WVU Press receives grant to support publication

Morgantown, WV, December 14, 2006:  The West Virginia University Press recently received a competitive grant from the West Virginia Humanities Council to help support the publication of “The Potomack Canal: George Washington and the Waterway to the West” by Dr. Robert J. Kapsch.

The book will explore the planning, construction and dereliction of the Potomac Canal. Not only will it serve as a history of Washington’s Potomack Company and its workers during construction, but it can also be used as a guide to visitors as they tour historic sites related to the building of the canal which still survive.

“The award is most welcome to the WVU Press, which recently sent letters to supporters to raise funds for several significant publishing projects,” said Patrick Conner, director and editor of the Press. “The West Virginia Humanities Council’s financial assistance in the production of ‘The Potomack Canal’ will help to reduce the price of the book, making it affordable to its audience of scholars and general readers alike, as well as supporting the efforts of the WVU Press to publish books of special importance to the state and the region.”

The Potomack Canal will be released in the summer of 2007.

The West Virginia Humanities Council, which is a state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to enriching the lives of West Virginians. It offers financial assistance to nonprofit and public agencies rooted in the humanities.

For further information about the WVU Press, visit www.wvupress.com.

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