[3] Monroe County was the home of Andrew Summers Rowan of Spanish–American War fame, who is immortalized in Elbert Hubbard's classic A Message to Garcia.

Monroe County did not participate in the creation of the new state, but was included by Congressional decree.

Almost all the men from Monroe who served in the Civil War enlisted in the Confederate army.

[5] In 1863, West Virginia's counties were divided into civil townships, with the intention of encouraging local government.

This proved impractical in the heavily rural state, and in 1872 the townships were converted into magisterial districts.

The county's terrain is mountainous and tree-covered, with all sufficiently level surfaces devoted to agriculture.

[26][27] One of Monroe County's geological features is Haynes Cave, a former saltpeter mine.

[28] Workers in the mine found strange bones in the cave at the end of the 18th Century, and mailed them to Thomas Jefferson.

Jefferson's study of the animal, the Megalonyx jeffersonii was arguably the birth of American paleontology.

However, other saltpeter caves are in private ownership, and allow only limited public access due to ecological risks.

One such is the Greenville Saltpeter Cave, designated a national natural landmark in 1973, and very important during the War of 1812.

The event, founded by Louie H. Peters, fills the weekend, with a Friday dance, a 3k run, a Saturday pancake breakfast, Sunday activities, and a parade held in the town of Union.