Of the state‘s 2,300 Jews, 950 live in Charleston, 300 in Huntington, and 300 in Wheeling. Jewish life in the state began in the 1840’s. The first congregation was organized in Wheeling in 1849. An influx of Jewish settlers arrived after 1880. Jews in the state have engaged in commerce and in the milling, pottery, and tobacco industries. There are three Reform and two Conservative congregations in the state.