SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. – It’s now easier to search for and find articles from past issues of Wonderful West Virginia. The West Virginia Division of Natural Resources, which publishes the monthly full-color magazine, has completed a lengthy project to convert the publications to an electronic format and make them available online. Now it’s easy to view articles going back as far as 1936 when it was called West Virginia Conservation and later, Outdoor West Virginia.
“We thought this would be a useful and convenient tool for individuals who enjoy reading Wonderful West Virginia and its predecessor versions,” said DNR Business Manager Mike Bryant, who headed up the project. “Now, instead of having to call our office to inquire about a past story or trudge down to the local library to do research, they can find what they are looking for in the comfort of their own homes at any time of day.”
To make the search for articles on specific topics easy, the Wonderful West Virginia website, www.wonderfulwv.com, has a search tool that can find articles by subject or author. The online archives indicate the month and year an article was published. Readers can then go to www.wvdnr.gov/wwvmagazine/archive/archive.html to read the articles. The pages carry watermarks, since they cannot be reprinted without the permission of the writers and photographers.
The current issues of the magazine also are in the midst of getting a facelift. Recently, a switch was made to mixed source paper, which comes from well-managed forests, controlled sources, and includes recycled wood or fiber, certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (www.fsc.org). Readers also will notice a new cover design and logo, with the goal of making the magazine stand out on crowded newsstands. The result is a modern look that is easier to read while maintaining the popular editorial mix of articles about the outdoors, history, and interesting places and people in the Mountain State.
Wonderful West Virginia is published monthly by DNR and is available on newsstands for $3 per copy or by subscription for $18 for one year or $36 for two years. Gift subscriptions are available. To subscribe, call 1-800-CALL-WVA (1-800-225-5982) or visit online www.wonderfulwv.com .