Lynn had promised me years ago that if we traveled anywhere near West Virginia, we would include a visit to the area where my great-grandfather and his family lived. So … this leg was added to what would be our month-long vacation.
I had discovered some years ago that my great-great grandfather (on my maternal grandmother’s side) had owned a 96-acre farm in West Union District, Doddridge County, West Virginia, on or near Nutter’s Fork. Also, I learned that there was a cemetery located on the property, in my grandmother’s maiden name (Kinney).
So, after completing our Freedom Tour, we rented a car and started driving.
We soon could see that there is a lot of poverty in the outlying areas of West Virginia. We arrived in West Union, and could see that the buildings were all in various states of disrepair. The Roads are very narrow and in poor condition. We noticed that there were a lot of large trucks that were part of the oil and gas industry. When a truck came toward us, we had to pull over to the side and off the road to allow the truck to pass. It was disconcerting.
While in West Union, we noticed a large brick building that looked relatively new (the only newer one in the area). It was the community Library. We decided to stop … perhaps someone there could tell us where the cemetery was located. Two young librarians (or volunteers) proved to be very helpful. They were able to locate Kinney Cemetery online in a county map.
While we were talking to the librarians, an older lady walked up and introduced herself. She heard us mention “Kinney Cemetery” and knew exactly where it was. We were glad, because it didn’t appear as if it would be easy to find. She gave me detailed instructions (turn left, left, right, etc., providing landmarks such as “next to the house with the large ferns.” I wrote everything down, which was a good thing! It was tricky to find driving on single-lane roads and with the directions (although they were spot on, down to the last detail).
A story: We complimented the library staff on the library. We could tell it was very active. One of the volunteers told us that the community had to fight for years to get funding for it. Their “politician” had the attitude that they didn’t need it … they could just “go on the internet.” Wow. This library is where the community meets for just about every community event. There are kids’ gatherings, activities for seniors, parties to celebrate citizens, etc. Dont’cha just love “politicians.” This is an example of how they sometimes don’t care at all about poor and disadvantaged communities, nor can they relate to them. 
After leaving West Union, we traveled to the entrance of the Shenandoah National Park and Skyline Drive. We made our way to the Luray Caverns, the largest caverns in the Eastern United States.
Then, for two days, we traveled through the magnificent Blue Ridge Mountains.
We found a mountain cabin to stay in just north of the border into North Carolina. The next leg of our vacation was Lynn’s Swenson Sailors Association Reunion and we needed to rest up before that!
More photos of this area can be seen in our Virginia/West Virginia Album on Flickr.
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