8 Small-Town West Virginia Theaters That Have Shown Movies For Over 80 Years

One little movie house in West Virginia started selling tickets in 1911. That was years before movies even had sound. And the lights are still on. I love that detail more than I can explain. Silent films, talkies, Technicolor, digital projection. A few of these small-town screens have seen the...

Backyard Gardener: All about mums

Editor's Note: A version of this column originally ran on Sept. 20, 2024. Hello, Mid-Ohio Valley farmers and gardeners. Let’s talk about the arrival of fall and decorative mums. I love the autumn season, and no decorative plant sets the tone for fall like chrysanthemums (Chrysanthemum x morifolium), the garden mum.

Inside West Virginia's Oldest Tavern (Which Also Holds a State Brewing Record)

Ask anyone in Parkersburg where to get a great burger and a cold, locally brewed beer, and you’ll probably hear the same three letters: NET. Around here, those letters stand for the North End Tavern & Brewery, which opened in 1899 as a small neighborhood pub. It’s the oldest tavern in West Virginia, and the […]

Edwards, Riffle to be featured at Parkersburg Art Center

PARKERSBURG - Two artists from West Virginia will be featured in Art After Hours from 5-7 p.m. Friday at the Parkersburg Art Center. The evening of art, appetizers, extended gift shop hours and a cash bar will feature the opening reception for "Progressions: Works by Harold Edwards & David Riffle" and showcase the work of two long-time friends and artists.

Marietta Planet Fitness donates cardio equipment to local nonprofits

Marietta Planet Fitness donates cardio equipment to local nonprofits.

This Historic West Virginia Hotel Hides a Restaurant and Secret Speakeasy

A West Virginia hotel that opened in 1889 still serves dinner in an elegant dining room, and there is a secret speakeasy downstairs that requires a door code to enter. The Blennerhassett Hotel in downtown Parkersburg is home to Chancellor’s, where the menu includes Chilean sea bass, bourbon-glazed salmon, steaks, and chicken piccata. The historic building also has a lounge and a past connected to presidential campaigns, local legends, and more than a century of visitors.

WV District Brings Order-Ahead Convenience to Breakfast

Pre-ordering through an app has become part of everyday life for many teens, whether for take-out dinners or their favorite coffee orders. Wood County Schools in West Virginia is bringing that familiar convenience into the school cafeteria with Build a Better Breakfast, a pre-order program giving students more choice while making breakfast service faster and easier to access on rushed school mornings.

Silent movie set for Smoot centennial show

A famous silent movie complete with live orchestral accompaniment will be presented at 7 p.m. Saturday as part of the Smoot Theatre's celebration of its 100th anniversary. The theater will present "Steamboat Bill, Jr.," filmed in 1928 and starring Buster Keaton. Keaton plays the spoiled and citified college-educated son of a seasoned and gruff riverboat captain who tries to make him a manlier man like him.

Meet Baxter! WTAP’s Pet of the Week!

This West Virginia Buffet Is A Hidden Gem Locals Love Sharing With Visitors

How do you choose between fried chicken, creamy mac and cheese, homemade noodles, and a plate of mashed potatoes when nobody’s telling you to pick just one? Now that’s the kind of decision worth taking your time over. Along the Ohio River in West Virginia, there’s a family-run...

Oh Well: The mall is back

Shopping malls have significantly lost popularity since the rise of online shopping and social media. Lately, social media has been diving into mall culture and even promoting it. The mall is coming back with real estate values increasing by 13% for malls. This means more people are going to the mall, boosting its value.

The show goes on: The Smoot marks 100 years in Parkersburg

PARKERSBURG -- For much of its hundred-year history, the Smoot Theatre operated alongside other local theaters to bring first vaudeville and later movies to residents of the community. The Smoot, on Fifth Street between Juliana and Market streets, opened Oct. 18, 1926. The theater was built for performances on stage...

Annual quilt show in November

PARKERSBURG - The 22nd annual Mid-Ohio Valley Heritage Quilt Show will be held 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 7-15 at the Blennerhassett Museum of Regional History, 137 Juliana St., Parkersburg. Admission to the show is the price to get in the museum, $4 for adults and $2 for children...

11 West Virginia Seafood Buffets Where The Selection Seems To Go On Forever

There’s a moment at a seafood buffet when you realize you’ve made a tactical error. You filled your first plate way too early. Because then you spot the shrimp. Then the crab legs. Then something fried. Then something buttery. Suddenly you’re doing the mental math like a contestant...

Parkersburg native turns a lifetime of journeys into a book

PARKERSBURG, W.Va. (WTAP) -For Ron McCoy, becoming an author was never part of the plan. But after a lifetime of hard work, travel, photography and missionary trips around the world, the Parkersburg native has turned his stories into a book he hopes future generations will learn from. McCoy was born...

Sam’s Gym, training life champions

Sam’s Gym in Glouster, Ohio, is the oldest running boxing gym in the country. Sam Jones started running the gym in 1959, after it was founded in 1936 by his father, grandfather and Frank Buhla. Since its opening, Sam’s Gym has been a home to fighters and athletes.

Parkersburg teen wins first place at Tsubasacon

A Parkersburg girl won first place in a cosplay contest at the Tsubasacon convention in Charleston. Audrey (Tobi) Cox, 14, the daughter of Mic and Lindsay Cox, won first place in the Runway Division. The competition was held Friday, Saturday and Sunday. "I was really surprised," Cox, who competed as...

Arts and entertainment events happening October 15th-18th across the Mid-Ohio Valley

PARKERSBURG, W.Va . (WTAP) - Here is a look at all the arts and entertainment events happening this weekend across the Mid-Ohio Valley. A complete list of events can be found at artsbridgeonline.org. Thursday, October 15th. Wes Banco presents Yvonne Reusser with Watercolor Display @ WesBanco- Market St Parkersburg, WV.

Backyard Gardener: Hard frost marks end of growing season

Hello Mid-Ohio Valley Farmers and Gardeners! Most likely we will say goodbye to the growing season this weekend in the Valley as frost is in the forecast. Any late squash, tomatoes or other vegetables need to be harvested quickly. Don’t forget to move houseplants back indoors before they get frosted....