All schools in Upshur County will close at 1 p.m. today. All B-UHS sporting events today are canceled.

This Week in West Virginia History: Oct. 9-15

Charleston, WV – The following events happened on these dates in West Virginia history. To read more, go to e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia at www.wvencyclopedia.org.

Oct. 9, 1877: The Episcopal Church created the Diocese of West Virginia. The initial convention of the new diocese met at St. John’s Episcopal in Charleston, with 14 clergy and 16 lay delegates.

Oct. 9, 2014: Following court rulings and announcements by the governor and the attorney general, same-sex marriage was effectively legalized in West Virginia.

Oct. 10, 1774: Shawnee warriors led by Cornstalk were defeated at the Battle of Point Pleasant. It was the only major engagement of Dunmore’s War and the most important battle ever fought in present West Virginia.

Oct. 10, 1872: Architect Rus Warne was born in Parkersburg. Warne designed many notable buildings in Charleston, including City Hall and the Masonic Temple.

Oct. 10, 1878: Blanche Lazzell was born in Maidsville, Monongalia County. She was one of West Virginia’s most notable artists and is recognized as one of America’s leading abstract painters and print makers.

Oct. 10, 1948: During a boat-racing event in Charleston, Chuck Yeager flew a Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star up the river and under the South Side Bridge, surprising boaters, audience and news media at the event.

Oct. 11, 1811: State founder and U.S. Senator Waitman Thomas Willey was born near Farmington. Willey proposed the West Virginia Statehood Bill in the Senate and saw to its passage and later signing by President Lincoln. He was then elected as one of West Virginia’s first two U.S. senators and served from 1863 to 1871.

Oct. 12, 1877: Howard Mason Gore was born in Harrison County. He served as U.S. secretary of agriculture and the 14th governor of West Virginia.

Oct. 12, 2020: Actress Conchata Ferrell died. Born in Loudendale, Kanawha County, Ferrell was best known as Berta the housekeeper on the CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men. She enjoyed a long career on stage, film and television.

Oct.13, 1863: The Battle of Bulltown took place. The location was valuable during the Civil War because the Weston & Gauley Bridge Turnpike crossed the Little Kanawha River on a covered bridge at this site. 

Oct. 14, 1947: In a Bell X-1 rocket airplane dropped from a B-29 bomber, Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier by flying 700 miles per hour. He set another speed record on December 12, 1953, by flying two-and-a-half times the speed of sound in a Bell X-1A.

Oct. 14, 1949: WSAZ-TV went on the air on channel 5. Early shows included the first telecast of a Marshall College (now University) basketball game on December 3, 1949.

Oct. 14, 1985: Kanawha Airport was renamed Yeager Airport in honor of Chuck Yeager.

Oct. 15, 1839: Aretas Brooks Fleming was born in Fairmont. In 1888, Fleming won the Democratic nomination for governor and then won West Virginia’s most controversial gubernatorial election.

e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia is a project of the West Virginia Humanities Council.  For more information, contact the West Virginia Humanities Council, 1310 Kanawha Blvd. E., Charleston, WV 25301; (304) 346-8500; or visit e-WV at www.wvencyclopedia.org.

Share this story:

Local Businesses

RECENT Stories

Moon Flower opens first satellite store at Delmonte Market in Elkins

Moon Flower Hemp, a woman-owned craft cannabis shop, is opening its first satellite location inside Elkins’s Delmonte Market, offering exclusive products, infused drinks, educational support and special perks for early customers.

Buckhannon Community Theatre’s ‘The Lion King Kids’ set to roar at Colonial Arts Center this weekend

Buckhannon Community Theatre will present Disney’s The Lion King Kids on June 20 and 21 at the Colonial Arts Center, showcasing young local talent in a family-friendly production directed by Ella McNeish.

Buckhannon Consolidated Public Works Board Agenda: June 26, 2025

The City of Buckhannon Consolidated Public Works Board has released the agenda for its upcoming June 26, 2025, meeting.

B-U’s Landon Marple earns All-State baseball honors

Buckhannon-Upshur senior Landon Marple, who led his team in multiple offensive categories, was named to the West Virginia Sports Writers Association Class AAAA All-State Baseball Team as an Honorable Mention.

WVU Medicine St. Joseph’s Hospital’s Kelly Povroznik earns certification in integrative and functional nutrition

Kelly Povroznik, Director of Food and Nutrition Services at WVU Medicine St. Joseph’s Hospital, has earned certification as an Integrative and Functional Nutrition Certified Practitioner, bringing advanced holistic nutrition expertise to her patients and community.

Upshur County Sheriff Mike Coffman says numerous community complaints led to vape shop raids

Community complaints about Upshur County vape shops selling to minors prompted a months-long investigation that led to multi-agency raids, seizure of $500,000 in illegal products, and an ongoing probe with arrests likely.

Buckhannon Banter: Get the local lowdown for June 19, 2025

Argo Books is launching a community co-op, the Upshur County Library has won a grant for new computer classes, Meals on Wheels needs volunteers, and Fish Hawk Acres has resumed ‘grab & go’ service but paused breakfast.

Weese family legacy burns bright as Brandon coaches Flame 304 to new growth

Brandon Weese is continuing his family’s Buckhannon-Upshur basketball legacy by coaching the Flame 304 girls travel team, which now features players from multiple counties and emphasizes both athletic and personal growth.

Upshur County pool splashes back from repairs, continues busy summer with activities, parties and night swims

After a multi-day closure for repairs, the Upshur County Pool is reopening with a packed summer schedule featuring lessons, parties, night swims, and new event packages, positioning it for one of its busiest seasons yet.