Editing Charleston, West Virginia (section)

===19th century growth===
[[File:Gilliland Cabin Apr 09.JPG|thumb|left|[[William S. Gilliland Log Cabin and Cemetery|Gilliland Log Cabin]]]]
By the early 19th century, salt brines were discovered along the Kanawha River, and the first [[salt well]] was drilled in 1806.{{sfn|Federal Writers' Project|1941}} This created great economic growth in the area. By 1808, 1,250 pounds of salt were being produced daily, and the ''Farmers' Repository'' newspaper began publication.<ref name=LOC>{{cite web|url=http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/search/titles/results/?state=West+Virginia&city=Charleston&rows=50&sort=date |title=U.S. Newspaper Directory |location=Washington DC |work=Chronicling America |publisher=Library of Congress |access-date=March 7, 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170307233811/http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/search/titles/results/?state=West+Virginia&city=Charleston&rows=50&sort=date |archive-date=March 7, 2017}}</ref> An area adjacent to Charleston, Kanawha Salines (now [[Malden, West Virginia|Malden]]), became the world's top salt producer. Brine was heated over open flames, causing the water to evaporate and leaving a residue of salt crystals. Much of the work was done by enslaved peoples. Historian Cyrus Forman estimated that at the height of production as many as 3,000 slaves worked at more than 60 salt furnaces, which operated 24 hours a day, seven days a week.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Easter |first=Makeda |date=April 4, 2020 |title=Slavery Documents from Southern Saltmakers Bring Light to Dark History |work=The Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2020-04-16/huntington-slavery-collection-west-virginia-salt-works |access-date=June 2, 2023}}</ref> The [[Holly Grove Mansion]] was established during this period.{{sfn|Federal Writers' Project|1941}} In 1818, the Kanawha Salt Company, the first trust in the United States, went into operation. In the same year, "Charlestown" was shortened to "Charleston" to avoid confusion with another [[Charles Town, West Virginia|Charles Town]] in eastern West Virginia, named after George Washington's brother, [[Charles Washington]].{{sfn|Hellmann|2006}} A [[lyceum]] was established around 1841.<ref name="davies">{{cite web|url=http://www.princeton.edu/~davpro/databases/index.html |title=American Libraries before 1876 |author=Davies Project |publisher=Princeton University |access-date=March 7, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150302215225/http://www.princeton.edu/~davpro/databases/index.html |archive-date=March 2, 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Captain James Wilson, while drilling for salt, struck the first [[natural gas]] well in 1815. It was drilled at the site that is now the junction of Brooks Street and Kanawha Boulevard (near the present-day state capitol complex). In 1817, [[coal]] was first discovered and gradually became used as the fuel for the salt works. The Kanawha salt industry declined in importance after 1861, until the onset of [[World War I]] brought a demand for chemical products. The chemicals needed were [[chlorine]] and [[sodium hydroxide]], which could be made from salt brine.

The town continued to grow until the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] began in 1861. After the [[Virginia Secession Convention of 1861]] and a referendum, Virginia seceded from the [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]]. But Charleston, like much of western Virginia, was divided in loyalty between the Union and the [[Confederate States of America|Confederacy]]. On September 13, 1862, the Union and Confederate armies clashed in the [[Battle of Charleston (1862)|Battle of Charleston]]. The [[Confederate States Army|Confederates]] won, but could not hold the area for long. Union soldiers returned in force six weeks later and retook the city.{{sfn|Federal Writers' Project|1941}} Charleston remained under Union control for the remainder of the war.
[[File:Second Charleston West Virginia capitol building.jpg|thumb|left|The second capitol building of West Virginia was built in 1885 after Charleston was declared the capital city. It burned down in 1921.]]
In addition to the dispute over slavery, the North wanted to separate West Virginia from the rest of the state for economic reasons. The heavy industries in the North, particularly the steel business of the upper [[Ohio River]] region, depended on coal from western Virginia mines. Federal units from Ohio marched into western Virginia early in the war solely to capture the mines and control transportation in the area.{{Citation needed|date=March 2022}} The [[Wheeling Convention]] of 1861 declared the Ordinance of Succession, and the Confederate state government in [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]], illegal and void, and formed the Unionist [[Restored Government of Virginia]]. The Restored Government and the United States Congress approved the formation of the state of [[West Virginia]], which was admitted on June 20, 1863, as the 35th state, and the Restored Government of Virginia moved to [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]].{{sfn|Hellmann|2006}}

Choosing the state capital proved difficult. For several years, the capital moved between [[Wheeling, West Virginia|Wheeling]] and Charleston.{{sfn|Britannica|1910}} In 1877, the citizens voted on a permanent location. Charleston received 41,243 votes, [[Clarksburg, West Virginia|Clarksburg]] 29,442, and [[Martinsburg, West Virginia|Martinsburg]] 8,046; Wheeling was not considered. Eight years later the state capitol opened in Charleston.{{sfn|Federal Writers' Project|1941}}

The West Virginia Historical and Antiquarian Society was headquartered in Charleston in 1890.<ref name=StateArchives /><ref>{{citation|author=Appleton Prentiss Clark Griffin |title=Bibliography of American Historical Societies |quote=West Virginia |pages=942+ |series=Annual Report of the American Historical Association |location=Washington, DC |publisher=Government Printing Office |edition=2nd |year= 1907 |hdl= 2027/uc2.ark:/13960/t7dr2pp5f}}</ref> In 1891, the West Virginia Colored Institute, now known as [[West Virginia State University]], was established. The next year, [[West Virginia Junior College|Capitol City Commercial College]] was founded.{{sfn|Chamber of Commerce|1901|p={{page needed|date=September 2022}}}} Charleston's [[Basilica of the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart]] was completed in 1897.