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History · Rand

A history of Rand,
then and now

Postcards, papers and photographs of Rand from public archives, woven together by decade. Neighbors fill in the gaps.

6old images & papers
0recent photos
From Rand’s archive · credits on each photo

The story

from WikipediaRead it all ↗

The unincorporated community within the historic Kanawha Salines area, was named after Plus Rand Levi, son of Mordecai Levi, patent holder of the Brick Road. It was originally named Plus from 1907 to 1909, when a large tract was purchased from the Dickinson family. Because there was a town already called Plus, the community changed its name to Levi. Around the 1930s or 1940s, due to a town in Braxton County being named Levi, the community changed its name again, to Rand.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

built from the dates on the items below
1970s6 items · A basketball game on unpaved Church A…Commons
1980–1999Nothing yet. Family albums go here.
Help out

Finish Rand’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

1 of 10 decades since 1900 have photos 🔁Retake an old viewA basketball game on unpaved Chur…, 1973: stand where they stood+15 📦Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
Famous people from RandWriters, athletes, leaders and more who were born in Rand.Meet them →
By decade

Rand, decade by decade

1970s6 items
A basketball game on unpaved Church Avenue, Rand, West Virginia, near an abandoned automobileCommonsA basketball game on unpaved Church Avenue, Rand, West Virg…1973CHILDREN PLAY IN AN UNPAVED STREET INCommonsCHILDREN PLAY IN AN UNPAVED STREET IN1973RAND, WV., WITH MUCH OF ITS POPULATION LIVING IN POVERTY, HAS MANY UNPAVED ROADS, SUBSTANDARD HOUSES, AND JUNKED AUTOMO…CommonsRAND, WV., WITH MUCH OF ITS POPULATION LIVING IN POVERTY, H…1973RAND, WV., WITH MUCH OF ITS POPULATION LIVING IN POVERTY, HAS MANY UNPAVED ROADS, SUBSTANDARD HOUSES, AND JUNKED AUTOMO…CommonsRAND, WV., WITH MUCH OF ITS POPULATION LIVING IN POVERTY, H…1973RAND, WV., WITH MUCH OF ITS POPULATION LIVING IN POVERTY, HAS MANY UNPAVED ROADS, SUBSTANDARD HOUSES, AND JUNKED AUTOMO…CommonsRAND, WV., WITH MUCH OF ITS POPULATION LIVING IN POVERTY, H…1973RAND, WV., WITH MUCH OF ITS POPULATION LIVING IN POVERTY, HAS MANY UNPAVED ROADS, SUBSTANDARD HOUSES, AND JUNKED AUTOMO…CommonsRAND, WV., WITH MUCH OF ITS POPULATION LIVING IN POVERTY, H…1973
1980s–
1990s
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
📷 Add from your album
National Register of Historic Places

Nothing in Rand is on the National Register yet

That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Rand has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Malden Historic District in Malden, 1.1 miles away.

Rand and the nearest listed places

Dashed line = Rand. Tap a dot.
Malden Historic DistrictAfrican Zion Baptist ChurchCol. Henry Hewitt Wood HouseEbenezer ChapelSamuel Shrewsbury Sr. HouseCraik-Patton House

Closest to Rand

Malden Historic DistrictMalden · District1.1miAfrican Zion Baptist ChurchMalden · Built 18721.3miCol. Henry Hewitt Wood HouseCharleston · Building1.3miEbenezer ChapelMarmet · Building2.8miSamuel Shrewsbury Sr. HouseBelle · Building3.3mi

How a place gets listed

1Talk to the stateEvery nomination goes through the State Historic Preservation Office. Owners, towns and historical societies can start one.
2Try a local or state list firstMany states keep their own register with a shorter form, a common first step for old barns, halls and schoolhouses.
3Write it upA nomination covers the history, photos and a map. Malden Historic District’s page links to a real one.
Know an old place in Rand?A mill, a schoolhouse, a cellar hole, a church: add a photo of it to Rand’s story, or a memory of it.
📷 Add a photo of an old place
National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places · photos from Wikimedia Commons

Then & now

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as A basketball game on unpaved Church Avenue, Rand, West Virginia, near an abandoned automobile (1973) and it appears here side by side.

🔁 Retake this view · +15

Stories next door

nearby towns’ history
📜 Marmet📜 Belle📜 Chesapeake📜 Charleston

From Wikimedia Commons (6). Images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.

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Boundary source: https://tigerweb.geo.census.gov/arcgis/rest/services/TIGERweb/Places_CouSub_ConCity_SubMCD/MapServer/19 · 2025-01-01
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