WLU’s Rare Book Returns Home
We stood around the podium topped with a glass case like mythical giants peering down at tiny humans, and for me, the moment felt just as magical. It was 1994, and I was in the Nelle M. Krise Rare Book’s Room a...
BILL HOGAN’S MUSINGS: Peace Corps in East Wheeling?
This is a tough one to get started. There are so many people involved from not only different backgrounds but different continents.
ONE: PEACE CORPS
When we arrived in Cove, Benin, West Africa, starting our ...
Legendary Barber Recalls 50 Years of Work in Wheeling
Ralph Tomlinson was 94 years old when he cut his last head of hair on July 6, 2018. For 50 years, Ralph barbered in Wheeling, 49 of them at his shop on 33rd Street. You might call him a legend.
To hear more ...
Echoes … Of Life on Top of Violet Hill
Editor's note: Last week, Anne Hazlett Foreman shared Echoes ... Of Life Below Violet Hill. Today, we read about life on top of Violet Hill.
We moved to the big brown stucco house on top of Violet Hill whe...
Handled With Dignity: Putting the Past to Rest
It took a village to honor an anonymous young girl’s skeletal remains retrieved from the now-closed Ohio Valley Medical Center. Two hospital retirees, a historian, a funeral home, a library and, finally, a ceme...
ECHOES … Of Life Below Violet Hill
Long before my family moved to the brown stucco house at the top of Chicken Neck Hill overlooking Elm Run, I was a resident of Birch Lynn and spent most of the summers on the gently sloping hillside below it.
...
AS I SEE IT: Reading — Soul Food for the Heart and Mind
“You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read. It was books that taught me that the things that tormented me most were the very things that connected ...
THE GRIFFITH FILES: When Wheeling Put On a Big Show to Celebrate Its Bicentennial
Fifty years ago, I was a defender of Wheeling’s Fort Henry in the last battle of the Revolutionary War; a Union soldier guarding a prisoner of war camp during America’s Civil War; one of a dozen or so jubilant ...
ECHOES … Of That First Day at the Mount — and Beyond
It is said that moments of trauma or great joy are etched in our minds forever and, like Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD), can come back as vivid memories unexpected and unwelcome in their timing and inten...
Celebrating the Musical Women of Coal Country: Karen Collins, Elaine Purkey Remember Hazel Dickens
The Ohio County Public Library and the WALS Foundation will celebrate Reuther-Pollack Labor Heritage Week through the music of two legendary West Virginia singer-songwriters whose work has brought attention to ...
BILL HOGAN’S MUSINGS: Poppa’s One, Two, Three
Driving through Wheeling Park, I noticed a sign — “Bandstand” — and followed it to the top of the hill. I haven’t been up there in decades. The last time was for a party we had there when the rails around the b...
Wheeling Heritage Media Launches Podcast on Wheeling Brewer
Murder (maybe). Philanthropy. Prostitution. Industrialization. Corruption. All these words are synonymous with Wheeling brewer Henry Schmulbach.
And Wheeling Heritage is bringing Wheeling’s brewing history t...
Exley Remembers (sort of) Three Days of Craziness on Max Yasgur’s Farm
Wheeling resident R. Banford Exley has sporadic memories of a raucous music festival he attended 50 years ago on a New York dairy farm.
He hadn’t heard of the Woodstock Music Festival until a friend asked hi...
Experience Wheeling’s Rowdy Past at the Francis Pier-Pint Brew-Off: Prohibition Edition
The logo was designed by Erin Rothenbuehler, programming and archives coordinator at the Ohio County Public Library.
According to local historian Sean Duffy, history and beer go together naturally. Luckily ...
People’s University to Explore Wheeling’s Labor History
Wheeling was a hotbed of unionism throughout its industrial period. In observation of the 250th anniversary of Wheeling's founding, People’s University at the Ohio County Public Library will explore that indust...
Jewish Community Celebrates 170 Years of Worship
Following the second wave of Jewish migration to the United States during the 1840s-80s, the early Jewish community in West Virginia was comprised mainly of German and other central European Immigrants. German ...
WISH YOU WERE HERE: The Robert Schramm Collection of Historic Postcards (Part 1)
Writer's note: This is the first of a short series of Weelunk pictorials from the collection of retired West Liberty State College (now university) Professor Robert (Bob) Schramm.
As a colleague, friend and...
THE GRIFFITH FILES: Growing Up on Big Wheeling Creek in Elm Grove
"Stay away from the creek.” ... In the Elm Grove neighborhoods along Big Wheeling Creek in the early 1960s, no parental directive was ignored more often.
The wide, often-muddy tributary with its rocks, crawd...
For the Love of Bicycling: Then and Now
Bicyclists in the Ohio Valley enjoy myriad recreational opportunities, from scenic bike trails to winding country roads beyond the city. Wheeling has a rich bicycling tradition, as evidenced by the popularity o...
DiCarlo’s Pizza: A Cultural Icon
There are only two kinds of pizza, good pizza and very good pizza.
— Peter Reinhart, author of "American Pie, My Search for the Perfect Pizza"
Ask just about any Ohio Valley resident, and they will affirm ...
AS I SEE IT: Mourning the Loss of My JITH Traditions
Editor’s note: Here in the Ohio Valley, the third weekend in July has meant an annual pilgrimage to Jamboree In The Hills for a lot of local country music fans. But for the first time in over 40 years, Jamboree...
Those Were the Days: Veteran Broadcaster Shares Jamboree Memories
Editor's note: Here in the Ohio Valley, the third weekend in July has meant an annual pilgrimage to Jamboree In The Hills for a lot of local country music fans. But for the first time in over 40 years, Jamboree...
A VIEW FROM THE MOON: First Footprints on the Moon — 50th Anniversary of Apollo 11
For untold generations, human beings had looked at the moon and wondered ... What was it? Was it a God? Was it a place? What was it made of? Did anyone or anything live there? Only poets, writers, philosophers ...
Unexpected to Unbelievable: A Jamboree Love Story
Editor's note: Here in the Ohio Valley, the third weekend in July has meant an annual pilgrimage to Jamboree In The Hills for a lot of local country music fans. But for the first time in over 40 years, Jamboree...
The ‘Hills’ Hold His Heart
Editor's note: Here in the Ohio Valley, the third weekend in July has meant an annual pilgrimage to Jamboree In The Hills for a lot of local country music fans. But for the first time in over 40 years, Jamboree...
Warwood Neighborhood One Step Closer to ‘Historic District’ Status
Part of the Warwood neighborhood is one step closer to becoming a nationally recognized historic district. Wheeling Heritage has selected Weller and Associates to complete an architecture and history survey of ...
Harshman’s Poem Celebrates ‘Wheeling at 250’
Editor's note: "Wheeling at 250" was commissioned by the Wheeling 250 committee. The poem, written by Marc Harshman, West Virginia's poet laureate, was premiered at the Wheeling Symphony Orchestra's concert on...
Cracks, Whizzes and Cheers: Eight Decades of American Legion Baseball
Before the advent of television, Wheeling families found entertainment among the sounds of cracks, whizzes and cheers of the local baseball diamonds. The Friendly City was home to teams at all levels: from the ...
Weelunk Reader From Croatia Wins Haiku Contest
Never in 250 years, has Goran Gatalica set foot in Wheeling, West Virginia.
But this year’s haiku contest winner — who also took second-place honors — learned enough about our city from his Croatian friends,...
THE GRIFFITH FILES: How Mom, Zane Gray, the Beverly Hillbillies and the Revolutionary War Inspired a Lifetime of Reading
I was a child television junky in 1963, well-versed in the classics like Bonanza, Gunsmoke, Car 54: Where Are You?, Ben Casey, The Red Skelton Show, Hawaiian Eye, Wagon Train, Dr. Kildare, Rawhide, Route 66, th...
Mounds of Learning Opportunities at Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex
You pay homage to it every time you say the name of its hometown. It’s one of the largest Adena burials found in the country. It’s been the center of hoaxes, and Charles Dickens even paid it a visit. There is a...
ECHOES … Of Guns and Rose — Tales of Summer Vacations Long Ago
There is no place hotter in August than Vicksburg, Mississippi. It was just one of many of our destinations during most summers when I was young. My father ’s spin on summer fun was narrow and pointed. Pointed ...
Celebrating Juneteenth Wheeling Style
Many Americans probably believe that once President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 that all slaves were set free and lived happily ever after.
In reality, the road to freedom for most e...
Events to Celebrate Statehood, Independence Hall and Suspension Bridge Milestones
A once-in-a-lifetime celebration experience is on tap from Thursday, June 20, through Sunday, June 23, marking milestone anniversaries with family-friendly signature summer events.
“A number of elements came...
Looking to the Past and to the Future, Wheeling Heritage Celebrates 25 Years
Most city residents probably don’t realize that every trip to the grocery store, every school bus run and all those drive-thrus for coffee are all taking place within a national park of sorts.
And, they have...
‘Rithmetic Genius Born in Ohio County — Go Figure
Most people can remember their parents or grandparents talking about the three R’s of schooling: reading, writing and arithmetic. These three subjects were the foundation of early education throughout the Weste...
With So Much to See and Do, Wheeling Punches Above Its Weight Class
To use a sports analogy, Wheeling punches above its weight class. For a city of only 27,000, Wheeling boasts a tremendous number of high-quality cultural institutions and tourism attractions. Not many look like...
Placing of Roses on Civil War Veterans’ Graves, Tours and Ceremony at Greenwood Cemetery
Friends of Wheeling will partner with the Ohio Valley Civil War Roundtable in placing white roses on the graves of both Union and Confederate Civil War veterans in Greenwood Cemetery, beginning at 9 a.m. on Mem...
The House in the Photo: A History of Echo Manor
There are many images of Wheeling from its early days, but certain photos just stick with us. One, in particular, generates discussion: a well-known sepia image from the turn of the century. Runners wind their ...
DOWNTOWN DO-OVER: Bringing Buildings Back From the Brink
Editor’s note: The Downtown Do-Over series is taking a close look at the ongoing revival of Wheeling’s city center. In today’s story, Weelunk looks at what it actually takes to restore historic structures. View...
People’s University Uncovers the Obscure McLure
Editor’s note: The Ohio County Public Library has launched its 26th People’s University, an eight-week series featuring weird, wild, wacky, whimsical stories from Wheeling, including: Native-American oddities, ...
BILL HOGAN’S MUSINGS: The Flicks
I was fortunate to attend a noon talk at our library recently, about the old movie theaters in West Virginia. It brought back so many memories of when I was a kid in the 1930s and ’40s when going to a movie on ...
Wheeling’s American Legion Post 1: Leading the Way in Service for 100 years
Editor's note: Learn more about Wheeling Post No. 1 of the American Legion — officially the oldest post in the U.S. — at Lunch With Books, Tuesday, May 21, at the Ohio County Public Library. The program will in...
Political Peculiarities and the Blues at People’s University
Editor’s note: The Ohio County Public Library has launched its 26th People’s University, an eight-week series featuring weird, wild, wacky, whimsical stories from Wheeling, including: Native-American oddities, ...
Suicide, a Suspicious Drowning and Good Times Are Brewing at People’s University
Editor's note: The Ohio County Public Library has launched its 26th People's University, an eight-week series featuring weird, wild, wacky, whimsical stories from Wheeling, including: Native-American oddities, ...
Local Secret Worth Sharing: Home for Men Celebrates 90 Years of Service
"One of the secrets of life is that all that is really worth doing is what we do for others." — Lewis Carroll
One of Wheeling's best-kept secrets, the Home for Men in Warwood, is celebrating its 90th annivers...
10 Ways to Celebrate Historic Preservation Month in Wheeling
May is Historic Preservation Month.
Established in 1973 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the designated month brings attention to historic places with the intention to instill pride, promote ...
A VIEW FROM THE MOON: SMART-Center Turns 25 — 50 Years Ago (Part 1)
In elementary school, I labored under the common misconception that persists with most youngsters unabated to this day. I thought that “Science” is the accumulation of random facts and figures about a field of ...
Harshman, Villamagna Bring Attention to Wheeling Landmarks in New Children’s Book
Once there was a mouse … it was paddling for dear life outside of Robert Villamagna’s art studio, trying to keep its poor little head above water during the flood of 2004.
Once there was another mouse … "who...
Weird Stories of Wheeling in the Civil War
Editor’s note: The Ohio County Public Library has launched its 26th People’s University, an eight-week series featuring weird, wild, wacky, whimsical stories from Wheeling, including: Native-American oddi...