hard coded html / php pages on local host directory don’t show up in WP dashboard

That’s not how WordPress works. The WordPress content is pulled dynamically from the database and uses templates to create an outline of what the website should look like.

header.php which would contain the top part of your website.

footer.php which would contain the bottom part of your website.

page.php which would hold the page content of your website. The content of which is held in the database and served using The Loop:

if( have_posts() ) {

    while( have_posts() ) {

        the_post();
        the_title( '<h1>', '</h1>' );
        the_content();

    }

}

You need to create pages in WordPress ( either programatically or manually ) and populate the content. Another method is to create Page Template and assign unique layouts to specific pages.

I would suggest looking at already build themes to get a better understanding of how they layout and pull their content such: Twenty XYZ Themes by WordPress. Additionally there’s the Theme Development guide in The Handbook which is well worth a read.

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