Author ORCID Identifier

https://orcid.org/0009-0001-6693-4565

Semester

Spring

Date of Graduation

2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Type

PhD

College

Eberly College of Arts and Sciences

Department

History

Committee Chair

Jason Phillips

Committee Co-Chair

Brian Luskey

Committee Member

Brian Luskey

Committee Member

Melissa Bingmann

Committee Member

Ken Fones-Wolf

Committee Member

Kevin Barksdale

Abstract

This project explores the original architecture of West Virginia. The plans and deliberate construction of the new state not only represented the longstanding desire of western counties for equitable representation in its legislature but also rested on the economic and political ambition of the movement’s leaders. Not all western counties supported independent statehood, and a substantial number of counties favored secession. Without a cohesive citizen consensus to embark upon statehood, traditional narratives that the western counties embarked on statehood solely to protect republican interests bears further investigation. Lacking a unified front, political and business leaders steered the movement through the intersection of capitalism and politics to create a state which, from its beginnings, was crafted to protect a specific set of interests. The new state not only served western ambitions, but it also protected the interests of a federal government that struggled to maintain loyalty across border states. The bargain for statehood at the intersection of regional capitalism and national politics served the men who led the movement. Multiple statehood leaders attained economic wealth during the process, others obtained lasting political appointments, and many obtained both. The bargain also served the Union, securing an important border state and crafting a model of rewarding loyalty.

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