Founded by the Wheeling Area Historical Society in 1968, the Upper Ohio Valley Historical Review (UOVHR) is the only publication of its kind in the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia. Dedicated solely to local history topics, it has become a treasured publication and valuable tool for studying and learning about our geographic area.
Wheeling National Heritage Area Corporation (WNHAC, later Wheeling Heritage) continued the tradition, editing and publishing the REVIEW from 2010-2018.
Ownership of the UOVHR publication was transferred in the second half of 2018 to the Ohio County Public Library in Wheeling. The recently published Spring 2020 issue of the UOVHR is the first edition completely designed and coordinated by the Ohio County Public Library.
“With this unexpected special edition, the Ohio County Public Library officially begins its tenure as caretaker of an important regional historical legacy,” said UOVHR editor and library programmer Sean Duffy.
The issue originally planned for Spring 2020 was to feature a celebration of Wheeling’s history in 250 archival and museum objects. That edition has been postponed until Fall 2020.
“We feel a special responsibility to pause to examine current events – bound to be scrutinized by historians of the future – through the lens of the Upper Ohio Valley’s behavior, and the consequences thereof, in the face of similar crises throughout our history.” Duffy explained.
UOVHR content has historically included articles about the economic, political, social, and cultural history of the greater Wheeling area contributed by historians and scholars. The Spring 2020 continues that tradition by exploring the scourge of infectious diseases throughout Wheeling’s history, including the Civil War era, tuberculosis sanitariums, cholera outbreaks related to unsanitary conditions during our region’s period of rapid industrial and population growth, and the devastating Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918.
The new issue includes:
- Wheeling in the Time of Cholera by Dr. Hal Gorby, WVU History Professor
- Unselfish Zeal: Wheeling’s 1864 Sanitary Fair by Jon-Erik Gilot, Archivist of the Diocese or Wheeling-Charlestion
- Dent vs. State of West Virginia: How Wheeling Changed the Medical Profession by Dr. William Neal, Professor Emeritus WVU School of Medicine
- 800 Graves: The Schmulbach Mansion & TB Sanitarium at Roney’s Point by Ryan Stanton, Wheeling Park High School Social Studies Teacher
- Breaking the Grippe: Wheeling During the 1918 Spanish Flu Pandemic by Sean Duffy and Erin Rothenbuehler, OCPL Local History Specialists
- Wheeling in the Time of COVID-19: A Photo Essay by UOVHR Staff
“Exploring how we have survived historically, both the good and the bad, informs the present and, ultimately, gives us hope.” Duffy said. “As has been said many times during the current COVID-19 pandemic, we are all in this together, as a city, a state, a region, a country, and as a species. And our unity and perseverance in the past should inspire us in the present.”
With a new layout designed by Erin Rothenbuehler, the current, Spring 2020, Special Pandemic Issue of the Upper Ohio Valley Historical Review, Vol. 41, No. 2. is available now for free online in PDF format, accessible at this link: tiny.cc/UOVHR_Pandemic-Issue
Commemorative paper copies are currently being printed and can be ordered through the library. Individual copies are $5.00 each (cost) plus $1 shipping ($6 total).
To order, visit the UOVHR sign-up page at https://bit.ly/3fed5Sa, send an email to UOVHR@ohiocountylibrary.org, or simply send a check to:
UOVHRc/o Ohio County Public Library, 52 16th Street, Wheeling, WV 26003. Please make all checks or money orders out to “Ohio County Public Library” with memo note of “UOVHR.”
Subscriptions that had been paid to Wheeling Heritage will be honored through the end of the payment schedule. The library looks forward to continuing the legacy of the Upper Ohio Valley Historical Review. The editorial staff welcomes any comments, feedback, or inquiries regarding the Spring 2020 issue via email at UOVHR@ohiocountylibrary.org.
