city, seat (1797) of Brooke county, in the northern panhandle of West Virginia, U.S. It lies along the Ohio River, about 15 miles (24 km) north of Wheeling, West Virginia, and opposite Brilliant, Ohio. Settled in 1772, it was chartered as Charlestown in 1791 but was renamed in 1816 to honour Alexander Wells, an early settler. Boatyards and warehouses sprang up around its river landing. The state's first glass plant was built there in 1813, and two floodwalls were erected in 1829 to check inundation and erosion.

For many years Wellsburg was widely known as West Virginia's Gretna Green, where quick marriages were performed, until a law was enacted in 1937 prescribing a three-day waiting period. An industrial economy now prevails, and manufactures include paper, glass products, and plastics. Coal mines are also worked in the vicinity. Inc. city, 1887. Pop. (1990) 3,385; (2000) 2,891.