The area keeps growing with tech firms, federal government facilities, and
businesses relocating here. Morgantown and Fairmont are communities on the move with
new infrastructures and more construction changing city landscapes. Morgantown,
city with 27,000 people and university of 21,500 students, is a valid vacation destination,
even considering only the city proper. With riverfront bike trails, WVU sports,
exceptional theater community, exemplary downtown shopping area, and a plethora of
restaurants of all varieties, I can always think of something to do in Morgantown.
Perhaps even more important to tourists, as the city grows, its history is highlighted.
Lately, I have been enticed by sites outside the city. On
the Mason-Dixon Line only 70 miles south of Pittsburgh, the original (Zaquill) Morgan’s Town lies near the other
end of the Monongahela River, whose navigability brought settlers here after the French
and Indian War. A string of forts along the river protected their land guaranteed them by
the Virginia Charter. Ironworks, nail factories, musket factories, and other businesses
used the river to transport goods to Pittsburgh, as Albert Gallatin’s industries in Point
Marion did.
Early on, national politics focused on development of roads and canals into this area, then considered
the "interior" of the nation. Later, glassworks and railroad construction brought more workers. Then
mining. During the Depression, New Deal projects uprooted mining towns in peril,
established new communities, and caught the nation’s attention again as Eleanor
Roosevelt’s pet.
So, here we grow again with another migration from the east, but before we do, we gather
the history we don’t want to leave behind. That is how I interpret what’s happening here
in north-central West Virginia. I see announcements for sites I haven’t heard of before.
Surprisingly educational Friendship Hill National Historic Site and Arthurdale, first New Deal community in the nation,
are well-established attractions now and offer intimate, interesting tours that have
enlightened me about the area’s rich heritage.
As Andrea Koppel said about China, "Get here before it’s gone." Only it won’t vanish,
because our heritage is being preserved with landmark designations every way from
Morgantown.
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In a few days, I explore sites within a half-hour drive of the city. Most hotel chains are located in Morgantown, but I live nearby. I have worked and
stayed at Lakeview Resort and can recommend it as great location from which to
begin many rewarding days out--plus, there is plenty to do on the property and adjoining
Cheat Lake.
The reason the first New Deal community, Arthurdale, is new to me can be explained.
Besides the fact that Arthurdale has offered tours for less than 10 years, Morgantown
Chamber of Commerce has begun only recently to promote sites in neighboring Preston
County. This opens new suggestions for Morgantown visitors--and especially interesting
ones, since Deckers Creek Trail, which begins at the river in Morgantown, runs
through Preston County.
In addition to bicycling, the area offers a variety of outdoor recreational resources for
skiing, hiking, boating, swimming, whitewater rafting, fishing, climbing, spelunking,
horseback riding, camping, and more. Our history and culture may be more tied to
Pittsburgh than to the rest of West Virginia, but we "northerners" (to the rest of the state)
are still "wild and wonderful" outdoors.
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Deckers Creek rails-to-trails link is an especially suitable way to see historic
communities in Preston County, most of them within 30 minutes of Morgantown,
because bicyclers can avoid modern highways. Then again, the winding two-lane roads
to Masontown and Reedsville (Routes 7 East and 92 South) aren’t too
modern! One might add, "And Deckers Creek isn’t too pristine!" At any rate, the
hayfields provide a nostalgic note.
Morgantown Airport is served by US Airways.
In addition, the city is situated at the
intersection of two major interstates, I-79 and I-68. Route 119 North runs to Point
Marion, PA and Friendship Hill National Park, and Route 857 North connects with a new
Pennsylvania Turnpike Extension (Route 43--much nicer than the Turnpike itself!) that
runs from the state border north to Uniontown, a gateway to the Laurel Highlands. It’s a
great area for outings by auto.