1. In 1865, West Virginia became the first state to ratify the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution, which abolished slavery and involuntary servitude.

2. In 1927, the "Battle of Matewan" occurred in Matewan, West Virginia, between striking coal miners and the Baldwin-Felts Detective Agency, resulting in several deaths and injuries. This event helped to spark the West Virginia Mine Wars, a series of labor disputes and conflicts throughout the state's mining regions.

3. On November 30, 1968, musician and singer-songwriter Mary Lou Williams was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Williams, a native of Atlanta, Georgia, spent much of her career performing and composing in New York City, but also had connections to West Virginia, having performed at West Virginia State College (now West Virginia State University) in the 1940s.

4. In 1985, the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals decided in the case of State ex rel. Payne v. Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company that the state's Gas Pipeline Safety Act was unconstitutional, as it violated the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The decision had significant implications for the regulation of natural gas pipelines and the authority of states to enact measures affecting interstate commerce.

5. On November 30, 2004, West Virginia Governor Bob Wise signed the "Staley and Galicki's Law," named after two West Virginia University students who were killed by a drunk driver the year before. The law increased penalties for driving under the influence and established a statewide program to educate young people about the dangers of drunk driving.