Several popular products have their origin right here in West Virginia. Fiesta Dinnerware, for example, is produced in the Northern Panhandle. But here’s another interesting one that you might not have been aware of: billions of the world’s marbles started their lives in West Virginia. Several of West Virginia’s marble factories have moved or closed over the years, but Marble King, located in Paden City, still cranks out nearly a million of these little round balls of glass per day.
Marbles have been a popular component of a variety of pastimes for many, many years. From Chinese Checkers to marble shooting competitions to marble racing, generations of children (and adults) have known hours of fun thanks to marbles.
The company has always been a leader in marble production, manufacturing the first U.S. made "cat's eye" marble and developing the first "marble veneering" process, in which a less expensive glass could be used for the marble's core and covered with a finer colored glass.
The variety of products Marble King has to offer is astounding: not only do they have dozens of different colors of marbles for sale in their online gift shop, but you can also order many other marble related products, from mazes and marble runs to t-shirts and jewelry.
While Marble King's in-person gift shop is currently closed for the 2020 season, you can still purchase all of their products at their online gift shop.
And check back frequently, as they do hope to re-open their on-site gift shop when possible!
If all this talk of marbles has you feeling nostalgic for the good old days, plan a time soon to revisit your childhood (and bring your friends and family along) with a game night featuring authentic, made-in-West-Virginia marbles.
Did you play with marbles growing up? Were they West Virginia marbles? If not, you can order some from Marble King here. What were your favorite marble games? Let us know in the comments!
