State Wildlife Center Brochure - West Virginia Department of ...

HISTORYAlthough the Wildlife Center is a modern facility,its roots run deep into the annals of wildlifeconservation. In the early 1900s, West Virginia’swildlife populations were in sharp decline due touncontrolled exploitation and habitat destruction.Conservationists began vigorously promoting gamerefuges as a means of protecting diminishing wildlife.The West Virginia Conservation Commission(forerunner of the Division of Natural Resources)began purchasing land for game refuges inthe 1920s, using funds derived from the sale ofhunting licenses. The French Creek Game Farm waspurchased in 1923 and used periodically to penraisevarious species of game birds and animalsfor restocking projects for the next 29 years. Thisprogram was discontinued when it was proven tobe biologically unsound. Pen-raised animals do notdevelop survival skills necessary for life in the wild.From its beginning, the Game Farm attracted publiccuriosity. Recognizing its unique recreational andeducational value, the Conservation Commissiondeveloped several native wildlife species displaysfor the general public. These wildlife exhibitsproved to be so popular that in the fall of 1926,nearly 6,000 people visited the farm.In 1954, one pair of elk and bison were obtainedfrom Oklahoma. Elk and bison, which had previouslyroamed West Virginia, proved to be major attractions.Other species of formerly native wildlife, such asthe mountain lion, timber wolf and river otter, havebeen added over the years. The collection of exhibitanimals also includes three non-native wildlifespecies that now occur in our state: the Europeanwild boar, ring-necked pheasant and coyote.An entirely new exhibit area was designed andbuilt beginning in 1984. Funding was obtainedusing matching federal monies from the Land andWater Conservation Fund of the U.S. Departmentof Interior. On September 28, 1986, the new facilitywas dedicated and renamed the West Virginia StateWildlife Center.Jack Mills Jack Mills