location: West Virginia Route 259, Capon Lake
Capon Lake, West Virginia
Capon Lake is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County of West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle region. Capon Lake is situated between Yellow Spring and Intermont at the junction of West Virginia Route 259 and Capon Springs Road along the Cacapon River. Capon Springs Run empties into the...


West Virginia/Virginia

Title: 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...

/Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...



Inscription: "The Mountain State"--western part of the Commonwealth of Virginia until June 20, 1863. Settled by the Germans
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....

 and Scotch-Irish. It became a line of defense between the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 and French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...

, 1754-1763.

Named for Queen Elizabeth, the Virgin Queen of England
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...

. Site of the first permanent English settlement
Jamestown Settlement
Jamestown Settlement is a name used by the Commonwealth of Virginia's portion of the historical sites and museums at Jamestown. Jamestown was the first successful English settlement on the mainland of North America...

, 1607, in America. One of the 13 original colonies
Thirteen Colonies
The Thirteen Colonies were English and later British colonies established on the Atlantic coast of North America between 1607 and 1733. They declared their independence in the American Revolution and formed the United States of America...

. Virginia is the birthplace of eight Presidents of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

.

Location: West Virginia Route 259, at state line

Northwestern Turnpike

Title: Northwestern Turnpike
Northwestern Turnpike
The Northwestern Turnpike is a historic road in West Virginia , important for being historically one of the major roads crossing the Appalachians, financed by the Virginia Board of Public Works in the 1830s. In modern times, west of Winchester, Virginia, U.S...



Inscription: In 1784, 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...

 proposed the Northwestern Turnpike as an all-Virginia route to the Ohio
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...

. Authorized in 1827 and started in 1831, it remains a monument to the skill of its engineers, Charles Shaw
Charles B. Shaw
Charles Shaw was an engineer best known for overseeing building of the Northwestern Turnpike.An inscription at US 50, Capon Bridge says:In 1784, Washington proposed the Northwestern Turnpike as an all-Virginia route to the Ohio. Authorized in 1827 and started in 1831, it remains a monument to the...

 and Colonel Claudius Crozet
Claudius Crozet
Benoit Claudius Crozet was an educator and civil engineer.Crozet was born in France. After serving in the French military, in 1816, he immigrated to the United States. He taught at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, and helped found the Virginia Military Institute at Lexington,...

.

Location: U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

, Capon Bridge
Capon Bridge, West Virginia
Capon Bridge is a town located in eastern Hampshire County, West Virginia along the Northwestern Turnpike , approximately twenty miles west of Winchester, Virginia. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 2,178, 200 of which live within the town limits. Originally known as Glencoe, Capon...


Fort Edwards

Title: Fort Edwards

Inscription: Troops from this fort under Captain Mercer were ambushed in 1756 and many were killed. The French and Indians later attacked the fort but the garrison, aided by Daniel Morgan
Daniel Morgan
Daniel Morgan was an American pioneer, soldier, and United States Representative from Virginia. One of the most gifted battlefield tacticians of the American Revolutionary War, he later commanded troops during the suppression of the Whiskey Rebellion.-Early years:Most authorities believe that...

 and other frontiersmen, repulsed the assault.

Location: U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

, near junction with County Route 14 (Cacapon River Road), Capon Bridge
Capon Bridge, West Virginia
Capon Bridge is a town located in eastern Hampshire County, West Virginia along the Northwestern Turnpike , approximately twenty miles west of Winchester, Virginia. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 2,178, 200 of which live within the town limits. Originally known as Glencoe, Capon...


Ice Mountain

Title: Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain is a mountain ridge and algific talus slope that is part of a preserve near the community of North River Mills in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States....



Inscription: Huge natural refrigerator, five miles north along North River
North River (Cacapon River)
North River is a tributary of the Cacapon River, belonging to the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay watersheds. The river is located in Hampshire and Hardy counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle. The mouth of North River into the Cacapon is located at Forks of Cacapon...

, where ice is found for several hundred yards on the hottest summer days. Raven Rock, on North Mountain
North River Mountain
North River Mountain is a mountain ridge that runs southwest to northeast in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. Named for the North River that parallels its western flanks for its entire length, North River Mountain reaches its highest elevation of near the community of Delray. North...

, offers one of the finest views in West Virginia.

Location: U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

, at junction with West Virginia Route 29 North

Mount Bethel Church

Title: Mount Bethel Church
Mount Bethel Church
Mount Bethel Church is a Presbyterian church located at the junction of County Route 5 and County Route 5/4 in the unincorporated community of Three Churches north of Romney in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States.The Presbyterians established a church near here in 1792...



Inscription: The Presbyterians
Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism refers to a number of Christian churches adhering to the Calvinist theological tradition within Protestantism, which are organized according to a characteristic Presbyterian polity. Presbyterian theology typically emphasizes the sovereignty of God, the authority of the Scriptures,...

 established a church near here in 1792. At first called the Mountain Church in 1808, it became the nucleus of Presbyterian work in Hampshire County under the auspices of the Rev. John Lyle. The Rev. James Black reorganized the congregation in 1812 and the newly formed congregation was named Mount Bethel. The present church, built of logs in 1837, is the oldest house of worship in this county.

Location: County Route 5 (Jersey Mountain Road)
Jersey Mountain Road
Jersey Mountain Road is Hampshire County, West Virginia's Secondary Route 5. The road runs mostly atop or to the east of South Branch Mountain from Levels to the Northwestern Turnpike east of Romney. South Branch Mountain was originally named Jersey Mountain by the colonial settlers of the...

, at junction with County Route 5/4 (Three Churches Hollow Road), Three Churches
Three Churches, West Virginia
Three Churches is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. The town is located north of Romney along Jersey Mountain Road at a crossroads with Three Churches Hollow Road...


Bloomery Gap Skirmish/Bloomery Iron Furnace

Title: Bloomery Gap Skirmish/Bloomery Iron Furnace

Inscription: February 14, 1862, Brigadier General
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...

 Frederick W. Lander
Frederick W. Lander
Frederick West Lander was a transcontinental United States explorer, general in the Union Army during the American Civil War, and a prolific poet.-Birth and early years:...

, commanding the 5th
5th Ohio Infantry
The 5th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment from southwestern Ohio that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War, serving in both the Eastern and Western Theaters in a series of campaigns and battles....

 and 8th Ohio
8th Ohio Infantry
The 8th Ohio Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the Eastern Theater in a number of campaigns and battles, but perhaps is most noted for its actions in helping repulse Pickett's Charge during the Battle of...

, 14th Indiana Infantry
14th Indiana Infantry Regiment
The 14th Indiana Infantry Regiment, otherwise known as the Gallant Fourteenth, was an Civil War infantry regiment. A part of the celebrated Gibraltar Brigade of the Army of the Potomac, the 14th helped secure Cemetery Hill during the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863.- Service :*The 14th Indiana was...

, and 400 men of the 1st West Virginia Cavalry
1st West Virginia Volunteer Cavalry Regiment
The 1st West Virginia Volunteer Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Service:The 1st West Virginia Cavalry was organized at Wheeling, Clarksburg, and Morgantown in western Virginia between July 10 and November 25, 1861.An analysis of...

, attacked a Confederate
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...

 brigade
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...

 of the 31st
31st Virginia Infantry
The 31st Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia....

, 51st
51st Virginia Infantry
The 51st Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly in Tennessee and western Virginia with help of william Elkins....

, 67th, and 89th Virginia Militia under Colonel J. Sencendiver. The Confederates were routed and fled toward Winchester
Winchester, Virginia
Winchester is an independent city located in the northwestern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the USA. The city's population was 26,203 according to the 2010 Census...

. Lander returned to his camp at Paw Paw
Paw Paw, West Virginia
Paw Paw is a town in Morgan County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 524 at the 2000 census. The town is known for the nearby Paw Paw Tunnel. Paw Paw was incorporated by the Circuit Court of Morgan County on April 8, 1891 and named for the pawpaw, a wild fruit which formerly grew in...

 and Sencendiver again occupied Bloomery Gap.

The furnace
Bloomery
A bloomery is a type of furnace once widely used for smelting iron from its oxides. The bloomery was the earliest form of smelter capable of smelting iron. A bloomery's product is a porous mass of iron and slag called a bloom. This mix of slag and iron in the bloom is termed sponge iron, which...

 was built, 1833, by Thomas Pastly and later was owned by Lewis Passmor. He placed a Mr. Cornwell in charge who operated it until 1848 when it was sold to S. A. Pancost. He and his heirs operated it until 1875 when the furnace was closed down. It was operated for a short time in 1880-1881. Annual capacity was 8500 tons. The iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...

 was carried on raft
Raft
A raft is any flat structure for support or transportation over water. It is the most basic of boat design, characterized by the absence of a hull...

s and flatboat
Flatboat
Fil1800flatboat.jpgA flatboat is a rectangular flat-bottomed boat with Fil1800flatboat.jpgA flatboat is a rectangular flat-bottomed boat with Fil1800flatboat.jpgA flatboat is a rectangular flat-bottomed boat with (mostlyNOTE: "(parenthesized)" wordings in the quote below are notes added to...

s down the Cacapon River
Cacapon River
The Cacapon River , located in the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle region, is an river known for its fishing, boating, wildlife, and scenery...

.

Location: West Virginia Route 127 (Bloomery Pike
Bloomery Pike
The Bloomery Pike is a north/south named route that runs from the North Frederick Pike in Frederick County, Virginia, USA to the Northwestern Turnpike near Augusta in Hampshire County, West Virginia. The Bloomery Pike was named for the community of Bloomery and the bloomeries that operated...

), 2 miles east of junction with West Virginia Route 29

Oriskany Sand

Title: Oriskany Sand

Inscription: The massive sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...

 forming the top of the exposure and the great arch is the Oriskany and the limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....

 below it is the Helderberg
Helderberg Escarpment
The Helderberg Escarpment is an escarpment in eastern New York, roughly west of the city of Albany....

 of the driller and geologist
Geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...

. The "Oriskany Sand", an important gas sand, has produced in excess of a trillion cubic feet of gas in 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...

.

Location: U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

/West Virginia Route 28, two miles west of Romney
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a city in and the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,940 at the 2000 census, while the area covered by the city's ZIP code had a population of 5,873. It is a city with a very historic background dating back to the 18th century...

 (missing)

Hampshire County/Virginia

Title: Hampshire County
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

/Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...



Inscription: Oldest county; established by the Virginia 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,...

, 1754. Formed from Frederick
Frederick County, Virginia
Frederick County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is included in the Winchester, Virginia-West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. It was formed in 1743 by the splitting of Orange County. For ten years it was the home of George Washington. As of 2010, the population was...

 and Augusta
Augusta County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 65,615 people, 24,818 households, and 18,911 families residing in the county. The population density was 68 people per square mile . There were 26,738 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile...

. Lord Fairfax
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron was the son of Thomas Fairfax, 5th Lord Fairfax of Cameron and of Catherine, daughter of Thomas Culpeper, 2nd Baron Culpeper of Thoresway....

, owner, named it for the English shire
Shire
A shire is a traditional term for a division of land, found in the United Kingdom and in Australia. In parts of Australia, a shire is an administrative unit, but it is not synonymous with "county" there, which is a land registration unit. Individually, or as a suffix in Scotland and in the far...

 of the same name
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...

. Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain is a mountain ridge and algific talus slope that is part of a preserve near the community of North River Mills in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States....

 and Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks are perpendicular cliffs rising nearly above the South Branch Potomac River in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Hanging Rocks are located four miles north of Romney at Wappocomo on West Virginia Route 28. Hanging Rocks has also been known throughout its history...

 are among its natural wonders.

Named for Queen Elizabeth, the Virgin Queen of England
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...

. Site of the first permanent English settlement
Jamestown Settlement
Jamestown Settlement is a name used by the Commonwealth of Virginia's portion of the historical sites and museums at Jamestown. Jamestown was the first successful English settlement on the mainland of North America...

, 1607, in America. One of the 13 original colonies
Thirteen Colonies
The Thirteen Colonies were English and later British colonies established on the Atlantic coast of North America between 1607 and 1733. They declared their independence in the American Revolution and formed the United States of America...

. Virginia is the birthplace of eight Presidents of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

.

Location: West Virginia Route 127 (Bloomery Pike
Bloomery Pike
The Bloomery Pike is a north/south named route that runs from the North Frederick Pike in Frederick County, Virginia, USA to the Northwestern Turnpike near Augusta in Hampshire County, West Virginia. The Bloomery Pike was named for the community of Bloomery and the bloomeries that operated...

), at state line (missing)

Hampshire County/Morgan County

Title: Hampshire County
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

/Morgan County
Morgan County, West Virginia
Morgan County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, it's population was 17,541. Its county seat is Berkeley Springs. The county is one of three in Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area...



Inscription: Oldest county; established by the Virginia 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,...

, 1754. Formed from Frederick
Frederick County, Virginia
Frederick County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is included in the Winchester, Virginia-West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. It was formed in 1743 by the splitting of Orange County. For ten years it was the home of George Washington. As of 2010, the population was...

 and Augusta
Augusta County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 65,615 people, 24,818 households, and 18,911 families residing in the county. The population density was 68 people per square mile . There were 26,738 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile...

. Lord Fairfax
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron was the son of Thomas Fairfax, 5th Lord Fairfax of Cameron and of Catherine, daughter of Thomas Culpeper, 2nd Baron Culpeper of Thoresway....

, owner, named it for the English shire
Shire
A shire is a traditional term for a division of land, found in the United Kingdom and in Australia. In parts of Australia, a shire is an administrative unit, but it is not synonymous with "county" there, which is a land registration unit. Individually, or as a suffix in Scotland and in the far...

 of the same name
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...

. Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain is a mountain ridge and algific talus slope that is part of a preserve near the community of North River Mills in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States....

 and Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks are perpendicular cliffs rising nearly above the South Branch Potomac River in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Hanging Rocks are located four miles north of Romney at Wappocomo on West Virginia Route 28. Hanging Rocks has also been known throughout its history...

 are among its natural wonders.

Formed, 1820, from Berkeley
Berkeley County, West Virginia
Berkeley County is a county located in the Eastern Panhandle region of the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population is 104,169, making it the second-most populous county in West Virginia, behind Kanawha...

 and Hampshire
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

. Named for Gen. Daniel Morgan
Daniel Morgan
Daniel Morgan was an American pioneer, soldier, and United States Representative from Virginia. One of the most gifted battlefield tacticians of the American Revolutionary War, he later commanded troops during the suppression of the Whiskey Rebellion.-Early years:Most authorities believe that...

 of the Revolutionary Army
Continental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...

. Many of his renowned "Riflemen" were from the Eastern Panhandle
Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia
The Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia is a narrow stretch of territory in the northeast of the state, bordering Maryland and Virginia, United States. The Eastern Panhandle Board of Realtors and other local civic organizations consider only the three Easternmost counties, Jefferson, Berkeley and...

, where he once lived. Famed Berkeley Springs here.

Location: West Virginia Route 9 West (missing)

Caudy's Castle

Title: Caudy's Castle
Caudy's Castle
Caudy's Castle is a rock pinnacle of Ridgeley sandstone that stands 1,400 feet above sea level over the Cacapon River near the Bloomery Pike south of Forks of Cacapon in Hampshire County, West Virginia...



Inscription: Named for James Caudy, pioneer
American pioneer
American pioneers are any of the people in American history who migrated west to join in settling and developing new areas. The term especially refers to those who were going to settle any territory which had previously not been settled or developed by European or American society, although the...

 and Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...

 fighter, who took refuge from the Indians on a mass of rocks
Cliff
In geography and geology, a cliff is a significant vertical, or near vertical, rock exposure. Cliffs are formed as erosion landforms due to the processes of erosion and weathering that produce them. Cliffs are common on coasts, in mountainous areas, escarpments and along rivers. Cliffs are usually...

 overlooking Cacapon River
Cacapon River
The Cacapon River , located in the Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle region, is an river known for its fishing, boating, wildlife, and scenery...

 during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...

 (1754–1763). From his position on the Castle of Rocks, he defended himself by pushing the Indians, one by one with the butt
Stock (firearm)
A stock, also known as a buttstock or shoulder stock, is a part of a rifle or other firearm, to which the barrel and firing mechanism are attached, that is held against one's shoulder when firing the gun. Stocks are also found on crossbows though a crossbow stock is more properly referred to as a...

 of his rifle
Rifle
A rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...

, over the precipice
Cliff
In geography and geology, a cliff is a significant vertical, or near vertical, rock exposure. Cliffs are formed as erosion landforms due to the processes of erosion and weathering that produce them. Cliffs are common on coasts, in mountainous areas, escarpments and along rivers. Cliffs are usually...

 as they came single file along the narrow crevice of rocks. They fell 450–500 feet to the base along the edge of the Cacapon.

Location: West Virginia Route 127 (Bloomery Pike
Bloomery Pike
The Bloomery Pike is a north/south named route that runs from the North Frederick Pike in Frederick County, Virginia, USA to the Northwestern Turnpike near Augusta in Hampshire County, West Virginia. The Bloomery Pike was named for the community of Bloomery and the bloomeries that operated...

), 1.5 miles east of West Virginia Route 29 (missing)

Hampshire County/Morgan County

Title: Hampshire County
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

/Morgan County
Morgan County, West Virginia
Morgan County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, it's population was 17,541. Its county seat is Berkeley Springs. The county is one of three in Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area...



Inscription: Oldest county; established by the Virginia 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,...

, 1754. Formed from Frederick
Frederick County, Virginia
Frederick County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is included in the Winchester, Virginia-West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. It was formed in 1743 by the splitting of Orange County. For ten years it was the home of George Washington. As of 2010, the population was...

 and Augusta
Augusta County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 65,615 people, 24,818 households, and 18,911 families residing in the county. The population density was 68 people per square mile . There were 26,738 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile...

. Lord Fairfax
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron was the son of Thomas Fairfax, 5th Lord Fairfax of Cameron and of Catherine, daughter of Thomas Culpeper, 2nd Baron Culpeper of Thoresway....

, owner, named it for the English shire
Shire
A shire is a traditional term for a division of land, found in the United Kingdom and in Australia. In parts of Australia, a shire is an administrative unit, but it is not synonymous with "county" there, which is a land registration unit. Individually, or as a suffix in Scotland and in the far...

 of the same name
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...

. Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain is a mountain ridge and algific talus slope that is part of a preserve near the community of North River Mills in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States....

 and Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks are perpendicular cliffs rising nearly above the South Branch Potomac River in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Hanging Rocks are located four miles north of Romney at Wappocomo on West Virginia Route 28. Hanging Rocks has also been known throughout its history...

 are among its natural wonders.

Formed, 1820, from Berkeley
Berkeley County, West Virginia
Berkeley County is a county located in the Eastern Panhandle region of the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population is 104,169, making it the second-most populous county in West Virginia, behind Kanawha...

 and Hampshire
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

. Named for Gen. Daniel Morgan
Daniel Morgan
Daniel Morgan was an American pioneer, soldier, and United States Representative from Virginia. One of the most gifted battlefield tacticians of the American Revolutionary War, he later commanded troops during the suppression of the Whiskey Rebellion.-Early years:Most authorities believe that...

 of the Revolutionary Army
Continental Army
The Continental Army was formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America. Established by a resolution of the Continental Congress on June 14, 1775, it was created to coordinate the military efforts of the Thirteen Colonies in...

. Many of his renowned "Riflemen" were from the Eastern Panhandle
Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia
The Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia is a narrow stretch of territory in the northeast of the state, bordering Maryland and Virginia, United States. The Eastern Panhandle Board of Realtors and other local civic organizations consider only the three Easternmost counties, Jefferson, Berkeley and...

, where he once lived. Famed Berkeley Springs here.

Location: West Virginia Route 9 East (missing)

Braddock's Gap

Title: Braddock's Gap

Inscription: To the north, route of General Braddock
Edward Braddock
General Edward Braddock was a British soldier and commander-in-chief for the 13 colonies during the actions at the start of the French and Indian War...

's army in May, 1755, on way to attack the French at Fort Duquesne
Fort Duquesne
Fort Duquesne was a fort established by the French in 1754, at the junction of the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers in what is now downtown Pittsburgh in the state of Pennsylvania....

. His troops encamped at both Fort Capon
Fort Capon
Fort Capon or Fort Enoch was a stockade fort erected in 1756 by the Virginia colonial militia located at the confluence of the North River and the Cacapon near present-day Forks of Cacapon in Hampshire County, West Virginia...

 and Fort Cox
Fort Cox
Fort Cox or Cox's Fort was a French and Indian War stockade at the mouth of the Little Cacapon River on the Potomac River near Little Cacapon in Hampshire County, West Virginia.- History :...

 near here before resuming the journey which ended in defeat and death.

Location: U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

 and West Virginia Route 29 (Bloomery Pike
Bloomery Pike
The Bloomery Pike is a north/south named route that runs from the North Frederick Pike in Frederick County, Virginia, USA to the Northwestern Turnpike near Augusta in Hampshire County, West Virginia. The Bloomery Pike was named for the community of Bloomery and the bloomeries that operated...

), near Pleasant Dale
Pleasant Dale, West Virginia
Pleasant Dale is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Pleasant Dale is located between Capon Bridge and Augusta on the Northwestern Turnpike . Tearcoat Creek flows through Pleasant Dale and offers whitewater rafting in the Spring from the U.S. Route 50...

 (missing)

Oriskany Sand

Title: Oriskany Sand

Inscription: The massive sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...

 forming the top of the exposure and the great arch is the Oriskany and the limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....

 below it is the Helderberg
Helderberg Escarpment
The Helderberg Escarpment is an escarpment in eastern New York, roughly west of the city of Albany....

 of the driller and geologist
Geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...

. The "Oriskany Sand", an important gas sand, has produced in excess of a trillion cubic feet of gas in 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...

.

Location: U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

 and County Road 21, about 2 miles east of Pleasant Dale
Pleasant Dale, West Virginia
Pleasant Dale is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Pleasant Dale is located between Capon Bridge and Augusta on the Northwestern Turnpike . Tearcoat Creek flows through Pleasant Dale and offers whitewater rafting in the Spring from the U.S. Route 50...

 (missing)

Blue's Gap

Title: Blue's Gap Battle

Inscription: Confederate
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...

 troops under Captain George F. Sheets were defeated by Colonel S. H. Dunning's 5th Ohio Infantry
5th Ohio Infantry
The 5th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment from southwestern Ohio that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War, serving in both the Eastern and Western Theaters in a series of campaigns and battles....

 here, Jan. 7, 1862. North River
North River (Cacapon River)
North River is a tributary of the Cacapon River, belonging to the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay watersheds. The river is located in Hampshire and Hardy counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle. The mouth of North River into the Cacapon is located at Forks of Cacapon...

 Bridge and a number of buildings were burned by the Federals
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

.

Location: U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

, 14 miles east of Romney
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a city in and the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,940 at the 2000 census, while the area covered by the city's ZIP code had a population of 5,873. It is a city with a very historic background dating back to the 18th century...

 (missing)

West Virginia/Virginia

Title: 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...

/Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...



Inscription: "The Mountain State"--western part of the Commonwealth of Virginia until June 20, 1863. Settled by the Germans
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....

 and Scotch-Irish. It became a line of defense between the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 and French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 during the French and Indian War
French and Indian War
The French and Indian War is the common American name for the war between Great Britain and France in North America from 1754 to 1763. In 1756, the war erupted into the world-wide conflict known as the Seven Years' War and thus came to be regarded as the North American theater of that war...

, 1754-1763.

Named for Queen Elizabeth, the Virgin Queen of England
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...

. Site of the first permanent English settlement
Jamestown Settlement
Jamestown Settlement is a name used by the Commonwealth of Virginia's portion of the historical sites and museums at Jamestown. Jamestown was the first successful English settlement on the mainland of North America...

, 1607, in America. One of the 13 original colonies
Thirteen Colonies
The Thirteen Colonies were English and later British colonies established on the Atlantic coast of North America between 1607 and 1733. They declared their independence in the American Revolution and formed the United States of America...

. Virginia is the birthplace of eight Presidents of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

.

Location: U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

, at state line (missing)

Hampshire County/Hardy County

Title: Hampshire County
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

/Hardy County
Hardy County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 12,669 people, 5,204 households, and 3,564 families residing in the county. The population density was 22 people per square mile . There were 7,115 housing units at an average density of 12 per square mile...



Inscription: Oldest county; established by the Virginia 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,...

, 1754. Formed from Frederick
Frederick County, Virginia
Frederick County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is included in the Winchester, Virginia-West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. It was formed in 1743 by the splitting of Orange County. For ten years it was the home of George Washington. As of 2010, the population was...

 and Augusta
Augusta County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 65,615 people, 24,818 households, and 18,911 families residing in the county. The population density was 68 people per square mile . There were 26,738 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile...

. Lord Fairfax
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron was the son of Thomas Fairfax, 5th Lord Fairfax of Cameron and of Catherine, daughter of Thomas Culpeper, 2nd Baron Culpeper of Thoresway....

, owner, named it for the English shire
Shire
A shire is a traditional term for a division of land, found in the United Kingdom and in Australia. In parts of Australia, a shire is an administrative unit, but it is not synonymous with "county" there, which is a land registration unit. Individually, or as a suffix in Scotland and in the far...

 of the same name
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...

. Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain is a mountain ridge and algific talus slope that is part of a preserve near the community of North River Mills in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States....

 and Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks are perpendicular cliffs rising nearly above the South Branch Potomac River in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Hanging Rocks are located four miles north of Romney at Wappocomo on West Virginia Route 28. Hanging Rocks has also been known throughout its history...

 are among its natural wonders.

Formed from Hampshire
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

 in 1786. Named for distinguished Virginian, Samuel Hardy
Samuel Hardy
Samuel Hardy was an American lawyer and statesman from Virginia, who served as a delegate to the Continental Congress....

. In 1725, John Van Meter of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 visited the South Branch Valley. He praised it highly, so his sons acquired land and settled at Old Fields
Old Fields, West Virginia
Old Fields is an unincorporated community on the South Branch Potomac River in northern Hardy County, West Virginia, USA.According to the Geographic Names Information System, Old Fields has also been known throughout its history as Indian Old Field, Indian Old Fields, and Oldfields.-History:The...

.

Location: U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

, at county line near Intermont
Intermont, West Virginia
Intermont is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County, West Virginia, USA located along West Virginia Route 259 on the Cacapon River. It was originally known as Mutton Run until 1920 when its name was changed to Intermont...

 (missing)

High Knob

Title: High Knob
High Knob (West Virginia)
High Knob is a mountain summit on the border between Hampshire and Hardy counties in West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle. High Knob is known for its overlook of The Trough and of points in three counties. A historical marker was placed on U.S. Route 220/West Virginia Route 28 noting its scenic and...



Inscription: This peak on Hampshire
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

-Hardy
Hardy County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 12,669 people, 5,204 households, and 3,564 families residing in the county. The population density was 22 people per square mile . There were 7,115 housing units at an average density of 12 per square mile...

 line rises a thousand feet above the surrounding hills to a height of more than half a mile. From it can be seen points in three counties. It overlooks "The Trough
The Trough
The Trough is a large river gorge carved by the South Branch Potomac River and situated in the Allegheny Mountains of Hampshire and Hardy Counties, West Virginia, USA...

," famed for its history and scenery.

Location: U.S. Route 220
U.S. Route 220
U.S. Route 220 is a long U.S. Route in the eastern United States.US 220 is a spur route of U.S. Route 20 but at present, the two routes do not intersect nor do they connect via other spurs of US 20. The former U. S. Route 120, which was signed in Pennsylvania between 1926 and 1967, intersected...

 (northbound) south of Hickory Hill Road, near Hampshire
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

-Hardy
Hardy County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 12,669 people, 5,204 households, and 3,564 families residing in the county. The population density was 22 people per square mile . There were 7,115 housing units at an average density of 12 per square mile...

 border

Oriskany Sand

Title: Oriskany Sand

Inscription: The massive sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...

 forming the top of the exposure and the great arch is the Oriskany and the limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....

 below it is the Helderberg
Helderberg Escarpment
The Helderberg Escarpment is an escarpment in eastern New York, roughly west of the city of Albany....

 of the driller and geologist
Geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...

. The "Oriskany Sand", an important gas sand, has produced in excess of a trillion cubic feet of gas in 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...

.

Location: West Virginia Route 28 about 1.5 miles south of Springfield
Springfield, West Virginia
Springfield is an unincorporated census-designated place in northwestern Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2010 census, Springfield had a population of 477. Springfield is located north of Romney along West Virginia Route 28 at its junction with Green Spring Road and...

 (missing)

Hanging Rocks

Title: Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks are perpendicular cliffs rising nearly above the South Branch Potomac River in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Hanging Rocks are located four miles north of Romney at Wappocomo on West Virginia Route 28. Hanging Rocks has also been known throughout its history...



Inscription: Perpendicular cliffs
Cliff
In geography and geology, a cliff is a significant vertical, or near vertical, rock exposure. Cliffs are formed as erosion landforms due to the processes of erosion and weathering that produce them. Cliffs are common on coasts, in mountainous areas, escarpments and along rivers. Cliffs are usually...

 rising nearly 300 feet above the South Branch of the Potomac. The scene of fierce battle between Delaware
Lenape
The Lenape are an Algonquian group of Native Americans of the Northeastern Woodlands. They are also called Delaware Indians. As a result of the American Revolutionary War and later Indian removals from the eastern United States, today the main groups live in Canada, where they are enrolled in the...

 and Catawba
Catawba (tribe)
The Catawba are a federally recognized tribe of Native Americans, known as the Catawba Indian Nation. They live in the Southeast United States, along the border between North and South Carolina near the city of Rock Hill...

 Indians
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...

 about 1736. Also scene of skirmishes between Northern
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

 and Southern
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...

 troops in 1861.

Location: West Virginia Route 28, 4 miles north of Romney
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a city in and the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,940 at the 2000 census, while the area covered by the city's ZIP code had a population of 5,873. It is a city with a very historic background dating back to the 18th century...

 (missing)

Fort Forman

Title: Fort Forman
Fort Forman
Fort Forman was a stockade fort erected by Captain William Foreman at the beginning of the French and Indian War situated three miles north of Romney on the South Branch Potomac River near Vance on West Virginia Route 28...



Inscription: Frontier
Frontier
A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. 'Frontier' was absorbed into English from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"--the region of a country that fronts on another country .The use of "frontier" to mean "a region at the...

 outpost
Outpost (military)
An Outpost in military terminology essentially means a detachment of troops stationed at a distance from the main force or formation, usually at a station in a remote or sparsely populated location, positioned to stand guard against unauthorized intrusions and surprise attacks; and the station...

. From this county, Captain William Forman (Foreman)
William Foreman
Captain William Foreman was a colonial American officer from Hampshire County, Virginia, who was killed during an Indian ambush at the McMechen Narrows on the Ohio River south of Wheeling, Virginia in 1777.-Fort Forman:...

, in 1777, led a company to the relief of Fort Henry at Wheeling
Wheeling, West Virginia
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...

. He, two sons, and many others were killed in an ambush by Indians
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...

 at the "Narrows" near 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...

.

Location: West Virginia Route 28, 3 miles north of Romney
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a city in and the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,940 at the 2000 census, while the area covered by the city's ZIP code had a population of 5,873. It is a city with a very historic background dating back to the 18th century...

 at Vance
Vance, West Virginia
Vance is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Vance lies on the South Branch Potomac River. Most of its residents reside along West Virginia Route 28. Buffalo Creek empties into the South Branch at Vance....


Col. Claudius Crozet/Mechanicsburg Gap

Title: Col. Claudius Crozet
Claudius Crozet
Benoit Claudius Crozet was an educator and civil engineer.Crozet was born in France. After serving in the French military, in 1816, he immigrated to the United States. He taught at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, and helped found the Virginia Military Institute at Lexington,...

/Mechanicsburg Gap
Mechanicsburg Gap
Mechanicsburg Gap is a water gap mountain pass through Mill Creek Mountain in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia....



Inscription: Col. Crozet
Claudius Crozet
Benoit Claudius Crozet was an educator and civil engineer.Crozet was born in France. After serving in the French military, in 1816, he immigrated to the United States. He taught at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York, and helped found the Virginia Military Institute at Lexington,...

, born in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, 1790; came to America, 1816. He taught mathematics at West Point
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...

 six years. Named chief engineer of Virginia (1824); surveyed Northwestern Turnpike
Northwestern Turnpike
The Northwestern Turnpike is a historic road in West Virginia , important for being historically one of the major roads crossing the Appalachians, financed by the Virginia Board of Public Works in the 1830s. In modern times, west of Winchester, Virginia, U.S...

, 1825. Died 1864; buried in Shockee Hills, Richmond
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...

.

Scenic canyon
Canyon
A canyon or gorge is a deep ravine between cliffs often carved from the landscape by a river. Rivers have a natural tendency to reach a baseline elevation, which is the same elevation as the body of water it will eventually drain into. This forms a canyon. Most canyons were formed by a process of...

 cut through Mill Creek Mountain
Mill Creek Mountain
Mill Creek Mountain is a continuous mountain ridge that runs northeast through Hampshire and Hardy counties in the Eastern Panhandle region of the U.S. state of West Virginia. Rising to its greatest elevation of 2,648 feet above sea-level at High Knob, Mill Creek is a folded mountain ridge,...

 by Mill Creek
Mill Creek (North Fork South Branch Potomac River)
Mill Creek is a tributary stream of the North Fork South Branch Potomac River in Pendleton County, West Virginia. Mill Creek rises on the western flanks of North Fork Mountain and from there, flows north through Germany Valley. Its confluence with the North Fork lies at Hinkle Gap between Germany...

. Here an old Indian
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...

 trail
Trail
A trail is a path with a rough beaten or dirt/stone surface used for travel. Trails may be for use only by walkers and in some places are the main access route to remote settlements...

 was the pathway from the Valley of Virginia
Great Appalachian Valley
The Great Valley, also called the Great Appalachian Valley or Great Valley Region, is one of the major landform features of eastern North America. It is a gigantic trough — a chain of valley lowlands — and the central feature of the Appalachian Mountain system...

 to the Alleghenies
Allegheny Mountains
The Allegheny Mountain Range , also spelled Alleghany, Allegany and, informally, the Alleghenies, is part of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range of the eastern United States and Canada...

, then the Northwestern Turnpike
Northwestern Turnpike
The Northwestern Turnpike is a historic road in West Virginia , important for being historically one of the major roads crossing the Appalachians, financed by the Virginia Board of Public Works in the 1830s. In modern times, west of Winchester, Virginia, U.S...

, now the George Washington Highway.

Location: U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

/West Virginia Route 28, 2 miles west of Romney
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a city in and the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,940 at the 2000 census, while the area covered by the city's ZIP code had a population of 5,873. It is a city with a very historic background dating back to the 18th century...

 near Mechanicsburg
Mechanicsburg, West Virginia
Mechanicsburg is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County, West Virginia, in the United States. It is located on the Northwestern Turnpike west of Romney at Mill Creek Gap . Mechanicsburg is the site of "The Burg" , used as a headquarters by both armies during the American Civil War...


Indian Mound

Title: Indian Mound

Inscription: The Indian Mound Cemetery
Indian Mound Cemetery
Indian Mound Cemetery is a cemetery located along the Northwestern Turnpike on a promontory of the "Yellow Banks" overlooking the South Branch Potomac River and Mill Creek Mountain in Romney, West Virginia, United States. The cemetery is centered around a Hopewellian mound, known as the Romney...

, which is 7 feet high and about 15 feet in diameter, is one of the largest remaining mounds
Tumulus
A tumulus is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds, Hügelgrab or kurgans, and can be found throughout much of the world. A tumulus composed largely or entirely of stones is usually referred to as a cairn...

 in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia
Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia
The Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia is a narrow stretch of territory in the northeast of the state, bordering Maryland and Virginia, United States. The Eastern Panhandle Board of Realtors and other local civic organizations consider only the three Easternmost counties, Jefferson, Berkeley and...

. This mound has never been excavated but similar mounds of area dug by Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...

 suggest this mound might date between A.D. 500 and 1000, and have been constructed by Hopewellian peoples.

Location: Just west of Romney
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a city in and the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,940 at the 2000 census, while the area covered by the city's ZIP code had a population of 5,873. It is a city with a very historic background dating back to the 18th century...

, U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

/West Virginia Route 28

"Stonewall" Jackson/Romney in 1861–1865

Title: "Stonewall" Jackson
Stonewall Jackson
ຄຽשת״ׇׂׂׂׂ֣|birth_place= Clarksburg, Virginia |death_place=Guinea Station, Virginia|placeofburial=Stonewall Jackson Memorial CemeteryLexington, Virginia|placeofburial_label= Place of burial|image=...

/Romney in 1861–1865


Inscription: Jackson
Stonewall Jackson
ຄຽשת״ׇׂׂׂׂ֣|birth_place= Clarksburg, Virginia |death_place=Guinea Station, Virginia|placeofburial=Stonewall Jackson Memorial CemeteryLexington, Virginia|placeofburial_label= Place of burial|image=...

 arrived here Jan. 13, 1862, after capturing Bath (Berkeley Springs). Leaving Gen. Loring
William W. Loring
William Wing Loring was a soldier from North Carolina who served in the armies of the United States, the Confederacy, and Egypt.-Early life:...

, he returned to Winchester
Winchester, Virginia
Winchester is an independent city located in the northwestern portion of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the USA. The city's population was 26,203 according to the 2010 Census...

. Loring's protest caused Jackson to resign but he reconsidered and his Valley Campaign followed.

Sitting astride the natural invasion route from the Shenandoah Valley
Shenandoah Valley
The Shenandoah Valley is both a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and West Virginia in the United States. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians , to the north by the Potomac River...

 to the Potomac
Potomac River
The Potomac River flows into the Chesapeake Bay, located along the mid-Atlantic coast of the United States. The river is approximately long, with a drainage area of about 14,700 square miles...

 and B. & O. Railroad
Baltimore 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...

, Romney
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a city in and the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,940 at the 2000 census, while the area covered by the city's ZIP code had a population of 5,873. It is a city with a very historic background dating back to the 18th century...

 was scourged by both armies. No great battles were fought here, but during the War the town changed hands 56 times.

Location: Romney
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a city in and the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,940 at the 2000 census, while the area covered by the city's ZIP code had a population of 5,873. It is a city with a very historic background dating back to the 18th century...

, Hampshire County Courthouse
Hampshire County Courthouse (West Virginia)
The Hampshire County Courthouse is a Neoclassical edifice in the center of downtown Romney, county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia. The present building was constructed in 1922 to replace the previous 1833 Neoclassical courthouse that had been destroyed by fire in 1921...

 square, U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

/West Virginia Route 28

Romney/Early Memorial

Title: Romney
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a city in and the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,940 at the 2000 census, while the area covered by the city's ZIP code had a population of 5,873. It is a city with a very historic background dating back to the 18th century...

/Early Memorial
First Confederate Memorial
The Confederate Memorial in Indian Mound Cemetery at Romney, West Virginia, is considered the first official memorial to Confederate dead to be erected anywhere in the United States of America.-History:...



Inscription: Incorporated
Municipal corporation
A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...

 as a town
Town
A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...

, 1762. Owned and laid off as a town by Lord Fairfax
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron was the son of Thomas Fairfax, 5th Lord Fairfax of Cameron and of Catherine, daughter of Thomas Culpeper, 2nd Baron Culpeper of Thoresway....

. Named for one of the five
Cinque Ports
The Confederation of Cinque Ports is a historic series of coastal towns in Kent and Sussex. It was originally formed for military and trade purposes, but is now entirely ceremonial. It lies at the eastern end of the English Channel, where the crossing to the continent is narrowest...

 English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...

 ports. Not far away was Fort Pearsall
Fort Pearsall
Fort Pearsall was an early frontier fort constructed in 1756 in Romney, West Virginia to protect local settlers in the South Branch Potomac River valley against Native American raids...

, built, 1756, as Indian defense. Town changed military control 56 times, 1861–1865.

In 1866, Confederate Memorial Association was formed here, which on September 26, 1867, dedicated a monument to Confederate soldiers
First Confederate Memorial
The Confederate Memorial in Indian Mound Cemetery at Romney, West Virginia, is considered the first official memorial to Confederate dead to be erected anywhere in the United States of America.-History:...

, one of the first erected anywhere. This was site of Indian cemetery
Indian Mound Cemetery
Indian Mound Cemetery is a cemetery located along the Northwestern Turnpike on a promontory of the "Yellow Banks" overlooking the South Branch Potomac River and Mill Creek Mountain in Romney, West Virginia, United States. The cemetery is centered around a Hopewellian mound, known as the Romney...

 long before white men came.

Location: Romney
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a city in and the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,940 at the 2000 census, while the area covered by the city's ZIP code had a population of 5,873. It is a city with a very historic background dating back to the 18th century...

, Hampshire County Courthouse
Hampshire County Courthouse (West Virginia)
The Hampshire County Courthouse is a Neoclassical edifice in the center of downtown Romney, county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia. The present building was constructed in 1922 to replace the previous 1833 Neoclassical courthouse that had been destroyed by fire in 1921...

 square, U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

/West Virginia Route 28

W. Va. School for Deaf and Blind

Title: W. Va. School for Deaf and Blind
West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind
The West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind were established by an Act of the Legislature on March 3, 1870. The School for the Deaf and the School for the Blind offer comprehensive educational programs for hearing impaired and visually impaired students respectively. There is also a unit for...



Inscription: Established, 1870. The Classical Institute was donated by the Romney Literary Society as the initial building unit. Co-educational school giving academic and vocational training
Vocational education
Vocational education or vocational education and training is an education that prepares trainees for jobs that are based on manual or practical activities, traditionally non-academic, and totally related to a specific trade, occupation, or vocation...

 to the State's deaf and blind
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...

 youth.

Location: Romney
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a city in and the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,940 at the 2000 census, while the area covered by the city's ZIP code had a population of 5,873. It is a city with a very historic background dating back to the 18th century...

, U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

, West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind
West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind
The West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind were established by an Act of the Legislature on March 3, 1870. The School for the Deaf and the School for the Blind offer comprehensive educational programs for hearing impaired and visually impaired students respectively. There is also a unit for...

 campus

Hampshire County/Mineral County

Title: Hampshire County
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

/Mineral County
Mineral County, West Virginia
Mineral County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is part of the Cumberland, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 28,212. Its county seat is Keyser.-Ancient history:...



Inscription: Oldest county. Authorized, 1753, in act effective, May 1, 1754. Formed from Frederick
Frederick County, Virginia
Frederick County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is included in the Winchester, Virginia-West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. It was formed in 1743 by the splitting of Orange County. For ten years it was the home of George Washington. As of 2010, the population was...

 and Augusta
Augusta County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 65,615 people, 24,818 households, and 18,911 families residing in the county. The population density was 68 people per square mile . There were 26,738 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile...

. Lord Fairfax
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron was the son of Thomas Fairfax, 5th Lord Fairfax of Cameron and of Catherine, daughter of Thomas Culpeper, 2nd Baron Culpeper of Thoresway....

, owner, named it for the English shire
Shire
A shire is a traditional term for a division of land, found in the United Kingdom and in Australia. In parts of Australia, a shire is an administrative unit, but it is not synonymous with "county" there, which is a land registration unit. Individually, or as a suffix in Scotland and in the far...

 of the same name
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...

. Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain is a mountain ridge and algific talus slope that is part of a preserve near the community of North River Mills in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States....

 and Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks are perpendicular cliffs rising nearly above the South Branch Potomac River in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Hanging Rocks are located four miles north of Romney at Wappocomo on West Virginia Route 28. Hanging Rocks has also been known throughout its history...

 are among its many natural wonders.

Formed from Hampshire
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

 in 1866 and named for its great mineral deposits. In Mineral County
Mineral County, West Virginia
Mineral County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is part of the Cumberland, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 28,212. Its county seat is Keyser.-Ancient history:...

 is Fort Ashby
Fort Ashby
Fort Ashby is a historic stockade fort located in Fort Ashby, West Virginia. A military installation constructed during the French and Indian War, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places....

, the only standing unit in the chain of frontier
Frontier
A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. 'Frontier' was absorbed into English from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"--the region of a country that fronts on another country .The use of "frontier" to mean "a region at the...

 forts which were built in 1755 under 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...

's order.

Location: West Virginia Route 28 near Springfield
Springfield, West Virginia
Springfield is an unincorporated census-designated place in northwestern Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2010 census, Springfield had a population of 477. Springfield is located north of Romney along West Virginia Route 28 at its junction with Green Spring Road and...


Hampshire County/Mineral County

Title: Hampshire County
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

/Mineral County
Mineral County, West Virginia
Mineral County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is part of the Cumberland, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 28,212. Its county seat is Keyser.-Ancient history:...



Inscription: Oldest county. Authorized, 1753, in act effective, May 1, 1754. Formed from Frederick
Frederick County, Virginia
Frederick County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is included in the Winchester, Virginia-West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. It was formed in 1743 by the splitting of Orange County. For ten years it was the home of George Washington. As of 2010, the population was...

 and Augusta
Augusta County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 65,615 people, 24,818 households, and 18,911 families residing in the county. The population density was 68 people per square mile . There were 26,738 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile...

. Lord Fairfax
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron was the son of Thomas Fairfax, 5th Lord Fairfax of Cameron and of Catherine, daughter of Thomas Culpeper, 2nd Baron Culpeper of Thoresway....

, owner, named it for the English shire
Shire
A shire is a traditional term for a division of land, found in the United Kingdom and in Australia. In parts of Australia, a shire is an administrative unit, but it is not synonymous with "county" there, which is a land registration unit. Individually, or as a suffix in Scotland and in the far...

 of the same name
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...

. Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain is a mountain ridge and algific talus slope that is part of a preserve near the community of North River Mills in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States....

 and Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks are perpendicular cliffs rising nearly above the South Branch Potomac River in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Hanging Rocks are located four miles north of Romney at Wappocomo on West Virginia Route 28. Hanging Rocks has also been known throughout its history...

 are among its many natural wonders.

Formed from Hampshire
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

 in 1866 and named for its great mineral deposits. In Mineral County
Mineral County, West Virginia
Mineral County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is part of the Cumberland, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 28,212. Its county seat is Keyser.-Ancient history:...

 is Fort Ashby
Fort Ashby
Fort Ashby is a historic stockade fort located in Fort Ashby, West Virginia. A military installation constructed during the French and Indian War, it is listed on the National Register of Historic Places....

, the only standing unit in the chain of frontier
Frontier
A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. 'Frontier' was absorbed into English from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"--the region of a country that fronts on another country .The use of "frontier" to mean "a region at the...

 forts which were built in 1755 under 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...

's order.

Location: U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

/U.S. Route 220
U.S. Route 220
U.S. Route 220 is a long U.S. Route in the eastern United States.US 220 is a spur route of U.S. Route 20 but at present, the two routes do not intersect nor do they connect via other spurs of US 20. The former U. S. Route 120, which was signed in Pennsylvania between 1926 and 1967, intersected...

 near Junction
Junction, West Virginia
Junction is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Historically referred to as Moorefield Junction, Junction received its name because of its location at the crossroads of U.S. Highway 220/West Virginia Route 28 and the Northwestern Turnpike...

 (missing)

Hampshire County/Hardy County

Title: Hampshire County
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

/Hardy County
Hardy County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 12,669 people, 5,204 households, and 3,564 families residing in the county. The population density was 22 people per square mile . There were 7,115 housing units at an average density of 12 per square mile...



Inscription: Oldest county. Authorized, 1753, in act effective, May 1, 1754. Formed from Frederick
Frederick County, Virginia
Frederick County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is included in the Winchester, Virginia-West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. It was formed in 1743 by the splitting of Orange County. For ten years it was the home of George Washington. As of 2010, the population was...

 and Augusta
Augusta County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 65,615 people, 24,818 households, and 18,911 families residing in the county. The population density was 68 people per square mile . There were 26,738 housing units at an average density of 28 per square mile...

. Lord Fairfax
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron was the son of Thomas Fairfax, 5th Lord Fairfax of Cameron and of Catherine, daughter of Thomas Culpeper, 2nd Baron Culpeper of Thoresway....

, owner, named it for the English shire
Shire
A shire is a traditional term for a division of land, found in the United Kingdom and in Australia. In parts of Australia, a shire is an administrative unit, but it is not synonymous with "county" there, which is a land registration unit. Individually, or as a suffix in Scotland and in the far...

 of the same name
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...

. Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain is a mountain ridge and algific talus slope that is part of a preserve near the community of North River Mills in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States....

 and Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks
Hanging Rocks are perpendicular cliffs rising nearly above the South Branch Potomac River in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Hanging Rocks are located four miles north of Romney at Wappocomo on West Virginia Route 28. Hanging Rocks has also been known throughout its history...

 are among its many natural wonders.

Formed from Hampshire
Hampshire County, West Virginia
Hampshire County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2010, the population was 23,964. Its county seat is Romney, West Virginia's oldest town . Hampshire County was created by the Virginia General Assembly on December 13, 1753, from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties ...

 in 1786. Named for distinguished Virginian, Samuel Hardy
Samuel Hardy
Samuel Hardy was an American lawyer and statesman from Virginia, who served as a delegate to the Continental Congress....

. In 1725, John Van Meter of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

 visited the South Branch Valley. He praised it highly, so his sons acquired land and settled at Old Fields
Old Fields, West Virginia
Old Fields is an unincorporated community on the South Branch Potomac River in northern Hardy County, West Virginia, USA.According to the Geographic Names Information System, Old Fields has also been known throughout its history as Indian Old Field, Indian Old Fields, and Oldfields.-History:The...

.

Location: U.S. Route 220
U.S. Route 220
U.S. Route 220 is a long U.S. Route in the eastern United States.US 220 is a spur route of U.S. Route 20 but at present, the two routes do not intersect nor do they connect via other spurs of US 20. The former U. S. Route 120, which was signed in Pennsylvania between 1926 and 1967, intersected...

 near Purgitsville
Purgitsville, West Virginia
Purgitsville is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. According to the 2000 census, the ZCTA for Purgitsville had a population of 813. Purgitsville is located on U.S. Highway 220/West Virginia Route 28 at its intersection with Huffman Road south of...

 (missing)

Pin Oak Fountain

Title: Pin Oak Fountain
Pin Oak Fountain
The Pin Oak Fountain was built in the U.S. state of West Virginia by the West Virginia State Road Commission and local artisans in 1932 on land given by H.R. Edeburn. The crystal quartz used in construction was quarried from behind nearby Bloomery Iron Furnace on Diamond Ridge, and the stone from...



Inscription: Built by State Road Comm. and local artisans in 1932; land given by H.R. Edeburn. Crystal
Crystal
A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituent atoms, molecules, or ions are arranged in an orderly repeating pattern extending in all three spatial dimensions. The scientific study of crystals and crystal formation is known as crystallography...

 quartz
Quartz
Quartz is the second-most-abundant mineral in the Earth's continental crust, after feldspar. It is made up of a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall formula SiO2. There are many different varieties of quartz,...

 quarried from behind nearby Bloomery iron furnace, and stone from hillside behind the fountain
Fountain
A fountain is a piece of architecture which pours water into a basin or jets it into the air either to supply drinking water or for decorative or dramatic effect....

. Spring water
Spring (hydrosphere)
A spring—also known as a rising or resurgence—is a component of the hydrosphere. Specifically, it is any natural situation where water flows to the surface of the earth from underground...

, gravity fed from hill above, supplied area residents and travelers. Fountain was popular site for picnics, dances, courting, & auctions. Restored in 1988 and maintained by Pin Oak Extension Homemakers Club.

Location: West Virginia Route 29, Pin Oak
Pin Oak, West Virginia
Pin Oak is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Pin Oak is located along West Virginia Route 29 between Paw Paw and Forks of Cacapon. Pin Oak is roughly centered at the intersection of Pin Oak Road and Cabin Run Road with West Virginia Route 29...

, eight miles south of Paw Paw
Paw Paw, West Virginia
Paw Paw is a town in Morgan County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 524 at the 2000 census. The town is known for the nearby Paw Paw Tunnel. Paw Paw was incorporated by the Circuit Court of Morgan County on April 8, 1891 and named for the pawpaw, a wild fruit which formerly grew in...


Ice Mountain

Title: Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain
Ice Mountain is a mountain ridge and algific talus slope that is part of a preserve near the community of North River Mills in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States....



Inscription: Huge natural refrigerator, five miles north along North River
North River (Cacapon River)
North River is a tributary of the Cacapon River, belonging to the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay watersheds. The river is located in Hampshire and Hardy counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle. The mouth of North River into the Cacapon is located at Forks of Cacapon...

, where ice is found for several hundred yards on the hottest summer days. Raven Rock, on North Mountain
North River Mountain
North River Mountain is a mountain ridge that runs southwest to northeast in Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. Named for the North River that parallels its western flanks for its entire length, North River Mountain reaches its highest elevation of near the community of Delray. North...

, offers one of the finest views in 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...

.

Location: U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

, at junction with West Virginia Route 29 North, near Pleasant Dale
Pleasant Dale, West Virginia
Pleasant Dale is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Pleasant Dale is located between Capon Bridge and Augusta on the Northwestern Turnpike . Tearcoat Creek flows through Pleasant Dale and offers whitewater rafting in the Spring from the U.S. Route 50...


Capon Chapel
Capon Chapel
Capon Chapel and its cemetery are located one and a half miles south of Capon Bridge in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia on Christian Church Road ....

Title: Capon Chapel
Capon Chapel
Capon Chapel and its cemetery are located one and a half miles south of Capon Bridge in Hampshire County in the U.S. state of West Virginia on Christian Church Road ....



Inscription: Early settlers gathered at this spot under a large oak tree for religious occasions and family burials. Beneath the boards covering Capon Chapel is the original log structure built in the 1750s. It is one of the oldest church buildings in W. Va. still standing. The oldest graves are located in what is now lawn and parking area. The fieldstone markers were lost over the years.

Location: Christian Church Road (County Route 13) near Capon Bridge
Capon Bridge, West Virginia
Capon Bridge is a town located in eastern Hampshire County, West Virginia along the Northwestern Turnpike , approximately twenty miles west of Winchester, Virginia. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 2,178, 200 of which live within the town limits. Originally known as Glencoe, Capon...


Whipple Truss

Title: Historic Whipple Truss

Inscription: Built in 1874 on U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...

 near Romney
Romney, West Virginia
Romney is a city in and the county seat of Hampshire County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 1,940 at the 2000 census, while the area covered by the city's ZIP code had a population of 5,873. It is a city with a very historic background dating back to the 18th century...

 and re-erected at the present site in 1939. In use until 1991, and made an historic site by the WVDOT
West Virginia Department of Transportation
The West Virginia Department of Transportation is the state agency responsible for transportation in West Virginia. The Department of Transportation serves an umbrella organization for seven subsidiary agencies which are directly responsible for different areas of the state's...

 in 1992. It is the oldest of the few Whipple Trusses left in WV.

Location: West Virginia Route 259 in Capon Lake
Capon Lake, West Virginia
Capon Lake is an unincorporated community in Hampshire County of West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle region. Capon Lake is situated between Yellow Spring and Intermont at the junction of West Virginia Route 259 and Capon Springs Road along the Cacapon River. Capon Springs Run empties into the...


External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK