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We had our oddest accomodation of the vacation in a Victorian Bed and Breakfast Lodge in Lewisburg, West Virginia. All the hotels were full and the helpful lady at the Hampton Inn referred us to the Lewisburg Inn. It was a bit unreal really. The two guys running the house seemed to be a little odd and served breakfast in his night dress. How weird. Anyway, the place was OK. It was dark by the time we arrived, and we ate on the balcony of the house in the dark. Kind of romantic really.
On Sunday morning we went for a walk around Lewisburg - the site of a Civil War Battle in 1862. In fact a cannon ball penetrated the wall of the Church and both the repairs and the ball itself are on display in the Church. We had a very nice chat with Thomasinna the Pastor. When the Church was replaced with a new building about 1880, the 'Old' Church was sold to the former slaves for $25 (or something nominal). I had the impression that the two churches remain informally segregated and the new Church looked to be a much richer institution. I believe West Virginia was a Northern State and was granted statehood in 1863 during the Civil War. The subject of the reunification of Virginia is never discussed. Although the separation occured during the war, the geographical and cultural divide between West Virginia and it's Southern parent is rather clear.
We then drove down to Charleston - the site of the State Capitol. Another splendid tour thanks to Grace. The building is beautiful and designed and built about 1927 by Cass Gilbert - the architect for the State Capitols in Little Rock, Arkansas and St Paul, Minnesota. Gilbert was also architect for the Supreme Court in Washington, DC and the Woolworth building in New York City. The Woolworth Building was the tallest building in the world at the time of its construction.
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