Preston County, West Virginia

Preston County, West Virginia
Location in the state of West Virginia
West Virginia's location in the U.S.
Founded	1818
Seat	Kingwood
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	651 sq mi (1,686 km²) 648 sq mi (1,678 km²) 3 sq mi (8 km²), 0.47%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	33,520 52/sq mi (20/km²)
Website	www.prestoncountywv.org/

Preston County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is part of the Morgantown, West Virginia, Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Pittsburgh DMA. It was formed from Monongalia County in 1818 and named for Virginia Governor James Patton Preston. As of the 2010 census, the population was 33,520. Its county seat is Kingwood. It is the home of "The Buckwheat Festival." For media market purposes the county is defined entirely as part of the Pittsburgh market.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 651 square miles (1,687 km²), of which 648 square miles (1,679 km²) is land and 3 square miles (8 km²) (0.47%) is water.

Major highways

Interstate 68 U.S. Highway 50 U.S. Highway 219 West Virginia Route 7

West Virginia Route 24 West Virginia Route 26 West Virginia Route 72 West Virginia Route 92

Adjacent counties

• Fayette County, Pennsylvania (north)
• Garrett County, Maryland (east)
• Grant County (southeast)
• Tucker County (south)
• Barbour County (southwest)
• Taylor County (west)
• Monongalia County (Northwest)

National protected area

• Monongahela National Forest (part)

State parks

• Cathedral State Park (also a Registered National Natural Landmark)
• Fairfax Stone State Park

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1820	3,422		—
1830	5,144		50.3%
1840	6,866		33.5%
1850	11,708		70.5%
1860	13,312		13.7%
1870	14,555		9.3%
1880	19,091		31.2%
1890	20,355		6.6%
1900	22,727		11.7%
1910	26,341		15.9%
1920	27,996		6.3%
1930	29,043		3.7%
1940	30,416		4.7%
1950	31,399		3.2%
1960	27,233		−13.3%
1970	25,455		−6.5%
1980	30,460		19.7%
1990	29,037		−4.7%
2000	29,334		1.0%
2010	33,520		14.3%

As of the census of 2010, there were 33,520 people, 12,895 households, and 9,038 families residing in the county. The population density was 52 people per square mile (20/km²). There were 15,097 housing units at an average density of 23 per square mile (9/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.63% White (97.13% non-Hispanic), 1.08% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.16% from other races, and 0.84% from two or more races. 0.68% of the population were Hispanics or Latinos of any race.

There were 12,895 households out of which 29.03% included children under the age of 18, 56.10% were married couples living together, 9.07% had a female householder with no husband present, 4.92% had a male householder with no wife present, and 29.91% were non-families. 24.63% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.70% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.42 and the average family size was 2.84.

The age distribution was 19.55% under the age of 18, 7.36% from 18 to 24, 27.58% from 25 to 44, 29.83% from 45 to 64, and 15.68% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42.0 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.63 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 106.48 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $42,866, and the median income for a family was $48,942. Full-time male workers had a median income of $41,073 versus $25,911 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,796. About 8.3% of families and 11.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.2% of those under age 18 and 8.6% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities and towns

Town of Albright Town of Brandonville Town of Bruceton Mills City of Kingwood Town of Masontown

Town of Newburg Town of Reedsville Town of Rowlesburg Town of Terra Alta Town of Tunnelton

Unincorporated communities

Afton Alpine Lake Amboy Arthurdale Aurora Austen Borgman Bretz Cascade Clifton Mills Colebank Corinth

Cuzzart Denver Eglon Etam Evansville Fellowsville Gladefarms Hazelton Hopemont Hopewell Horse Shoe Run Howesville

Independence Israel Little Sandy Manheim Macomber Manown Marquess Mount Olivet Mount Vernon Orr Pisgah Pleasantdale

Preston Rockville Rodemer Rohr Ruthbelle Saint Joe Scotch Hill Sell Silver Lake Sinclair Snider

Stevensburg Sugar Valley Threefork Bridge Turner Douglass Valley Point Victoria West End White Oak Springs Zevely

See also

• Briery Mountain Wildlife Management Area
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Preston County, West Virginia
• Maryland v. West Virginia
• Snake Hill Wildlife Management Area
• Upper Deckers Creek Wildlife Management Area

Further reading

• Cox, Connie Loraine, Our Place In History: Southwestern Preston County, West Virginia, Headline Books, Terra Alta, WV, 2005. (Written and oral histories, photographs)

External links

• Preston County Commission