Braxton County, West Virginia

Braxton County, West Virginia
Location in the state of West Virginia
West Virginia's location in the U.S.
Founded	1836
Seat	Sutton
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	516 sq mi (1,336 km²) 513 sq mi (1,329 km²) 3 sq mi (8 km²), 0.52%
Population  - (2000)  - Density	14,702 28/sq mi (11/km²)
Website	www.braxtonwv.org

The Braxton County Courthouse in Sutton in 2007

Braxton County is a county located in the central part of the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 14,523. [1] Braxton County was formed in 1836 from parts of Lewis, Kanawha, and Nicholas counties and named for Carter Braxton, a Virginia statesman and signer of the Declaration of Independence. The county seat is Sutton. The center of population of West Virginia is located in Braxton County, in the town of Gassaway [2].

Important salt works were formerly located at Bulltown and here, in 1772, Captain Bull and his family and friendly Delaware Indians were massacred by frontiersmen. Jesse Hughes helped Jeremiah Carpenter and track and kill the Indians responsible for the Carpenter massacre. Jeremiah was a notable fiddle player who wrote a song Shelvin’ Rock about the experience of escaping to rock shelter.

Geography

According to the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 516 square miles (1,336.4 km²), of which 513 square miles (1,328.7 km²) is land and 3 square miles (7.8 km²) (0.52%) is water.

Major highways

• Interstate 79
• U.S. Highway 19
• West Virginia Route 4
• West Virginia Route 5
• West Virginia Route 15

Adjacent counties

• Lewis County (northeast)
• Webster County (southeast)
• Nicholas County (south)
• Clay County (southwest)
• Calhoun County (west)
• Gilmer County (northwest)

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1840	2,575		—
1850	4,212		63.6%
1860	4,992		18.5%
1870	6,480		29.8%
1880	9,787		51.0%
1890	13,928		42.3%
1900	18,904		35.7%
1910	23,023		21.8%
1920	23,973		4.1%
1930	22,579		−5.8%
1940	21,658		−4.1%
1950	18,082		−16.5%
1960	15,152		−16.2%
1970	12,666		−16.4%
1980	13,894		9.7%
1990	12,998		−6.4%
2000	14,702		13.1%

In 1950, 18,082 people lived in Braxton County.

As of the census of 2000, there were 14,702 people, 5,771 households, and 4,097 families residing in the county. The population density was 29 people per square mile (11/km²). There were 7,374 housing units at an average density of 14 per square mile (6/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.02% White, 0.69% Black or African American, 0.35% Native American, 0.11% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.08% from other races, and 0.71% from two or more races. 0.44% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 5,771 households out of which 30.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.30% were married couples living together, 9.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.00% were non-families. 25.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.92.

In the county, the population was spread out with 22.80% under the age of 18, 7.50% from 18 to 24, 28.10% from 25 to 44, 25.80% from 45 to 64, and 15.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 102.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.00 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $24,412, and the median income for a family was $29,133. Males had a median income of $27,560 versus $17,778 for females. The per capita income for the county was $13,349. About 17.90% of families and 22.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.90% of those under age 18 and 13.70% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

Incorporated cities and towns

• Town of Burnsville
• Town of Flatwoods
• Town of Gassaway
• Town of Sutton

Unincorporated communities

Braxton Canfield Caress Centralia Clem Copen Corley

Cutlips Dingy Duck Elmira Exchange Falls Mill Frametown

Gip Glendon Heaters Herold Knapp

Little Birch Little Otter Napier Newville Riffle

Rosedale Servia Strange Creek Tague Tesla Wilsie

See also

• Elk River Wildlife Management Area
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Braxton County, West Virginia