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Show Eastern Panhandle Is TavorsSe Spot for Vccctioners Old-timers used to talk about "this neck of the woods," and West Virginia's Vir-ginia's Eastern Panhandle may have the answer to how the expression expres-sion started. Back in the wilderness wilder-ness days, the area was called "The Northern Neck of Virginia." Eastern Panhandle retains a flavor fla-vor all its own. Gouging into Maryland Mary-land and Virginia as it does, it partakes par-takes of the traditions of both those states and remains somewhat dif- I ferent, if not apart, from the main area of West Virginia. In 1776, the village of Martins-burg Martins-burg had "30 houses" and the community com-munity was building "a courthouse of no inconsiderable size and elegance." ele-gance." Today Martinsburg is the industrial center of the Eastern Panhandle. West Virginia's Eastern Panhandle Pan-handle has as its main attractions Cacafo state park, old homes of the Washington family in Colonial days, Berkeley springs, and large apple and peach orchards. Harper's Ferry, historic center at junction of the Potomac and Shenandoah, Shen-andoah, is the state's oldest town. The Eastern Panhandle is only 52 miles from Washington, 73 miles from Baltimore, and 261 miles from New York. It is o;ne of the favorite spots for week-end and vacation trips from metropolitan a reus. ( |