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Taylor County is located in the north-central part of West Virginia on the Appalachian Plateau. The terrain is hilly, though there is flat and rolling land for agriculture and industry along the major water courses. The land is drained by the Tygart River and its tributaries.
The first white man known to have entered the area was probably John Simpson, a trapper for the Hudson Bay Company, who crossed the Tygart River on his way westward in 1768. Shortly thereafter, Thomas Merrifield and Captain John Booth made settlements along present-day Booth's Creek.
The area comprising present-day Taylor County remained sparsely settled until the opening decades of the 19th Century. However, by 1844 it was sufficiently populated to warrant the formation of a new county, and in that year Taylor County was formed from parts of Harrison, Barbour and Marion counties. It was named for John Taylor (1753-1824) of Caroline County, Virginia, an author and statesman. In 1850, the county had a population of 5,367. The area of the county was enlarged in 1856 by the addition of a small part of Marion County.
In 1853, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was completed to Wheeling. The railroad passed through Taylor County at a point just south of Fetterman. The development of the railroad facilities at this point brought about the birth of the town of Grafton. In 1857, the Northwestern Virginia Railroad, later taken over by the B&O;, was completed from Grafton to Parkersburg. Located at the junction of these two major lines, Grafton became an important transportation center.
The economy of Taylor County was for many years based almost entirely on agriculture, and it remains an important element today. However, the development of Grafton as a major rail center provided considerable employment, as did the growth of the coal industry. Coal production began in the late 1880s and increased to over one million tons in 1920. Production declined steadily thereafter.
Grafton, the county seat, was chartered in 1856 and named for John Grafton, a civil engineer employed by the B&O; Railroad. The town was made the county seat in 1878. The only National Cemetery in the state is located here, as is the Mother's Day Shrine.
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(From E. Lee North's 'The 55 West Virginias,' published by West Virginia University Press. Used with permission.)
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