Charleston WV 1981-82

Charleston WV before the Town Center Mall was built. By the way, KZbin doesn't allow licensed music to be used in backgrounds of personal videos.They then supply ( not great ) license free music. In a video that's 10 minutes or more long, it's hard to find music to fit, so the selections are even less. I could have uploaded the video exactly as it came... silent. Or you can turn your speakers off.

[@wapa4254]

Wow! That's me in the red shirt at the 3:28 mark. It makes me sad watching this though. I used to love to walk around downtown just to see who I could see. Ahh, the good old days! I knew they were they and I miss them terribly!

[@steve-si3oz]

This is the Charleston of my memory; busy, safe and enjoyable.. So sad to see these same streets deserted as they are today.

[@mikethomas1081]

I was there a month ago just passing through. The city looks a lot different but one thing that struck me was that every single person I walked past said hi.

[@RationallySkeptical]

Holy crap I miss this era. I was in 1st and 2nd grade when this was filmed, and my dad had just bought Briarwood on Kanawha Avenue. Its so sad what we've lost. It feels like EVERYTHING has closed. This was probably just a handful of years before Charleston's peak. Those were the days when a house could triple in value in 12 years. Briarwood did, anyway. It's so nice being able to see downtown like I remember it as a kid. THANK YOU for this.

[@Coasterkitty7]

This just blows me away. I feel like Marty McFly being sent back 30 years! I was 9/10 when this video was shot and remember parts of it, including the old Diamond, Wards, Pennys, and and Stonewall Bldgs. The one thing I remember the most is the old McDonald's. My parents used to take us there whenever eating at fast foods was considered a treat, not a regular part of our diets. That must explain why so many people in this video are thinner than they are today!

[@RationallySkeptical]

Muldoon's went where McDonalds was, right? I remember my dad owned a bunch of arcade video games (most of which were in convenience stores like 7/11) and he had a couple of sit-down arcade games in Muldoon's. Ms. Pacman and Galaga, maybe? lol

[@steveguinn9740]

I remember that McDonald's too. Worked there in 1978.

[@cward1954]

I was about 8 or 9 when that video was taken. I was in Huntington though.

[@sherrycollins9274]

Grew up there during the 70's and 80's. Lots of memories in this video. The Diamond, Stone and Thomas, OJ Morrisons, Montomery Ward. I worked in the Union Bldg, watched the Regatta from the window, enjoyed lunch at Muldoons. Later worked in the Daniel Boone after it was turned into offices. Saw Styx at the Civic Center in 1983. Thanks for the great memories!

[@usmc-veteran7316]

When I was 15 yrs old 1970, we use to ride the bus to Capital St, we would buy our clothes from Silver Brands and Clothes City. Miss those days.

[@Runescape.]

how old are you now sherry if you dont mind me asking? thank you for sharing the memories

[@jeremiahcomer]

Everyone is well dressed, in shape, etc. it's kind of sad to see how things have changed for what we think is progress

[@ih8scammers189]

Lol. Anyone that hasn't got their head up their ass knows we have devolved as humans. In communication, style, interaction, you name it.

[@sherrykeith2268]

Yes the internet has ruined our lives in certain ways

[@a.username7927]

@@ih8scammers189 You give off "we live in a society" vibes. Also, what about technological advancements? Without it, you wouldn't post your idiotic comments to youtube.

[@alexf9547]

40% obesity rate in our country now, yet I had a hard time finding just one in this whole video. Makes you wonder if it's really the virus that's killing everyone off.

[@sydneywhitfield7497]

Bein "well dressed" is so overrated. Like why shouldn't I go out dressed more comfortable within reason?

[@drewk1514]

LOVED the art deco Stone & Thomas department store! Such wonderful stores stocked with great merchandise. No place like that anymore, sadly.

[@victoriaelmendorf1502]

I dearly LOVE seeing MY DAUGHTER at age 16 or so (white blouse and skirt, smiling/talking and walking with friend) at the beginning of this video. I worked at a couple of restaurants and a department store during this era; was a wonderful time! Large shopping malls just don't have the same vibe and, apparently, by the many store closings inside malls (online shopping taking over) other consumers generally aren't "feeling it" at malls, either!

[@rodneymorrison3565]

I remember shooting those girls .. and to be honest I spent too much time shooting pretty girls most of that day!

[@jjjlll4135]

2.17 mark looks to be chewing bubble gum. Not many smile now day.

[@lindasmith4171]

Thanks for the walk down memory lane! Walked and walked these streets, shopping, working, library! My young life spent in this wonderful place, time!

[@rideandglide]

When as a small child I remember my grandparents walking uptown on Capitol St. just to go window shopping, Anybody remember the electric train display at the Diamond dept. store window you could place your hand at a spot on the window and the train would run.

[@yamzyzf]

My hometown! I remember walking those streets as a child and watching the parades in front of that same McDonalds as well as eating there. My family moved north in 1980 (4 years old) and have visited as often as I can. I will return when I retire as I’ve been homesick since I left.

[@martaree1234]

The reason there are so many pedestrians in this video is simple. The downtown area was mostly retail until the mall opened. Now it is mostly offices with some supporting eateries. I remember the McDonald's, Stone and Thomas Dept. Store, the Diamond Department Store, Sydney's, Swabe-Mays and other independent retailers. Shopping in downtown Charleston was a madhouse, especially at Christmastime, with people dashing into the small retail shops that lined the city streets.

[@myphone9900]

Yes...The Town Center Mall destroyed downtown Charleston in 1984 (that big ugly bare spot in the video is where it was built).

[@ptownscribe1254]

No, population decline - based on a non-diversified economic base - did. Plenty of cities anchoring metro areas of 200,000 or so support shopping malls as well as downtown business districts.

[@ikreer9777]

School shopping every August--trying to keep up with Mom and not get separated. Her putting our winter clothes on layaway at Stone & Thomas. And getting a Coke and a snack at their lunch counter.

[@richardalderson7603]

Don't forget Frankenburgers :)

[@jgrysiak6566]

Downtown Pittsburgh's last McDonald's finally shut down this yr.

[@heathpickens2345]

Great video!! The Charleston Sternwheeler Regatta was my favorite end of summer events!! I miss the 80's!

[@ashnh2334]

I was born in 86 so I dont remember this however I remember my mom pointing out the buildings that used to be stone and Thomas and Montgomery ward, etc. I absolutely love this video I wish charleston was more like this now as crazy as that may sound.

[@vladtepes9614]

The turn of a decade. Most of the younger crowd was still rocking a 70's style.

[@lrn_news9171]

Dude it's insane that I see you here, what a small world. You upload rare metal bands and stuff. lol

[@ElbertPoling]

If I was still in CRW I would be compelled to redo this video as closely as possible and show what it is like today.

[@zaphodbeatlebrox4906]

I went through a few times last summer, 2021. So many empty buildings.

[@veldridge1]

A true blast from the past. I spent a many day at Kanawha County Public Library, danced at Diamonds Dept. Store, in the window at Christmas, as a young girl modeled at Embees. I smile at all the Hustle and Bustle of Capitol Street foot traffic.I am in Awe. I was recently home, walked the streets with an old friend and found it a bit sad, how quiet it has become. It will always be home to me, and this how I remember it. Thank you for sharing!

[@loganonamac7]

As a current resident of Charleston, I long for the city that I see in this video. A city in which the streets aren't solely for the purpose of traveling to another building. A city in which the downtown of the city isn't completely and somewhat eerily deserted at some times of the day. A city in which its high schools aren't located several miles outside of the main city. I would like nothing more than to live in the city which I see in this video. A unreachable city, only because of time.

[@StormTrackerWV]

This brought a tear to my eye...I have tried to explain this feeling to people so many times & you captured it so well. The best I could come up with is that people can't miss what they didn't know--and young people didn't grow up knowing the Charleston in this video, so they don't miss it. But I sure do. 😢

[@created2love]

Takes me back in time I love going to downtown Charleston usually Mom and I would go every Saturday while I was growing up then as teenager my friends and I would run to town. What beautiful wonderful memories of those days. Really miss them and the great shopping.

[@cherroutzahn3413]

I miss downtown Charleston...... We would ride the city bus and go to the library, the bakery, The Peanut Shop and McDonalds! I loved shopping at the Diamond, Embees and Stone & Thomas. I moved away in 1990 but was home visiting 2 weeks ago. It makes me sas to see how things have changes. Those were some of my very best memories.....shopping with my mom and sister.

[@zaphodbeatlebrox4906]

The Peanut Shop is still there and in the hands of the descendents of the original owners, Tillie and Delbert Moore.

[@adrianjohnson1486]

Boy, I wish people today looked as good as they did in this presentation. Some things were better in the old days.

[@ih8scammers189]

EVERYTHING was better. We have devolved as humans. Communication has devolved, style has devolved, respect has devolved, countries have devolved, quality of people has devolved. Social media has had a HUGE part to play in this, but also mass immigration and out of control political correctness.

[@90swannabe60]

me too

[@colettanicholsonnicholson1533]

People were thinner in the 60s, 70s, 80, I think they are putting more junk in our food . People eat larger portions. Even other countries have commented on fat Americans have gotten.

[@a.username7927]

@@ih8scammers189 Yeah, your moronic opinions have proved we have devolved

[@whenmountainsmove]

Said every old normie ever.

[@chungiemunchin]

I was in Miami, FL in 80 to 83 so this was a nice trip down memory lane. My mom use to take me shopping downtown to Frankenbergers and The Diamond. We use to eat lunch on the 5th floor (I think it was the 5th floor) of The Diamond where they had a wonderful cafeteria for shoppers famished from their day's shopping. By the time I got back to visit Charleston, the mall had been built and downtown Capitol St. was a ghost town. They've done nice things with it since then!

[@winterplum]

I used to live in Charleston around 1978-1979. I saw the 'Lerners' store I used to shop at for clothes. Love that people were out and about...the city really thrived then it seemed. Thank you for posting this video, it was a treasure.

[@lisaknell6018]

winterplum that Lerner moved to the mall when it opened, and I got my first job working there. Great memories of the 80s. I work downtown now, and it is so different than what we see here!

[@briankelly9347]

Yo

[@brentsutphin8088]

Thumbs up to the person who filmed this it's amazing

[@JasonH6741]

This is crazy to see...so many people out walking around and enjoying themselves...I'm afraid we have regressed

[@My1angus]

Makes me long for those days. So many stores that I had forgotten. So many people downtown.

[@RobertYoungCharlestonWV]

This is great. I love looking at the way things used to be. so many mixed emotions, Thank you to whom ever place this on here.

[@surplussean3364]

Born and raised in Charleston. Many have commented about how the Town Center mall ruined Charleston. I think there's only a small truth to that. I don't think that the Town Center has hurt Charleston business any more than South Hills mall area has hurt the Town Center mall. The main factor in the decline of Charleston is the shrinking energy sector. Dupont, Union Carbide, the coal industry, are the engine of Charleston. These businesses/industries shrank and people left just like the steel industry in Pittsburgh. These are/were for the most part, the only decent paying jobs. Pittsburgh reinvented itself and is one of the top medical regions in the country. Charleston hasn't done anything to replace the dying energy field that it relied on. Charleston has about a third of the population it did 40 years ago. It's a shame because it is such a beautiful place. It is also sad because people talk about those that "made it out" of Charleston. Many I grew up with either are in prison, dead or working the same minimum wage job they did when I left 20 years ago. Usually those that left joined the military like I did. Jobs are the only thing that will save Charleston

[@cantaloupeme]

You are 100% correct about Charleston. Wv as a whole refuses to adapt. They believe it’s 1920 and not 2020. It’s sad here.

[@randypleva2397]

I join the Corp 71 got out 74 got a job with Pepsi and I remember it was a bitch trying to make deliveries in downtown Charleston lol. Quit went in mines. But haven’t moved still live in Charleston area . Not like this today

[@sarahmckinneyrobinson]

I’m in Pineville ... (south of Kanawa)... just wanted to say you’re right 💯💯💯💯💯

[@ABC-uy4fw]

Now that people are working from home and leaving big cities; it's time for Charleston to shine and become a tech hub, because they in better location than Phoenix, Salt lake city and boise. Charleston is close to Washington DC, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and New York city.

[@DarkKar]

Thank you for sharing your story.

[@mamawfrancy]

We watched and paused the video soo many times... we had forgotten soo many of the wonderful little stores. Thank you soo much wvsky for 'bringing back' to our remembrance & for all the wonderful memories. Loved your comment on the dramatic music! :)

[@rodneymorrison3565]

The original footage featured Sibelius Symphonies #3 & #5.. obscure European copies that are not copyright protected.

[@JenX_1973]

I was 9 in 1982, and remember this very well! @0:54 is where they were getting ready to build the Charleston Town Center. I remember going there the day it opened, and I had never seen or been in a place like that! It was amazing to have all of those stores and restaurants in one building!! I miss those stores!!

[@StormTrackerWV]

It was AMAZING when it first opened! That waterfall!

[@duanejohnson4383]

I saw my partner, Walt Woods in the yellow shirt and black cap in front of the Library. R.I.P. Bruh.

[@davidhudson7040]

Thank you for uploading this video. I was an infant, but I can remember the late 80s Charleston. What a change we have seen in Charleston and the surrounding areas. I really hate what is happening to the Kanawha Valley. There's no industry other than government, retail and hospitals.

[@teeeeeveeeee314]

It's hard to believe Charleston went from this to tumbleweeds traveling down Lee Street on a Sunday afternoon today.

[@stalemilk926]

Don't forget about the junkies

[@TinyGaming1]

Charleston for sure has changed a lot since the 80s I wish it was still like the 80s everybody was more joyful

[@teddyhaynes9876]

Joy has slowly been lost not just in Charleston but everywhere it seems , I feel it in me .

[@ltschmidt02]

This is my youth. Wow. Thirty years ago.

[@dmreeoogdaq]

I was born in 1969, and through the '70's and into the early '80's, going "downtown" was like going to an amusement park for me. Charleston was a great town, with a variety of stores, shops, and restaurants. Charleston is still a great town, but one has to look a little harder for the great restaurants, stores, and shops, (the best ones are usually locally owned). I still miss the child's "thrill" of riding that escalator in Stone & Thomas though!

[@ptownscribe1254]

Greater in many ways: Haddad Riverfront Park/Live on the Levee/FestivALL, Capitol Market, Clay Center for Arts & Sciences, Taylor Books, Pies & Pints, Adelphia, bricked sidewalks, parks/greesnspaces, Elk City, bike paths, Magic Island, etc. etc. "Towns" are more than how many clothing and drug stores are located in a concentrated area.

[@teddyhaynes9876]

Not even close to greater are u mad ? Pies and pints lol. Stop lying to yourself it’s way way worse as is the rest of the world , but keep living in wonderland Alice

[@marshalljohnblount1993]

​@@teddyhaynes9876Maybe to them it's better 🤷‍♂️...Different strokes for different folks...Nothing ever stays the same..

[@JasonH6741]

Was hoping I might see my mom and dad again in this video but no luck 😞 miss them a lot

[@mattplatt2391]

I was 10 in '83 Loved going downtown, especially to Maynards pet store.

[@constitutionalrepublic1966]

This was a definite trip back in time for me. In the 1981-1982 year, I was 14-15 years old, and just starting CHS. Looking back during this tour of Charleston, I can't believe how many old landmarks were still here, compared to now (2022.)

[@mayavenuemisfit814]

Charleston looked like a happening place to be back in those days. I drove through there back in 2010, and did a brief sightseeing tour, and it was nothing like this video. I didn't see very many people outside, other than people begging for change or cigarettes. Downtown was like a ghost town. The residential neighborhoods were even worse, a lot of boarded-up houses and vacant lots. Sadly, a combination of the loss of industrial jobs and the opioid epidemic seem to have really done a number on Charleston. It sucks, because it really is a cool-looking place surrounded by the mountains, and I've always liked the downtown and its mix of modern and historic architecture, with the West Virginia state capitol building mixed in. If I could make a list of cities that I'd like to see make a comeback, Charleston would be at the top of my list.

[@thegoyaaowl]

Wow takes a few hours but I head to Charleston all the time and to see how busy and popular downtown as just makes it even more sad now. Was at the town center mall just a few days ago and its slowly dying after Sear and Payless closed I noticed a few other stores with going out of business signs up :(

[@austinmorris1932]

Goyaa Owl Yup hopefully they turn it into something else. Heard they were planning on making it a casino but I feel like that’d be a bad idea

[@estushibbard1226]

Malls in general are dying all over America, something like 600+ have closed completely in the past couple of decades. Online shopping is one of the main contributing factors for it occurring but newer and shinier shopping centers are also killing them off as well. Honestly I believe that the Town Center Mall is too far gone now to realistically save as a mall but I'm at a loss as to name something that could potentially replace it. I just feel that Charleston and its economy are dying and that the local economy probably couldn't support anything that replaces the mall at that location.

[@darbymoran8982]

I wish Charleston was still this busy😢

[@teeeeeveeeee314]

Capitol Street had 10 times the traffic than it does now...

[@drew65sep]

Stonewall class of '83...man, that brings back the memories

[@rodneymorrison3565]

This is a little project I started in 1981.... and still haven't finished.

[@adamproctor9706]

Rodney Morrison I would love to see any video footage you have of the old Daniel Boone Hotel

[@Guns_and_Grunge]

it sems to me that there use to be more foot traffic in Charleston then vs now.

[@sherrykeith2268]

That's because then you would have to go out and physically shop now you get on the internet and it's delivered to you

[@jeanbarnett8137]

You must also consider that after the malls were put in the mix, more ppl did their shopping there. I mean why not? You could shop different stores and all of them are under one roof 🖤

[@90swannabe60]

FREEDOMorDEATH1776 yep

[@jameslawson5772]

People are leaving Kanawha County in droves. Unfortunately it’s the middle age working class, the ones who pay into the local tax base an crank out babies (to restock our population) that are leaving. All we are left with are those who live out of the mailbox, who are oblivious to the changes around them. This has already occurred in the southern part of the state. Those who can work leave the state in search of jobs, an all that’s left is the elderly who can’t afford to leave, an the riffraff who would steal Christ off the cross an come back for the nails later. Only three profitable businesses remain. Pill Mills, FuneralHomes, an Churches. The Elderly keep the church afloat, riffraff keep the Pill Mills churning, and the FuneralHomes...well that’s self explanatory.

[@DisposableEgo]

It's before Reagan destroyed the economy.

[@debyt4488]

I moved back to Charleston and worked at KB&T in 1982-1984 before I further south. I remember these streets. And, yes, at lunch you would see all the downtown employees out walking around for lunch. When the clock struck noon, many men find their "corner" so they could girl watch for lunch. Muldoons was the in spot at night and the double decker bus took people to another restaurant/nightclub that was not on the main drag. Fun times!!

[@rodneymorrison3565]

Yes..that double-decker bus picked up customers for Diamond Jim's Restaurant, which was on the corner of Brooks & Virginia Sts.

[@Mcwvtracy]

I remember going downtown with my momaw and popaw in the summer, had totally forgotten about the McDonalds across from the Library...the city is so empty and depressing now

[@rvincelewis]

Amazing....THANKS so much for posting..this really brings back the great times I had growing up in the BEST big small town in the country...

[@baseballlongboarder]

Thank you for sharing this video. I really enjoyed watching it

[@ICsucks]

This is really interesting. I miss times like this. I was born in 1981. I remember going to downtown department stores and to be honest I love that nostalgic feel and if course shopping in a mall.

[@CvgGuitarPlayer]

This is wonderful, tnanks for posting. What great memories this has brought back to me. David

[@frevryngrocks9346]

The good ole days! Thanks for sharing!

[@bmw53002]

Double decker buses? How could I not remember that! Wish I could have road on one! :)

[@buddyclem7328]

Pam Walker I can't believe it! A double decker bus at 4:32. I never saw those at the time, and didn't know they were ever street legal in West Virginia or in the US. I do remember the stores and the old Greyhound Bus Station, and the mess from construction of the Town Center Mall. I got to walk through it when the floors were still gravel. Those were good times.

[@squeezable]

They eventually turned that bus into a restaurant where McDonald's was sitting, across from the library.

[@DarkKar]

An absolutely heartbreaking then and now.

[@JDBGPS]

WOW! A jog down memory lane. I really enjoyed it. Thanks for posting!

[@karlbryant9242]

take me back to 1981/82 please! if only i had a time machine.

[@davidhanshaw7840]

Thanks for posting. I grew up there in the 60s and 70s and left there in mid 80s some great memories.

[@samgutts1357]

I knew a David Hanshaw that went to Stonewall Jackson in the early '70s.

[@davidhanshaw7840]

@@samgutts1357 I went to school in St. Albans. Hanshaw is a pretty common name in West Virginia. I ran across a musician in Houston with my same name. Turns out he was originally from Charleston WV as well.

[@michaelsomething7674]

This is a beautiful city, just not enough high paying jobs. Boise idaho is a mountainous state and it is prospering. West Virginia needs to change its policy to increase tourism, high tech jobs, and education.

[@melissaromine5873]

Old school charleston wv reminds me of a little los angeles california

[@dianecrawford5244]

Wow*** This brings back old memories born there. I figure my age was 9 years old

[@MaryAnn-222]

Loved watching this video! It's very possible I was in the masses of people there on Capitol St. at some point!

[@dustinchaney321]

Wow! I cant believe how things have changed. The City is practically a ghost town now. Sadly it seems that the Charleston towne center is doomed after almost 40 years of history on the downtown scene. Maybe hopefully then someone can breathe some life & revitalize our beautiful home of Charleston, wv 🧡❤💛💚💙💜

[@mayavenuemisfit814]

I've only been to Charleston once in my life, but it really is a cool-looking city. The mix of the mountains and the architecture paint a really awesome picture in my opinion. I'm certainly rooting for your city to make a comeback. 😃

[@Chopping-it-up]

The city was alot more busy than now wow hopfully charleston can come back to this it is still a nice city

[@mcav3270]

Charleston has changed much throughout the past years, kinda' wish it hadn't, bore modernized now and busy busy.

[@leef9242]

i have lived here all my life, only 15 years, but wow things were very different, much more poeple, better dressed, etc

[@tim1883]

I was a senior at Stonewall....awesome!

[@SMichaelDeHart]

Remember it well...Graduated from Saint Albans in '82. Hard to believe it's been 40 years!!

[@JounLord1]

This is from several years before I was born, very cool seeing familiar sights that are so different from a time before I existed.

[@ncavlleguy]

Great video! I was a teenager when this was shot !

[@mountainmystery223]

This is totally awesome!!

[@tracyskitchenandappalachia2954]

I remember Lerner's nice clothes!

[@shaquilleburton1611]

I was born in 93 it looks a lot different now

[@elaineparker370]

Yes, chungiemunchin, the Diamond's cafeteria was on the 5th floor, and it had the BEST chicken rice soup in the world. All their food was good. I watched this, hoping I would recognize someone, but I suppose that, like me, everyone from my class at GW moved away. I remember going to the annual horse show at the Charleston Civic Center in the early 60s. It had the quality exhibitors to compare favorably with anything going on at the Horse Park here.

[@WVsilverzuk]

Where are all the fat people? Pick out the heaviest person in that video, and they would be considered skinny by today's standards.

[@thefarmerboys3344]

STFU

[@thefarmerboys3344]

You probally a fat a to

[@michaelr.williams8176]

That is because people eat 3 meals a day back then even if it was fatey foods 3 meals no More untill the nex day now people eat low fat foods salty hungrey all the time and eat all day takeing in 10 times more than needed causing. More over weight people

[@josephmackela8466]

I am looking to see if I can see a newspaper anywhere or a movie theater marque. Saw something about Clint Eastwood. Closest thing to time travel.

[@josephmackela8466]

Wish McDonalds still looked like that instead of a box.

[@wkctheben1]

Knowing the future of downtown, this is sad. I was in nursing school in Charleston '82-'83. The streets used to be packed with shoppers! I was home for a few days in July 2012 - the streets were vacant! (Except for Kanawha Blvd, which was a real nightmare!) Really sprawling buildings stand in areas where they really do not fit at all. I really loved Charleston! I lived there in the '70s and '80s - back then you could walk to anything you wanted! Very sad old town now, apparently the politicians just had a good old time! No apparent planning took place. Once Town Center opened it was lights out on common sense. (TheBen)

[@ptownscribe1254]

Back then we had none of the following: Haddad Riverfront Park/Live on the Levee/FestivALL, Capitol Market, Clay Center for Arts & Sciences, Taylor Books, Pies & Pints, Adelphia, bricked sidewalks, parks/greesnspaces, Elk City, bike paths, Magic Island as developed park, etc. etc. "Towns" are more than how many clothing and drug stores are located in a concentrated area.

[@mikewhiteford4241]

Thanks for the excellent perspective. Sometimes people get too carried away with nostalgia and overlook what's happening now. By the way, you didn't mention the Civic Center expansion, new baseball park and the greatly expanded and modernized University of Charleston. @@ptownscribe1254

[@highoffgunpowder8208]

i dont expect a reply 9 years later but its worth a shot. did you happen to study at Garnet ?

[@teddyhaynes9876]

Yeah but can honestly say things are better anywhere in this country now ?? If we are being honest ? Look around for crying out loud

[@JUSAGUYNKY]

Was traveling through WV a few years ago(right before the pandemic).. decided to exit the freeway, and check out the biggest city in WV! It was sometime in the middle of the week around 2ish.. saw maybe like 6people 🤷🏼‍♂️🤷🏼‍♂️

[@JonathanAllen0379]

3:14 Clint Eastwood in "Firefox". Excellent movie!😎

[@Krinthalas]

Thank you for the upload. I kinda thought the music fit. 🤷‍♂️

[@davidroberosn]

I really like the music choice actually. Very dramatic and a great historical record.

[@user-ly5qe1ix4c]

I'm about to go get a time and time travel Back to the 80s

[@heathercarter8312]

Definitely some crazy looking stuff back then

[@usmc-veteran7316]

Someday they will say the same about 2019 buildings, car, clothes & people.

[@williamjames9063]

If you look at some of the cars, especially the Chevette's, the large bumber did not appear on those makes until 1984. So this has to be 84 or later. But still a tear jerker for all of us who used to call Charleston home!

[@myphone9900]

Sorry but you are wrong - you can see the vacant land by the Civic Center where the Town Center was eventually built and opened in 1984. This is without a doubt 1981 -1982 (My sister owned a Chevette back then).

[@rodneymorrison3565]

This is a mix of 1982 '83 & '84 footage shot over a 3 yr period.

[@deanamc1]

Ur right so many mixed emotions, seems like a lifetime for me. Wish I had a do over.

[@sarahlizabethk]

This is fascinating yet also a bit depressing when you compare it with modern day Charleston. The city is so lively in this video and full of people and (like everyone has mentioned) the people are so slim and healthy looking! And there was a McDonalds where the closed french restaurant is located today? huh. I was born in 1981 so I don't really remember a pre-Town Center Charleston. So was it Town Center that ended up destroying all of this?

[@the_gilded_age_phoenix8717]

Probably that and the internet. Now, the area's center of life is the Greyhound Race Track/Casino in Cross Lanes, It seems. I bet that Town Center Mall shutters in a few years because of the internet and lazy people.

[@myphone9900]

Hi Sarah...that McDonald's was a landmark for years in Charleston (I worked there as a teen). When the Town Center Mall opened in 1984 that McDonald's moved there and another operator tried to run a McDonald's there but it was never the same. She quickly closed and it has been many things since that time. Before the French Cafe it was the Bus Stop grill and had 2 double-decker buses. It was closed for years after the French cafe but there is something there now. Charleston has changed many times since this video. The first big change was when the Town Center came (if you see the bare land in the video by the Civic Center that is where it was built). The larger shops such as Montgomery Ward, JC Penny, etc. moved to the mall and the smaller ma & pa shops eventually closed. There were changes again a few years later when the Kanawha Mall opened across the river and then when Walmart and company opened along Corridor G (Southridge Center) it changed everything again. Danny Jones has been a horrible mayor and his policies further destroyed the city. It is so very sad to see how Charleston is today...nothing but out of state drug dealers and all the crime that goes with it.

[@ptownscribe1254]

If you really think about it, if the population had grown instead of declining - including thousands of people who lived downtown - it wouldn't matter that a large shopping mall was four blocks west of Capitol Street. There would be business for both areas, with old downtown having more in the way of specialty shops, etc. The bustle depicted here would only return if the Kanawha Valley economy rebounds with new employers and/or a greater entrepreneurial spirt emerges with local people opening and supporting new smaller businesses. Meanwhile, it's not so bad. Downtown Charleston is a considerably more aesthetically pleasing place than it was in 1981: greenspaces, benches, lampposts, red-brick sidewalks, restored buildings, great bookstore/cafe, booming local restaurants, Clay Center, Capitol Market, Live on the Levee, etc., etc., etc.

[@briankelly9347]

West virgina had a really low crime rate from 1960 to 2017.

[@austinmorris1932]

The_Gilded_Age_Phoenix it has

[@testedapproved841]

Man I haven't seen the Monarch since I was a little kid my mom was bartender there every time I had to go with her to work all the patrons would give me money all the time it was great I loved it

[@benmen8699]

SIMPLE AND OLD STANDARD !!! NO ONE WALKING AROUND WITH SMART PHONES BACK IN THOSE DAYS.

[@ToastyBoiYoutube]

And I mean nothings wrong with smart phones Ben

[@usmc-veteran7316]

Noticed the land was being prepped for the Charleston Town Center. Sad that people don't shop there much anymore.

[@andrewhill2570]

I'd forgotten how much Charleston has changed since those days. I see the old locations of JC Penny and Montgomery Ward that moved to Charleston Town Center Mall (shown under construction in several shots). Many of the downtown businesses shown here moved or went out of business because of the Mall. The Diamond and Stone & Thomas were my moms favorite places to shop. By the early 2000's the mall had become a ghost of it's former glory, with the anchor stores gone with most of it's smaller shops closed and boarded up. The city is trying to breath new life into the mall with a new hotel and sports complex, but we'll see how that goes. Everything's online these days.

[@Rams495]

That was interesting. I'm telephone technician and have been working Charleston for ten yrs. I'm only 37 so I was a young child and was not in Charleston that often then, though I only live 20 miles from there. Thanks

[@thecandyman9308]

It all started when Nixon opened the door to China ('72-ish), who then started the "economic reforms" in '78 (sweatshops compared to union factories). Once that happened, the shopping malls cropped up like tumors around downtown areas in every state, and those former jewels became ghost towns. Just look at the architecture here (only about 50 years old at this time). The "leaders" (both major parties) were on board w/ this wholesale stripping of the very organs which until the '80s kept everyone nourished. Both Donkey & Elephant must go extinct!

[@RationallySkeptical]

The real damage was done by Reagan's economic policies though, not Nixon's.

[@samgutts1357]

@@RationallySkeptical The day I left WV in 1983 50,000 coal miners were laid off. It was either transfer or get laid off. At the time we called it Reagan's Recession.

[@richardalderson7603]

Best years of my life..

[@tedmcgavran4195]

Notice how much better dressed and in shape these people look compared to lately in Charleston. Says a lot. A whole lot. A confident culture then. Not so now.

[@miguela.cedeno1040]

Now looks very dystopian like a ghost town

[@teeeeeveeeee314]

Notice that the KRT signs haven't changed in over 30 years.

[@teddyhaynes9876]

Change ain’t always a good thing , if something ain’t broke why change ?

[@YAHUWADAH3]

The other sad thing is look what they’re all doing they are laughing and talking with each other nowadays people stare down at their iPhones not even looking at the other person

[@Ampkid1999]

Im only 13 but it looks like it was cool back then

[@Flesh_and_bones]

Man, Seeing Charleston so full of people is weird....... Now there is very little people in Charleston walking around.

[@robertsole9970]

Too much crime now

[@jeremycook6729]

the beautiful blue skies and golden sunshine, the day days before continuous overcast and sulfur dioxide to block the sun

[@RationallySkeptical]

Sorry to burst your bubble, but the chemical plants were in full force back then, too. A LOT of things were better back then, but that isn't one of them.