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Bedford, VA

Bedford, Virginia
incorporated town
The town of Bedford on a typical fall evening.
The town of Bedford on a typical fall evening.
Official seal of Bedford, Virginia
Seal
Nickname(s): The World's Best Little Town
Motto: The Perfect Town to Live + Work + Play
Location in Virginia
Location in Virginia
Coordinates: 37°20′04″N 79°31′23″W / 37.33444°N 79.52306°W / 37.33444; -79.52306
Country United States
State Virginia
County Bedford County
Government
 • Mayor Robert Wandrei
Area
 • Total 9.0 sq mi (17.9 km2)
 • Land 9.0 sq mi (17.8 km2)
 • Water 0.0 sq mi (0.0 km2)
Elevation 1,004 ft (306 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 6,222
 • Density 914.5/sq mi (353.0/km2)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 • Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 24523
Area code(s) 540
FIPS code 51-05544
GNIS feature ID 1498450
Website http://www.bedfordva.gov

Bedford is an incorporated town and former independent city located within Bedford County in the U.S. state of Virginia. It serves as the county seat of Bedford County. As of the 2010 census, the population was 6,222. It is part of the Lynchburg Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Known as the "place that sells itself," Bedford boasts the Blue Ridge Mountains to the North, Smith Mountain Lake to the South, Lynchburg to the East, and I-81/Roanoke to the West.

Bedford is home to the National D-Day Memorial (despite the "National" in its name, the memorial is owned and operated by a non-governmental, non-profit, education foundation). The United States Congress warranted that this memorial would be the nation's D-Day Memorial and President Bill Clinton authorized this effort in September 1996. President George W. Bush dedicated this memorial as the nation's D-Day memorial on June 6, 2001. Bedford lost more residents per capita in the Normandy landings than any other American community. Nineteen soldiers from Bedford, whose 1944 population was about 3,200, were killed on D-Day. Three other Bedford soldiers died later in the Normandy campaign. Proportionally this community suffered the nation's severest D-Day losses.

Bedford maintains relationships with 11 communities on the Normandy Coast of France. One sister city, Trévières, France, sent Bedford an exact replica of its own World War I memorial statue. The face of the statue was damaged in World War II by artillery fire from US forces retaking the town. The Bedford statue also bears these wounds and is erected on the grounds of the National D-Day Memorial.


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