1. On May 3, 1907, West Virginia became the first state to legislate a minimum wage law for women and children. The law required employers to pay at least $0.18 per hour to women and minors, and enforced penalties for non-compliance.

2. The Battle of Cloyd’s Mountain, a Civil War battle, occurred on May 3, 1864, in Pulaski County, Virginia (which was part of West Virginia at the time). Union forces led by Brig. Gen. George Crook defeated the Confederate Army under Brig. Gen. Albert G. Jenkins.

3. On May 3, 1934, more than 500 miners in Logan County, West Virginia, participated in a strike against the Boone County mine operators. The conflict escalated into the Battle of Blair Mountain, one of the largest armed uprisings in U.S. history.

4. West Virginia University's School of Medicine was established on May 3, 1905, with six professors and 36 students. Today, the School of Medicine has more than 1,000 faculty members, 1,100 medical students, and 650 residents and fellows.

5. On May 3, 1975, the first Wheeling Vintage Race, a vintage automobile race, was held in downtown Wheeling, West Virginia. The race was held annually until 1980 and was revived in 2013 as the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix at the Pittsburgh International Race Complex.