Aug. 16, 2016
WHEELING, W.Va. – The West Virginia Division of Culture and History (WVDCH) will unveil the 2016 50th Anniversary Poster of the National Historic Preservation Act and announce a new lecture series honoring Betty Woods “Snookie” Nutting at West Virginia Independence Hall in Wheeling, this Friday, Aug. 19, at 1 p.m.
The poster celebrates 50 historic West Virginia resources and includes information on the programs offered by the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) of the WVDCH. It showcases the breadth of West Virginia’s historic themes, including industry, education, religion, commerce, transportation and agriculture.
The Snookie Nutting lecture series will take place at West Virginia Independence Hall, and honors Nutting for her tremendous support for historic preservation. The fall series is free and open to the public. The first talk is at 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 21, with Vic Greco presenting “Musings of an Architect on Woodsdale,” which will focus on the history of Wheeling’s Woodsdale neighborhood. Greco is the principal architect of The Mills Group. At 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 5, Glenn Elliot, mayor of Wheeling, will discuss Wheeling’s history from the 1890s to the 1920s.
“We are proud of our state’s efforts to protect and preserve our historic landmarks: buildings, sites and properties,” said WVDCH Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith. “As we celebrate this landmark anniversary, we are glad that we can showcase West Virginia’s preservation efforts with this lecture series and the poster.”
Susan Pierce, director of the SHPO added, “In 1966, Congress recognized that our country had a rich heritage worthy of protection and sent President Lyndon B. Johnson the National Historic Preservation Act for his signature. The law established the National Register programs across the country. West Virginia has approximately 1,060 National Register listings which include individual and district nominations.
For a free poster and more information about SHPO activities, visit www.wvculture.org, or contact John Adamik, education coordinator for the SHPO, at (304) 558-0240.
West Virginia Independence Hall has been on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) since 1970. It was originally built as a federal custom house in 1859, served as the home of the pro-Union state conventions of Virginia during the spring and summer of 1861 and as the capitol of loyal Virginia from June 1861 to June 1863. It was also the site of the first constitutional convention for West Virginia. Designated a National Historic Landmark in 1988, the museum is maintained and operated by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, with the cooperation and assistance of the West Virginia Independence Hall Foundation. The museum is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, with the exception of major holidays. The museum is located on the corner of 16th and Market Streets in Wheeling.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History is an agency within the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts with Kay Goodwin, Cabinet Secretary. The division, led by Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith, brings together the past, present and future through programs and services focusing on archives and history, arts, historic preservation and museums. For more information about the division’s programs, events and sites, visit www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
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