An Orthodox Monastery Builds An American Tradition Deep In West Virginia

(ANALYSIS) There is nothing unusual about turning a corner in West Virginia's maze of rough mountain roads and seeing churches with plain white walls and big porches. The new sanctuary at the Hermitage of the Holy Cross — 10 miles of twists and turns into a holler outside the town of Wayne — offers a variation on that vision. Its green-metal roof has domes resembling medieval Russian helmets, topped with golden cupolas and soaring Slavic crosses.

Analysis, Christianity, News, North America, OrthodoxTerry MattinglyMay 6, 2026Terry Mattingly, analysis, Orthodoxy, Russian Orthodox Church, Christianity, West Virginia, Appalachia, newsComment

Reporter Focuses Lens On The Spirit Of Moundsville, West Virginia

John Miller’s film with David Bernabo, titled “Moundsville,” is a biography of a small town along the Ohio River — from its beginnings with a 2,200-year-old Native American burial mound, its economic boom and bust times as dozens of factories arrived and disappeared, to the current age of Walmart, shale gas and new generations hoping to figure out a future for the small town. The documentary is currently streaming on PBS.

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