West Virginia Travel Guide 2009 - (Page 23) What’s New < wild & wonderful STATE MUSEUM set to reopen, wow visitors When it reopens in spring 2009 after a $17.6 million renovation, the West Virginia State Museum will captivate its visitors the moment they walk in the door. As people enter the museum in the Cultural Center on the State Capitol grounds, they will immediately begin tracing the state’s history from early settlement through today. The experience starts in an area with a prehistoric coal forest that explores the state’s geology and ends in a stateof-the-art multimedia room. In between, visitors to the 24,000-square-foot facility will see a real log cabin brought in from the mountains and learn about pioneer days. Other exhibits will focus on “The Case for Statehood,” “The Family Farm” and “The Great Depression.” A preserved historic coal town, complete with company store, will be installed, and interactive computers along the way will help visitors absorb the museum’s history lessons. New website promotes STATE’S AGRI-TOURISM attractions Looking for a farmers’ market on the way to a picnic in the mountains? Or is it fall, and the kids are itching to go on a hayride or scamper through a corn maze? Maybe you tasted a fabulous wine at a friend’s party and you’d like to visit the winery to see where it is made. Or you want to pick your own berries and fruits on a farm. At www.visitwvfarms.com, a new website launched in 2008 by the State Department of Agriculture, visitors can learn all about farm-based attractions and programs across the state. With a large number of family farms, West Virginia is chock-full of agri-tourism opportunities. The website has a directory of more than 250 ownersoperators searchable by state region or type of activity, and the listings include contact information and photos. » www.visitwvfarms.com » West Virginia State Museum, ww.wvculture.org/museum WV MUSIC HALL OF FAME inducts its second class Charleston’s First Lady of Jazz, a soprano who’s part of the Metropolitan Opera, a trio of bluegrass legends and Actress Ann Magnuson, a West Virginia the man who wrote “Sweet Georgia native, hosts the Music Hall of Fame’s Brown” are among the recent inductees 2007 Induction Ceremony . to the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame. In 2008, the new group inducted its second class of 12 musicians, including the king of bluegrass and country harmonica, and America’s Polka King. The Hall of Fame continues to spread the word about West Virginians who have made a lasting contribution to American music. While the Hall looks for a facility to house its memorabilia, traveling exhibits are available to schools and communities. b » West Virginia Music Hall of Fame, www.wvmusichalloffame.com www.WVTOURISM.com 23 http://www.visitwvfarms.com http://www.visitwvfarms.com http://www.wvculture.org/museum http://www.wvmusichalloffame.com http://www.WVTOURISM.com
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