This project is beginning to move along quickly since I’ve completed most of the states with many counties. Today’s post is all about the county histories of West Virginia.

FAQ

1. While every county in the state is listed, links are only provided for titles that no longer fall under U.S. copyright laws. All (almost) links connect to free websites.
2. There are a few instances when a book has been digitized, but is only found on a paid site. In that case, no link is inserted, but a note as to the website where it has been found is given.
3. When a state history has also been found in digital format, it is listed in the STATE section that precedes the county list. I have limited STATE entries to those with county histories/biographical volumes in them.
4. There are a number of counties that DO have histories written, BUT they remain copyrighted material. Therefore, if a county has NONE after its name, it doesn’t mean there is no county history, just that none has been digitized. It’s also possible that the only digitized county history is included in one of the state volumes, so be sure to check those entries.
5. If the book is on FamilySearch, you will need a free account to access it. This list does NOT include town histories.
6. When all fifty states have been completed, I will post a PDF of them all.
7. One last note – it is very possible that a book is digitally available on more than one website. I’ve only included links to one site per book.

WEST VIRGINIA

STATE: A reminiscent history of northern West Virginia, Goodspeed Brothers, Chicago, 1895.
STATE – Genealogical and personal history of the Upper Monongahela Valley, West Virginia, Bernard Lee Butcher & James Morton Callahan, Lewis Historical Publishing Company, New York, 1911.
STATE – History of the early settlement and Indian wars of western Virginia; embracing an account of the various expeditions in the West, previous to 1795; also biographical sketches, Wills De Hass, H. Hoblitzell, Wheeling, 1851.
STATE – History of West Virginia, old and new: in one volume: and West Virginia biography in two additional volumes, Volume 1, James Morton Callahan, American Historical Society, Chicago, 1923.
STATE – History of West Virginia, old and new: in one volume: and West Virginia biography in two additional volumes, Volume 2, James Morton Callahan, American Historical Society, Chicago, 1923.
STATE – History of West Virginia, old and new: in one volume: and West Virginia biography in two additional volumes, Volume 3, James Morton Callahan, American Historical Society, Chicago, 1923.
STATE – The old and new Monongahela, John Stodgell Van Voorhis, Nicholson, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1893.
STATE –Pioneers and their homes on the upper Kanawha, Ruth Woods Dayton, West Virginia Publishing Company, Charleston, West Virginia, 1947.
STATE – Prominent men of West Virginia: biographical sketches, including politics, the law, theology, medicine, education, finance, journalism, trade, commerce and agriculture, George Wesley Atkinson & Alvaro Franklin Gibbens, W.L. Callin, Wheeling, West Virginia, 1890.
STATE – Genealogical and personal history of the upper Monongahela Valley, West Virginia, Volume 1, Bernard Lee Butcher & James Morton Callahan, Lewis Historical Publishing Company, New York, 1912.
STATE – Genealogical and personal history of the upper Monongahela Valley, West Virginia, Volume 2, Bernard Lee Butcher & James Morton Callahan, Lewis Historical Publishing Company, New York, 1912.
STATE – Genealogical and personal history of the upper Monongahela Valley, West Virginia, Volume 3, Bernard Lee Butcher & James Morton Callahan, Lewis Historical Publishing Company, New York, 1912.
STATE – Men of West Virginia, Biographical Publishing Company, Volume 1, Chicago, 1903.
STATE – Men of West Virginia, Biographical Publishing Company, Volume 2, Chicago, 1903.

BARBOUR – The history of Barbour County, West Virginia from its earliest exploration and settlements to the present time, Hu Maxwell, Acme Publishing Company, Morganstown, West Virginia, 1899.
BERKELEY – Aler’s history of Martinsburg and Berkeley County, West Virginia: from the origin of the Indians, embracing their settlements, wars and depredations, to the first white settlement of the valley, also including the wars between the settlers and their mode and manner of living, F. Vernon Alef, The Mail Publishing Company, Hagerstown, Maryland, 1888.
BERKELEY – Chronicles of old Berkeley: a narrative history of a Virginia county from its beginning to 1926, Mable Henshaw Gardiner & Ann Henshaw Gardiner, Seeman Press, Durham, North Carolina, 1938.
BERKELEY – History of Berkeley county, West Virginia, Willis Fryatt Evens, W.F. Evans, 1928.
BERKELEY – History of the lower Shenandoah valley, counties of Frederick, Berkeley, Jefferson and Clarke, J.E. Norris, A. Warner & Company, Chicago, 1890.
BERKELEY – Shenandoah valley pioneers and their descendants: a history of Frederick County, Virginia (illustrated) from its formation in 1738 to 1908, Thomas Kemp Cartmell, Eddy Press Corporation, Winchester, Virginia, 1909.
BOONE – NONE
BRAXTON – History of Braxton County and central West Virginia, John Davison Sutton, Sutton West Virginia, 1919.
BROOKE – History of northern West Virginia pan-handle embracing Ohio, Marshall, Brooke and Hancock counties, Volumes 1 & 2, Peter Boyd, Historical Publishing Company, Topeka, 1927. [FamilySearch Film 1000650, Items 4 & 5]
BROOKE – History of the upper Ohio Valley: with family history and biographical sketches, Volume 1, Brant & Fuller, Madison, Wisconsin, 1890.
BROOKE – History of the upper Ohio Valley: with family history and biographical sketches, Volume 2, Brant & Fuller, Madison, Wisconsin, 1890.
BROOKE – History of the pan-handle: being historical collections of the counties of Ohio, Brooke, Marshall and Hancock, West Virginia, J.H. Newton, G.G. Nichols & A.G. Sprankel, J.A. Caldwell, Wheelling, West Virginia, 1879. [FamilySearch Film 202847]
CABELL – Cabell County annals and families, George Selden Wallace, Garett & Massie, Richomnd, Virginia, 1935.
CALHOUN – NONE
CLAY – NONE
DODDRIDGE – NONE
FAYETTE – Historical notes on Fayette County, West Virginia, Clarence Shirley Donnelly, Alk Hill, West Virginia, 1958.
FAYETTE – History of Fayette County, West Virginia, J.T. Peters & H.B. Carden, Jarrett Printing Company, Charleston, West Virginia, 1926.
FAYETTE – History of the great Kanawha Valley, with family history and biographical sketches. A statement of its natural resources, industrial growth and commercial advantages, Volume 1, Brant, Fuller & Company, Madison, Wisconsin, 1891.
FAYETTE – History of the great Kanawha Valley, with family history and biographical sketches. A statement of its natural resources, industrial growth and commercial advantages, Volume 2, Brant, Fuller & Company, Madison, Wisconsin, 1891.
GILMER – NONE
GRANT – NONE
GREENBRIER – Recollections of Rev. John McElhenney, by his granddaughter, Whittet & Shepperson, Richomnd, Virginia, 1893.
GREENBRIER – History of Greenbrier County, J.R. Cole, Lewisburg, West Virginia, 1917.
HAMPSHIRE – Capon Valley, its pioneers and their descendants, 1698-1940, Volume 1, Maud Pugh, Capon Bridge, West Virginia, 1946-1948.
HAMPSHIRE – Capon Valley, its pioneers and their descendants, 1698-1940, Volume 2, Maud Pugh, Capon Bridge, West Virginia, 1946-1948.
HAMPSHIRE – History of Hampshire county, West Virginia: from its earliest settlement to the present, Hu Maxwell & Howard Llewellyn Swisher, A.B. Boughner, Printer, Morgantown, West Virginia, 1897.
HAMPSHIRE – Shenandoah valley pioneers and their descendants: a history of Frederick County, Virginia (illustrated) from its formation in 1738 to 1908, Thomas Kemp Cartmell, Eddy Press Corporation, Winchester, Virginia, 1909.
HANCOCK – History of the upper Ohio Valley: with family history and biographical sketches, Volume 1, Brant & Fuller, Madison, Wisconsin, 1890.
HANCOCK – History of the upper Ohio Valley: with family history and biographical sketches, Volume 2, Brant & Fuller, Madison, Wisconsin, 1890.
HANCOCK – History of Hancock County: Virginia and West Virginia, Wheeling News Lithographers, Wheeling, West Virginia, 1963.
HANCOCK – History of the pan-handle: being historical collections of the counties of Ohio, Brooke, Marshall and Hancock, West Virginia, J.H. Newton, G.G. Nichols & A.G. Sprankel, J.A. Caldwell, Wheelling, West Virginia, 1879. [FamilySearch Film 202847]
HANCOCK – History of norther West Virginia pan-handle embracing Ohio, Marshall, Brooke and Hancock counties, Volume 1, Peter Boyd, Historical Publishing Company, Topeka, 1927. [FamilySearch Film 1000650, Item 4]
HANCOCK – History of norther West Virginia pan-handle embracing Ohio, Marshall, Brooke and Hancock counties, Volume 2, Peter Boyd, Historical Publishing Company, Topeka, 1927. [FamilySearch Film 1000650, Item 5]
HARDY – Shenandoah valley pioneers and their descendants: a history of Frederick County, Virginia (illustrated) from its formation in 1738 to 1908, Thomas Kemp Cartmell, Eddy Press Corporation, Winchester, Virginia, 1909.
HARDY – History of Hardy County of the Borderland, Alvin Edward Moore, McClain Printing Company, Parsons, West Virginia, 1963.
HARRISON – Harrison County 76, Clarksburg-Harrison Bicentennial Commission, Clarksburg, West Virginia, 1976.
HARRISON – History of Harrison County, West Virginia: from the early days of Northwestern Virginia to the present, Henry Haymond, Acme Publishing Company, Morgantown, West Virginia, 1910.
HARRISON – A history of northern Harrison County – – recalling the past, looking to the future, Shinnston Historical Association, Shinnston, West Virginia, 1982.
JACKSON – NONE
JEFFERSON – History of the lower Shenandoah valley, counties of Frederick, Berkeley, Jefferson and Clarke, J.E. Norris, A. Warner & Company, Chicago, 1890.
JEFFERSON – Shenandoah valley pioneers and their descendants: a history of Frederick County, Virginia (illustrated) from its formation in 1738 to 1908, Thomas Kemp Cartmell, Eddy Press Corporation, Winchester, Virginia, 1909.
JEFFERSON – A history of Jefferson County, West Virginia, Millard Kessler Bushong, Jefferson Publishing Company, Charles Town, West Virginia, 1941.
KANAWHA – History of Charleston and Kanawha County, West Virginia and representative citizens, William Sydney Laidley, Richmond-Arnold Publishing Company, Chicago, 1911.
KANAWHA – History of Kanawha County: from its organization until the present time, George W. Atkinson, Office of the West Virginia Journal, Charleston, 1876.
LEWIS – A history of Lewis County, West Virginia, Edward Conrad Smith, Weston, West Virginia, 1920.
LINCOLN – NONE
LOGAN – History of Logan county West Virginia, George Thomas Swain, Kingsport Press, Kingsport, Tennessee, 1927. [FamilySearch Film 924449, Item 6]
MARION – History and progress of the county of Marion, West Virginia, from its earliest settlement down to the present: together with biographical sketches of its most prominent citizens, George A. Dunnington, Fairmont, West Virginia, 1880.
MARION – Marion County in the making, Dora Lee Newman, Meyer & Thalheimer, Baltimore, Maryland, 1917.
MARION – Original settlers of Marion County, manuscript, Marion County Public Library, Fairmont, West Virginia [FamilySearch Film 1481454, Item 4]
MARSHALL – History of the upper Ohio Valley: with family history and biographical sketches, Volume 1, Brant & Fuller, Madison, Wisconsin, 1890.
MARSHALL – History of the upper Ohio Valley: with family history and biographical sketches, Volume 2, Brant & Fuller, Madison, Wisconsin, 1890.
MARSHALL – History of the pan-handle: being historical collections of the counties of Ohio, Brooke, Marshall and Hancock, West Virginia, J.H. Newton, G.G. Nichols & A.G. Sprankel, J.A. Caldwell, Wheelling, West Virginia, 1879. [FamilySearch Film 202847]
MARSHALL – History of norther West Virginia pan-handle embracing Ohio, Marshall, Brooke and Hancock counties, Volume 1, Peter Boyd, Historical Publishing Company, Topeka, 1927. [FamilySearch Film 1000650, Item 4]
MARSHALL – History of norther West Virginia pan-handle embracing Ohio, Marshall, Brooke and Hancock counties, Volume 2, Peter Boyd, Historical Publishing Company, Topeka, 1927. [FamilySearch Film 1000650, Item 5]
MASON –NONE
MCDOWELL – NONE
MERCER – A history of middle New River settlements and contiguous territory, David Emmons Johnston, Standard Printing and Publishing Company, Huntington, West Virginia, 1906.
MINERAL – NONE
MINGO – NONE
MONONGALIA – History of Monongalia County, West Virginia, from its first settlements to the present time with numerous biographical and family sketches, Samuel Thomas Wiley, Preston Publishing Company, Kingwood, West Virginia, 1883.
MONONGALIA – History of Monongalia County; being some pages from an unpublished history. .the author died before the work was completed, Hu Maxwell, 1900.
MONONGALIA – Sesquicentennial of Monongalia County, West Virginia: October 20, 21, 22, 23, 1926, Morgantown, West Virginia, 1776-1926, Monongalia Historical Society, Morgantown, West Virginia, 1928.
MONROE – A history of Monroe County, West Virginia, Oren Frederic Morton, McClure Company, Staunton, Virginia, 1916.
MORGAN – Shenandoah valley pioneers and their descendants: a history of Frederick County, Virginia (illustrated) from its formation in 1738 to 1908, Thomas Kemp Cartmell, Eddy Press Corporation, Winchester, Virginia, 1909.NICHOLAS – The double grave: a chapter in the early history of Nicholas County, C.W. Bell, Nicholas Chronicle Press, Summersville, West Virginia, 1929.
NICHOLAS – History of Nicholas County, West Virginia, William Griffee Brown, Dietz Press, Richmond, Virginia, 1954.
OHIO – History of the upper Ohio Valley: with family history and biographical sketches, Volume 1, Brant & Fuller, Madison, Wisconsin, 1890.
OHIO – History of the upper Ohio Valley: with family history and biographical sketches, Volume 2, Brant & Fuller, Madison, Wisconsin, 1890.
OHIO – Index of the History of upper Ohio Valley, Ohio County, West Virginia, 1984. [Prepared by L.D.S. Church Service Volunteers.This index only indexes volume 1 of the 1890 History of upper Ohio Valley.]
OHIO – History of norther West Virginia pan-handle embracing Ohio, Marshall, Brooke and Hancock counties, Volume 1, Peter Boyd, Historical Publishing Company, Topeka, 1927. [FamilySearch Film 1000650, Item 4]
OHIO – History of norther West Virginia pan-handle embracing Ohio, Marshall, Brooke and Hancock counties, Volume 2, Peter Boyd, Historical Publishing Company, Topeka, 1927. [FamilySearch Film 1000650, Item 5]
OHIO – History of the pan-handle: being historical collections of the counties of Ohio, Brooke, Marshall and Hancock, West Virginia, J.H. Newton, G.G. Nichols & A.G. Sprankel, J.A. Caldwell, Wheelling, West Virginia, 1879. [FamilySearch Film 202847]
OHIO – History of Wheeling City and Ohio County, West Virginia and representative citizens, Gibson Lamb Cranmer, Biographical Publishing Company, Chicago, 1902.
PENDLETON – A history of Pendleton County, West Virginia, Oren Frederic Morton, Franklin, West Virginia, 1910.
PENDLETON – History of Pendleton County, West Virginia, manuscript, n.d.
PLEASANTS – A history of Pleasants County, West Virginia, Robert Landon Pemberton, Oracle Press, St. Marys, West Virginia, 1929. [FamilySearch Film 1000797, Item 2]
POCAHONTAS – Historical sketches of Pocahontas County, West Virginia, William Thomas Price, Price Brothers, Marlenton, West Virginia, 1901.
PRESTON – A history of Preston County, West Virginia, Oren Frederic Morton & J.R. Cole, Journal Publishing Company, Kingwood, 1914.
PUTNAM – NONE
RALEIGH – NONE
RANDOLPH – A history of Randolph County, West Virginia, from its earliest exploration and settlement to the present time, Albert Squire Bosworth, 1916.
RANDOLPH – The history of Randolph County, West Virginia, from its earliest settlement to the present: embracing records of all the leading families, reminiscences and traditions, Hu Maxwell, Acme Publishing Company, Morgantown, West Virginia, 1898.
RANDOLPH – Indian trails, frontier forts, Revolutionary soldiers and pioneers of Randolph County, West Virginia.Address [at the] 9th annual reunion, Chenoweth Society, near Elkins, West Virginia, September 1st, 1923, William Henry cobb, c1923.
RANDOLPH – Randolph County, economic and social: a laboratory study at the University of North Carolina, Department of Rural Social Economics, Fred Burgess, 1924.
RITCHIE – History of Ritchie County: with biographical sketches of its pioneers and their ancestors, and with interesting reminiscences of Revolutionary and Indian times, Minnie Kendall Lowther, Wheeling news Lithographers, Wheeling, West Virginia, 1911.
RITCHIE – Illustrated industrial edition of Ritchie County, West Virginia, J.A. Wooddell, Pennsboro Press, Pennsboro, West Virginia, 1903. Reprint c2003.
ROANE – History of Roane County, West Virginia, from the time of its exploration to A.D. 1927, William Henry Bishop, W.H. Bishop, Spencer, West Virginia, 1927.
ROANE – Roane County, West Virginia, family history, 1989, Roane County Family History Book Committee, Don Mills, Waynesville, North Carolina, c1990.
SUMMERS – History of Summers county from the earliest settlement to the present time, James Henry Miller, Hinton, West Virginia, 1908.
TAYLOR – NONE
TUCKER – History of Tucker County, West Virginia, from the earliest explorations and settlements to the present time, Hu Maxwell, Preston Publishing Company, Kingwood, West Virginia, 1884.
TYLER – NONE
UPSHUR – The history of Upshur County, West Virginia, form its earliest exploration and settlement to the present time, W.B. Cutright, 1907.
WAYNE – NONE
WEBSTER – Moccasin tracks, and other imprints, William Christian Dodrill, Lovett Printing Company, Charleston, West Virginia, 1915.
WETZEL – History of Wetzel County, West Virginia, John C. McEldowney, 1901.
WIRT – History of Wirt County, West Virginia, William E. Mitchell & Linda Murdock, Palestine, West Virginia, c1981.
WOOD – Gleanings from Wood County, West Virginia: history; and traditions and a little about the lives of some of the people who were called “the pioneers,” Nancy Stout Beckwith, Washington, West Virginia, 1969.
WOOD – Pioneers and early incidents of Wood County, Virginia, Bicentennial Committee, Parkersburg Woman’s Club, Parkersburg, West Virginia, Wes Cochran, Parkersbur, West Virginia, 1976.
WOOD – Sketches of Wood county: its early history, Stephen Chester Shaw, George Elletson, Parkersburg, West Virginia, 1878.
WYOMING – NONE