Wayland is a southern Floyd county town along the Right Fork of Beaver Creek. It was established in 1913 by the Elk Horn Coal Company and named for Clarence Wayland, U.S. Senator and coal company executive. The Wayland post office opened in 1914. The population in 1990 was 359.

Along the western edge of Wayland, and mostly within its boundaries, is the community of Glo, named for the Glogora Coal Company. The Glo post office operated from 1921 until 1955.