West Virginia
Gov. Morrisey's refusal to recognize Juneteenth confuses W.Va. state workers
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WCHS) — West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey announced he will not recognize Juneteenth as a federal holiday, causing some confusion for state employees.
“State workers have to report to work, but county buildings where many state workers do work are closed,” Kanawha County Commission President Ben Salango said.. “I think a lot of them are going to work remotely or if they don’t want to work remotely, they take PTO. It’s an unusual situation.”
Salango said it’s required that county employees have the day off, but Morrisey is allowed to make a decision regarding an observance of the holiday.
“Each administration is different. They can recognize whatever holidays they want to recognize,” Salango said. “Certainly, it’s within Gov. Morissey’s prerogative and his discretion to do that.”
Not everyone is happy with the governor’s decision. Rev. Matthew J. Watts said Juneteenth holds importance to many West Virginians.
“Juneteenth becomes a way to really educate people really about the impact of slavery in West Virginia and the fact that we were a slaveholding state,” Watts said.
West Virginia became a state on June 20, 1863, but not because it were against slavery. Watts said there’s artifacts dating back to that period right in the capital city.
“Slaves in coal mines, slaves in salt mines right up at Belle and Rand West Virginia,” he said. “Slaves worked in steel mills to some degree. Slave labor was critically important.”
Watts hopes West Virginians can take the day to educate themselves on the state’s history.
“I was never taught that slavery existed in West Virginia,” he said. “As a matter of fact, we were told West Virginia succeeded from Virginia over the slave issue and that’s what I believed until I was well into my adulthood.”
Watts is joining Delegates Sean Hornbuckle and Hollis Lewis Thursday for a Juneteenth celebration at the Capitol at 10:30 am.
West Virginia
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West Virginia picked up a massive commitment on Tuesday from four-star offensive lineman Kevin Brown, but for Rich Rodriguez and Co., there’s more work to be done. The Mountaineers now have 29 players committed in the 2026 recruiting class, and according to Rich Rod, the goal is to sign around 35.
So, who are some of the recruits Mountaineer fans need to keep a close eye on? Here’s a baker’s dozen for you.
Height: 6’0″ Weight: 175
Hometown: Bentonville, Arkansas
Considering: Arkansas, West Virginia
Height: 5’11” Weight: 175
Hometown: Atco, New Jersey
Considering: Minnesota, Nebraska, UConn, West Virginia
Height: 6’7″ Weight: 280
Hometown: Fort Wayne, Indiana
Considering: Minnesota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, West Virginia.
Height: 6’2″ Weight: 280
Hometown: Mission Viejo, California
Considering: Washington, West Virginia.
Height: 6’3″ Weight: 230
Hometown: Fort Mill, South Carolina
Considering: Clemson, East Carolina, West Virginia.
Height: 6’3″ Weight: 230
Current School: Georgia Military College
Considering: Houston, Florida State, North Carolina State, SMU, West Virginia.
Height: 6’3″ Weight: 225
Hometown: Orangeburg, South Carolina
Considering: Arkansas, North Carolina, West Virginia.
Height: 6’3″ Weight: 210
Hometown: Coatesville, Pennsylvania
Considering: North Carolina, Penn State, Vanderbilt, West Virginia.
Height: 5’11” Weight: 185
Hometown: Mustang, Oklahoma
Considering: Army, Iowa State, West Virginia, a few others.
Height: 6’3″ Weight: 195
Hometown: Alabaster, Alabama
Considering: Cincinnati, West Virginia.
Height: 6’3″ Weight: 205
Current School: Coffeyville C.C.
Considering: Charlotte, Houston, Liberty, Mississippi State, UCF, West Virginia.
Height: 6’0″ Weight: 190
Hometown: McDonald, Pennsylvania
Considering: Indiana, Notre Dame, Penn State, Pitt, West Virginia.
Height: 6’2″ Weight: 245
Hometown: Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania
Considering: Central Michigan, West Virginia
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WELLSBURG, W.Va. — It’s the final move in a seven-year program aimed at helping both the environment and economy in Brooke County as Eagle Manufacturing has announced that it’s capped its final monitoring well.
A problem in the making since the 1930s finally solved, land once laden with chemicals now labeled with another “C”–clean.
Through working with the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protections, several Eagle Manufacturing properties have received certificates of completion after a seven-year environmental remediation process.
“All of those properties now have certificates of completion and meet all of the requirements that they are clean properties, both at ground water and surface, as well as all air quality,” retired Eagle Manufacturing CEO Joe Eddy said.
The remediation, including an injection program and well capping, took place at Eagle’s 24th Street main plant, as well as at their plants on 12th and 19th streets and at their 22nd Street distribution center.
With a clean bill, Eddy said this could be a stepping stone in bringing industry to Wellsburg, much like the billion-dollar company that purchased Eagle in 2018.
“Any more development that we want to continue to do with Eagle on those properties we can do without having the scrutiny of the dep other than what the current laws and regulations are,” Eddy said.
But that economic development doesn’t end there. For Eddy, energy is the force driving Brooke County’s economy into the future.
“We’re right in the heart of coal and natural gas country here, and we have the benefit of being right in the center of the largest industrial customer base in the world,” Eddy said.
“There’s a lot of people in the world, not just in the United States, that are looking at our area very closely for expansion, not only AI and data centers, which is a great opportunity, but also by energy-intensive industries.”
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