Roy Dolin (L) and David Husband set a double cheeseburger on the hand of Big Boy, who will welcome guests to the Culture Center's exhibit celebrating West Virginia's 150 years of statehood. Until the 1980s, Big Boy was the mascot for Shoney's restaurants, which started in the Mountain State in 1947.

Giuseppe "Joseph" Argiro of Fairmont invented the pepperoni roll, which coal miners began putting in their lunch pails because it did not require refrigeration.

A Ron Hinkle bowl highlights the beautiful West Virginia glassware featured in the new exhibit.

President Abraham Lincoln signed the "statehood proclamation" for West Virginia on April 20, 1863. Two months later, on June 20, West Virginia became the 35th state.

Sen. Robert C. Byrd's "Mountain Fiddle" album is among the recordings and books featured in the new exhibit.

When he was young, Homer Hickam used rockets like this one, which he wrote about in his 1998 book, "Rocket Boys," which was made into the 1999 motion picture, "October Sky."

Betty Gay (left) and Darren Husband enclose a display for the Culture Center's exhibition, which opens Thursday.