This extensive work opens with a discussion of American history which touches on discoverers; Indians, Indian nations, and Indian wars; notable historical figures such as George Washington; significant battles; letters and journals; and much more. The bulk of the book is divided into sections devoted to each of the four counties found in West Virginia's pan-handle: Ohio (with a separate section for Wheeling City), Brooke, Marshall and Hancock. The authors have "endeavored to make the history of each town and village after its organization up to present date complete in itself, without too much recapitulation" and "trace the method of the change, in a concise, unpretentious way: how and by whom the wilderness has been changed to the garden, the log cabin to the mansion, the track through the forest and the lone postal rider to the iron rail, fast mail, and electric wire with its lightning messenger,—the wild lands of the red man to the homes and industries of the white." The authors have "garnered from every available source (in many cases a mere sentence only), confining ourselves so far as possible to original material, depending largely upon archives, documents, records, the memories of old settlers, and those whose lives and associations have made them familiar with the subjects portrayed." Numerous illustrations of people and places, a map of the Pan Handle, and a map of DeCeloron's expedition augment the narrative. A full-name index adds to the value of this work. J. H. Newton, G. G. Nichols and A. G. Sprankle (1879, 1990), 2011, 7.5" x 10.5", paper, index, 635 pp.ISBN: 9781556134135 101-N0413
