Tag: Reorganized Government of Virginia

October 24, 1861: Voters Approve State of West Virginia

On October 24, 1861, voters formally approved the formation of West Virginia. Many western Virginia residents had been frustrated with the Virginia state government for years. But, they had few options at their disposal because the U.S. Constitution forbids any state to be carved from another state without the original state’s approval.

The Virginia state government in Richmond would not have willingly given away one-third of its territory. But, when Virginia left the Union at the beginning of the Civil War, western Virginia politicians seized their window of opportunity.

In June of 1861, western Virginia leaders formed the Reorganized Government of Virginia, which pledged its loyalty to the Union. Meeting in Wheeling, this new Virginia state government set the gears in motion to create West Virginia.

When the measure was put to a vote in October, residents approved it by a wide margin. However, the new state was not universally popular as only 37 percent of eligible voters went to the polls. After being approved by Congress and President Abraham Lincoln, West Virginia entered the Union as the 35th state on June 20, 1863.

March 24, 1899: Statehood Leader Francis Pierpont Dies at 85

Statehood leader Francis Pierpont died on March 24, 1899, at age 85. He was born near Morgantown in 1814 and raised for part of his childhood in Marion County. As a young adult, he was as an attorney for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and a pioneer coal operator.

When the Civil War began, he helped form the pro-Union Reorganized Government of Virginia with its capital in Wheeling. In June 1861, he was unanimously elected the first and only governor of this government.

He dedicated much of his early time in office to obtaining funds for the government, keeping western Virginia in Northern military hands, and creating the new state of West Virginia.

When West Virginia entered the Union in 1863, Pierpont moved with the Reorganized Government to its new capital in Alexandria and then on to Richmond at the end of the war. He served as Virginia’s governor until 1868.

Francis Pierpont played such an important role in the state’s founding that he’s often called the “Father of West Virginia.” He’s one of only two West Virginians honored with a statue in the U.S. Capitol’s statuary hall.

June 20, 1863: West Virginia Enters the Union

On June 20, 1863, West Virginia entered the Union as the nation’s 35th state. It was the end of an unprecedented ladder to statehood that began with the outbreak of the Civil War.

Although some Western Virginians had been frustrated with the Virginia state government in Richmond for decades, it took Virginia’s secession from the Union in April 1861 to get the West Virginia statehood process moving.

Crafty politicians—now remembered as our founders—used Virginia’s secession as an excuse to create a separate government of Virginia—one that remained loyal to the Union.

They elected their own representatives and senators to Congress and established their own state government of Virginia, with its capital in Wheeling. It was this Restored, or Reorganized, Government of Virginia that gave its constitutional consent for West Virginia to break from Virginia and form a new state.

When Arthur Boreman became West Virginia’s first governor on June 20, 1863, he referred to our state as a “child of the rebellion.” When the Civil War ended nearly two years later, West Virginia was the only permanent change in territory resulting directly from the war.

October 24, 1861: Voters Approve State of West Virginia

On October 24, 1861, voters formally approved the formation of West Virginia. Many western Virginia residents had been frustrated with the Virginia state government for years. But, they had few options at their disposal because the U.S. Constitution forbids any state to be carved from another state without the original state’s approval.

The Virginia state government in Richmond would not have willingly given away one-third of its territory. But, when Virginia left the Union at the beginning of the Civil War, western Virginia politicians seized their window of opportunity.

In June of 1861, western Virginia leaders formed the Reorganized Government of Virginia, which pledged its loyalty to the Union. Meeting in Wheeling, this new Virginia state government set the gears in motion to create West Virginia.

When the measure was put to a vote in October, residents approved it by a wide margin. However, the new state was not universally popular as only 37 percent of eligible voters went to the polls. After being approved by Congress and President Abraham Lincoln, West Virginia entered the Union as the 35th state on June 20, 1863.

June 20, 1863: West Virginia Enters the Union

On June 20, 1863, West Virginia entered the Union as the nation’s 35th state. It was the end of an unprecedented ladder to statehood that began with the outbreak of the Civil War.

Although some Western Virginians had been frustrated with the Virginia state government in Richmond for decades, it took Virginia’s secession from the Union in April 1861 to get the West Virginia statehood process moving.

Crafty politicians—now remembered as our founders—used Virginia’s secession as an excuse to create a separate government of Virginia—one that remained loyal to the Union.

They elected their own representatives and senators to Congress and established their own state government of Virginia, with its capital in Wheeling. It was this Restored, or Reorganized, Government of Virginia that gave its constitutional consent for West Virginia to break from Virginia and form a new state.

When Arthur Boreman became West Virginia’s first governor on June 20, 1863, he referred to our state as a “child of the rebellion.” When the Civil War ended nearly two years later, West Virginia was the only permanent change in territory resulting directly from the war.

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