Beckley Wedding

Beckley is a city in Raleigh County, West Virginia, USA and founded on April 4, 1838. The population was estimated to be 17,254 by the US Census Bureau in 2005 according to the censtats.census.gov website. Beckley has also been referred to as Beckleyville and its nickname was the "Smokeless Coal Capital". It is also called "The Gateway To Southern West Virginia." The population of the Beckley area is roughly 9.4 including Raleigh County and parts of Fayette County. It is the county seat of Raleigh CountyGR6.

Beckley was named in honor of John J. Beckley, who was the first Clerk of the House of Representatives and the first Librarian of Congress. It was founded by his son Alfred Beckley (US Army general and confederate militia commander, born in Washington, D.C.). The current mayor (2005) is Emmett S. Pugh, III.

Beckley is home to Mountain State University.

Beckley is rumored to be home to one of the busiest Wal-Mart locations in the United States. Wal-Mart has recently opened a new superstore roughly 4 miles from their existing location. Additionally, in 2004, Wal-Mart Stores opened a Sams Club.

Beckley is located at 374647N, 811059W (37.779764, -81.183193)GR1.