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Independence Hall in Wheeling, WV

The Wheeling Custom House in Wheeling, WV is considered to be the birthplace of West Virginia. Constructed in 1859, the Wheeling Custom House was the headquarters for the Federal Post Office and Court house for western Virginia.  At the start of the Civil War, however, the building would begin to play a more significant role.  

The building was used by the Union loyalists to discuss the split from Virginia.  The Custom House emerged as the headquarters for the Restored Government of Virginia.  In 1863, Abraham Lincoln declared West Virginia a separate state making it the only new state to emerge from the tumult of the Civil War.  Wheeling remained the capitol for a brief period before it was moved south to Charleston.  

The building design was at the forefront of forwarding thinking architecture as the predecessor to the modern skyscraper.  Instead of depending on the exterior masonry walls to support the building’s weight, internal iron beams and girders bearing were used.  The interiors of the building were designed in a very grand nature making a lasting impression on its visitors.  

The building has been renamed Independence Hall and is used today as a Museum and living history of West Virginia.