History of the Watts Museum
For nearly a century, West Virginia University has preserved historical items representing the state’s mineral resource industries.
In the mid-1980s, Royce J. Watts, a WVU alumni, faculty member, and administrator, formally organized a museum in the College of Mineral and Energy Resources (COMER). The COMER Museum set forth a mission to preserve and interpret West Virginia’s mineral resources and related industries. With the support of his wife Caroline, Royce led the development of the museum and ensured its longevity with a substantial bequest.
As part of an endowment agreement in 2005, the West Virginia Coal Mining Institute (WVCMI) was granted the right to rename the Museum. For the new name, WVCMI chose “The Royce J. and Caroline B. Watts Museum.”
Now housed in the Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources, the museum continues Royce and Caroline’s commitment to preserving and sharing the history of West Virginia’s mineral resource industries.
What We Do
At the Watts Museum, we explore the significance of technology and industrialization on our region’s communities and landscape.
Each year, we develop a new exhibit that interprets our state’s industrial heritage in creative and thought-provoking ways. Past exhibit topics have included mine rescue teams in the Appalachian coalfields, the timber industry’s impact on regional folk music, and the early extraction of oil in West Virginia for lighting, machine lubricant, and medicine.