
Lithograph of Harper’s Ferry, WV, by Currier and Ives, ca. 1860.
Image
courtesy of the Library of Congress.
West Virginia became the 35th state in the Union on June 20, 1863. The state was formed from the western counties of Virginia after that state seceded from the United States during the Civil War. Below are some facts about West Virginia from the U.S. Census Bureau:

Harper’s Ferry, WV, 1912.
Photo courtesy of the Library of
Congress.
In a June 1963 report from the 1960 Census, the U.S. Census Bureau noted that 78 percent of West Virginians living in the state had been born there. Only North Carolina and South Carolina had higher percentages of native-born residents. Nevada had the lowest percentage of residents born in-state: 19.7 percent.
West Virginia, Kentucky, and Wyoming accounted for 52 percent of the value of U.S. shipments in the coal mining industry in 2007. The U.S. Census Bureau’s "Industry Snapshots" provide key industry statistics for this and other industries in the United States and includes comparisons of the data from the 1997, 2002, and 2007 Economic Censuses.
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