With a new generation committed to renewing their city, West Virginia’s capital is on the rise.
IT USED TO BE THAT only outdoor enthusiasts—climbers, rafters, or people who display more mental fortitude than I when confronted with great heights or drops—ever talked to me about vacationing in my home state of West Virginia. The only state wholly in Appalachia, full of rugged mountains, powerful rapids, and a mere 1.8 million people, West Virginia is not known for its cities. But when I was a kid, that’s exactly what Charleston was: the city. Our capital, located about two and a half hours southwest of Morgantown (where I grew up), was bigger and more exciting than anything else at home.
My reasons for traveling here have changed, and so has Charleston itself. West Virginia’s largest city, with 49,138 residents, it is still the political heart of the state, with a professional class populated by politicians, lawyers, and lobbyists. But it has also become an urban destination in its own right, cool and cultural, with a diverse roster of attractions and a geographical situation— where the Elk and Kanawha rivers converge—that’s stunning, even by high Mountain State standards. Charleston is also convenient: A short flight from Southern hubs like Charlotte and Atlanta, it’s becoming a popular spot for far-flung friends to meet for a short vacation.
Like so many other small American cities, Charleston is now experiencing a rebirth. It’s largely at the hands of some young, creative entrepreneurs who are breathing new life into old buildings and doubling down on their roots with new businesses that could only exist here— though they come in the familiar shapes of bookstores and gift shops.
WHERE TO EAT & DRINK
CAPITOL MARKET
Housed in a restored 19th-century freight station, this mainstay includes an outdoor market filled with local goods and an indoor array of vendors and shops. capitolmarket.net
Denne historien er fra October 2017-utgaven av Southern Living.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Denne historien er fra October 2017-utgaven av Southern Living.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Forging a Legacy - A Fredericksburg, Texas, couple is creating a new class of heirloom cast-iron cookware
When Jay Mallinckrodt pitched the idea of crafting cast-iron cookware to his wife and business partner, Heather, in 2020, she was hesitant. I immediately said no, she recalls with a laugh. But I finally agreed as long as we made something that we would actually want to use ourselves. Like many others during the initial throes of the pandemic, their multigenerational family operation, Heartland Enterprises (which specializes in machining parts for jet engines and gas and oil equipment), was seeing a lull. “No one was flying; no one was drilling, says Jay. So we had time to try something different.
A Butterfly Haven - In the Texas Hill Country, a conservationist is helping monarchs adjust to the changing world
Twenty-four years ago, Monika Maeckle bought a small property on the Llano River in Central Texas as an escape from fast-paced San Antonio. A journalist and marketing professional by trade, she didn't at first realize the value of the location on which she and her husband would later build their ranch. She also had no idea how this decision would eventually transform her life.One October evening a few years later, a friend invited Maeckle to their nearby house, which sat on a watershed with several large cypresses. All these butterflies dropped from the sky and started to gravitate toward the trees, she recalls. Stronger people who could swing a big 12-foot-long pole began trying to capture them, and we waited. By the end of the evening, we'd tagged a couple hundred butterflies, and I left there enchanted.
Oktober Feast!
While I respect your right to serve spooky food in October, you won't find any gory grub at my house this month. Instead, I'm hosting a gathering that's inspired by biergartens across the pond. The focus of the menu is a fondue made with Gruyère cheese and crisp Riesling-like beer-cheese dip but more elevated. It's served with a smorgasbord of dippers such as smoked sausage, grapes, apples, and a few amped-up store-bought snacks, like Mustard-Glazed Pretzel Bites and Smoked Paprika Potato Chips. (Just one taste, and you'll want to add this spice to every bag you open.) Pour yourself a Cider Shandy, and get ready for a good time. Prost, y'all!
The Roast With the Most
Embrace the changing seasons with a cozy pork supper
Roll With It
Company's coming? Bake a batch of these apple-stuffed delights
VIRGINIA PASTORAL
IN MIDDLEBURG, THE COMMONWEALTH'S MOST STORIED SMALL TOWN, OCTOBER WELCOMES A HOST OF TREASURED TRADITIONS
TAKING ROOT
Turn the season's freshest veggies-beets, parsnips, sweet potatoes, carrots-into colorful fall sides
THE FAMILY PLACE
When it came time for a young Georgia couple to make an 1800s farmhouse their own, they took it apart piece by piece-then rebuilt it into a home ready to welcome the next generation
Loving Life in Fayetteville
This Northwest Arkansas college town is easy to love and hard to leave
The Road That Raised Me
This lesser-known drive offers the most breathtaking views in the Smoky Mountains
