Mineralwells, WV

Mineralwells, also written Mineral Wells, is a Wood County census-designated place south of the Little Kanawha River along Tygart Creek, just outside Parkersburg. The 2020 census counted 1,805 residents. The name shifts depending on whether you are looking at the census label or the post office: the census label uses Mineralwells, while the post office has used Mineral Wells since the late 1990s. That tiny spacing difference is part of the local introduction. Neighbors still use both versions in conversation, and the creek, river, and highway names are the landmarks people use when giving directions around the valley.

The older community story runs through farms, churches, schools, Route 14, and the Little Kanawha, which once carried boats and produce before roads and rail took over. A 1938 community history described Mineral Wells as a collection of settlements and family farms rather than a single compact downtown. Mineralwells's local scoop is a West Virginia river-and-creek community with two spellings, one post-office story, and Parkersburg close enough for the larger errands.