Rainelle’s history is
mostly unwritten
The public archives hold only 2 old photos of Rainelle. The rest are in attics, shoeboxes and the historical society. Help start the collection.
The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗The valley and community that contain and predates Rainelle is named Sewell Valley after Stephen Sewell, a scout that settled in the area in the 1750s. The community west of the Meadow River first applied for the name Rainielle in honor of the Rainielle family but was turned down by the Post Office Department. They adopted the name Rainelle in 1909. Thomas W. Raine and his brother John moved to the location from Pennsylvania in 1906 to harvest a large stand of hardwoods for building homes, etc. Their Meadow River Lumber Company operated for 60 years, and at one time was the largest hardwood sawmill in the world. In 1970, the owners sold it to Georgia-Pacific Corporation, which tore it down in 1975.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Timeline
built from the dates on the items belowStart Rainelle’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Rainelle’s history is told.
1 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old view1940 Census Enumeration District …, 1850: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10Famous people from Rainelle
See all 2 →Rainelle, decade by decade
1990s
CommonsRainelle 2017 by Lukas Ray2017
BookNPS new-river-gorge-map2017
CommonsRIARNG Soldiers Assist in West Virginia Flood Clean-Up Effo…2016
BookCongressional Record - 2016-07-062016
CommonsWest Virginia Guardsmen provide relief for Greenbrier Count…2012
CommonsWest Virginia Guardsmen provide relief for Greenbrier Count…2012
CommonsWest Virginia Guardsmen provide relief for Greenbrier Count…2012
CommonsRainelle, West Virginia2012
CommonsRainelle, West Virginia2012
CommonsRainelle, West Virginia2012
CommonsArmy National Guard deivers water to Greenbrier County 1207…2012
CommonsArmy National Guard deivers water to Greenbrier County 1207…2012
CommonsArmy National Guard deivers water to Greenbrier County 1207…2012
Book2010 Census Public Use Microdata Area Reference Map for Gre…2010
CommonsCSX Coal in WV2009
CommonsWVMap-doton-Rainelle2004Nothing in Rainelle is on the National Register yet
That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Rainelle has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Rupert School in Rupert, 4.8 miles away.
Rainelle and the nearest listed places
How a place gets listed
Then & now
No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as 1940 Census Enumeration District Descriptions - West Virginia - Greenbrier County - ED 13-26, ED 13-27, ED 13-28 (1850) and it appears here side by side.
🔁 Retake this view · +15Stories next door
nearby towns’ historyFrom Wikimedia Commons (18). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.