This study combines the names of settlers from the original 1772-1775 Botetourt County courthouse records with the latest thinking on the conditions and events in the contemporary counties of Monroe, Summers, Greenbrier, and southern Pocahontas,West Virginia.This first permanent settlement included 583 families on an average 200 acre tract, and these were arrayed in 19 diffuse communities along 60 miles of the Greenbrier Valley. These adventurous souls found arable land, conditioned by thousands of years of Native American occupation, but vacated because the original populations were decimated by European diseases. The remaining Native Americans were defeated in Dunmore's War, which included 288 militia troops from this area who performed thediverse functions of ranging, fort-building, as well as fighting at the Battle of Point Pleasant.Contemporary accounts of life on the frontier are also discussed and 132 products available at the Mathews Trading Post are listed, as are the 24 natural remedies used to treat the afflictions experienced on the frontier.The Greenbrier Valley is special because it was a gateway through the rugged Allegheny Mountains. Many descendants of these early settlers are now dispersed across the country but return here to discover their roots.

Since ancient times, people used mills to process grain, and a mill was often the first structure planned and built in a new community. At the close of the American Revolution, it was believed that every village and town in the United States had access to a water-powered mill. Hundreds, if not thousands, of mills once dotted the hills and glades of what is now West Virginia. Though the vast majority are gone, towns all over the Mountain State bear the names of the mills that put them on the map. History buffs, nature photographers, and outdoor enthusiasts, you are invited to come along on an adventure: hit the Country Roads in search of fifty-three historic water mills built between 1735 and 1976. Together, these structures tell the story of West Virginia’s agricultural and industrial past. A few are still in operation. Some are in ruins. Many are preserved in their original state, and still others have taken on roles as private residences, shops, and museums. Whether operational or abandoned to decay, the historic mills of West Virginia stand in testament to the ingenuity and independent spirit of those entrepreneurs who were millers, but also bankers, economists, and mechanical engineers. This book features over one hundred illustrations, regional and county maps with the mill locations marked, and QR codes that give instant access to driving directions.

"The land grants listed herein were made by Lord Fairfax prior to the creation of the Virginia Land Office; by the Commonwealth of Virginia, of lands now embracing the State of West Virginia; and, by the State of West Virginia, under its first Constitution."--Page [1].

Navan Fort, Co. Armagh, is owned by the Department of the Environment and is managed by the Environment and Heritage Service. At intervals over a period of some 40 years the staff of the Department have carried out, collaborated in and sponsored archaeological survey, excavation and research into this famous site and the monuments in the surrounding landscape. This book is an attempt to provide a straightforward summary of that work and includes an account of one of the most interesting and intriguing archaeological excavations carried out in Ireland. The site of the legendary and 'far-famed' Emain Macha (now known as Navan Fort) has been known from before the beginning of Irish history. There is a possibility that some of the legends associated with it have come down to us from a time when such myths were a part of everyday life and religion. In the myths and legends of the Ulaidh (the 'Ulstermen') Emain is portrayed as a royal headquarters, the capital of a warlike aristocracy and a place of assembly for the people occupying the northern quarter of Ireland.Early Irish myth and legend are of great interest because they preserve elements of a prehistoric tradition that have not survived elsewhere. This book attempts to tell the story of the excavations at Navan Fort and more recent discoveries in the area. It is a personal account, coloured by first-hand experience, and is told in a matter-of-fact way, in the hope that the significance of the rapid series of discoveries leading to unexpected conclusions will keep interest alive. Navan Fort is often said to be Northern Ireland's most significant prehistoric site, and the excavation and fieldwork that have taken place over the last 40 years have made a significant contribution to our understanding of the date and purpose of this magnificent monument.

Written in response to the Hawk's Nest Tunnel disaster of 1931 in Gauley Bridge, West Virginia, The Book of the Dead is an important part of West Virginia's cultural heritage and a powerful account of one of the worst industrial catastrophes in American history. The poems collected here investigate the roots of a tragedy that killed hundreds of workers, most of them African American. They are a rare engagement with the overlap between race and environment in Appalachia. Published for the first time alongside photographs by Nancy Naumburg, who accompanied Rukeyser to Gauley Bridge in 1936, this edition of The Book of the Dead includes an introduction by Catherine Venable Moore, whose writing on the topic has been anthologized in Best American Essays.