Why West Virginia Became a State (with music)

Why does West Virginia even exist as its own state? The answer starts with geography.

Virginia was split by the Appalachian Mountains, isolating the western counties from the

east. These mountains made travel difficult and created communities with completely

different economies and loyalties. Those same mountains also delayed railroads and communication,

deepening the cultural and political divide long before the Civil War. When the Civil War

began, eastern Virginia joined the Confederacy, but western Virginia refused.

The west had fewer plantations, fewer enslaved people, and stronger ties to the Union.

So while Virginia seceded, its western counties broke away from Virginia itself.