West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture & History

In May we will celebrate the music, preservation, and traditions of the Mountain State. A new exhibit is on display at the Culture Center, celebrating 50 years of GOLDENSEAL Magazine, the magazine of West Virginia Traditional Life. GOLDENSEAL is produced by the WVDACH and takes its stories from the recollections of West Virginians living throughout the state. Oral history fieldwork and documentary photography result in four issues per year with articles on subjects such as labor history, folklore, music, farming, religion, traditional crafts, food, and politics. The exhibit will be on display through October 2024. At the end of the month and hosted every Memorial Day weekend on the State Capitol grounds, join us for the annual Vandalia Gathering, which has brought together the finest traditional Appalachian musicians for a great weekend of picking since 1977 and is free to the public. Enjoy fiddle, banjo, mandolin, and guitar contests outside during the day, and concerts in the State Theater in the evenings, as well as arts and crafts, traditional dancing, the liars contest, and food vendors! May is also Historic Preservation Month, and the State Historic Preservation Office will have some informational handouts available about the preservation of historic buildings, sites, historic districts, etc. around the Mountain State, while Grave Creek Mound in Moundsville will offer a special lecture about Wheeling’s Historic 1400 Market Street Block Project and a special craft activity at the museum’s Discovery Table. We hope you enjoy all this month has to offer!