The West Virginia in the Civil War Message Board

Wshen did West Virginia come into use?

I was recently going through the Official Reports, looking at those filed by LCOL M. W. Gary, of the Hampton Legion; LCOL P. A, Work, of the 1 TEX, and CAPT Ike N. M. Turner, of the 5 TEX, immediately after the battle of Sharpsburg. Gary's and Work's were dated Sept. 23, 1862, and Turner's on Sept. 24, and each is headed "Camp Near Martinsburg, W. Va." (Turner's leaves out the word "camp.") The State of West Virginia was not created until the next year, and its legal existence was bitterly disputed by the Southerners, yet the Official Reports clearly use the term "West" in the address. Is this something that was editorially added by the editors of the Official Reports in the 1890's, who, after all, were Northerners, or was the term "West Virginia" in existence as a legal term as early as 1862?

These reports are found in 19 O. R., part 1, pp. 930, 931, and 936.

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Wshen did West Virginia come into use?
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