Buchanan County, Virginia
| Buchanan County, Virginia | ||
|---|---|---|
Buchanan County Courthouse in Grundy
|
||
|
||
 Location in the U.S. state of Virginia |
||
 Virginia's location in the U.S. |
||
| Founded | 1858 | |
| Named for | James Buchanan | |
| Seat | Grundy | |
| Largest town | Grundy | |
| Area | ||
| • Total | 504 sq mi (1,305 km2) | |
| • Land | 503 sq mi (1,303 km2) | |
| • Water | 1.1 sq mi (3 km2), 0.2% | |
| Population (est.) | ||
| • (2015) | 22,776 | |
| • Density | 45/sq mi (17/km²) | |
| Congressional district | 9th | |
| Time zone | Eastern: UTC-5/-4 | |
| Website | www |
|
Buchanan County is a United States county located on the western border near the far western end of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is part of the Southwest Virginia region and lies in the Ridge-and-Valley portion of the Appalachian Mountains. Its county seat is Grundy.
Buchanan County was established in 1858 from parts of Russell and Tazewell counties, and it was named in honor of former President James Buchanan. In 1880, part of Buchanan County was taken to form Dickenson County.
As of the 2010 census, the county population was 24,098, and had a double-digit percentage population decrease over the last three censuses. In addition, as of 2012, Buchanan was the fifth-poorest county in Virginia, when ranked by median household income and has been consistently in bottom 5 % percent over the past decade.
The county was formed in 1858 from parts of Russell County and Tazewell County. It was named for James Buchanan, the 15th President of the United States. In 1880 the southwestern part of Buchanan County was combined with parts of Russell County and Wise County to become Dickenson County.
Helen Timmons Henderson (1877–1925) helped participate in the work of the Buchanan Mission School at Council, Va. She and Sarah Lee Fain (1888–1962) of Norfolk became the first two women to be elected into the Virginia General Assembly. They were both Democrats in the House of Delegates. When Helen was in office, the delegates agreed to let 6.2 miles (10.0 km) of improved road to be placed from Russell County, across Big "A" Mountain, to Council. Route 80 is also known as "Helen Henderson Highway, In 1876, Grundy was chosen and became the county seat of Buchanan County, it was named in honor of Felix Grundy, a Senator from Tennessee.
...
Wikipedia