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Kanawha Falls

Kanawha Falls is located on the Kanawha River, visible from the Midland Trail, near Gauley Bridge, West Virginia. The low-slung waterfall is only 15 feet high but about 2,100 feet wide and broken into a number of distinct sections. There is a low dam above the falls that divert some of the water into the hydroelectric power plant on the western shoreline, and in the area are numerous roadside waterfalls.

Kanawha Falls was first reached on September 17, 1671, by Thomas Batts and Robert Fallam, who, with Thomas Woods, had set out with an expedition to take possession of the Mississippi River valley in the name of the King of England. Woods died en route, but Fallam and Batts reached the falls, which they thought marked the break of the waters toward the South Sea. They laid claim to the Mississippi Valley and then went back home. Their visit was the only justification for the 60 years of warfare between the French and English which began with Fort Necessity and which ended with the Battle of Waterloo.

Later, the falls were a popular stopping point along the James River & Kanawha Turnpike. Aaron Stockton settled in the area circa 1812 and, by the 1830s, had opened an inn along the river. His inn, now called the Glen Ferris Inn, is still open for business. A hydroelectric power plant was constructed along the western shoreline of the falls for the Wilson Aluminum Company in 1899-1901, and the low dam above the falls that divert some of the water into the power plant creates a picturesque shallow lake.

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Kanawha Falls

Kanawha Falls is a 15-foot-high block waterfall along the Kanawha River in Glen Ferris.

Kanawha Bridge Falls

Kanawha Bridge Falls is an approximate 15-foot-high cascade 500 feet west of the now-closed Kanawha Falls Bridge over the Kanawha River.

Riggs Branch Falls

Riggs Branch Falls is an approximate 15-foot-high waterfall with two drops 1,500 feet east of the now-closed Kanawha Falls Bridge over the Kanawha River.

Unnamed Falls

There is a 20-foot-high ribbon waterfall on an unnamed streamsouthwest of the now-closed Kanawha Falls Bridge over the Kanawha River.

  • Kanawha Falls is located along US Route 60. From Montgomery, follow US 60 east to the Kanawha Falls Public Fishing Access Area parking lot. From US Route 19 near Ansted, follow US Route 60 west for 17.5 miles to the Kanawha Falls Public Fishing Access Area parking lot.
  • Kanawha Bridge Falls is located ½ mile west of the Kanawha Falls Public Fishing Access Area parking lot on the north side of US Route 60.
  • Riggs Branch Falls is located .2 miles west of the Kanawha Falls Public Fishing Access Area parking lot on the north side of US Route 60.
  • The unnamed waterfall is located along County Route 61/29, east of Deep Water.

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