Nicholas County is a county located in the central region of U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 24,604. Its county seat is Summersville. The county was created in 1818 by the Virginia General Assembly and named for Virginia Governor Wilson Cary Nicholas.
Summersville is a city in Nicholas County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 3,459 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Nicholas County.
Lake Strom Thurmond, officially designated J. Strom Thurmond Reservoir at the federal level, and Clarks Hill Lake by the state of Georgia, is a man-made reservoir at the border between the U.S. states of Georgia and South Carolina in the Savannah River Basin.
The Kanawha River is a tributary of the Ohio River, approximately 97 mi (156 km) long, in the U.S. state of West Virginia. The largest inland waterway in West Virginia, its watershed has been a significant industrial region of the state since early in the 19th century.
U.S. Route 19 or U.S. Highway 19 (US 19) is a north–south United States Numbered Highway in the Eastern United States. Despite encroaching Interstate Highways, the route has remained a long-haul road, connecting the Gulf of Mexico with Lake Erie.
The Hawks Nest Tunnel disaster was a large-scale incident of occupational lung disease in the 1930s as the result of the construction of the Hawks Nest Tunnel near Gauley Bridge, West Virginia, as part of a hydroelectric project. This project is considered to be one of the worst industrial disasters in American history.
Lake Oahe is a large reservoir behind the Oahe Dam on the Missouri River; it begins in central South Dakota and continues north into North Dakota in the United States. The lake has an area of 370,000 acres (1,500 km2) and a maximum depth of 205 ft (62 m). By volume, it is the fourth-largest reservoir in the US. Lake Oahe has a length of approximately 231 mi (372 km) and has a shoreline of 2,250 mi (3,620 km). 51 recreation areas are located along Lake Oahe, and 1.5 million people visit the reservoir every year. The lake is named for the 1874 Oahe Indian Mission.
Smith Mountain Lake is a large reservoir in the Roanoke Region of Virginia, United States, located southeast of the City of Roanoke and southwest of Lynchburg. The lake was created in 1963 by the Smith Mountain Dam impounding the Roanoke River. The majority of the south shore of the lake lies in Franklin County while a small portion, including access to the dam, lies in Pittsylvania County. Bedford County makes up the northern half of the lake with the Roanoke River as the dividing line. The lake has become a popular recreation spot and has also experienced significant development in the last decade. It is the largest lake contained entirely within the Commonwealth of Virginia.
The Gauley River is a 105-mile-long (169 km) river in West Virginia. It merges with the New River to form the Kanawha River, a tributary of the Ohio River. The river features numerous recreational whitewater areas, including those in Gauley River National Recreation Area downstream of the Summersville Dam.
The West Virginia State Police (WVSP) is a state law enforcement agency in the United States that provides police services to the residents of West Virginia. It is the fourth-oldest state police agency in the US. The WVSP was disbanded due to their involvement in quelling of the uprisings on behalf of the coal and mine companies which were surrounding the concept of organized labor in the coal and mine industries. The WVSP was then reorganized as the Department of Public Safety in the second extraordinary session of the West Virginia Legislature on June 19, 1919, as a result of their involvement.
Hawks Nest State Park is located on 370 acres (150 ha) in Fayette County near Ansted, West Virginia. The park's clifftop overlook along U.S. Route 60 provides a scenic vista of the New River, some 750 feet below. The hydro-electric project tunnel that passes underneath nearby Gauley Mountain was the scene of the Depression-era Hawks Nest Tunnel disaster.
Lewis and Clark Lake is a 31,400 acre (130 km2) reservoir located on the border of the U.S. states of Nebraska and South Dakota on the Missouri River. The lake is approximately 25 miles (40 km) in length with over 90 miles (140 km) of shoreline and a maximum water depth of 45 feet (14 m). The lake is impounded by Gavins Point Dam and is managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District.
The Gauley River National Recreation Area, located near Summersville, West Virginia, protects a 25-mile (40 km) portion of the Gauley River and a 5.5-mile (8.9 km) segment of the Meadow River in southern West Virginia. Little of the national recreation area is accessible via roads; one must travel via the river. At the upstream end of the park is the Summersville Dam, the only area of the park accessible by vehicle.
Blue Mountain Lake is a reservoir in Arkansas, United States. A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Lake on the Petit Jean River in west central Arkansas, Blue Mountain Lake has approximately 50 miles of shoreline, located between Mount Magazine and the Ouachita Mountains just west of Havana, Arkansas.
Carnifex Ferry Battlefield State Park is an American Civil War battle site that commemorates the Battle of Carnifex Ferry. It is located on the rim of the Gauley River Canyon near Summersville, a town in Nicholas County, West Virginia. The 156-acre (0.63 km2) park features Patterson House Museum, three views of the Gauley River, hiking trails and picnic facilities. It is one of the oldest state parks in the United States. A Civil War re-enactment takes place on a weekend after Labor Day. As Carnifex Ferry State Park, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
Summersville Lake is a reservoir located in the US state of West Virginia. The lake is formed by a rock-fill dam on the Gauley River, south of Summersville in Nicholas County. It is the largest lake in West Virginia, with 2,700 acres (1,100 ha) of water and over 60 miles (97 km) of shoreline at the summer pool water level. Its maximum depth is 327 feet. Part of the northern shore of the lake is managed by the West Virginia State Park system.
Mount Nebo is an unincorporated community in Nicholas County, West Virginia, United States. Mount Nebo is located at the junction of state routes 41 and 129, 5.5 miles (8.9 km) south of Summersville. Mount Nebo has a post office with ZIP code 26679.
James Conley Justice II is an American businessman and politician who is a United States senator-elect from West Virginia. A member of the Republican Party, he has served as the 36th governor of West Virginia since 2017. Justice was once a billionaire, but his net worth had declined to $513.3 million as of 2021. He inherited a coal mining business from his father that included 94 companies, including the Greenbrier, a luxury resort and National Historic Landmark in White Sulphur Springs.
Nicholas County Schools is a school district serving Nicholas County, West Virginia. Its main office is in Summersville, West Virginia
Kanawha Falls is a waterfall on the Kanawha River in West Virginia that has been a barrier to fish movement for more than 1 million years. The waterfall is formed by a diagonal sandstone ledge across the river about 1 mile (1.6 km) downstream from the confluence of the New and Gauley rivers. It is 24 ft (7.3 m) high.
