Recent Publications

Evidence of the strong and enduring interest in West Virginia’s history, culture, and lifeways is the unabated publication of books, journal articles, theses, and dissertations about these topics. A recent increase in the quantity of publications on Civil War history has been motivated by the sesquicentennial of that historic conflict. Compilations of previously unpublished photographs continue to be a popular and proven means for presenting and preserving images both old and new, thereby stimulating nostalgia and providing access to images as historical resources. This bibliography consists of citations for readily accessible works published in 2010 and 2011. Many more writings on history and culture may be found in the state’s lifestyle magazines, in the periodicals of professional and avocational organizations, and in works of historical fiction. In addition, books and journals of family history and genealogical resources are published by the state’s many genealogical and local historical societies as well as by individual researchers. The steady activity of research, writing, and publishing is indicative of a strong and abiding interest in the heritage of West Virginia and its people. If you are aware of significant books or articles about West Virginians that are not listed here, please bring them to my attention.

Abrams, Douglas E. “Justice Jackson and the Second Flag-Salute Case: Reason and Passion in Opinion-Writing.” Journal of Supreme Court History 36 (Mar. 2011): 30–47. In the 1943 case, West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, the Supreme Court upheld the First Amendment right of Jehovah’s Witnesses schoolchildren to refuse to salute the flag or recite the Pledge of Allegiance.

Adkins, Leonard M. West Virginia: An Explorer’s Guide. 2nd ed. Woodstock, VT: Countryman Press, 2011. 496 pp.

Allen, John, Jr. Uncommon Vernacular: The Early Houses of Jefferson County, West Virginia, 1735–1835. Photography by Walter Smalling Jr. Illustrations by Andrew Lewis. Morgantown: West Virginia University Press, 2011. 367 pp.

Antolini, Katharine Lane. “Memorializing Motherhood: Anna Jarvis and the Struggle for Control of Mother’s Day.” PhD diss., West Virginia University, 2010. 292 pp. Mother’s Day was founded by Anna Jarvis of Grafton in 1908.

Asbury, Francis. The Tours of Bishop Francis Asbury in West Virginia, 1776–1815. Compiled by Lawrence Sherwood. Charleston, WV: Commission on Archives and History, West Virginia Annual Conference, The United Methodist Church, 2011. 92 pp.

Bailey, Richard S. “Arden: Willie Nestor Recalls Life in a Barbour County Town.” Goldenseal 37 (Summer 2011): 43–47. A Tygart Valley mining and railroad community in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Baker, Luther D. A Salute to the Richwood News Leader: The First 20 Years, 1946–1966. Canvas, WV: Little Beechy Creations, 2010. 395 pp.

Baldau, Cathy. The Harpers Ferry Anthology: Civil War Era Stories by Park Rangers and Volunteers; In Memory of David L. Larsen. Virginia Beach, VA: Donning Company, 2011. 118 pp.

Basile, Victor A., and Judy Prozzillo Byers. Italians in West Virginia. Images of America. Charleston, SC: Arcadia, 2011. 127 pp.

Battlo, Jean. “Kimball Memories: ‘Run Down to Gianato’s.’” Goldenseal 37 (Spring 2011): 40–43. History of the McDowell County coaltown of Kimball and its general store established in 1918.

———. Kimball, West Virginia, 1911–2011. Parsons, WV: McClain Printing, 2011. 141 pp. People and history of the McDowell County coaltown.

Bertsch, Friedrich, and Wilhelm Stangel. A German Hurrah!: Civil War Letters of Friedrich Bertsch and Wilhelm Stangel, 8th Ohio Infantry. Translated and edited by Joseph R. Reinhart. Kent, OH: Kent State University Press, 2010. Events in western Virginia during the early years of the Civil War.

Boothe, Raymond-Lynn. Fire on the Water: A History of the Wheeling Steel Corporation. Raleigh, NC: Lulu Press, 2011. 395 pp.

Brake, Sherri. The Haunted History of the West Virginia Penitentiary: Afterlife with No Parole. [United States]: Raven Rock, 2011. 618 pp.

Burnside, Jason A. “West Virginia 4-H Camp Songs and Music Traditions.” Master’s thesis, West Virginia University, 2011. 47 pp.

Byers, Ann. West Virginia: Past and Present. The United States: Past and Present. New York: Rosen Publishing, 2011. 48 pp. Geography, history, government, economy, and people of West Virginia for juvenile...