Mountain Messenger
  • News
    • Local News
    • Courthouse
      • Civil Suits
      • Deeds
      • Marriages
      • Public Meetings
      • Reunions
    • Club News
    • Education
    • Business News
    • Entertainment
    • Sports News
  • Spiritual
    • Parabola
    • Southern Baptist
    • Transcendental Meditation
    • Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston
    • Church Bulletin
  • Obituaries
  • Columns
    • A Look Back
    • Back Down Country Roads
    • Dear Recycle Lady
    • Between The Lines
    • Letters to the Editor
  • eMessenger
  • Special Publications
    • Properties and Lifestyles
    • State Fair Guide
  • Contact Us
  • State News
  • National News
  • Classifieds
  • Legals
  • Login
Subscribe For $2.50/Month
No Result
View All Result
Mountain Messenger
  • News
    • Local News
    • Courthouse
      • Civil Suits
      • Deeds
      • Marriages
      • Public Meetings
      • Reunions
    • Club News
    • Education
    • Business News
    • Entertainment
    • Sports News
  • Spiritual
    • Parabola
    • Southern Baptist
    • Transcendental Meditation
    • Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston
    • Church Bulletin
  • Obituaries
  • Columns
    • A Look Back
    • Back Down Country Roads
    • Dear Recycle Lady
    • Between The Lines
    • Letters to the Editor
  • eMessenger
  • Special Publications
    • Properties and Lifestyles
    • State Fair Guide
No Result
View All Result
Mountain Messenger
No Result
View All Result
  • National News
  • WV State News
  • VA State News
  • Contact Us
Home A Look Back

A Look Back

March 17, 2023
in A Look Back
Reading Time: 2 mins read
A A
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

By William “Skip” Deegans
Shown in this 1942 photo is Rainelle’s regiment of the West Virginia State Guard, more commonly called the Home Guard. Rainelle’s regiment was commanded by Capt. A. J. Boso. Other commanding officers were first lieutenant Richard H. Bowman and second lieutenant James E. Decker.
The Home Guards were authorized by the West Virginia Legislature in 1941 and created the following year by Governor Neely after the West Virginia National Guard was called into active service in World War II. The objective was to have one Home Guard company in each county. Two companies of African-Americans were organized – one in Charleston and one in Welch.
The purpose of the Home Guard was to provide defense should the United States be invaded and to serve in emergencies. Men between the age of 18 and 62 were eligible to enlist. The physical requirements of the regular army were relaxed for the volunteers. The men were issued regular army field uniforms, and they drilled one evening a week with shotguns instead of rifles. Ammunition, rifles, machine guns, and ammunition were kept at the capitol and at armories and could be dispatched when needed.
Locations of Home Guards were sometimes determined by the need to protect local industries important for the war efforts. Rainelle may have been chosen because it was home of the Meadow River Lumber Company and the Nicholas, Fayette and Greenbrier Railroad operations that were important for transporting coal as well as lumber. While largely forgotten in most of the country, the Home Guard continues in some states, like Texas, as a form of state militia.
Photo: Courtesy of Greenbrier Historical Society, George Collins Collection.
Sources: The Raleigh Register, Hinton Daily News.

ShareTweetPin
Previous Post

Jason Hattersley named District Ranger

Next Post

Dear Recycle Lady

Discussion about this post

Join Our Newsletter

  • News
  • Spiritual
  • Obituaries
  • Columns
  • eMessenger
  • Special Publications

© 2022 Mountain Media, LLC

  • Login
  • Sign Up
  • Cart
No Result
View All Result
  • eMessenger
  • Local News
  • Courthouse
  • A Look Back
  • Business News
  • Church News
  • Club News
  • Sports News
  • Entertainment
  • Obituaries
  • Opinions
  • Special Publications
  • Contact Us
  • My Account
  • Subscribe | Digital & Newspaper

© 2022 Mountain Media, LLC

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Thank you for supporting local journalism. Please enjoy two free articles per month.

Subscribe Or Login For Full Access

Forgot your password?

Lost your password? Please enter your email address. You will receive mail with link to set new password.

Back to login