Glenville, WV

Glenville is the Gilmer County seat in central West Virginia, with 1,128 residents in the 2020 census, on the Little Kanawha River at the meeting of State Route 5 and U.S. 33/119. Early settlers called the crossing “the Ford”; the name Glenville came later from the town’s setting in a glen. A gristmill was built here in 1812, the town incorporated in 1856, and the current courthouse dates to 1923. The river still frames the town’s crossings and annual gatherings.

Glenville State University began as a state normal school in 1872, bringing a college campus into the river town’s daily rhythm. The West Virginia State Folk Festival started there in 1950 through folklorist Patrick Gainer and now returns each June with fiddle and banjo contests, square dancing, crafts, storytelling, and a parade. The Little Kanawha, courthouse, campus, and festival streets give Glenville a strong civic map. Glenville is a West Virginia town where Appalachian traditions, higher education, county government, and a river crossing meet.