wheeling

wheeling
/hwee"ling, wee"-/, n.
1. the act of a person who moves, travels, conveys, etc., on or as on wheels, esp. cycling.
2. a rotating or circular motion: the wheeling of birds.
3. the condition of a road for travel by wheeled vehicles: A state highway is usually good wheeling.
[1475-85; WHEEL + -ING1]

* * *

      city, seat of Ohio county, in the northern panhandle of West Virginia, U.S., on the Ohio River (there bridged to Martins Ferry, Bridgeport, and Bellaire, Ohio). The site was settled in 1769 by the Zane family. The name Wheeling supposedly is derived from a Delaware Indian term meaning “head” or “skull,” a reference to the beheading of a party of settlers. Fort Fincastle, built there in 1774, was constructed in anticipation of a Native American uprising. In 1776 it was renamed Fort Henry for patriot and statesman Patrick Henry (Henry, Patrick). The fort was the scene (September 1782) of the last major battle of the American Revolution. The novelist Zane Grey (Grey, Zane)'s first published work, Betty Zane (1903), depicts the legendary heroism of his ancestor, who braved gunfire to carry powder from an outlying cabin during that siege. In 1795 the site was chartered as a town called Zanesburg. Two years later the county seat was moved from West Liberty to Zanesburg, which was renamed Wheeling in 1806.

      Wheeling's growth in the early 19th century as the western terminus of the Cumberland Road and as a port of entry was further stimulated by the arrival of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in mid-century. The city was an important station on the Underground Railroad before the American Civil War, and as a pro-Unionist centre during the war, it served as the seat of the restored government of Virginia in 1861. The Wheeling Conventions (1861–62) led to the formation of West Virginia (1863), and Wheeling was twice the state capital (1863–70 and 1875–85).

      The Greater Wheeling area, which includes Marshall and Belmont counties in Ohio, is well diversified industrially, with steel works, coal and gas production, and a variety of manufactures, including sheet metal, tools, welding equipment, pipe fittings, metal stamping, and textiles.

      The city contains such historic sites as West Virginia Independence Hall (1857–59), Heritage Trails, and the Wheeling Suspension Bridge (1849), the world's oldest suspension bridge still in use. Wheeling is home to Wheeling Jesuit University (1955), and Bethany College (1840) and West Liberty State College (1837) are nearby. Inc. town, 1806; city, 1836. Pop. (1990) city, 34,882; Wheeling MSA, 159,301; (2000) city, 31,419; Wheeling MSA, 153,172.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Wheeling — can refer to:Places in the United States of America*Wheeling, Illinois *Wheeling, Carroll County, Indiana *Wheeling, Delaware County, Indiana *Wheeling, Gibson County, Indiana *Wheeling, Missouri *Wheeling, West Virginia *Wheeling Creek, two… …   Wikipedia

  • Wheeling — (stunt) « Wheeling » redirige ici. Pour les autres significations, voir Wheeling (homonymie) …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Wheeling — Wheeling, MO U.S. city in Missouri Population (2000): 268 Housing Units (2000): 115 Land area (2000): 0.320736 sq. miles (0.830702 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km) Total area (2000): 0.320736 sq. miles (0.830702 sq …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • Wheeling — ist der Stadtname von Wheeling (Illinois) Wheeling (West Virginia) Wheeling (Missouri) Wheeling Creek Wheeling Island Diese Seite ist eine Begriffsklärung zur Unterscheidung mehrerer mit demselben Wort bezeichneter B …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Wheeling — Wheel ing, n. [1913 Webster] 1. The act of conveying anything, or traveling, on wheels, or in a wheeled vehicle. [1913 Webster] 2. The act or practice of using a cycle; cycling. [1913 Webster] 3. Condition of a road or roads, which admits of… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Wheeling, IL — U.S. village in Illinois Population (2000): 34496 Housing Units (2000): 13697 Land area (2000): 8.400278 sq. miles (21.756620 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.036352 sq. miles (0.094151 sq. km) Total area (2000): 8.436630 sq. miles (21.850771 sq. km) …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • Wheeling, MO — U.S. city in Missouri Population (2000): 268 Housing Units (2000): 115 Land area (2000): 0.320736 sq. miles (0.830702 sq. km) Water area (2000): 0.000000 sq. miles (0.000000 sq. km) Total area (2000): 0.320736 sq. miles (0.830702 sq. km) FIPS… …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • Wheeling, WV — U.S. city in West Virginia Population (2000): 31419 Housing Units (2000): 15706 Land area (2000): 13.912197 sq. miles (36.032424 sq. km) Water area (2000): 1.906015 sq. miles (4.936557 sq. km) Total area (2000): 15.818212 sq. miles (40.968981 sq …   StarDict's U.S. Gazetteer Places

  • Wheeling — (spr. Uihling), Hauptstadt u. Einfuhrhafen der Grafschaft Ohio im Staate Virginia (Nordamerika), am östlichen Ufer des Ohio River u. zu beiden Seiten des Wheeling Creek; Grafschaftshaus, 14 Kirchen (darunter eine katholische Kathedrale), zwei… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Wheeling — (spr. ūīling), bedeutendste Stadt (früher Hauptstadt) des nordamerikan. Staates Westvirginia, am Wheeling Creek und am linken Ufer des Ohio, an dem die Stadt sich 8 km hinzieht, Bahnknotenpunkt und Brückenplatz, hat ein Stadthaus (früher… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Wheeling — (spr. wihl ), Stadt im nordamerik. Staate Westvirginia, l. am Ohio, (1900) 38.878 E., Hochöfen, Eisen und Stahlwerke; Umgebung reich an Kohlen, natürlichem Gas und Petroleum …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”