Billy Lynn Cunningham of Pine Grove will be among a group of 34 people recognized as West Virginia History Heroes during a History Day program and ceremony to be held at the Culture Center on the Capitol Complex in Charleston on Feb. 23.

His selection was recently announced by Joseph N. Geiger Jr., director of West Virginia Archives and History.

Nominated by Wetzel County WVGenWeb, Cunningham is a pioneer of Internet genealogy. When the WVGenWeb Project began in 1996, he became the county coordinator for Wetzel County, and since then he has helped people around the world research their Wetzel County families. He has compiled abundant genealogical information, provided tombstone transcriptions for most county cemeteries, and photographed countless gravestones. Cunningham also has taught computer skills to many people. His contribution to the preservation of Wetzel County’s history and genealogy is extensive and he shares everything online. Cunningham is loved, respected, and appreciated by the countless thousands who have benefited from his hard work, expertise, and generosity.

West Virginia History Heroes are nominated by historical, genealogical, preservation, museum, patriotic, or like organizations from across the state. The purpose of this annual award is to give state-level recognition to individuals chosen for dedicated service on behalf of an organization’s programs or for a recent significant contribution to state and local history through research, interpretation, publication, or preservation. The West Virginia History Hero award is a one-time only recognition.

The 2012 History Hero awards program is set to begin at 9:30 a.m. in the State Theater at the Culture Center and will conclude before 11 a.m. so that History Heroes can go to the House of Delegates gallery, where it is anticipated they will be recognized during the floor session. Honorees’ local legislators have been invited to participate in the ceremony at the Culture Center, time and legislative session permitting. During this time, photographs will be taken, copies of which will be mailed to each nominating organization and History Hero after the event, and which also will be made available in digital form on the Archives and History Web site.

West Virginia History Day at the Legislature was begun by the West Virginia Archives and History Commission in 1997 and is officially designated by the commission as a special day to recognize the state’s rich and varied history. This annual event, during which groups from around the state provide history displays in the capitol, is now in its 16th year..