Editing Moorefield, West Virginia (section)

==History==
[[Image:Moorefield West Virginia aerial view.jpg|thumb|left|Aerial view of the business district of Moorefield, West Virginia. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has constructed [[levees]] along the South Fork to protect the town from flooding.]]
[[File:Moorefield aerial 2021.jpg|thumb|left|Aerial view of Moorefield and the surrounding terrain]]

Moorefield is situated in the South Branch Valley along the [[South Branch Potomac River|South Branch]] of the Potomac River. Native Americans populated this area for thousands of years. For centuries, they farmed along the river and hunted in the surrounding mountains. The historic [[Shawnee people]], who spoke a Central [[Algonquian languages|Algonquian language]] in the same family as other tribes in their region, occupied this area when [[European colonization of the Americas|Anglo-European settlers]] began arriving in the early 18th century, attracted by the fertile land. This early settlement was centered on the community of [[Old Fields, West Virginia|Old Fields]], referring to former Native American lands. This is located about five miles to the north of present-day Moorefield.

Conflict between the mostly British settlers and Native American peoples broke out during the [[French and Indian War]]. The British colonists constructed two fortifications to guard the South Branch Valley in the vicinity of Moorefield. Fort Buttermilk was erected in 1756 and garrisoned by Captain Thomas Waggoner's Virginia Regiment Company.<ref>{{cite web|last1=McBride|first1=Stephen|last2=McBride|first2=Kim|title=Fort Buttermilk|url=http://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/2407|website=e-WV|publisher=The West Virginia Encyclopedia|access-date=February 24, 2016}}</ref> A second fortress, [[Fort Pleasant]], situated at Henry Van Meter's Farm at Old Fields, guarded the northern side of the valley. It was also garrisoned by Waggoner's Virginia Regiment Company.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Adamson|first1=Greg|title=Fort Pleasant|url=http://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/2050|website=e-WV|publisher=The West Virginia Encyclopedia|access-date=February 24, 2016}}</ref> In the spring of 1756, soldiers from Forts Buttermilk and Pleasant clashed with [[Shawnee]] warriors under [[Bemino]] (also known as Killbuck) at the [[Battle of the Trough]].<ref name=EFIW>{{cite book |title=Encyclopedia of the French & Indian War in North America, 1754–1763 |last=Stoetzel |first=Donald I. |year= 2008 |publisher=Heritage Books |isbn=978-0-7884-4517-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=b-uLUVJtHKkC}}</ref>

Colonist Conrad Moore owned the land on which Moorefield was laid out. In 1777, the [[Virginia General Assembly]] chartered the town of Moorefield in what was then [[Hampshire County, West Virginia|Hampshire County]], Virginia (today [[Hardy County, West Virginia|Hardy County]], West Virginia).<ref>{{cite web|last1=Heishman|first1=Phoebe|title=Moorefield|url=http://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/2036|website=e-WV|publisher=The West Virginia Encyclopedia|access-date=February 24, 2016}}</ref> When Hardy County was separated from Hampshire County by act of the Virginia General Assembly in 1785, after the American Revolution, Moorefield was chosen as the county seat.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Heishman|first1=Phoebe|title=Hardy County|url=http://www.wvencyclopedia.org/articles/238|website=e-WV|publisher=The West Virginia Encyclopedia|access-date=February 24, 2016}}</ref> Many of the historic houses in Moorefield date to the last quarter of the 18th century and first quarter of the 19th century; they display vernacular adaptations of [[Federal style|Federal]] and [[Greek Revival Style architecture|Greek Revival]] architecture.

During the [[American Civil War]], Moorefield was the site of a [[Battle of Moorefield|cavalry engagement]] between Union [[William W. Averell|Brigadier General William W. Averell]] and Confederate [[John McCausland|Brigadier General John McCausland]] on August 7, 1864, in which Averell routed McCausland. This was part of the [[Valley Campaigns of 1864]]. That summer, Averell was the only Union commander to achieve successes against Confederate forces.