Mingo County, West Virginia
| Mingo County, West Virginia | |
|---|---|
 Location in the U.S. state of West Virginia |
|
 West Virginia's location in the U.S. |
|
| Founded | January 30, 1895 |
| Named for | Mingo people |
| Seat | Williamson |
| Largest city | Williamson |
| Area | |
| • Total | 424 sq mi (1,098 km2) |
| • Land | 423 sq mi (1,096 km2) |
| • Water | 0.9 sq mi (2 km2), 0.2% |
| Population (est.) | |
| • (2015) | 25,292 |
| • Density | 61/sq mi (24/km²) |
| Congressional district | 3rd |
| Time zone | Eastern: UTC-5/-4 |
| Website | www |
Mingo County is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 26,839. Its county seat is Williamson. Created in 1895, Mingo is West Virginia's newest county, named for the historic Iroquoian Mingo people.
Mingo County is the newest county in the state, formed by an act of the state legislature in 1895 from parts of Logan County. Its founding was related to a legal protest by a moonshiner, who claimed that the Logan County Court that had found him guilty did not have jurisdiction over his case, because his still was actually located in Lincoln County. A land survey was taken and discovered that the defendant was correct. The charges were then refiled in Lincoln County court. Although the moonshiner was ultimately found guilty of his crime, the state legislature was made aware of the situation and determined that Logan County was too large for the expeditious administration of justice and decided to create a new county, called Mingo. The county was named in honor of the Mingo Indians.
The attempt to unionize coal miners in the county in the 1920s led to the Battle of Blair Mountain in neighboring Logan County.
Politically, Mingo County is well known for its opposition to former President Barack Obama. In 2008, Obama netted only 8 percent of the vote in the Democratic primary, one of his worst performances. In 2012, despite Obama being the presumptive nominee, Democrats in Mingo County voted for Keith Russell Judd, a convicted felon who was the only other candidate on the ballot, over Obama.
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