Laurel Mountain (West Virginia)
Encyclopedia
For other "Laurel Mountains", see Laurel Mountain (disambiguation).
Laurel Mountain, also called Laurel Hill, is a long ridge in north-central West Virginia
, USA. Along with Rich Mountain to the south, it is considered to be the westernmost ridge of the Allegheny Mountains
and the boundary between the Alleghenies and the Allegheny Plateau
.
, Tucker
, Barbour
, and Randolph
Counties, the ridge forms portions of the borders between them. It stretches for about 32 miles (51.5 km) from the Cheat River
(near the town of Manheim
) in the north to the Tygart Valley River
(near the town of Aggregates) in the south. It achieves its highest elevation at the Eliot Benchmark (3,157 ft/962 m) about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north of Pleasure Valley.
The mountain is formed by the same structural fold in the Earth's crust which continues north from Laurel as Briery Mountains (north of Cheat River
) and south as Rich Mountain (south of the Tygart Valley River
). The mountain is related to the long, folded mountains of the Appalachian Valley and Ridge Region
and is located at the west edge of that physiographic province.
(by some reckonings the first land battle of the Civil War
), the Confederate forces, having been routed by the Union Army in Philippi
, retreated south. Confederate General Robert S. Garnett
moved about 3,500 troops to Laurel Mountain. The Confederates made camp at the foot of the mountain near the Laurel Mountain Road (today a winding single lane dirt road that crosses the mountain and connects the towns of Belington
and Elkins
). On July 6, General George B. McClellan
ordered General Thomas A. Morris
to advance from Philippi to Belington with about 5,000 Union troops. Skirmishing began on July 7 and lasted for five days (the "Battle of Laurel Hill"), with the Union routing the Confederate troops. Upon hearing of the simultaneous defeat of forces at Rich Mountain
, General Garnett retreated with his troops to Corrick's Ford
near Parsons
where he soon became the first general officer to be killed in the war.
Later that summer, General Robert E. Lee
maneuvered against Brig. Gen. Joseph J. Reynolds
at Cheat Mountain
and in the Tygart Valley
. He called off the attack and eventually withdrew to Valley Head
on September 17. In October, he renewed operations against Laurel Mountain with the troops of Floyd
and Loring
, but operations were called off owing to communication and logistical difficulties. Lee was recalled to Richmond
on October 30 after achieving little in western Virginia and with his reputation diminished.
In recent years, production of a "Battle of Laurel Hill Reenactment" has been undertaken at the site of the Laurel Hill Battlefield on its anniversary dates. In 2004, the City of Belington
assumed ownership of 50 acres (202,343 m²) of the old camp and battlefield.
has constructed wind turbines on Laurel Mountain. The wind farm opened in October of 2011 with 61 turbines stretched across 12 miles. AES can generate up to 98 megawatts of electricity with this facility. A notable feature of the project is the largest battery installation attached to the power grid in the continental United States. The purpose of the 1.3 million batteries is to tame the wind, but only slightly. AES states the batteries will be a shock absorber of sorts, making variations in wind energy production a little less jagged and the farm’s output more useful to the grid.
Laurel Mountain, also called Laurel Hill, is a long ridge in north-central West Virginia
West Virginia
West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
, USA. Along with Rich Mountain to the south, it is considered to be the westernmost ridge of the Allegheny Mountains
Allegheny Mountains
The Allegheny Mountain Range , also spelled Alleghany, Allegany and, informally, the Alleghenies, is part of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range of the eastern United States and Canada...
and the boundary between the Alleghenies and the Allegheny Plateau
Allegheny Plateau
The Allegheny Plateau is a large dissected plateau area in western and central New York, northern and western Pennsylvania, northern and western West Virginia, and eastern Ohio...
.
Geography
Running northeast to southwest through PrestonPreston County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 29,334 people, 11,544 households, and 8,357 families residing in the county. The population density was 45 people per square mile . There were 13,444 housing units at an average density of 21 per square mile...
, Tucker
Tucker County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 7,321 people, 3,052 households, and 2,121 families residing in the county. The population density was 18 people per square mile . There were 4,634 housing units at an average density of 11 per square mile...
, Barbour
Barbour County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there are 15,557 people, 6,123 households, and 4,365 families residing in the county. The population density is 46 people per square mile . There are 7,348 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile...
, and Randolph
Randolph County, West Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 28,262 people, 11,072 households, and 7,661 families residing in the county. The population density was 27 people per square mile . There were 13,478 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile...
Counties, the ridge forms portions of the borders between them. It stretches for about 32 miles (51.5 km) from the Cheat River
Cheat River
The Cheat River is a tributary of the Monongahela River in eastern West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania in the United States. Via the Monongahela and Ohio rivers, it is part of the Mississippi River watershed, ultimately draining into the Gulf of Mexico.-Geography:The Cheat is formed at...
(near the town of Manheim
Manheim, West Virginia
Manheim is a small neighborhood located near the Cheat River that is incorporated within the town of Rowlesburg in Preston County, West Virginia, United States....
) in the north to the Tygart Valley River
Tygart Valley River
The Tygart Valley River — also known as the Tygart River — is a principal tributary of the Monongahela River, approximately long, in east-central West Virginia, USA...
(near the town of Aggregates) in the south. It achieves its highest elevation at the Eliot Benchmark (3,157 ft/962 m) about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north of Pleasure Valley.
The mountain is formed by the same structural fold in the Earth's crust which continues north from Laurel as Briery Mountains (north of Cheat River
Cheat River
The Cheat River is a tributary of the Monongahela River in eastern West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania in the United States. Via the Monongahela and Ohio rivers, it is part of the Mississippi River watershed, ultimately draining into the Gulf of Mexico.-Geography:The Cheat is formed at...
) and south as Rich Mountain (south of the Tygart Valley River
Tygart Valley River
The Tygart Valley River — also known as the Tygart River — is a principal tributary of the Monongahela River, approximately long, in east-central West Virginia, USA...
). The mountain is related to the long, folded mountains of the Appalachian Valley and Ridge Region
Ridge-and-valley Appalachians
The Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, also called the Ridge and Valley Province or the Valley and Ridge Appalachians, are a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian division and are also a belt within the Appalachian Mountains extending from southeastern New York through northwestern New...
and is located at the west edge of that physiographic province.
History
After the June 3, 1861 Battle of PhilippiBattle of Philippi Races
The Battle of Philippi—also known mockingly as "The Philippi Races"—was fought on June 3, 1861, in and around Philippi, Virginia as part of the Western Virginia Campaign of the American Civil War...
(by some reckonings the first land battle of the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
), the Confederate forces, having been routed by the Union Army in Philippi
Philippi, West Virginia
Philippi is a city in — and the county seat of — Barbour County, West Virginia, USA. The population was 2,870 at the 2000 census. In 1861, the city was the site of the Battle of Philippi, known as "The Philippi Races"...
, retreated south. Confederate General Robert S. Garnett
Robert S. Garnett
Robert Selden Garnett was a career military officer, serving in the United States Army until the American Civil War, when he became a Confederate States Army brigadier general. He was the first general officer killed in the Civil War.-Early life and career:Garnett was born at the family plantation...
moved about 3,500 troops to Laurel Mountain. The Confederates made camp at the foot of the mountain near the Laurel Mountain Road (today a winding single lane dirt road that crosses the mountain and connects the towns of Belington
Belington, West Virginia
Belington is a City in Barbour County, West Virginia, along the Tygart Valley River. The population was 1,788 as of the 2000 census.-Geography:Belington is located at ....
and Elkins
Elkins, West Virginia
Elkins is a city in Randolph County, West Virginia, United States. The community was incorporated in 1890 and named in honor of Stephen Benton Elkins , a U.S. Senator from West Virginia. The population was 7,032 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Randolph County...
). On July 6, General George B. McClellan
George B. McClellan
George Brinton McClellan was a major general during the American Civil War. He organized the famous Army of the Potomac and served briefly as the general-in-chief of the Union Army. Early in the war, McClellan played an important role in raising a well-trained and organized army for the Union...
ordered General Thomas A. Morris
Thomas A. Morris
Thomas Armstrong Morris was an American railroad executive and civil engineer from Indiana and a soldier, serving as a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War...
to advance from Philippi to Belington with about 5,000 Union troops. Skirmishing began on July 7 and lasted for five days (the "Battle of Laurel Hill"), with the Union routing the Confederate troops. Upon hearing of the simultaneous defeat of forces at Rich Mountain
Battle of Rich Mountain
The Battle of Rich Mountain took place on July 11, 1861, in Randolph County, Virginia as part of the Operations in Western Virginia Campaign during the American Civil War.-Background:...
, General Garnett retreated with his troops to Corrick's Ford
Battle of Corrick's Ford
The Battle of Corrick's Ford took place on July 13, 1861, on the Cheat River in western Virginia as part of the Operations in Western Virginia Campaign during the American Civil War. By later standards the battle was a minor skirmish...
near Parsons
Parsons, West Virginia
The town of Parsons is the county seat of Tucker County, West Virginia, in the United States. The population was 1,463 at the 2000 census. The mayor of Parsons is Dorothy Judy and the city administrator is Jason Myers...
where he soon became the first general officer to be killed in the war.
Later that summer, General Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
maneuvered against Brig. Gen. Joseph J. Reynolds
Joseph J. Reynolds
Joseph Jones Reynolds was an American engineer, educator, and military officer who fought in the American Civil War and the postbellum Indian Wars.-Early life and career:Reynolds was born in Flemingsburg, Kentucky...
at Cheat Mountain
Cheat Mountain
Cheat Mountain is an exceptionally high and rugged ridge situated in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It is about long and more than five miles wide at its widest. Its highest point is at its southernmost end at Thorny Flat, which has an elevation of...
and in the Tygart Valley
Tygart Valley River
The Tygart Valley River — also known as the Tygart River — is a principal tributary of the Monongahela River, approximately long, in east-central West Virginia, USA...
. He called off the attack and eventually withdrew to Valley Head
Valley Head, West Virginia
Valley Head is an unincorporated census-designated place in Randolph County, West Virginia, United States. Valley Head is located on U.S. Route 219 south-southwest of Huttonsville. Valley Head has a post office with ZIP code 26294. As of the 2010 census, its population was 267.-Notable...
on September 17. In October, he renewed operations against Laurel Mountain with the troops of Floyd
John B. Floyd
John Buchanan Floyd was the 31st Governor of Virginia, U.S. Secretary of War, and the Confederate general in the American Civil War who lost the crucial Battle of Fort Donelson.-Early life:...
and Loring
William W. Loring
William Wing Loring was a soldier from North Carolina who served in the armies of the United States, the Confederacy, and Egypt.-Early life:...
, but operations were called off owing to communication and logistical difficulties. Lee was recalled to Richmond
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
on October 30 after achieving little in western Virginia and with his reputation diminished.
In recent years, production of a "Battle of Laurel Hill Reenactment" has been undertaken at the site of the Laurel Hill Battlefield on its anniversary dates. In 2004, the City of Belington
Belington, West Virginia
Belington is a City in Barbour County, West Virginia, along the Tygart Valley River. The population was 1,788 as of the 2000 census.-Geography:Belington is located at ....
assumed ownership of 50 acres (202,343 m²) of the old camp and battlefield.
Wind turbines
The AES CorporationAES Corporation
AES Corporation is a Fortune 500 company that generates and distributes electrical power. The company was founded on January 28, 1981, as Applied Energy Services by Roger Sant from the US Federal Energy Administration and Dennis Bakke from the Office of Management and Budget. AES Corporation is...
has constructed wind turbines on Laurel Mountain. The wind farm opened in October of 2011 with 61 turbines stretched across 12 miles. AES can generate up to 98 megawatts of electricity with this facility. A notable feature of the project is the largest battery installation attached to the power grid in the continental United States. The purpose of the 1.3 million batteries is to tame the wind, but only slightly. AES states the batteries will be a shock absorber of sorts, making variations in wind energy production a little less jagged and the farm’s output more useful to the grid.