Charities and Corrections.—The insti tutions under the control of the State Board of Control are as follows: Hos pitals at Weston, Spencer, Huntington, Welch, McKendree and Fairmont; peni tentiary at Moundsville; industrial home for girls at Industrial; school for the deaf and blind at Romney; tuberculosis sanatorium at Terra Alta ; colored tuberculosis sanatorium at Denmar; children's home at Elkins; and colored orphans' home at Huntington.
Churches.—The strongest denomina tions in the State are the Methodist Episcopal, North; Regular Baptist; Methodist Episcopal, South; Roman Catholic; United Brethren; Methodist Protestant; Presbyterian, South; Dis ciples of Christ; Presbyterian, North ; Colored; and Dunkards.
Railways.—The railway mileage in 1919 was 4,007.7. The roads having the longest mileage are the Baltimore and Ohio and the Norfolk and Western.
Finances.—The receipts for the fiscal year 1918-1919 were $5,010,573, and the disbursements $6,693,653. There was a balance at the end of the year of $2, 218,091. The assessed value of real estate in 1919 was $767,653,310, and of personal property $372,631,062. The total bonded indebtedness of the State on Jan. 1, 1920, was $13,500,000.
State Government.—The governor is elected for a term of four years. Legisla
tive sessions are held biennially in odd years beginning on the second Wednes day in January, and are limited in length to 45 days each. The Legislature has 30 members in the Senate, and 94 in the House. There are 6 Representatives in Congress under the new appointment.
History.—The history of the State prior to 1861 is identified with that of Virginia proper, of which State it formed part till after the outbreak of the Civil( War. The Allegheny Mountains, how ever, formed a natural line of demarka tion between the two sections of the original State, and conditions favoring separation had long existed. These reached a climax on the passage by Virginia of an ordinance of secession, the popular vote in the section W. of the mountains being strongly opposed to it. A convention of loyalists met at Wheeling in June, 1861, and in August adopted an ordinance providing for the formation of a new State to be called Kanawha. In November a constitution was adopted and the name West Virginia chosen. This constitution was adopted by the people by a very large majority in April, 1862, and the State was formally admitted to the Union by Act of Congress and the approval of Presi dent Lincoln, June 19, 1863.