Tucker County, West Virginia

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Tucker County, West Virginia
Tucker County Courthouse.JPG
Map of West Virginia highlighting Tucker 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 7, 1856
Named for Henry St. George Tucker, Sr.
Seat Parsons
Largest city Parsons
Area
 • Total 421 sq mi (1,090 km2)
 • Land 419 sq mi (1,085 km2)
 • Water 2.1 sq mi (5 km2), 0.5%
Population (est.)
 • (2014) 6,927
 • Density 17/sq mi (7/km²)
Congressional district 1st
Time zone Eastern: UTC-5/-4
Website www.tuckerwv.com

Tucker County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 7,141,[1] making it the second-least populous county in West Virginia. Its county seat is Parsons.[2] The county was created in 1856 from a part of Randolph County, then part of Virginia. In 1871, a small part of Barbour County, was transferred to Tucker County.[3] The county was named after Henry St. George Tucker, Sr., a judge and Congressman from Williamsburg, Virginia.[4][5]

History

Between 1889 and 1893 a dispute known as the Tucker County Seat War took place between the people in the town of Parsons and that of St. George over the location of the county seat. Although nobody was killed in the "war," the situation came to a climax when a mob of armed men from Parsons marched on St. George and took the county records by force.[6][7]

The highly profitable Babcock Lumber Company, operating out of Davis, West Virginia from 1907, was responsible for devastating environmental damage to much of surrounding Tucker County, including Canaan Valley, Dolly Sods and the Blackwater Canyon. These areas were clear-cut and the landscape converted into a tinderbox by the residual slashings. By 1910, fires swept over the wasteland, often burning continuously from spring until the first snows. In 1914, with the county virtually denuded of standing trees, the ground burned continually for 6 months. When the fires subsided, thin mineral soil and bare rock were all that remained. Uncontrollable soil erosion and flooding further degraded and depopulated the region, which bears the scars of the conflagration to the present day.[8]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 421 square miles (1,090 km2), of which 419 square miles (1,090 km2) is land and 2.1 square miles (5.4 km2) (0.5%) is water.[9]

Major highways

Adjacent counties

State protected areas

National protected areas

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1860 1,428
1870 1,907 33.5%
1880 3,151 65.2%
1890 6,459 105.0%
1900 13,433 108.0%
1910 18,675 39.0%
1920 16,791 −10.1%
1930 13,374 −20.4%
1940 13,173 −1.5%
1950 10,600 −19.5%
1960 7,750 −26.9%
1970 7,447 −3.9%
1980 8,675 16.5%
1990 7,728 −10.9%
2000 7,231 −6.4%
2010 7,141 −1.2%
Est. 2014 6,927 [10] −3.0%
U.S. Decennial Census[11]
1790–1960[12] 1900–1990[13]
1990–2000[14] 2010–2014[1]

As of the census[15] of 2000, there were 7,321 people, 3,052 households, and 2,121 families residing in the county. The population density was 18 people per square mile (7/km²). There were 4,634 housing units at an average density of 11 per square mile (4/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 98.85% White, 0.07% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.01% Asian, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 0.10% from other races, and 0.66% from two or more races. 0.25% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 3,052 households out of which 27.00% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.00% were married couples living together, 7.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.50% were non-families. 27.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.35 and the average family size was 2.84.

In the county, the population was spread out with 21.30% under the age of 18, 6.70% from 18 to 24, 26.40% from 25 to 44, 27.70% from 45 to 64, and 17.90% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 95.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $26,250, and the median income for a family was $32,574. Males had a median income of $24,149 versus $17,642 for females. The per capita income for the county was $16,349. About 14.90% of families and 18.10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 24.30% of those under age 18 and 15.50% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Cities

Towns

Unincorporated communities

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Notable people

  • Amerigio "Tony" Tonelli - Shunned because of his Italian heritage by the WVU football program Tonelli became a three time letterman for the USC Trojans.[16] In his final season Tonelli blocked a punt deep in Duke territory that led to the winning touchdown in the 1939 Rose Bowl.[17] The first player ever drafted out of USC he played an entire season for the Detroit Lions in 1939.[18][19] Picked up nickname, "Two Ton" Tonelli, while growing up in Thomas, WV.

See also

References

Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  3. Tucker County WVGenWeb Page, accessed August 25, 2006.
  4. West Virginia Division of Culture and History - Tucker County History web page, accessed August 25, 2006
  5. Origins of West Virginia Place Names web site, accessed August 25, 2006.
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  8. Brooks, Maurice (1965), The Appalachians (Series: The Naturalist's America), Illustrated by Lois Darling and Lo Brooks, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, pp 127-128.
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  16. USC Football Program http://www.usctrojans.com/sports/m-footbl/archive/usc-m-fb-a-lett-tuv.html
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  18. http://dailytrojan.com/2012/02/22/trojans-annually-dominate-nfl-draft/
  19. http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/T/ToneTo20.htm

Further reading

External links

  • Media related to Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. at Wikimedia Commons