HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 80

(By Delegates Boggs, Sypolt, Jennings, and Phillips)

[February 17, 2022]

Declaring Blackwater Falls the official state waterfall.

Whereas, Blackwater Falls is a waterfall located in Tucker County within the Blackwater Falls State Park; and

Whereas, The earliest written account of Blackwater Falls dates to 1746. Visitors have been drawn to the “great falls” of the Blackwater since the mid-1800s.  In 1853, David Hunter Strother, also known by the pen name “Porte Crayon” introduced readers to Blackwater Falls in a series of articles in the  Harpers New Monthly Magazine; In the 1870s, the area around the falls would become dotted with railroad lines to transport timber and coal to the neighboring towns of Davis and Thomas. The timber was nearly all taken from Blackwater Canyon and the soil was almost destroyed; and

Whereas, In 1937, the Blackwater State Park was created on 446 acres of land leased by the West Virginia Power and Transmission Company. Through the replanting of trees by the Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) and continued expansion of land, the park has grown to 1,688 acres and offers more recreational opportunities; and

Whereas, The treasure of the park is the 57 foot waterfall, tinted by the tannic acid of fallen hemlock and red spruce needles. The falls is one of the most photographed views in West Virginia. Blackwater Falls is listed as number one on the Best Waterfall Trails in West Virginia, with 20 miles of hiking trails.  The Blackwater Falls results from the Blackwater River, which is 35 miles long, running entirely in Tucker County. After it runs past Davis, West Virginia; it drops around 62 feet over Blackwater Falls and flows into the Blackwater Canyon in Blackwater State Falls State Park; and

Whereas, From a 2015 Economic Impact Executive Summary report, 855,085 people visited  Blackwater Falls and provided an estimated contribution to the economy in the amount of $20,500,000; therefore, be it

Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That Blackwater Falls is hereby designated and declared to be the official state waterfall; and, be it

Further Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates forward a certified copy of this resolution to Braxton County Middle School.