Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Clem, West Virginia


 * The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review).  No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was keep. Ritchie333 (talk) (cont)  22:14, 1 November 2020 (UTC)

Clem, West Virginia

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Looks non-notable. A 1945 history of West Virginia calls it a post office, and as that source makes a distinction with calling many other entries villages (the v. designation), it looks to only be a post office. 1981 USGS publication calls it a locale (geography), which falls below the WP:GEOLAND standard. Topographic maps show a max of two buildings here. Newspapers.com brings up nothing useful searching either with or without the county name; the guy it's apparently named after's name brings up no hits within the state of West Virginia. County history published six years after the "founding" of Clem does not mention it. old government report lists Clem among pre-RFD route post offices, but doesn't mention it among the city or unincorporated villages of the county. As a locale, it fails GEOLAND, and the significant, in-depth coverage in reliable sources needed to pass WP:GNG is not present. Hog Farm Bacon 05:07, 10 October 2020 (UTC)
 * Note: This discussion has been included in the list of Geography-related deletion discussions. Hog Farm Bacon 05:07, 10 October 2020 (UTC)
 * Note: This discussion has been included in the list of West Virginia-related deletion discussions. Hog Farm Bacon 05:07, 10 October 2020 (UTC)

 Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion and clearer consensus.
 * Keep Since the community shares its name with a somewhat common name, it's a little hard to research, but Clem certainly appears to be more than a locale. Its post office survived into the ZIP Code era and was given a ZIP Code of 26614 before it closed (go here and search the 266 range for proof). It had two schools as of 1927, according to state reports. An obituary from 1969 documents multiple residents, including the deceased. I found another record of a soldier from Clem, and this source seemed to have information from snippets, though it isn't available online. And that's in addition to the source in the article about the name origin and the community's continued inclusion in modern highway maps, including the one cited in the article. I'd argue that having a designated ZIP Code counts as government recognition - by the 1960s, you didn't have the problem of rural post offices with no associated community anymore - but in any case, there's an abundance of evidence that this is a real and substantial community. TheCatalyst31 Reaction•Creation 21:39, 10 October 2020 (UTC)
 * Delete The above arguments for a recognizable populated place that is known as "Clem" is overstated and likely misinterpreted. For example, the reference to zip code, schools, and even the County Road map cited in the Wikipedia article all reference a post office and lack any definitive mention of a populated place. I disagree with the argument that the mere presence of a post office proves the presence of an associated community of some notability. The other references to "Clem" also likely refer just to an informal, local name for part of Braxton County and do not provide sufficient evidence of a populated place / community of any significance. Furthermore, historic USGS topographic maps and Goggle Earth imagery all lack any indication of any past or present clustering of structures and roads that is indicative of a recognizable populated place / real and substantial community of any significance or notability. There simply is a lack of any credible evidence of notabillity for this entity. Clem, West Virginia fails WP:GEOLAND and WP:GNG Paul H. (talk) 02:19, 13 October 2020 (UTC)
 * Keep as the post office confers legal recognition and the obituaries confirm residents, thus it is a community. ~ EDDY  ( talk / contribs )~ 18:40, 16 October 2020 (UTC)

Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks, North America1000 08:34, 17 October 2020 (UTC)  Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion and clearer consensus.

Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks,  Sandstein   13:29, 24 October 2020 (UTC)
 * Keep Clem, West Virginia has people living there. Thank You-RFD (talk) 18:22, 29 October 2020 (UTC)


 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.