Historical Markers and War Memorials in Wayne County, West Virginia
Wayne is the county seat for Wayne County
Adjacent to Wayne County, West Virginia
Cabell County(52) ► Lincoln County(9) ► Mingo County(22) ► Boyd County, Kentucky(28) ► Lawrence County, Kentucky(12) ► Martin County, Kentucky(7) ► Lawrence County, Ohio(21) ►
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Created as a base of operations for the 5th WV Infantry, it was named for Francis Pierpont, governor of Loyal Virginia in the Civil War. Also called Camp Lightburn, it was the only Civil War fort in Wayne County and consisted of breastworks and a . . . — — Map (db m139232) HM
James Maynard (1750-1852) and his wife, Chaney Smith, are buried nearby, along with son, Jesse, and his wife, Sarah. A resident of Wilkes County, NC, James served during the American Revolution as a private under Captain Jesse Franklin and Colonel . . . — — Map (db m178329) HM
Named during the War between the States. At the junction of the Tug and Big Sandy rivers, in 1789, Charles Vancouver and 10 companions built a log fort and attempted a settlement on land surveyed in 1770 by John Fry for George Washington. — — Map (db m136675) HM
Since the founding of Fort Gay and Louisa in the first half of the 19th century, the only way to travel between the towns was by ferry. In 1904, the Louisa and Fort Gay Bridge company was created to build a toll bridge across the Tug and Levisa . . . — — Map (db m137334) HM
Micajah Frasher/Frazier (1753-1843) and wife Susan Hamilton are buried nearby. Enlisted in 1780; served 18 months in Va. Line under Pope. Was at Hood's Fort, Williamsburg and under Washington against Cornwallis at Yorktown. Progenitor of the area's . . . — — Map (db m136709) HM
Steam Boat traffic reached Fort Gay in the 1830s but relied on a sufficient water level. During dry periods, boats could not run. Throughout the 19th century, efforts were made to build a system of locks and dams to allow year-round boat traffic and . . . — — Map (db m137332) HM
Polley Freedom Case.
In 1850, eight freed slaves of the
Polley family were kidnapped from
Ohio and sold back into slavery.
William Ratliff of Wayne County
bought four of the children. A suit
for freedom brought on their behalf
was not . . . — — Map (db m178274) HM
On Nov 14, 1970, 75 people died in the worst sports related air tragedy in U.S. history, when a Southern Airways DC-9 crashed into the hillside nearby. The victims included 36 Marshall University football players, 9 coaches and administrators, 25 . . . — — Map (db m73743) HM
Ceredo - Founded in 1857 by Eli Thayer of Massachusetts, an Abolition leader, in his plan to create sentiment against slavery in western states. Kenova - named for the meeting place of three states, Kentucky, Ohio, and West Virginia. — — Map (db m35202) HM
Welcome to Dreamland Pool. Dreamland Pool was first opened in 1926, and the original construction included
a three story pavilion. The top floor of the pavilion included a dance floor, where
many notable Big Bands played through the 1930s and . . . — — Map (db m126082) HM
Remains of Dr. Cary Henry Hampton (1754-1840), his son, Dr. Anthony G. Hampton, and daughter-in-law Susannah, are buried in Maple Hill Cemetery. The elder Hampton was born in Buckland, VA, the son of a French and Indian War veteran. In the American . . . — — Map (db m175170) HM
Located one and a half mile
south on Spring Valley Drive.
Established, 1932, for the care
and rehabilitation of American
war veterans. A one hundred
eighty bed General Medical
and Surgical Hospital with dental and outpatient treatment. — — Map (db m126064) HM
Wayne County.
Formed in 1842 from Cabell.
Named for General Anthony
Wayne, whose victory over
the Native Americans in 1794
at Fallen Timbers broke the
Western Confederacy and
removed the threat of further
attacks into western . . . — — Map (db m126062) HM
West Virginia. “The Mountain State” — western
part of the Commonwealth of
Virginia until June 20, 1863.
Settled by the Germans and
Scotch Irish. It became a line
of defense between the English
and French during the . . . — — Map (db m126080) HM
Nearby is the grave of Josiah Marcum
(1759-1846?). Enlisting from Bedford
County, he served: in Colonel Campbell’s
Virginia Militia Regiment, 1780-81, as a wagon
guard at General Gates’s retreat, and as a
drummer at the Battle of Guilford . . . — — Map (db m178333) HM
Samuel Hatton (1759-1839) is buried nearby. From March 1, 1777, to September 6, 1780, he served in the 1st Virginia State Regiment and was at Yorktown with General Washington. Received grant of 100 acres at Round Bottom (Prichard). Came here circa . . . — — Map (db m178271) HM
Amanda Smith was born in 1829 in eastern Virginia before moving to Wayne County as a young girl. She married prominent lawyer, Joseph Jefferson Mansfield, in 1850, and the couple started a family in the village of Trout's Hill (now Wayne). Joseph . . . — — Map (db m204485) HM
As part of his research of the Appalachian dialect for the film
Cool Hand Luke, Paul Newman arrived at Tri-State Airport
in September of 1966. Newman's friend Sargent Shriver, who
had worked with his brother-in-law John F. Kennedy's campaign
in . . . — — Map (db m204065) HM
Hendricks Street was one of
the first streets laid out in
Wayne when the town was first
established in 1842 and may
have been first called
"Main Street.” In the election
of 1884, the people of Wayne
supported President Grover
Cleveland and . . . — — Map (db m204062) HM
An attorney born in Wayne County
(1833), Ferguson was colonel of the
167th VA Militia when war began in
1861. Captured in July, he formed
a Confederate cavalry company upon
release and became colonel of the
16th VA Cavalry. He was captured
in . . . — — Map (db m178264) HM
Samuel Ferguson (1744-1825) and wife Mary Jameson (1746-1827) are buried nearby. Served in Montgomery County, Virginia, militia at battles of Alamance and King’s Mountain. An early sttler on Bluestone Creek, he gave land for Tazewell courthouse in . . . — — Map (db m178258) HM
The Grist Mill at Wayne was originally built in 1828 by Abraham Trout who
owned a large farm at the location. A natural waterfall powered the mill until
Trout built a dam to provide more water power. In 1842, Wayne County was
established, and the . . . — — Map (db m178260) HM
First called Trout’s Hill for
Abraham Trout, who established
a mill here in 1828, which ran
for a century. Large areas of
this county were included in
the land granted to John
Savage and other veterans of
the French and Indian War. — — Map (db m178265) HM
First called Trout’s Hill for
Abraham Trout, who established
a mill here in 1828, which ran for a
century. Large areas of this county
were included in the land granted
to John Savage and other veterans
of the French and Indian War. — — Map (db m178269) HM
The current Wayne County Courthouse is the fifth building to serve that function.
The first log courthouse was built on the present courthouse site in 1842. It was
replaced by a brick building in the 1850s which lasted until it dilapidated in . . . — — Map (db m204060) HM
Wayne County High School opened on September 11, 1922 in a two-story
frame house where the Community Center sits. The brick school building
shown here was completed in 1925. In the 1940s. concrete bleachers
were built overlooking the football . . . — — Map (db m204071) HM
This memorial is dedicated
to honor all veteran's
of
Wayne County
WW I
KIA-MIA
John Bartram •
Henry Bellomy •
Enoch Blankenship •
Oscar Elkins •
Lee Hooser •
Ottus Jackson •
Walter Perry •
Charle A. Stone •
Allen . . . — — Map (db m204077) WM
The Town of Wayne was home to two Confederate colonels in the Civil War —
Colonel James Corns of the 8th VA Cavalry and Colonel Milton J. Ferguson of the 16th
VA Cavalry. Both are shown above.
In August of 1861, a four day skirmish . . . — — Map (db m178266) HM
Erected in honor of the men of Wayne County who served the nation during the World War, 1917–1919.
Harry Adkins • Linza Adkins •William T Asbury • John B Bartram • Henry Bellomy •Enoch Blankenship • Van Bradshaw • William Crum, Jr. • William H . . . — — Map (db m178268) WM
Hezekiah Adkins (1759-1842)
and his wife Mary Levon (1768-
1855) buried nearby. He served
under Captain John Lucas as a
private in Montgomery County
militia. Claimed service on New
River against Native Americans
and in guarding wagons of . . . — — Map (db m178252) HM