Germans were among the first European settlers in present-day West Virginia, arriving around the 1720s along the Potomac River. They established towns like Mecklenburg (now Shepherdstown) and Romney. By the mid-1700s, Germans made up about 30% of the population in Jefferson and Berkeley counties. Over the next century, many more Germans escaped political and religious persecution in Europe and founded small cities such as Wheeling and Parkersburg.

After World War I, anti-German sentiment slowed down migration, but Germans continued to arrive. Most were Lutheran, Catholic, or Jewish. Today, about 20-25% of West Virginians have German ancestry, ranging from opera singer Eleanor Steber to comedian Don Knotts.