Parkersburg, WV--United Bankshares, Inc. (NASDAQ: UBSI), a $6.4 billion regional banking company based in Parkersburg, held its Annual Meeting of Shareholders today at The Blennerhassett Hotel in Parkersburg. United started in Parkersburg 165 years ago as a branch of the Northwestern Bank of Virginia.

The following directors were elected by the Shareholders to serve on the Board of Directors until the 2005 Annual Meeting: Richard M. Adams, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer; Robert G. Astorg, Managing Director, American Express Tax and Business Services and Member, Astorg, Weyer & Daugherty; Thomas J. Blair, III, Consulting Engineer; Harry L. Buch, Attorney-at-Law, Partner, Bailey, Riley, Buch & Harman; W. Gaston Caperton, III, President, The College Board, New York, NY, President, Caperton Group, and Former Governor, State of West Virginia; Lawrence K. Doll, President of The Lawrence Doll Company and Lawrence Doll Homes LLC; H. Smoot Fahlgren, Chairman of the Board, Fahlgren, Inc.; Theodore J. Georgelas, Commercial Real Estate Developer and Chairman, Sector Communications; F. T. Graff, Jr., Attorney-at-Law, Partner, Bowles, Rice, McDavid, Graff & Love; Russell L. Isaacs, Owner, Russell L. Isaacs and Company; John M. McMahon, Chairman, Miller & Long Co., Inc.; J. Paul McNamara, Vice Chairman, United Bank; G. Ogden Nutting, President, The Ogden Newspapers, Inc., William C. Pitt, III, Hotel and Resort Developer; I. N. Smith, Jr., former President, UBSI; James G. Tardiff, Former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Sequoia Bancshares, Inc.; Mary K. Weddle, CPA and Sr. Vice President of Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc.; and P. Clinton Winter, Jr., President, Bray and Oakley Insurance Agency.

Richard M. Adams, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, announced that in 2003 United achieved what few companies have been able to achieve, as the dividend to shareholders increased for the 30th consecutive year.

Adams reported that for the past two years, United had been recognized in national publications. He stated that in 2003, NASDAQ Magazine featured United as a high performance regional banking company in an article "Detail Pays Dividends at United Bankshares". US Banker recognized United as the 12th best performing banking company among the 100 largest in the country and United had also been recognized in Forbes as the only Forbes 500 company headquartered in West Virginia. If you had invested $100,000 in UBSI in 1990, it would be worth over $800,000 today. In 2003, United contributed nearly one million dollars to organizations needing its help, and paid nearly $44 million in federal, state and local taxes.

Adams advised that 2004 was off to a great start reporting record earnings for the first quarter, with the dividend to shareholders expected to increase for the 31st consecutive year. Adams then introduced a video presentation outlining the Company's performance highlights for 2003.

United Bankshares, with $6.4 billion in assets, has 91 full-service offices in West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland, Ohio, and Washington, D.C. United Bankshares' stock is traded on the NASDAQ Stock Market System under the quotation symbol "UBSI".