Episcopal Diocese of West Virginia Good Shepherd in Parkersburg in 1891. In 1899, Peterkin found visitations increasingly difficult and asked for a bishop coadjutor, the diocesan convention elected Rev. William Loyall Gravatt of Zion Episcopal Church in Charles Town, West Virginia. Upon Rt.Rev. Peterkin's death in 1916, Rt. Rev. Gravatt moved the diocesan headquarters to Charleston, West Virginia, the state capital, where they are again today, although moved to Wheeling under the episcopate of his successor, Robert E.L. Strider. The diocese is headquartered on Virginia Street in Charleston, a few blocks from the West Virginia State Capitol, in a house known as Diocesan Center. It
Capital punishment in West Virginia Capital punishment in West Virginia Capital punishment is abolished in the U.S. State of West Virginia since 1965. Prior to secession from the Confederacy and admission to the Union on June 20, 1863, West Virginia was a part of Virginia. 43 people were executed under Virginia's authority, 112 after statehood. The first two people executed in the State of West Virginia were Daniel Grogan and Thomas Boice, both convicted of murder. After secession, no women have been executed in West Virginia. Hanging was an official method until 1949. In 1949, West Virginia was the last state to adopt the electric