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I traveled to Marietta, Ohio, about two weeks ago for a girls soccer game between Wheeling Park High School and Marietta High School. (Really good game, by the way. It ended in a 0-0 draw.)
I've always enjoyed Marietta and appreciated its place in our nation's history as the first permanent settlement in the Northwest Territory. Outside of Wheeling, it probably has as much historical significance as any city in our wider region.
The residents there understand that history -- and, more importantly, they celebrate it.
Knowing that, and knowing how well Ohio has promoted America's 250th birthday, I shouldn't have been surprised when a quick stop at the Welcome Center along Interstate 77 just north of downtown Marietta turned into a much longer one.
The facility was renovated about a year ago to highlight Marietta's place in our nation's story. Inside, that history unfolds panel by panel, presented in a way that draws in even the casual history buff. I found myself walking around and reading every snippet of information.
It was refreshing to see a city and a state willing not only to tell their story, but to celebrate their place in American history.
Since then, I've wondered where the disconnect exists here when it comes to telling our own story -- one that truly helped shape this nation from its earliest days and continued doing so well into the 20th century.
I'll stand by what I wrote in my July 3 column: Wheeling truly is one of America's most historically significant small cities.
That's indisputable.
Wheeling was founded in 1769. Fort Henry stood on the western frontier during the Revolutionary War, enduring attacks in 1777 and again in 1782 -- the latter remembered as the last land battle of the American Revolution. (That battle is still celebrated today with the annual Fort Henry Days at Oglebay Park, set for this weekend).
After that?
The National Road.
Gateway to the West.
Home of the Restored Government of Virginia.
The birthplace of West Virginia.
Industrial powerhouse.
The people, businesses and institutions here helped shape not just this region, but the nation.
Yet, given Wheeling's place in American history -- and its unquestioned importance to West Virginia's own story -- why does it seem as though so few people are focused on making sure the rest of the country knows it?
I think Marietta is on to something we should focus on here: History isn't just what happened a long time ago. It's an asset. It's part of a community's identity. And, if presented and promoted properly, it can help shape that community's future.
The obvious question, then: Why aren't we doing more to celebrate our own history?
It's especially worth asking after reading Steven Allen Adams' excellent reporting in this past Monday's edition detailing what West Virginia chose to spend on its statewide America 250 celebration -- and where officials chose to spend it.
Nearly $2 million was budgeted from the Governor's Civil Contingency Fund for a four-day celebration in Charleston. The centerpiece of that event was a massive portable Ferris wheel -- rented for $350,000 -- that required four tractor-trailers to haul into town and stood nearly as tall as the state Capitol dome.
Then there were concerts.
Alabama cost $300,000.
The Marshall Tucker Band cost another $50,000.
Let's not forget the fireworks.
And there was a $737,065 light show projected directly onto the state Capitol.
Then, after 96 hours … it was over.
That bothers me the most. Four days of mindless entertainment to celebrate our nation's 250th.
If America 250 is supposed to commemorate the people, places and events that created this nation, there is no place in West Virginia better positioned to help tell that story than Wheeling.
And even if someone decided the concerts, Ferris wheel and light show were better suited for Charleston, spending nearly $2 million with little lasting impact should concern us.
Given an opportunity to use America 250 to introduce people to West Virginia's place in the nation's development, the state should have invested at least some of that money in the places where that history actually happened.
Instead, its signature celebration was staged in Charleston.
And its signature attraction was a rented Ferris wheel.
I'm certainly not against a celebration. America turns 250 once, and that milestone deserves a big event.
But consider the contrast with what's offered in Marietta.
Ohio used its Welcome Center to tell a story. It created something permanent -- something that will continue educating visitors long after the 250th celebration has passed.
Imagine what West Virginia's $2 million could have done if invested in permanent America 250 exhibits across the state.
Imagine a first-class historical display welcoming those stopping at the soon-to-be-built Gateway Center in downtown Wheeling, telling them immediately that they are entering one of the nation's earliest frontier cities and the birthplace of a state created during the Civil War. Let's hope that's part of what's offered when that site is built.
Imagine similar exhibits highlighting Harpers Ferry, the National Road, Blennerhassett Island, the Hatfield-McCoy story, the coalfields, our industrial heritage and the people and places here that helped shape America.
Better yet, imagine using some of that funding to connect those places into a statewide historical trail -- something visitors could follow across West Virginia not for four days, but for years.
Those investments could still be telling West Virginia's story when America celebrates its 275th.
That's the difference between celebrating history and investing in it.
West Virginia possesses an extraordinary collection of American history, and Wheeling sits right in the middle of it. America's 250th birthday offered a rare opportunity to make sure more people understood that.
Ohio didn't need a Ferris wheel to make its history interesting. It simply understood that its history was worth showcasing.
West Virginia's is, too.
Long after America's 250th celebration is over, that Welcome Center near Marietta will still be telling visitors why that community matters to America.
Here in West Virginia, we should be asking ourselves what we will have left to tell our story.
Because the Ferris wheel is already gone.