"Historic Places In Berkeley County"Series
Berkeley County, West Virginia
Historic Boydville Series
Yankauer Nature Preserve
Berkeley County, West Virginia
Historic Boydville Series
Yankauer Nature Preserve
About Berkeley County
Established in 1772 by an act of the House of Burgesses and created from the northern third of Frederick County, VA, , Berkeley County was likely named for the colonial Governor of Virginia, Norborne Berkeley. The County seat is in Martinsburg. Jefferson and Morgan Counties were later carved from its original territory. Consisting of lands once occupied by Native Americans including the Hurons and Senecas among other tribal peoples, the County was first explored by Europeans in the 17th and 18th centuries, including Morgan Morgan, who founded the first English settlement near present day Bunker Hill in 1726. In 1748 a sixteen year old George Washington surveyed Berkeley County for Lord Thomas Fairfax, beginning a period of repeated visits, especially to the Morgan County Town of Bath with its natural springs. With its fertile soil and plentiful fresh water sources, as well its proximity along the Great Philadelphia Wagon Road, Berkeley County attracted many 18th century settlers, and mill sites and early plantations are still to be found throughout the County. As in neighboring Jefferson County, commercial agriculture still dominates the County's landscape, although with a growing population (according to 2010 census data, Berkeley County boasted a population of just under 105,000, making it the second most populous in the State) development is proceeding at a rapid rate and indeed, Berkeley is the fastest growing county in West Virginia. Berkeley County is rich with history from the French and Indian War, the Revolutionary War (over half the population including five generals fought) as well as the Civil War. Its history of agriculture and industry - including mills, textile production, distilleries and railroads - has been recounted in numerous excellent books, including Aler's History of Martinsburg and Berkeley County, West Virginia: From the Origin of the Indians ...(1888), Berkeley County, U.S.A.: A Bicentennial History of a Virginia and West Virginia County, 1772-1972 (Doherty), and History of Berkeley County, West Virginia (Evans), among others.
Additional information can be found at the website of the Berkeley County Historical Society.
Additional information can be found at the website of the Berkeley County Historical Society.