WEST VIRGINIA, one of the South Atlantic states of the U.S., bordered on the N by Ohio and Pennsylvania, on the NE by Maryland, on the E and S by Virginia, and on the W by Kentucky and Ohio. The Potomac R. forms part of the NE boundary; the Tug Fork and Big Sandy rivers form almost all of the SW boundary; and the Ohio R. forms the W and NW boundaries.

West Virginia entered the Union on June 20, 1863, as the 35th state. It was part of Virginia until the American Civil War, when its inhabitants, loyal to the Union, formed a separate state after Virginia became part of the Confederacy. The economy of West Virginia was principally agricultural until the late 19th century, when mining and manufacturing began to grow in importance. In the early 1990s the state was a major producer of bituminous coal, primary metals, and chemicals. The name West Virginia refers to the state’s formation from part of the W area of Virginia. It is known as the Mountain State.

West Virginia, with an area of 62,759 sq km (24,231 sq mi), is the 41st largest U.S. state; 9.1% of its land area is owned by the federal government. The state is roughly oval in shape, with panhandles in the N and NE; its extreme dimensions are about 425 km (about 265 mi) from E to W and about 380 km (about 235 mi) from N to S. Elevations range from 73 m (240 ft), along the Potomac R. in the NE, to 1482 m (4863 ft), atop Spruce Knob, in the E; the approximate mean elevation is 457 m (1500 ft), the highest of any state E of the Mississippi R.