I don’t think it’s a recycling mark. I remember noticing the West Virginia silhouette since I was a kid, with a number inside, and sometimes it wasn’t the number one. I grew up in western Pennsylvania, with West Virginia about an hour and a half away by car, so I figured that must have something to do with it.
I don’t drink much pop these days, and I live in New Jersey now. I should go to the supermarket and investigate, though, just to see if West Virginia is there or if they use Delaware or Vermont or some other state in these parts.
By the way, I was a kid in the 1970s, so West Viriginia has been appearing on the cans since at least then. But this is something I’ve always wanted to know, myself.