Fairmont, city, seat of Marion County, northern West Virginia, where the West Fork and Tygart rivers join to form the Monongahela River; settled 1770s, incorporated as a city 1899. It is the industrial center of a coal-mining region. Mining has been in decline, however, because the local coal is too high in sulfur to easily meet the antipollution requirements of the federal Clean Air Act of 1990. Manufactures include lighting equipment, aluminum, glass, and mine machinery. Fairmont State College (1867) is here. Prickett's Fort (1774), a state park, is one of several forts built in the area during the 1770s for the protection of settlers. The first commercial coal mine was opened here in 1818. Severe mine disasters occurred nearby, at Monongah in 1907 (some 360 miners killed) and at Farmington in 1968. Fairmont's name (given in 1843) is poetic for “fair mountain.” Population 23,863 (1980); 20,210 (1990); 19,097 (2000).Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2001
http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2001 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Fairmont Information info
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