Charleston is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of West Virginia and the seat of Kanawha County. It is at the confluence of the Elk and Kanawha rivers. The population was 48,864 at the 2020 census. According to 2023 census estimates, the city has a population of 46,838. The Charleston metropolitan area had 203,164 residents in 2023.
Kanawha County is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 180,745, making it West Virginia's most populous county. The county seat is Charleston, which is also the state capital and most populous city. Kanawha County is part of the Charleston, WV Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Sissonville is a census-designated place (CDP) in Kanawha County, West Virginia, United States, along the Pocatalico River. The population was 4,028 at the 2010 census. Sissonville is located within 14 miles of Charleston, the state capital.
Ohio Stadium is an American football stadium in Columbus, Ohio, on the campus of Ohio State University. It primarily serves as the home venue of the Ohio State Buckeyes football team and is also the site for the university's Spring Commencement ceremonies each May. Common nicknames for the stadium include "The Horseshoe", "The Shoe", and "The House That Harley Built".
Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium is an American football stadium in Morgantown, West Virginia, on the campus of West Virginia University. It opened in 1980 and serves as the home field for the West Virginia Mountaineers football team. On the day the stadium opened, at an opening ceremony, John Denver touched down on the field in a helicopter, performed the song "Take Me Home, Country Roads," and then immediately departed by helicopter. The facility is named for Milan Puskar, a Morgantown resident and founder of Mylan Pharmaceuticals, Inc. who donated $20 million to the university in 2004. The playing surface retains the stadium's original name of Mountaineer Field, which was also the name of WVU's previous football stadium. The stadium’s design was inspired by Jack Trice Stadium, which opened a few years earlier at Iowa State University.
The University of Charleston (UC) is a private university with its main campus in Charleston, West Virginia. It also has a location in Beckley, West Virginia, known as UC-Beckley.
The Charleston Distance Run is a 15-mile (24 km) road running event held annually in Charleston, West Virginia. The race starts in front of the West Virginia State Capitol on the Kanawha Boulevard. The course starts on the flats of the Boulevard before going across the South Side Bridge and up Corridor G, a hill named Capital Hill Punishment for its nearly 2-mile (3 km) uphill length. The course winds through Charleston's South Hills for 3 miles (5 km) before crossing back over the South Side Bridge. The final 7 miles (11 km) are flat; runners go past the West Virginia State Capitol, along the Kanawha River, before finishing at Laidley Field.
George Washington High School is a public high school in Charleston, West Virginia, United States.
Richwood High School is a public high school located in Richwood, West Virginia, United States. The school serves the eastern third of Nicholas County. During the 2016–2017 school year, Richwood High School had an enrollment of 389 students.
The West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission is the main governing body of high school sports, cheerleading, and marching bands in West Virginia, United States. Beginning with the 2024-25 school year the Commission adopted a new system of four classes. Unlike the previous system, and the systems used in most other states, it is based on an algorithm where the population is 80%, the distance from a town of 10,000 people is 10%, and the median income of the parents is 10%. This system is used for football, cheerleading, basketball, and baseball/softball. Golf, cross country, track and field, are broken into 3 classes. Soccer and wrestling, are two classes. Swimming is one class only.
Riverside High School is the largest high school in Kanawha County, and is located in Belle, West Virginia, United States.
Western Alumni Stadium is an 8,000-seat Canadian football stadium located on the campus of the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario. It is home to the Western Mustangs football team and is one of the largest stadiums in the OUA provincial conference. It was built in 2000 at a cost of approximately $10.65 million by Norlon Builders London Ltd and designed by Stantec Consulting Ltd.
South Charleston High School is a public high school in West Virginia serving grades 9 through 12. It is located south of the Kanawha River, west of the city of Charleston, in the city of South Charleston's Spring Hill neighborhood.
Capital High School is a public high school located in Charleston, West Virginia, United States created from a consolidation of Charleston High School and Stonewall Jackson High School in 1989.
The Gazette-Mail Kanawha County Majorette and Band Festival is an annual festival dedicated to the public high school marching bands and majorette corps in Kanawha County, West Virginia. It is the longest running music festival in West Virginia and is held at the University of Charleston Stadium at Laidley Field in Charleston at the end of September each year, typically the last Tuesday. The first event was held in 1947 and was attended by nearly 25,000 people. The event was originally sponsored by the Charleston Daily Mail newspaper, but is now sponsored by the Charleston Gazette-Mail after the Daily Mail merged with the Charleston Gazette in 2015. The event was not held in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2024 festival was the event's 78th anniversary and the Festival Grand Champion was Nitro High School.
Stonewall Jackson High School is a former high school in Kanawha County, West Virginia. It opened in 1940, and closed in 1989. It was located on the West Side of Charleston, West Virginia. In 1989, Stonewall Jackson High School and Charleston High School consolidated to become Capital High School. The building is now a middle school.
Charleston High School is a former high school that was located on the east end of Charleston, West Virginia. The school was consolidated with Stonewall Jackson High School on the west side of Charleston in 1989 to form Capital High School. Located on multiple parts throughout Charleston during its existence, the final site was on a parcel bordered by Washington Street East, Brooks Street and Lee Street, adjacent from CAMC General Hospital.
The WVSSAC Super Six Football Championships was a series of high school football games, typically held on the first weekend of December, that determined the high school champions of the U.S. state of West Virginia. The tournaments that lead to the championship games, as well as regular-season competition, are governed by the West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission (WVSSAC). The games were named "Super Six" because six teams played in the state's three championship games. However, beginning in 2024, the WVSSAC began dividing football into four classes, and no new name other than "State Football Championships" has yet benn announced. The Championship games were held at Wheeling Island Stadium in Wheeling, a two-day affair, with one game on Friday and two on Saturday, but they will return to Laidley Field in Charleston beginning in 2024 through at least 2026. The WVSSAC chose Charleston over bids from Wheeling, Bluefield, and a joint bid to split the four games between Marshall University and West Virginia University.
Albertsons Stadium is an outdoor athletic stadium in the Western United States, located on the campus of Boise State University in Boise, Idaho. It is the home of the Boise State Broncos of the Mountain West Conference. Known as Bronco Stadium for its first 44 seasons, it was renamed in May 2014 when Albertsons, a chain of grocery stores founded by Boise area resident Joe Albertson, purchased the naming rights.
The West Virginia High School Football State Championships have been held since the early 1900s. The West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission (WVSSAC) began its formal recognition of WV State Football Championships in 1937 with the state's sports writers' vote. The WVSSAC began a class system, dividing larger and smaller schools in 1947. WVSSAC official playoff games began in 1948. Prior to the WVSSAC's involvement in an official playoff, there were other systems in play. From 1916 to 1955 the WVSSAC was called the West Virginia Athletic Association.
