The story
from WikipediaRead it all ↗The Upper Falls of the Coal River was discovered in 1742 by John Peter Salling during an expedition along the Coal River. Salling and four companions each received a governor's commission from the state of Virginia to explore the territory east of the Mississippi River, in return for 10,000-acre (4,000 ha) land grants. It was this group that also discovered coal along the banks of the Coal River.
It was not until after the Revolutionary War that European settlers began moving into the area. Even then, the few who survived the attacks of the native peoples usually fled to safer destinations. But by around 1800, a gristmill was established by Joseph Thomas at the Upper Falls which continued in operation until the 1930s.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Start Tornado’s collection
The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Tornado’s history is told.
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Tornado, decade by decade
2000
Nothing in Tornado is on the National Register yet
That’s true of most small towns. It doesn’t mean Tornado has no history, only that no one has written up a nomination. The closest listed place is Carter G. Woodson School in St. Albans, 4 miles away.
Tornado and the nearest listed places
How a place gets listed
Then & now
When neighbors add old photos, retakes from the same spot appear here side by side.