Best Web Design in Charleston, WV (2026)

Web Design for Charleston, West Virginia

Charleston is West Virginia's capital and largest city, set where the Elk River meets the Kanawha River amid the folded hills of the Appalachian coalfields. Its economy grew from salt, coal, natural gas, and chemicals, and its gold-domed capitol is one of the most striking statehouses in the country. Locals affectionately call it 'Charlie West.'

AppWT works with Charleston, WV businesses from Livonia, Michigan, mostly online and travelling as needed.

About Charleston

Also known as. Charlie West. The Capital City.

History. George Clendenin and a company of Virginia Rangers built Fort Lee here in 1788; the settlement was named for his father, Charles Clendenin. Charleston was chartered in 1794, with trustees who included the frontiersman Daniel Boone. 'Charlestown' was shortened to 'Charleston' in 1818 to avoid confusion with Charles Town, West Virginia. It became West Virginia's permanent state capital in 1885, and the current Cass Gilbert-designed capitol was dedicated June 20, 1932, after fire destroyed the previous statehouse in 1921.

Local economy. State government and the public sector are major employers as the seat of West Virginia's government. The Kanawha Valley around Charleston is historically known as 'Chemical Valley' for its concentration of chemical manufacturing. Appalachian Power (part of American Electric Power) is headquartered in the city. Historic industries include salt production, coal, natural gas, and glassmaking; the Kanawha Salt Company, organized in 1817, is often called the first trust in the United States.

Culture and community. 'Mountain Stage,' the long-running live-performance radio program distributed by NPR, has been produced in Charleston since 1983. FestivALL Charleston, a multi-day arts festival, fills the city each June, and includes the 'Rolls on the River' pepperoni-roll competition. West Virginia food traditions run deep here: the pepperoni roll (the official state food, born as a miner's lunch) and the West Virginia slaw dog topped with chili, coleslaw, and mustard. Tudor's Biscuit World, the beloved biscuit chain with a near-cult following, opened its first location in Charleston in 1980. The Charleston Dirty Birds play Atlantic League baseball, and events like the Sternwheel Regatta and Vandalia Gathering mark the summer.

What makes Charleston distinct. The capitol's gilded dome stands about five feet taller than the dome of the United States Capitol. Yeager Airport is named for General Chuck Yeager, the West Virginia native who first broke the sound barrier, and its runways sit on dramatically flattened hilltops. One of the region's first natural gas wells was drilled near here in the early 1800s. The Adena-culture Criel Mound, a burial earthwork more than 2,000 years old, survives in adjacent South Charleston in the Kanawha Valley.

Charleston Landmarks and Local Life

• The West Virginia State Capitol - whose gold-leaf dome rises about 292 feet, taller than the dome of the U.S. Capitol
• The Clay Center for the Arts & Sciences of West Virginia - opened in 2003, housing an art museum, performing-arts hall, and planetarium
• The Basilica of the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart.
• Charleston Town Center - a large downtown mall opened in 1983
• The Sunrise Carriage Trail - a historic wooded path leading up from the Kanawha River