The story behind the first issue of this magazine, as told by the people who were there. In 2007, WV Living founder Nikki Bowman was living in Jackson, Mississippi. She was the managing editor of Mississippi magazine. It was a large lifestyle publication with a small staff, but its impact was felt all across the state. “It helped build businesses….
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Already a revered world music pioneer when we profiled him in 2009, steel drum innovator Ellie Mannette lived out his creative and productive last quarter-century in West Virginia. Morgantown native Chanler Bailey had an epiphany in the spring of 2002. He had traveled to the second European Steel Band Festival on the Mediterranean coast of France with his mentor, panman…
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West Virginia native and TV personality Mark Bowe brings Barnwood Builders fame to Greenbrier County gift shop. The nation was first introduced to Mark Bowe through the DIY Network show Barnwood Builders. The show, which debuted in 2013, follows Bowe and his all-West Virginia crew as they restore some of the nation’s oldest barns and log cabins, while also turning…
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How Snowshoe Mountain Resort makes every winter a snowy one. The powdery slopes of Snowshoe Mountain Resort seem like a wonder of natural beauty. Unfortunately, the Mid-Atlantic—with its relatively mild winters, relatively low elevations, and high humidity—isn’t naturally a skier’s paradise. Without the science of snowmaking, Snowshoe wouldn’t exist. And snowmaking wouldn’t be possible without snowmakers. The job would have…
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After lots of hard work, a derelict property reveals a hidden treasure in Tucker County. To get to the Cooper homestead, David Downs had to bushwhack. This was the late 2000s, and it had been decades since anyone lived there, and the road to the property was badly overgrown. He climbed boundary fencing and waded through tall weeds before sliding…
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