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Wheeling, West Virginia

 

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Wheeling, West Virginia



 
 
Wheeling is a city in Marshall
Marshall County, West Virginia

Marshall County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia, Wheeling metropolitan area. As of 2000, the population was 35,519....
 and Ohio
Ohio County, West Virginia

Ohio County is a county located in the northern panhandle of the U.S. state of West Virginia. Formed from the District of West Augusta, Virginia, in 1776....
 counties in the U.S. state
U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 state of the United States that share sovereignty with the federal government of the United States . Because of this shared sovereignty, an United States is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of Domicile ....
 of West Virginia
West Virginia

West Virginia is a U.S. state in the Appalachian, Upland South, and Mid-Atlantic States regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia on the southeast, Kentucky on the southwest, Ohio on the northwest, and Pennsylvania and Maryland on the northeast....
. Most of the city lies in Ohio County, for which it is the county seat
County seat

A county seat or parish seat is a term for an administrative center for a county or civil parish, primarily used in the United States. In the Northeast United States, the statutory term often is shire town, but colloquially county seat is the term in use there....
. Wheeling is considered part of the Pittsburgh Tri-State
Pittsburgh Tri-State

The Pittsburgh Tri-State is the U.S. region that is centered around the transportation, medical, academic, economic, media and federal resources based in Pittsburgh....
 area and is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area
Wheeling metropolitan area

The Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of two counties in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia of West Virginia and one in Ohio, anchored by the city of Wheeling, West Virginia....
. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 31,419 (31,059 in Ohio County, 360 in Marshall County). The population was estimated at 29,101 in 2007 . Wheeling was originally a settlement in the British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 Colony of Virginia
Colony and Dominion of Virginia

The Colony of Virginia was the English colony in North America that existed briefly during the 16th century, and then continuously from 1607 until the American Revolution ....
 and later an important city in the Commonwealth of Virginia until 1861 when the western counties of Virginia seceded from the state.






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Encyclopedia


Wheeling is a city in Marshall
Marshall County, West Virginia

Marshall County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia, Wheeling metropolitan area. As of 2000, the population was 35,519....
 and Ohio
Ohio County, West Virginia

Ohio County is a county located in the northern panhandle of the U.S. state of West Virginia. Formed from the District of West Augusta, Virginia, in 1776....
 counties in the U.S. state
U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 state of the United States that share sovereignty with the federal government of the United States . Because of this shared sovereignty, an United States is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of Domicile ....
 of West Virginia
West Virginia

West Virginia is a U.S. state in the Appalachian, Upland South, and Mid-Atlantic States regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia on the southeast, Kentucky on the southwest, Ohio on the northwest, and Pennsylvania and Maryland on the northeast....
. Most of the city lies in Ohio County, for which it is the county seat
County seat

A county seat or parish seat is a term for an administrative center for a county or civil parish, primarily used in the United States. In the Northeast United States, the statutory term often is shire town, but colloquially county seat is the term in use there....
. Wheeling is considered part of the Pittsburgh Tri-State
Pittsburgh Tri-State

The Pittsburgh Tri-State is the U.S. region that is centered around the transportation, medical, academic, economic, media and federal resources based in Pittsburgh....
 area and is the principal city of the Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area
Wheeling metropolitan area

The Wheeling Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of two counties in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia of West Virginia and one in Ohio, anchored by the city of Wheeling, West Virginia....
. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 31,419 (31,059 in Ohio County, 360 in Marshall County). The population was estimated at 29,101 in 2007 . Wheeling was originally a settlement in the British
United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
 Colony of Virginia
Colony and Dominion of Virginia

The Colony of Virginia was the English colony in North America that existed briefly during the 16th century, and then continuously from 1607 until the American Revolution ....
 and later an important city in the Commonwealth of Virginia until 1861 when the western counties of Virginia seceded from the state. Wheeling was the location of the Wheeling Convention
Wheeling Convention

The 1861 Wheeling Convention was held at West Virginia Independence Hall in Wheeling, West Virginia. The convention was a series of two meetings that ultimately repealed the Ordinance of Secession passed by Virginia, thus establishing the Restored government of Virginia, which ultimately authorized the counties that organized the conve...
, which established the state of West Virginia, and was the first capital of West Virginia. The capital moved so often in its early years that it was nicknamed the "floating capital". In 1870, the State Legislature designated Charleston as the capital city. In 1875, the Legislature reversed their decision and voted to return the Capital to Wheeling. This was appealed by the citizens of Charleston and finally settled by the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals in favor of Wheeling. In 1877 the Legislature ordered an election to be held for the citizens of West Virginia to select a permanent location for the capital, choosing between Charleston, Martinsburg and Clarksburg. By proclamation of the governor, the official move took place eight years later, and in 1885 the capital moved from Wheeling to Charleston, where it has remained.

History


Discovery

The origins of the name "Wheeling" are disputed. One of the more credible explanations is that the word comes from the Lenni-Lenape phrase "wih link", which meant "place of the head." This supposedly referred to a white settler who was scalped and decapitated. His severed head was left on display at the confluence of Wheeling Creek
Wheeling Creek (West Virginia)

Wheeling Creek is a tributary of the Ohio River, 25 miles long, in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia in the United States, with a drainage basin extending into southwestern Pennsylvania....
 and the Ohio River
Ohio River

The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. It is approximately 981 miles long and is located in the eastern United States....
. Originally explored by the French, Wheeling still has a lead plate remnant buried by Celeron de Bienville
Celeron de Bienville

Pierre-Joseph C?loron de Blainville was a French Canadian officer. In 1739-1740 he led a detachment to Louisiana to fight the Chickasaw in the abortive Chickasaw Campaign of 1739....
 in 1749 at the mouth of Wheeling Creek. Later, Christopher Gist
Christopher Gist

Christopher Gist was one of the first whites explorers of the Ohio Country in what would become the United States. He was credited with providing the first detailed description of the Ohio Country to Kingdom of Great Britain and her colonists....
 and even George Washington
George Washington

George Washington was the leader of the Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War and served as the List of Presidents of the United States President of the United States of the United States of Americas ....
 surveyed the land in 1751 and 1770, respectively.

Establishment

During the fall of 1769, Ebenezer Zane
Ebenezer Zane

Ebenezer Zane was an United States pioneer, road builder and land speculator. Born in what is now Moorefield, West Virginia, West Virginia , Zane established the settlement known as Fort Henry in Wheeling, West Virginia on the Ohio River....
 explored the Wheeling area and established claim to the land via "tomahawk rights
Tomahawk rights

During early period of frontier settlements in the United States, a "tomahawk right," was viewed by settlers as a way to claim title to a tract of land....
" (a process of deadening a few trees near the head of a spring, and marking the bark with the initials of the name of the person who made the claim). He returned the following spring with his wife, Elizabeth, and his younger brothers, Jonathan and Silas, and established the first permanent settlement in the Wheeling area. The settlement was called Zanesburg. Other notable families joined the settlement, including the Shepherds (see Monument Place
Shepherd Hall (Monument Place)

Shepherd Hall is a historic home listed on the National Register of Historic Places in the city of Wheeling, West Virginia in the U.S. state of West Virginia....
), the Wetzels, and the McCollochs (see McColloch's Leap
McColloch's Leap

In September 1777, during an Indian siege on Fort Henry in Wheeling, West Virginia, Major Samuel McColloch arrived at the fort with forty mounted men from Short Creek....
). In 1793, Ebenzer Zane divided the town into lots, and Wheeling was officially established as a town in 1795 by legislative enactment. The town was incorporated January 16th, 1805. On March 11th, 1836, the town of Wheeling was incorporated into the city of Wheeling.

By an act of the Virginia General Assembly
Virginia General Assembly

The Virginia General Assembly is the State legislature of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The General Assembly is a bicameralism body consisting of a lower house, the Virginia House of Delegates, with 100 members, and an upper house, the Senate of Virginia, with 40 members....
 on December 27, 1797, Wheeling was named the county seat of Ohio County
Ohio County, West Virginia

Ohio County is a county located in the northern panhandle of the U.S. state of West Virginia. Formed from the District of West Augusta, Virginia, in 1776....
.

Fort Henry

Originally dubbed Fort Fincastle in 1774, the fort was later renamed Fort Henry
Fort Henry (Virginia)

Fort Henry was an England frontier fort in 17th century Virginia Colony near the falls of the Appomattox River. Its exact location has been debated, but the most popular one is on a bluff about four blocks north of the corner of W....
 in honor of Virginia's American Governor Patrick Henry
Patrick Henry

Patrick Henry was a prominent figure in the American Revolution, known and remembered for his "Give me Liberty, or give me Death!" speech. Along with Samuel Adams and Thomas Paine, he is remembered as one of the most influential advocates of the American Revolution and Republicanism in the United States, especially in his denunciations of c...
. In 1777, Native American of the Shawnee
Shawnee

The Shawnee, Shaawanwaki, Shaawanooki and Shaawanowi lenaweeki, are a people native to North America. They originally inhabited the areas of Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Western Maryland, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania....
, Wyandot
Wyandot

The Wyandot and Huron are indigenous peoples of North America of North America known in their Wyandot language as the Wendat. Modern Wyandots and Hurons emerged in the 17th century from the remnants of two earlier groups, the Huron Confederacy and the Petun....
 and Mingo
Mingo

The Mingo are an Iroquoian languages group of Native Americans in the United States that migrated west to the Ohio Country in the mid-eighteenth century....
 tribes joined to attack settlements along the Ohio River
Ohio River

The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. It is approximately 981 miles long and is located in the eastern United States....
. Local men later joined by recruits from Fort Shepherd (in Elm Grove) and Fort Holliday defended the fort. The native force subsequently burned the surrounding cabins and destroyed livestock.

During the first attack of the year, Major Samuel McColloch led a small force of men from Fort Vanmetre along Short Creek
Short Creek, West Virginia

Short Creek is an unincorporated town in Brooke County, West Virginia, West Virginia, USA.External links ...
 to assist the besieged Fort Henry. McColloch was separated from his men and was chased by attacking Indians. Upon his horse, McColloch charged up Wheeling Hill and made what is known as McColloch's Leap down its eastern side. In 1782, a native army along with some British soldiers attempted to take Fort Henry. During this siege, Fort Henry's supply of ammunition was exhausted. The defenders decided to dispatch one of its men to secure more ammunition from the Zane homestead. Betty Zane
Betty Zane

Elizabeth "Betty" Zane was a heroine of the American Revolutionary War on the American frontier. She was the sister of Ebenezer Zane and his brother Isaac, and a direct aunt of the author Zane Grey....
 volunteered for the dangerous task. During her departing run, she was heckled by both native and British soldiers. Upon successfully reaching the Zane homestead, she gathered a table cloth and filled it with gunpowder. During her return, she was fired upon but was uninjured. It is believed that one bullet did, in fact, pierce her clothing. As a result of Zane's heroism, Fort Henry remained in American control.

Geography

Downtown Wheeling Wv
Wheeling is located at (40.070348, -80.698604). According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau

The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data....
, the city has a total area of 15.8 square miles (41.0 km²), of which, 13.9 square miles (36.0 km²) of it is land and 1.9 square miles (4.9 km²) of it (12.07%) is water.

Wheeling is located in Northern West Virginia, on what is known as the northern panhandle. It is directly across the river from the state of Ohio
Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern United States U.S. state of the United States. As part of the Great Lakes region , Ohio has long been a cultural and geographical crossroads in North America....
 and only west of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , often colloquially referred to as PA by natives and Northeasterners, is a U.S. state located in the Northeastern United States and Mid-Atlantic States regions of the United States....
. It is a part of the Tri-State bordering area of Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, which is commonly referred to as the Ohio River Valley Region or "The Ohio Valley".

Wheeling Creek
Wheeling Creek (West Virginia)

Wheeling Creek is a tributary of the Ohio River, 25 miles long, in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia in the United States, with a drainage basin extending into southwestern Pennsylvania....
 flows through the city, and meets the Ohio River
Ohio River

The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. It is approximately 981 miles long and is located in the eastern United States....
 in downtown Wheeling.

The city is located both on the West Virginia
West Virginia

West Virginia is a U.S. state in the Appalachian, Upland South, and Mid-Atlantic States regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia on the southeast, Kentucky on the southwest, Ohio on the northwest, and Pennsylvania and Maryland on the northeast....
 side of the Ohio River
Ohio River

The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. It is approximately 981 miles long and is located in the eastern United States....
 and on an island
Island

An island or isle is any piece of land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls are called islets....
 in the middle of the river called Wheeling Island
Wheeling Island

Wheeling Island is the largest inhabited island in the Ohio River. It lies within the city of Wheeling, West Virginia in Ohio County, West Virginia, West Virginia, in the United States....
.

Demographics

As of the census
Census

A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population....
 of 2000, there were 31,419 people, 13,719 households, and 7,806 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density

Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans....
 was 2,258.4 people per square mile (872.1/km²). There were 15,706 housing units at an average density of 1,128.9/sq mi (436.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.72% White, 4.99% African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.91% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.16% from other races
Race (United States Census)

Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the United States Census Bureau and the Federal Office of Management and Budget , are Self-concept data items in which residents choose the Race in the United States or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are of Hispanic or Latino origin ....
, and 1.09% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.58% of the population.

There were 13,719 households out of which 23.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 41.8% were married couples
Marriage

Marriage is a social, spirituality, or law union of individuals. This union may also be called matrimony, while the ceremony that marks its beginning is usually called a wedding and the married status created is sometimes called wedlock....
 living together, 12.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43.1% were non-families. 38.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.17 and the average family size was 2.89.

In the city the population was spread out with 20.6% under the age of 18, 9.1% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 24.5% from 45 to 64, and 21.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 84.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $27,388, and the median income for a family was $38,708. Males had a median income of $30,750 versus $22,099 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income

Per capita income means how much each individual receives, in monetary terms, of the yearly income generated in the country. This is what each citizen is to receive if the yearly national income is divided equally among everyone....
 for the city was $17,923. About 13.1% of families and 18.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.3% of those under age 18 and 11.2% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Under West Virginia law, cities may adopt the Manager-Mayor Plan. The elected mayor presides over meetings of the Wheeling City Council, which has six members elected from geographic wards. City Council members serve four-year terms. The City Council also confirms executive nominations for members to various boards which have limited regulatory authority including the Planning Commission, the Board of Zoning Appeals, and the Traffic Commission. The City Manager serves as Chief Executive and Administrative officer for the city. The current Mayor of Wheeling is Andy McKenzie, and the current City Manager of Wheeling is Robert Herron. The current members of City Council are Gloria Delbrugge (1st Ward), Vernon Seals (2nd Ward), Robert E. "Herk" Henry (3rd Ward), James Tiu (4th Ward), Don Atkinson (5th Ward), and Vice-Mayor Eugene Fahey (6th Ward). City elections were held on May 13, 2008, and the current term began on July 1, 2008. City elections will be held again in 2012.

Attractions

Wvindependencehall
Buildings Downtownwheelingwv

Historical Buildings

The city of Wheeling has a rich and varied history. West Virginia Independence Hall
West Virginia Independence Hall

West Virginia Independence Hall is located in Wheeling, West Virginia. During the American Civil War it housed the Wheeling Convention as well as the West Virginia Constitutional Convention ....
 was the site of the Wheeling Convention
Wheeling Convention

The 1861 Wheeling Convention was held at West Virginia Independence Hall in Wheeling, West Virginia. The convention was a series of two meetings that ultimately repealed the Ordinance of Secession passed by Virginia, thus establishing the Restored government of Virginia, which ultimately authorized the counties that organized the conve...
 From 1861-1863, the building housed heated debates on the Virginia Ordinance of Secession
Ordinance of Secession

The Ordinance of Secession was the document drafted and ratified in 1860 and 1861 by the states officially secession from the United States. Each state ratified its own ordinance of secession, typically by means of a specially elected Political convention or general referendum....
, the First Constitutional Convention of West Virginia, and naming the State. Recently, Governor Joe Manchin
Joe Manchin

Joseph "Joe" Manchin III is an United States politician from the State of West Virginia. Manchin was elected Governor of West Virginia in the 2004 election and took office on January 17, 2005; he was reelected in 2008....
 announced a plan to divert $1 million in state funding to Independence Hall for renovations.

Wheeling is home to Centre Market, formerly Wheeling's market house. Built in 1853, the market house and the surrounding area are today home to shops and restaurants.

Parks and Recreation

Wheeling features several municipal parks including Oglebay Resort & Conference Center
Oglebay Park

Oglebay Park is a self supporting public municipal park, the only one of its kind, located in Wheeling, West Virginia, located on 1,650 acres . Originally known as Waddington Farms, it was donated to the city of Wheeling in 1926 by Earl W....
 and Wheeling Park
Wheeling Park

Wheeling Park is a park located in Wheeling, West Virginia. The park first opened in 1925. The park was originally only open during the warmer months....
. Ohio County is also home to six golf
Golf

Golf is a sport in which players using many types of Golf club including wood , iron , and putter , attempt to hit golf ball into each hole on a golf course in the lowest possible number of strokes....
 courses including designs by renowned golfer Arnold Palmer
Arnold Palmer

Arnold Daniel Palmer is an United States professional golfer who is generally regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of men's professional golfer....
 and architect Robert Trent Jones
Robert Trent Jones

Robert Trent Jones, Sr. was a golf course architect who designed about 500 golf courses in at least 40 US states and 35 other countries all around the world....
. The Wheeling Suspension Bridge
Wheeling Suspension Bridge

The Wheeling Suspension Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the main channel of the Ohio River at Wheeling, West Virginia. It was the List of largest suspension bridges in the world from 1849 until the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge was opened in 1851....
, which was once the longest suspension bridge
Suspension bridge

A suspension bridge is a type of bridge where the main load-bearing elements are hung from suspension cables. While modern suspension bridges with level decks date from the early 19th century, earlier types are reported from the 3rd century BC....
 in the world, connects downtown Wheeling to Wheeling Island.

In October 2007 the City of Wheeling opened the State's first concrete skateboard park. The facility was designed and built by world-renowned skatepark builder, Grindline, of Seattle, Washington. The park consists of 60% bowls and 40% street elements and is located within the Chambers Ballfield Complex in the Elm Grove section of the City. Additional amenities, including a covered shelter, restrooms, and webcam are scheduled to be installed in late 2008.

Education

B&obuilding


K-12


As elsewhere in West Virginia, K-12 schools are organized at the county level of government. The public school system, Ohio County Schools, consists of 14 schools. There are nine elementary schools, four middle schools, and Wheeling Park High School
Wheeling Park High School

Wheeling Park High School is a high school in Wheeling, West Virginia, United States, and is the only public high school serving Ohio County, West Virginia....
. There also exist several private and parochial schools including Wheeling Central Catholic High School
Wheeling Central Catholic High School

Wheeling Central Catholic High School is a Parochial school, Roman Catholic high school in Wheeling, West Virginia. It is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston....
, and the Linsly School
Linsly Military Institute

Linsly Military Institute was founded in the Ohio River Valley in 1814 by Noah Linsly. The school is the oldest preparatory school west of the Alleghenies....
.

Colleges and Universities


Wheeling is the hub of higher education in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia. Wheeling Jesuit University
Wheeling Jesuit University

Wheeling Jesuit University is a private, co-educational Roman Catholic university in the United States. Located in Wheeling, West Virginia, it was founded as Wheeling College in 1954 by the Society of Jesus ....
, a private Jesuit
Society of Jesus

The Society of Jesus is a Roman Catholic religious order of clerks regular whose members are called Jesuits, Soldiers of Jesus Christ, and Foot soldiers of the Pope, because the founder, Saint Ignatius of Loyola, was a knight before becoming a Holy Orders....
 university and the only Catholic college in the state of West Virginia, is located in Wheeling. The main campus of West Virginia Northern Community College
West Virginia Northern Community College

West Virginia Northern Community College is a public, multi-campus community college with the main campus located in downtown Wheeling, West Virginia....
 has recently been expanding throughout downtown Wheeling and focuses on job training and community development. Also located within close proximity to the city are West Liberty State College
West Liberty State College

West Liberty State College is a state college located in West Liberty, West Virginia, West Virginia near Wheeling, West Virginia.A four-year college offering a variety of degrees, WLSC was approved to become a "university" by the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission in November 2008 ....
, a public four-year college
College

File:Government college for Women Dhoke Kala Khan.JPGCollege is a term most often used today to denote an education institution. More broadly, it can be the name of any group of collegialitys, for example, an electoral college, a College of Arms or the College of Cardinals....
 and private Bethany College
Bethany College (West Virginia)

Bethany College, is a private liberal arts college in the hills of Bethany, West Virginia. Founded in 1840, it is West Virginia's second oldest degree-granting institution....
 giving area residents a wide variety of educational options.

Entertainment


Music


Wheeling has an old-style theater, the Capitol Music Hall. The Music Hall, opened in 1928, featured a 2,450 seat auditorium. The Music Hall was home to a popular radio program in the early forties, It's Wheeling Steel, featuring musical performances by workers at a local steel plant. The Capitol Music Hall also featured country artists such as Johnny Cash, June Carter-Cash, Merle Haggard, Tammy Wynette, and the Joneses. Currently, the Capitol Music Hall welcomes musical performances of all types. It is the former performance hall of the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra
Wheeling Symphony Orchestra

The Wheeling Symphony Orchestra is an United States orchestra based in Wheeling, West Virginia, West Virginia. Since its founding in 1929, the orchestra has performed at the Capitol Music Hall....
, but plans were announced in February 2009 to return to the Capitol by the start of the 2009-2010 season. It has also served as the home for Jamboree USA. The Capitol Music Hall is the largest theatre in the state of West Virginia
West Virginia

West Virginia is a U.S. state in the Appalachian, Upland South, and Mid-Atlantic States regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia on the southeast, Kentucky on the southwest, Ohio on the northwest, and Pennsylvania and Maryland on the northeast....
, with some 2,500 seats. The Capitol Music Hall was sold by Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications

Clear Channel Communications is a Mass media list of conglomerates company based in the United States. Clear Channel, founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, wields considerable influence in radio broadcasting, concert promotion and hosting, and fixed advertising in the United States through its subsidiaries....
 to LiveNation in the Spring of 2005. After LiveNation purchased the Capitol Music Hall, it remained largely dormant although a few limited engagements were held. Moreover, in August 2007, the Capitol Music Hall was closed due to several fire and building code violations. On February 5, 2009, the Wheeling Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) announced that it would purchase the Capitol Musical Hall from Live Nation at a cost of $615,000.

Held in nearby Belmont County Jamboree In The Hills
Jamboree in the Hills

Jamboree In The Hills, also known as the "Super Bowl of Country Music," is a four-day-long festival of country music held annually in the rolling hills of st....
 draws over 100,000 country music fans to the Wheeling area every July.

During the summer months the is the home to numerous festivals, concerts, movie nights, celebrations, a regatta and numerous visits from the Delta, Mississippi and American Queens. It holds over 8,000 spectators and has become a focal point to the City.

Sports


Wheeling is also home to the Wheeling Nailers
Wheeling Nailers

The Wheeling Nailers are an ECHL ice hockey team based in Wheeling, West Virginia.The Wheeling Nailers are the ECHL Affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins of the NHL and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the American Hockey League....
 hockey
Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to simply as hockey, is a team sport played on ice. It is a fast paced and physical sport. Ice hockey is most popular in areas that are sufficiently cold for natural reliable seasonal ice cover such as Canada, the northern United States, Scandinavia and Russia, though with the advent of indoor artificial ice r...
 team. The Nailers play in the WesBanco Arena
WesBanco Arena

The WesBanco Arena is a 5,500-seat multi-purpose arena in Wheeling, West Virginia, USA built in 1977. It is home to the Wheeling Nailers ice hockey team and the Ohio Valley Athletic Conference wrestling tournament....
 (formerly the Wheeling Civic Center), and participate in the North division, American Conference of the ECHL
ECHL

The ECHL is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Princeton, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada, generally regarded as a tier below the American Hockey League....
. High school football
American football

American football, known in the United States and Canada simply as football, is a competitive team sport known for mixing strategy with physical play....
 and soccer are played at Wheeling Island Stadium
Wheeling Island Stadium

Wheeling Island Stadium is a stadium located on Wheeling Island in Wheeling, West Virginia. The stadium seats 12,220 in two stands along either sidelines, the end zones are empty....
. Formerly home to the Ohio Valley Greyhounds
Ohio Valley Greyhounds

The Ohio Valley Greyhounds are a professional indoor football team. They began play in 1999 as the Steel Valley Smash, a charter member of the Indoor Football League....
, Wheeling will once again be home to an indoor football team in 2009. Recently, the team name was revealed to the Wildcats
Wheeling Wildcats

The Wheeling Wildcats are a professional indoor football team located in Wheeling, West Virginia and beginning play in the Continental Indoor Football League's 2009 season....
, and the team will play in the Continental Indoor Football League .

Live Racing and Gaming


Wheeling is the home of Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack
Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack

Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack is located on Wheeling Island in the middle of the Ohio River, which is a part of the city of Wheeling, West Virginia....
 located on Wheeling Island
Wheeling Island

Wheeling Island is the largest inhabited island in the Ohio River. It lies within the city of Wheeling, West Virginia in Ohio County, West Virginia, West Virginia, in the United States....
. Formerly Wheeling Downs the facility features live greyhound
Greyhound

The Greyhound is a dog breed of hunting dog that has been primarily bred for coursing game and Greyhound racing, but with a recent resurgence of popularity increasingly as a pedigree show dog and family pet....
 racing and slots
Slot machine

A slot machine , fruit machine , or poker machine is a casino gambling machine with three or more reels which spin when a button is pushed....
.

Table Gaming

In accordance with adopted on March 8, 2007, Ohio County and Jefferson County
Jefferson County, West Virginia

Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2000, the population was 42,190. Its county seat is Charles Town, West Virginia....
 held special elections on June 9, 2007 to approve the legalization of table games within the respective counties. The Ohio County measure passed, but the Jefferson County one failed. A similar measure was successfully adopted in Hancock County
Hancock County, West Virginia

Hancock County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2000, the population was 32,667. Its county seat is New Cumberland, West Virginia....
 on June 30, 2007.

Media

016 13a
Due to its close proximity to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh is the second largest city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania with a population of 312,819. The population of the seven-county metropolitan area is 2,462,571....
, Wheeling is heavily influenced by Pittsburgh's broadcast media outlets, which are easily received in the area. Besides broadcast stations Wheeling's cable providers also carry Fox Sports Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh-centric news/talk channel PCNC as its "home" sports and information sources.

In addition to the Pittsburgh outlets the Wheeling television market is served by CBS affiliate WTRF-TV
WTRF-TV

WTRF-TV, channel 7, is the CBS-affiliated television station for Wheeling, West Virginia and Steubenville, Ohio. Its transmitter located in Boydsville, Ohio....
 Channel 7, PBS affiliate W41AA
West Virginia Public Broadcasting

West Virginia Public Broadcasting is the statewide Public Broadcasting Service network of television stations in West Virginia, whose flagship station is WPBY, based in Huntington, West Virginia....
 Channel 41, and NBC affiliate WTOV-TV
WTOV-TV

WTOV-TV, channel 9, is the NBC affiliate for the Wheeling, West Virginia/Steubenville, Ohio television market. It is licensed to Steubenville, and also operates a bureau in Wheeling....
 Channel 9 in nearby Steubenville, Ohio
Steubenville, Ohio

Steubenville is a city located along the Ohio River in Jefferson County, Ohio, Ohio, in the United States. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Ohio and is largely considered part of the Pittsburgh Tri-State area, unofficially as a suburb despite its own individual identity....
. The city is served by cable television provider Comcast
Comcast

Comcast Corporation is the largest cable television company, the second largest Internet service provider and the fourth largest telephone service provider in the United States....
.

Wheeling's radio dial is home to WWVA
WWVA (AM)

WWVA is an AM broadcasting radio station that broadcasts on a frequency of 1170 kHz with studios in Wheeling, West Virginia, United States and its transmitter in St....
 1170 AM, the state's only 50,000 watt AM station that can be heard throughout the East Coast
East Coast of the United States

The East Coast of the United States, also known as the "Eastern Seaboard" or "Atlantic Seaboard", refers to the easternmost coastal states in the central and northern United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada....
 at night. WVLY 1370 AM and WKKX
WKKX

WKKX is a local talk radio station operating out of Wheeling, West Virginia, currently being the only talk-radio station in the market to provide local content from 6AM to sundown....
 1600 AM provide local news, sports, and talk. On the FM dial WVKF
WVKF

WVKF is a radio station broadcasting a Pop Contemporary Hit Radio format. Licensed to Shadyside, Ohio, USA, the station serves the Wheeling, West Virginia, area....
 95.7, WKWK 93.7, WOVK 98.7 and WEGW 107.5 provides the area with various music genres. The Wheeling area is also the home of WVJW-LP, a listener supported commercial-free station which also serves as the local Pacifica
Pacifica Radio

Pacifica Radio is the oldest public radio network in the United States. It is a network of over 100 affiliated stations and five independently operated, non-commercial, listener-supported radio stations in the United States that is known for its liberal and Progressivism in the United States#Contemporary progressivism political orientation....
 affiliate. Pittsburgh's radio stations
Media in Pittsburgh

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is home to the first commercial radio station in the United States, KDKA Radio; the first community-sponsored television station in the United States, WQED ; the first "networked" television station and the first station in the country to broadcast 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, KDKA-TV; and the first newspaper published we...
 also provide Wheeling with coverage. A number of translators and repeater stations provide NPR and American Family Radio networks.

The city is home to The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register newspapers. Both The Intelligencer and the Wheeling News-Register are owned by Ogden Newspapers Inc., which is also based in Wheeling. The Intelligencer is published weekday mornings and Saturdays, while the News-Register is published weekday afternoons and Sundays. The Times-Leader of Martins Ferry, Ohio, another Ogden Newspapers Inc. paper, also covers Wheeling issues. In Wheeling magazine is published quarterly and covers society and events in Wheeling .

Infrastructure


Transportation


Roads and Bridges
Interstate 70
Interstate 70

Interstate 70 is an Interstate Highway in the United States that runs from Interstate 15 in Utah near Cove Fort, Utah, to a Park and Ride in Baltimore, Maryland....
 and its spur I-470 run through the city east-west and link it with suburban Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to the east and Ohio to the west. U.S. Route 40
U.S. Route 40

U.S. Route 40 is an east-west United States highway. As with most routes whose numbers end in a zero, U.S. 40 once traversed the entire United States....
/National Road
National Road

The National Road or Cumberland Road was one of the first major improved highways in the United States, built by the Federal Government of the United States....
 links downtown with residential neighborhoods to the east. WV Route 2 connects Wheeling with Moundsville
Moundsville, West Virginia

Moundsville is a city in Marshall County, West Virginia, West Virginia, along the Ohio River. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Wheeling metropolitan area....
 to the south and Weirton
Weirton, West Virginia

Weirton is a city located in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia, United States. Most of the city is in Hancock County, West Virginia, with the remainder in Brooke County, West Virginia....
 to the north. U.S. Route 250
U.S. Route 250

U.S. Route 250 is a spur of U.S. Route 50. It currently runs for 514 miles from Richmond, Virginia to Sandusky, Ohio. It passes through the states of Virginia, West Virginia, and Ohio....
 also runs through the city.

The Fort Henry Bridge
Fort Henry Bridge

The Fort Henry Bridge is a crossing of the Ohio River at Wheeling, West Virginia. Opened on September 8, 1955, the bridge once carried US 40 and US 250....
 and Vietnam Veterans Memorial Bridge carry I-70 and I-470 respectively over the Ohio River. The historic Wheeling Suspension Bridge
Wheeling Suspension Bridge

The Wheeling Suspension Bridge is a suspension bridge spanning the main channel of the Ohio River at Wheeling, West Virginia. It was the List of largest suspension bridges in the world from 1849 until the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge was opened in 1851....
, ca. 1849, which was part of National Road , now carries cars and light trucks as well as pedestrian traffic between downtown and Wheeling Island.

Bus Transportation
Bus transportation to points throughout North America is available from Wheeling through Greyhound Lines
Greyhound Lines

Greyhound Lines is an intercity common carrier of passengers by bus serving over 3,700 destinations in the United States. It was founded in Hibbing, Minnesota, USA, in 1914 and incorporated as "Greyhound Corporation" in 1929....
. The bus terminal, the Robert C. Byrd Intermodal Transportation Center, was built with $11.1 million in federal funds .

Regional transportation through West Virginia and Eastern Ohio is provided by the East Ohio and Ohio Valley Regional Transit Authorities .

Air Transportation
Wheeling is less than an hour's drive away from the Pittsburgh International Airport
Pittsburgh International Airport

Pittsburgh International Airport , formerly Greater Pittsburgh Airport, Greater Pittsburgh International Airport and commonly referred to as Pittsburgh International, is a joint civil-military international airport located in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania suburb of Findlay Township, Pennsylvania, approximately west of downtown Pittsburgh at...
, which provides most of the domestic non-stop service for the Tri-State area. The city is also served by The Ohio County Airport, a general aviations port accommodating most sized aircraft. The Airport is also home to a division of the U.S. Airforce, a helicopter base. The airport also has a small aviations museum.

Companies based in Wheeling

  • Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe
    Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe

    Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP is an international law firm founded in San Francisco. Orrick traces its roots back to 1863, making it the oldest continuously-operating law firm in San Francisco, and the second-oldest privately-held company in San Francisco after Levi Strauss & Co.....
     (Global Operations Center)
  • WesBanco
    WesBanco

    WesBanco is a bank holding company headquartered in Wheeling, West Virginia. The bank is the namesake of the WesBanco Arena which is home to the Wheeling Nailers hockey team and the Ohio Valley Greyhounds indoor football team....
     Banks
  • Stone & Thomas
    Stone & Thomas

    Stone & Thomas was a United States chain of department stores. Based in Wheeling, West Virginia, the chain had stores located in West Virginia, Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio....
     (defunct department store chain formerly headquartered in Wheeling)
  • Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel
    Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel

    Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel was a steel manufacturer based in Wheeling, West Virginia, which is located at the edge of the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania metropolitan area....
  • Swisher International (makers of Mail Pouch tobacco)
  • Marsh Wheeling
    Marsh Wheeling

    Marsh Wheeling was founded by Mifflin M. Marsh in 1840. Located in Wheeling, West Virginia, West Virginia, it was the oldest cigar manufacturing company founded in the United States....
     (America's oldest cigar manufacturing plant)


People from Wheeling

  • Leon "Chu" Berry, jazz saxophonist
  • Leo Brady
    Leo Brady

    Leo Brady was a multidimensional American writer and theater artist who also achieved great success as a teacher of young playwrights....
    , playwright, novelist, and director
  • Jack Canfield
    Jack Canfield

    Jack Canfield is an United States motivational speaker and author. He is best known as the co-creator of the "Chicken Soup for the Soul" book series, which currently has nearly 200 titles and 112 million copies in print in over 40 languages....
    , motivational speaker
  • John Corbett
    John Corbett

    'John Joseph Corbett, Jr.' is an United States actor and country music singer. Though he first gained notice as the piano-flinging character of Chris "Chris in the Morning" Stevens in the television series Northern Exposure from 1990 to 1995, he is also known from his role as Carrie Bradshaw's lovable boyfriend, Aidan, on the HBO comedy ...
    , actor
  • Rebecca Harding Davis
    Rebecca Harding Davis

    Rebecca Blaine Harding Davis was an American author and journalist. She is deemed a pioneer of literary Literary realism in American literature....
    , author
  • Faith Daniels
    Faith Daniels

    Faith Daniels became nationally known for her role in anchoring some of America's most popular news and talk show programs.She began her national news career when she joined CBS News as the anchor of the CBS Morning News in the spring of 1985....
    , network broadcaster
  • Joyce DeWitt
    Joyce DeWitt

    Joyce Anne DeWitt is an United States actress most famous for her role as Janet Wood on the television situation comedy Three's Company....
    , actress
  • Joanne Dru
    Joanne Dru

    Joanne Dru was an United States film and television actor known for films such as Red River and All the King's Men. She was the elder sister of Peter Marshall , best known for hosting Hollywood Squares....
    , actress
  • Doug Fetherling, writer
  • Walter L. Fisher
    Walter L. Fisher

    Walter Lowrie Fisher was United States Secretary of the Interior under President William Howard Taft from 1911 to 1913.Fisher was born July 4, 1862 in Wheeling, West Virginia to Daniel Webster Fisher , a presbyterian minister, and his wife Amanda D....
    , U.S. Secretary of the Interior
  • Gene Freese
    Gene Freese

    Eugene Lewis Freese was a third baseman in United States Major League Baseball for 12 seasons . A Journeyman , he played for the Pittsburgh Pirates , St....
    , baseball player
  • Jack Glasscock
    Jack Glasscock

    John Wesley Glasscock was an United States shortstop in Major League Baseball who played for several teams from 1879 to 1895 and was the top player at his position in the 1880s during the sport's bare-handed era....
    , major league baseball
    Major League Baseball

    Major League Baseball is the highest level of play in American professional baseball. Specifically, Major League Baseball refers to the organization that operates the National League and the American League, by means of a joint organizational structure that has developed gradually between them since 1903 ....
     player
  • Chuck Howley
    Chuck Howley

    Charles Louis Howley is a former American football linebacker in the National Football League who spent most of his career with the Dallas Cowboys....
    , football player
  • Bill Mazeroski
    Bill Mazeroski

    William Stanley Mazeroski , nicknamed "Maz", is a former Major League Baseball player who spent his entire career with the Pittsburgh Pirates. A key member of the Pirates' World Series-winning teams in 1960 World Series and 1971 World Series, he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2001....
    , Hall of Fame second baseman
  • Cy Morgan
    Cy Morgan

    Harry Richard Morgan born in Pomeroy, Ohio was a pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Baltimore Orioles , Boston Red Sox , Philadelphia Athletics , and Cincinnati Reds ....
    , a Major League Baseball
    Major League Baseball

    Major League Baseball is the highest level of play in American professional baseball. Specifically, Major League Baseball refers to the organization that operates the National League and the American League, by means of a joint organizational structure that has developed gradually between them since 1903 ....
     pitcher
    Pitcher

    In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out a batter who attempts to either make contact with it or draw a base on balls....
  • Bob Ney
    Bob Ney

    Robert William "Bob" Ney is an Politics of the United States from the U.S. state of Ohio. A Republican Party , Ney represented Ohio's 18th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1995 until November 3, 2006, when he resigned....
    , former U.S. Representative from Ohio
  • Tim O'Brien
    Tim O'Brien (musician)

    Tim O'Brien is a Grammy Award-winning United States country music and bluegrass music musician. In addition to singing, he plays guitar, fiddle, mandolin, bouzouki and mandocello....
    , bluegrass musician
  • Walter Reuther
    Walter Reuther

    Walter Philip Reuther was an American Labor unions in the United States leader, who made the United Automobile Workers a major force not only in the auto industry but also in the Democratic Party in the mid 20th century....
    , labor leader
  • Eleanor Steber
    Eleanor Steber

    Eleanor Steber was an USA operatic soprano. Steber is noted as one of the first major opera stars to have achieved the highest success with training and a career based in the United States....
    , American operatic soprano
    Soprano

    A soprano is a voice type with a vocal range from approximately to "high A" in choral music, or to "soprano C" or higher in operatic music. In four part chorale style harmony the soprano takes the highest part which usually encompasses the melody....
     associated with the Metropolitan Opera
    Metropolitan Opera

    The Metropolitan Opera Association of New York City, founded in April 1880, is a major presenter of all types of opera including Grand Opera. Peter Gelb is the company's general manager and James Levine is music director....
  • Nan Wynn
    Nan Wynn

    Nan Wynn was an American big-band singer and actress. Born on May 8, 1915 in Wheeling, West Virginia, Wynn recorded with many well-known orchestras, including those of Teddy Wilson, Freddie Rich, Raymond Scott and Hal Kemp....
    , big-band singer and actress
  • John Yarnall
    John Yarnall

    John Joliffe Yarnall was an officer in the United States Navy during the War of 1812 and the Second Barbary War.Born in Wheeling, West Virginia, Virginia , Yarnall was appointed midshipman in the Navy on 11 January 1809....
    , naval officer during War of 1812


Wheeling in fiction

  • Wheeling is referred to in Bat Boy: The Musical
    Bat Boy: The Musical

    Bat Boy: The Musical is a Musical theatre with a book and lyrics by Keythe Farley and Brian Flemming and music by Laurence O'Keefe , based on a June 23, 1992 Weekly World News story about a half-boy, half-bat, dubbed "Bat Boy", found living in a cave....
     as the nearest large town to Hope Falls, where the story takes place. It is also the home of the mysterious 'Institute', representatives of which come to capture the protagonist in the show's finale just moments too late.
  • Wheeling is referred to in an episode of The Waltons
    The Waltons

    The Waltons is an United States television series created by Earl Hamner, Jr., based on his book Spencer's Mountain, and a 1963 Spencer's Mountain, starring Henry Fonda and Maureen O'Hara....
    , called , set in and around Schuyler, Virginia
    Schuyler, Virginia

    Schuyler is an unincorporated area in Nelson County, Virginia, Virginia, United States, close to Charlottesville, Virginia.In 1882, the community -- originally "Walker's Mill" -- was named for Schuyler George Walker, local mill operator, and the area's first Postmaster....
    , when Richard Thomas
    Richard Thomas (actor)

    Richard Earl Thomas is an United States actor, best known as budding author "John-Boy" in the CBS Television Series The Waltons...
    ' character "John Boy" travels to the 'Big City' of Wheeling in 1934 (during the Great Depression
    Great Depression

    File:International depression.pngThe Great Depression was a worldwide economic Recession starting in most places in 1929 and ending at different times in the 1930s or early 1940s for different countries....
    ) to help raise $200 for his family to gain a deed to prove ownership of their mountain property. During his stay, John Boy rooms at a boarding house on .
  • Wheeling is referred to in an episode of the sitcom Family Ties
    Family Ties

    Family Ties is a television sitcom that aired on NBC for seven seasons, from 1982 to 1989. The sitcom reflected the move in the United States from the cultural liberalism of the 1960s and 1970s to the conservatism of the 1980s....
    , set in Columbus, Ohio
    Columbus, Ohio

    Columbus is the Capital , the largest, and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. Located near the Geographic centers of the United States, Columbus is the county seat of Franklin County, Ohio, although parts of the city also extend into Delaware County, Ohio and Fairfield County, Ohio counties....
    , when Michael J. Fox
    Michael J. Fox

    Michael J. Fox is a Canadian American actor. His roles include Marty McFly from the Back to the Future trilogy trilogy ; Alex P. Keaton from Family Ties , for which he won four Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe Award; and Mike Flaherty from Spin City , for which he won an Emmy, three Golden Globes, and two Screen Actors Guild Awar...
    's character Alex P. Keaton
    Alex P. Keaton

    Alex P. Keaton is a fictional character on the United States television sitcom, Family Ties, which aired on NBC for seven seasons, from 1982 to 1989....
     says, "let's go down to Wheeling, West Virginia," because the legal drinking age in West Virginia at the time was eighteen, while in Ohio the drinking age had been raised to twenty-one.
  • Billy Joel
    Billy Joel

    William Martin "Billy" Joel is an United States rock music musician, singer-songwriter, and Classical music composer. He released his first hit song, "Piano Man ", in 1973....
    's hit song "The Ballad of Billy the Kid
    The Ballad of Billy the Kid

    "The Ballad of Billy the Kid" is a Billy Joel song from the album Piano Man . It is a historically inaccurate story of Billy The Kid. In the song, Billy the Kid was famous throughout the West during his lifetime as a bank robber....
    " identifies the birthplace of the ballad's antagonist as Wheeling.
  • In Season 2 of The West Wing, the episode "In This White House" names Wheeling as a location where two would-be assassins purchased firearms in their mission to kill the show's President, Josiah Bartlett
    Josiah Bartlett

    Josiah Bartlett , was an United States physician and statesman, delegate to the Continental Congress for New Hampshire, and signatory of the United States Declaration of Independence....
    . NBC later apologized for the reference and agreed to make two other mentions of Wheeling in a more positive light. One included a reference as a flyover location in a scene set on Air Force One
    Air Force One

    Air Force One is the air traffic control call sign of any United States Air Force aircraft carrying the President of the United States. Since 1990, the presidential fleet has consisted of two specifically configured, highly customized Boeing 747-200#747-200 series aircraft ? Tail Code "28000" and "29000" ? with Air Force designation "Boeing...
    .
  • John Corbett
    John Corbett

    'John Joseph Corbett, Jr.' is an United States actor and country music singer. Though he first gained notice as the piano-flinging character of Chris "Chris in the Morning" Stevens in the television series Northern Exposure from 1990 to 1995, he is also known from his role as Carrie Bradshaw's lovable boyfriend, Aidan, on the HBO comedy ...
    's character, Chris Stevens
    Chris Stevens (Northern Exposure)

    Chris Stevens is a fictional character in the television series Northern Exposure. He was played by John Corbett....
     (Chris in the Morning), in Northern Exposure
    Northern Exposure

    Northern Exposure is a dramedy Television series. It was created by Joshua Brand-John Falsey Productions, which was recognized with a rare pair of consecutive Peabody Awards in 1991?92 for the show's "depict[ion] in a comedic and often poetic way, [of] the cultural clash between a transplanted New York doctor and the townspeople of fictio...
     is from Wheeling. John Corbett is from Wheeling in real life, and would often briefly mention something about Wheeling on the show. "Uncle Roy Bauer", "Chuck Vincent" and "Earl P. Duffy" are character names Chris Stevens refers to on Northern Exposure. They also happen to be real people Corbett grew up with. Roy Bauer was a high school friend, Earl P. Duffy was the Dean of Discipline at Wheeling Central Catholic High School (the school Corbett attended).
  • "Life in the Iron Mills", a short story by Rebecca Harding Davis
    Rebecca Harding Davis

    Rebecca Blaine Harding Davis was an American author and journalist. She is deemed a pioneer of literary Literary realism in American literature....
    , was set in the factory world of nineteenth century Wheeling, Virginia, now Wheeling, West Virginia. It was her first published work, and it appeared anonymously in April 1861 in the Atlantic Monthly where it caused a literary sensation with its powerful naturalism that anticipated the work of Theodore Dreiser
    Theodore Dreiser

    Theodore Herman Albert Dreiser was an American novelist and journalist. He pioneered the naturalism school and is known for portraying characters whose value lies not in their moral code, but in their persistence against all obstacles, and literary situations that more closely resemble studies of nature than tales of choice and agency ....
     and Emile Zola
    Émile Zola

    ?mile Fran?ois Zola was an influential France writer, the most important exemplar of the literary school of Naturalism , an important contributor to the development of Naturalism , and a major figure in the political liberalization of France and in the exoneration of the falsely accused and convicted army officer Alfred Dreyfus....
    . The story is emphatically on the side of the exploited industrial workers, who are presented as physically stunted and mentally dulled but fully human and capable of tragedy.
  • Whatever is a 1998 independent film, shot mostly in Wheeling, about teenagers facing the difficulties of growing up in Northern New Jersey.
  • A West Virginia-centric episode of Murder She Wrote, Coal Miner's Slaughter, has Megan Mulally's character passing the bar exam in Wheeling.
  • Wheeling, West Virginia was a hit song for Neil Sedaka
    Neil Sedaka

    Neil Sedaka is an United States pop music singer, pianist, and songwriter often associated with the Brill Building. He teamed up with Howard Greenfield to write hits for himself and others....
     in 1970. The song tells of an actor from Wheeling who works at MGM and has changed not for the better from the person who grew up there. The song was recorded in the Sydney, Australia suburb of Pyrmont. What is now the IGA Supermarket was previously the recording studios & offices of Festival Records. Some of the artist who recorded there include Normie Rowe, Billy Thorpe, Kylie Minogue, The Bee Gees, Ray Brown & The Whispers, Tony Worsley & The Fabulous Blue Jays, Jimmy Little, Noelene Batley, Mike Furber, Olivia Newton-John, The Dave Miller Set, Johnny Young, Wild Cherries and Jeff St John.


See also



Further reading

  • Minder, Mike. Wheeling’s Gambling History to 1976. Wheeling: Nail City Publishing, 1997.
  • Schramm, Robert W. The Linsly School. Mount Pleasant, S. Carolina: Arcadia Publishing, 2003.


External links

  • (with pictures)
  • and
  • Publisher of Wheeling Island: A Photographic History by Robert W. Schramm