Fairmont’s early days weren’t well-built ones. This mid-sized West Virginia city fell victim to poorly constructed buildings and a fire in the late 1800s. While it could have been easily left to decay, Fairmont rallied and began a decade long rebuilding process that brought more residents to the area. The city soon played an important middleman stopping point for trains heading between Cumberland, MD and Wheeling, WV and became a leading coal provider.