The wealth of Tucker County was first discovered by surveyors for Lord Fairfax in 1746. The party crossed over Cabin Mountain and entered a forest thick with huge spruce and hardwood trees. Tall river grasses and dense rhododendron made passage through the moist valley below so difficult that it took four days to go a distance of seven miles. This incomparable wilderness later became known as "Canaan," referring to the biblical "Promised Land of milk and honey." It was not until late in the next century that industrialists sought to tame the land of Canaan. Senator Henry Gassaway Davis and his brothers, Thomas and William, began purchasing land in 1871. Davis The town of Davis was laid out with streets named for the three brothers. The railroad came in 1884 and with it the lumber industry. One of the first lumber towns in West Virginia, Davis soon earned the nickname "Stump-town." It was said that one could travel through town by stepping from stump to stump. Davis grew from 909 inhabitants at its incorporation in 1889 to over 3,000 in 1902. By 1924 the Davis lumber mills had produced nearly 900 million board feet of lumber. Thomas While Davis depended on timber for its life, neighboring Thomas was devoted to king coal. The Davis brothers opened a mine in 1883 and had coal ready for shipment when the railroad arrived the following year. At the height of its operations, 1910-12, Davis Coal and Coke was one of the largest and best-known coal companies in the world and employed 1,600 people. There were nine producing mines within one mile of the company's office. The area around Thomas was aglow with the fires of nearly 1,000 coke ovens and home to nearly 3,000 people. Today one can explore some of the restored coke ovens along the Blackwater Canyon Rail Trail just south of Thomas. After the industrial boom, the populations of Davis and Thomas dwindled. Today some of the coke ovens can still be seen along the railroad grade near Douglas. Many of the buildings in Thomas have been renovated and now contain unique shops and cafes. The Cotrill Opera House is currently under restoration. Parsons -- the county seat Residents of Parsons began pushing for relocation of the county seat from St. George in 1889. In 1893 a local land owner, Ward Parsons, with a band of 270 local men forcibly and illegally moved the county seat to Parsons to which, amazingly, there were no legal repercussions. The new courthouse in Parsons, built in 1900, has been placed on the national Register of Historic Places. Canaan Valley In 1934 the West Virginia State Park Commission leased 446 acres surrounding what was known as "The Falls of the Blackwater," the same area explored by David Hunter Strother during the first fishing expedition in 1851. The Commission constructed trails and overlooks, and in 1957 with the completion of the lodge and cabins opened Blackwater Falls State Park. Pilots flying over Canaan Valley noticed snow in the area well into spring. In the winter of 1953-54 the Washington, D.C. ski club erected a rope tow at "Driftland" on Cabin Mountain. The following winter Weiss Knob, the first commercial ski area in the state, opened at the present location of White Grass Ski Touring Center. Canaan Valley Resort State Park opened for skiing the winter of 1971-72 and Timberline followed in 1981. Monongahela Scenic Byway The easiest way to explore Tucker County is by way of the Monongahela Scenic Byway. Start the tour in Thomas on Front Street near the Cotrill Opera House and follow U.S. Rt. 32 south, passing the Blackwater Falls State Park entrance to Davis. William Avenue is replete with turn-of-the-century architecture and Victorian homes. Continue south on 32 to Canaan Valley. At the southern rim of Canaan Valley, Mt. Porte Crayon juts skyward on your left. One mile down the road, turn right onto State Route 72, driving along the Dry Fork River, past Hedricks to U.S. Rt. 219 near Parsons. The Byway loops back to Thomas via U.S. 219 North. || Order your FREE West Virginia Magazine | Request FREE regional travel information | Locator Map | Back to the top | Take me home ||