“
I’m no doctor, but I’d like to prescribe for you—hills, streams, valleys—and crisp clean mountain air.
”
the lure of the open road and the appeal of the all-American road trip brought adventure seekers to our mountain playground. State parks were popular destinations. Lodges and campgrounds were high priorities for state spending and ushered in rapid growth of the tourism industry. The West Virginia Turnpike opened in 1954, cutting the drive between Princeton and Charleston by almost two hours, and its Memorial Tunnel was a marvel of the modern highway system. Modern downhill skiing came to the Mountain State in the ’50s, when an entrepreneur scooped up a 99-year lease on Cabin Mountain in Tucker County and created the first ski slopes. For the first time, West Virginia could claim to be an all-season state, as seen in A New West Virginia —a guide hand-written by then-commissioner J.B. McLaughlin with his personal tourism recommendations and published by the West Virginia Department of Agriculture. Lavish hotels still beckoned tourists to the larger cities but, in the 1950s, motels catering to road trippers started cropping up along the highways. The first state park lodge— at Blackwater Falls State Park—opened in 1957. As more parks followed suit, places that were once remote, like the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in Green Bank, became travel destinations.
“
My idea is to tell you about the West Virginia you see when you leave the big centers of population and strike out on the open road. Scenery? Good highways? Places of historic significance in America’s history? Sure! But you’ll find, too, the warm welcome of a happy and hospitable population. You find the state devotes much attention to the new generation.
And for recreation—say! Don’t overlook the state parks and state forests. Honest, they’re swell. One of the newest draws for visitors was the state’s untamed whitewater. Exploration of the fast rivers in West Virginia The 1960s were a time of turmoil, and tourism dollars became increasingly important. A 1961 Department of the Interior visitors guide for Harpers Ferry National Monument promoted Harpers Ferry as a “scenic and historic” town made famous by the Civil War and the John Brown Raid. It became such a popular destination that Congress declared it a national historical park in 1963. The Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine opened to visitors in 1962, offering the public an education about the mysterious world of coal mining. A new Army Corps of Engineers dam on the Gauley River created Summersville Lake, known as the “Little Bahamas of the East” for its crystal clear diving waters. began by canoe, but a man with a vision—John Dragan—saw an opportunity to offer residents and visitors alike a thrilling rush exploring whitewater by inflatable raft. Along with his brothers—Tom and Chris—and future wife, Melanie, he started Wildwater Unlimited in Thurmond in 1968. ”
”
“
92 wvl • summer 2020
Made with FlippingBook Online document