Today, Antonia Capriotti's bright, intricate illustrations form entire exhibitions in West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle. But years ago she was only just discovering her love for art as one of the first two students to receive a specialized curriculum for their Autism in Jefferson County Schools.
On September 26, 1863 lawmakers in the newly formed State of West Virginia adopted the State Seal designed by Joseph Hubert Diss Debar of Doddridge County.
In the 150 years since, the state seal has never been changed. The front of the Seal, which shows a coal miner and farmer representing industry and agriculture, a rock engraved with the date of statehood, and two rifles crossed beneath the Cap of Liberty, has become a symbol of West Virginia. According to the West Virginia Encyclopedia, the seal was designed and adopted with two sides, but only the front or obverse is in common use.
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Wikimedia
The reverse side of West Virginia’s official state seal.
The reverse side of the seal is the governor’s seal. It is encircled by a wreath of laurel and oak leaves. A wooded mountain is on the left and a slope with a log farmhouse on the right. On the side of the mountain is a representation of the Tray Run Viaduct, as an engineering feat of the time, and a train about to pass over the viaduct. A factory, fronted by a river with boats, a derrick and a shed, and a meadow with sheep and cattle grazing indicate the leading characteristics and products of the state. Above, the sun emerges from the clouds, and the rays of the sun contain the Latin phrase ‘‘Libertas E Fidelitate,’’ which means ‘‘Freedom and Loyalty.’’
The Secretary of State is the official keeper of the state seal.
It's been 15 years since the Upper Big Branch Mine disaster in West Virginia. Family members and others from the community gathered over the weekend to remember those who lost their lives in one of the worst mining accidents of the past half century.
Army Maj. Gen. Charles C. Rogers, and a native West Virginian, is the highest-ranking Black servicemember to receive the Medal of Honor. But a Department of Defense profile of Rogers, who died in 1990, was taken down on Friday. It comes as the Trump administration has pushed to remove references to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) across the federal government. As of Monday afternoon, the page had returned to the website.
When he ended his term as governor to head to the U.S. Senate, Jim Justice assured West Virginians he was leaving the state in glowing financial condition. New Gov. Patrick Morrisey announced a week into his first term that he had “inherited” from the Justice administration a projected $400 million budget deficit for the fiscal year starting in July. Contradicting Justice, he said the former governor didn’t find the money to pay for his record $1 billion-a-year cuts to the personal income tax. Justice has dismissed the concerns as “crazy talk."