Pleasants County, West Virginia - General History

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GENERAL HISTORY

Pleasants County is in the northwestern part of West Virginia.  The 
eastern neighboring county is Tyler County and the southern neighboring
counties are Ritchie and Wood Counties.

To the northwest lies Washington County, Ohio.  Pleasants County is 
one of the smallest counties in West Virginia with an area of 134 
square miles.  Only the counties of Brooke, Hancock and Ohio are 
smaller.  The county seat is St. Marys, which occupies a fine 
location along the Ohio river.

About 25 miles of Pleasants County is bounded by the Ohio River.  The 
principal streams in Pleasants County are Middle Island Creek and 
French Creek.  Middle Island Creek divides the county nearly in half.  
Below the mouth of French Creek are the Three Brothers Islands; named 
in honor of the Briscoe brothers who are said to have taken "tomahawk 
claims" on them about 1783.  Tomahawk claims comprising one hundred 
to four hundred acres were roughly guessed at and marked by hacking 
trees with a hatchet or tomahawk on the corners of the claim.

Pleasants County was originally part of the tract known as West 
Augusta in Virginia and then part of  Wood County after its formation 
in 1799.  In 1851, Pleasants County was formed from parts of Wood, 
Tyler and Ritchie Counties.

Pleasants County was named in honor of James Pleasants, who was 
Governor of Virginia from 1822 to 1825, and died in 1836.

(Linda Fluharty)