World Atlas recently identified the states with the oldest population in the nation. If you had to hazard a guess, where would you expect West Virginia to rank on such a list? I wasn’t sure what to expect, but in fact, West Virginia comes in at number 4. That puts our average age at even older than Florida’s (they were state number 5)!

With an average age of 42.7, West Virginia's population is one of the oldest of the 50 states of America.
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Only Maine (44.9), New Hampshire (43), and Vermont (42.8) are older.
This might not come as a surprise to many of us, though.
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We see daily reminders around the state that times have changed and jobs have fled.

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Both for this reason and others, we don't blame our young people for tending to scatter once they reach adulthood.
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But while we may understand why young people leave, it doesn't mean we welcome it.
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In a state where roots are precious, those whose life's journey carries them away from their childhood home of West Virginia to other corners of the United States often leave behind a corner of their hearts.
And it's right that they should. For although there are downsides to life in our state, there are benefits, as well.
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West Virginia truly is a wild, wonderful place - a little piece of Almost Heaven. It's no wonder the older (and wiser?) portion of the population have decided to stay put!

For good and for bad, there’s no other state quite like ours, and we long to see it thrive. (Just don’t grow too much, West Virginia, because we love our wild, rural spaces!)

Are you a former West Virginian? What took you from the state of your birth? Do you ever plan to come back? OR, on the flip side, have you come to settle in West Virginia from another state? What brought you here? How do you like it? We’d love to hear your experiences in the comments!

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