Laurel Mountain (West Virginia)

"For other "Laurel Mountains", see Laurel Mountain (disambiguation)." Infobox Mountain
Name = Laurel Mountain, West Virginia
Photo = LaurelMountain.jpg
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Elevation = 3,157 feet (962 m)
Location = West Virginia, USA
Range = Allegheny Mountains, part of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians
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Coordinates = coord|39|08|32|N|79|50|0|W|type:mountain_region:US
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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.

Geography

Running northeast to southwest through Preston, Tucker, Barbour, and Randolph Counties, the ridge forms portions of the borders between them. It stretches for about 32 miles 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 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.

History

After the June 3, 1861 Battle of Philippi (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 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 of the old camp and battlefield.

Wind turbines

The AES Corporation has proposed Laurel Mountain for construction of wind turbines, to be connected to the Belington power substation. Consultants for AES have been conducting studies in preparation for applying for a siting certificate from the West Virginia Public Service Commission, probably in January 2008.

References

* Cox, Connie Loraine, "Our Place In History: Southwestern Preston County, West Virginia", Headline Books, Terra Alta, WV, 2005. (Written and oral histories, photographs)

External links

* [http://www.battleoflaurelhill.org/ Battle of Laurel Hill Website]
* [http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/civil-war/battle-laurel-hill.htm "Harper's Weekly" Illustration (1861)]
* [http://www.laurelmountainpreservationassociation.org Laurel Mountain Preservation Association website]