Clay County, West Virginia

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Clay County, West Virginia
Clay County Courthouse West Virginia.jpg
The Old Clay County Courthouse in Clay in 2007
Map of West Virginia highlighting Clay County
Location in the U.S. state of West Virginia
Map of the United States highlighting West Virginia
West Virginia's location in the U.S.
Founded March 29, 1858
Named for Henry Clay
Seat Clay
Largest town Clay
Area
 • Total 344 sq mi (891 km2)
 • Land 342 sq mi (886 km2)
 • Water 1.9 sq mi (5 km2), 0.5%
Population (est.)
 • (2014) 8,941
 • Density 26/sq mi (10/km²)
Congressional district 2nd
Time zone Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Website www.claycounty.wv.gov

Clay County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 9,386.[1] Its county seat is Clay.[2] The county was founded in 1858 and is named in honor of Henry Clay, famous American statesman, member of the United States Senate from Kentucky and United States Secretary of State in the 19th century.[3]

Clay County is part of the Charleston, WV Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 344 square miles (890 km2), of which 342 square miles (890 km2) is land and 1.9 square miles (4.9 km2) (0.6%) is water.[4] Major routes include the major roads of Route 04, Route 16, Route 26, Route 36, and Interstate 79. Other major routes include the country routes of route 5 near in Elkhurst, Triplett Ridge, from Clay to Widen, Summer Fork Roane Road, which takes you to Wallback and Grannies Creek in Roane County, and Queen Shoals Road (Queen Road) which starts in the small town of Queen Shoals which is in both Kanawha and Clay County, and ends in Indore, Clay County.

Major highways

Adjacent counties

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1860 1,787
1870 2,196 22.9%
1880 3,460 57.6%
1890 4,659 34.7%
1900 8,248 77.0%
1910 10,233 24.1%
1920 11,486 12.2%
1930 13,125 14.3%
1940 15,206 15.9%
1950 14,961 −1.6%
1960 11,942 −20.2%
1970 9,330 −21.9%
1980 11,265 20.7%
1990 9,983 −11.4%
2000 10,330 3.5%
2010 9,386 −9.1%
Est. 2014 8,941 [5] −4.7%
U.S. Decennial Census[6]
1790–1960[7] 1900–1990[8]
1990–2000[9] 2010–2014[1]

As of the census[10] of 2000, there were 10,330 people, 4,020 households, and 2,942 families residing in the county. The population density was 30 people per square mile (12/km²). There were 4,836 housing units at an average density of 14 per square mile (5/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.22% White, 0.08% Black or African American, 0.71% Native American, 0.02% Asian, 0.09% from other races, and 0.89% from two or more races. 0.41% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 4,020 households out of which 33.50% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.20% were married couples living together, 10.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.80% were non-families. 24.30% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.01.

In the county, the population was spread out with 25.60% under the age of 18, 9.00% from 18 to 24, 27.50% from 25 to 44, 24.20% from 45 to 64, and 13.70% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 97.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.30 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $22,120, and the median income for a family was $27,137. Males had a median income of $30,161 versus $16,642 for females. The per capita income for the county was $12,021. About 24.40% of families and 27.50% of the population were below the poverty line, including 37.00% of those under age 18 and 15.00% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Town

  • Clay (county seat)

Unincorporated Towns and Communities

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In popular culture

In the motion picture The Silence of the Lambs, the victim was found in the Elk River in Clay County.

See also

References

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  3. http://www.wvculture.org/history/counties/clay.html
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External links

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