Cord Byrd: “Today is West Virginia's birthday. Established on June 20, 1863, West Virginia became the 35th star in our national…”

“Today is West Virginia's birthday. Established on June 20, 1863, West Virginia became the 35th star in our national constellation, taking her place between Kansas, which joined the Union on January 29, 1861, and Nevada, which joined on October 31, 1864. I am pleased to offer West Virginia happy birthday wishes and to take the opportunity to share a bit about my State with the rest of the country. I urge anyone who has not visited West Virginia to do so, to see and experience for themselves the great natural beauty, the friendly people, the exquisite art, recreation, and cultural sites and events that fill our mountain home. As a State, West Virginia is a youthful 144 years old. As a unique piece of geography, of course, West Virginia is, of course, much older. The Appalachian Mountains that define West Virginia's geography today are but the worn remains of a once-high alpine plateau similar to Tibet, rising some 10,000 to 18,000 feet high, flanked on the south and on the east by the Allegheny Mountain Range, which may have once exceeded today's Himalaya Mountains in height.”