Near Standard in Kanawha County, West Virginia — The American South (Appalachia)

Standard, WV

Early Life and Times along Paint Creek

— America’s Byways — Paint Creek Scenic Trail —

Standard, WV Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by J. J. Prats, July 13, 2019

1. Standard, WV Marker

Click on image to enlarge.

Inscription. This kiosk is dedicated to the thousands of people who once called Paint Creek their home. Here are some images of different people and places along Paint Creek during the first half of the 20th century. During coal’s heyday, the towns were located one after another up the stream. There are only a few towns remaining and most of the area has returned to wilderness. As you travel along Paint Creek you will be able to see the natural beauty of the area and imagine what life would have been like living in those earlier times.

(photo captions, clockwise from the center)

Willis Branch Coal Company
The Paint Creek Coal Mining Co., Standard W.Va.
(uncaptioned photo of two miners and small boy)
Kidd family. Pictured here are the six sons of the late Wesley and Anna McDaniel Kidd, all from Standard in Kanawha County. The photograph was taken in 1946 when the last son returned home. From Left, they are (kneeling) Wesley Kidd Jr., Navy; Fred Alfred Kidd, Air Force; Mark Edgar Kidd, Marines; (standing) Howard Clifford Kidd, Air Force; Charles Edwin Kidd, Army; and Frank James Kidd, Army.
George Washington Maynor, Seventh West Virginia Cavalry
Swinging Bridge at Greencastle
Paint Creek “Ole Swimming Hole”
Kingston Choir 1947–48
Tomsburg 1905
Pax
Kingston
Paid Advertisement

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1920’s

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Labor Unions • Natural Resources. A significant historical year for this entry is 1946.

Location. 38° 7.739′ N, 81° 23.251′ W. Marker is near Standard, West Virginia, in Kanawha County. It is at the intersection of Paint Creek Road (Local Route 83) and Exit 74 (Interstate 77) on Paint Creek Road. Paint Creek Road parallels the West Virginia Turnpike Toll Road, Interstates 64 and 77, south of this exit. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Gallagher WV 25083, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Greater Charleston Area.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 6 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Mary Ingles (here, next to this marker); Mucklow / Gallagher, WV (approx. 2.3 miles away); Holly Grove “Bull Moose Special” (approx. 4.3 miles away); Bull Moose Special (approx. 4.3 miles away); Fayette County / Kanawha County (approx. 4.8 miles away); West Virginia Institute of Technology (approx. 4.9 miles away); Montgomery (approx. 5 miles away); Montgomery Veterans Memorial (approx. 5.1 miles away).

Mary Ingles Marker, Map of the Paint Creek Scenic Trail, and the Standard WV Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by J. J. Prats, July 13, 2019

2. Mary Ingles Marker, Map of the Paint Creek Scenic Trail, and the Standard WV Marker

Paint Creek Scenic Trail Map image. Click for full size.

Photographed by J. J. Prats, July 13, 2019

3. Paint Creek Scenic Trail Map

Click on the image to zoom in. Highlights (shown in green) left to right:

1920—Striking miners terrorize Willis Branch with gunfire and destroy the mining complex with dynamite.
1919—7 miners are killed in an explosion of the Weirwood coal mine.
1989—Striking miners bombed the coal mine at Milbourn, WV
1990s—The last company store operating in West Virginia was the Imperial Collieries store in Burnwell.
1913—Approximate location of the striking miners’ tent colony that was fired on by mine guards wielding a machine gun mounted on the “Bull Moose” special train.
1913—Union organizer mary “Mother” Jones inprisoned in Pratt.

Credits. This page was last revised on August 12, 2019. It was originally submitted on August 11, 2019, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 885 times since then and 62 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on August 11, 2019, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.