Tucker County, West Virginia facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Tucker County
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Tucker County Courthouse in Parsons
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Location within the U.S. state of West Virginia
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 West Virginia's location within the U.S. |
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| Country |  United States |
| State |  West Virginia |
| 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 (1,090 km2) |
| • Water | 2.1 sq mi (5 km2) 0.5%% |
| Population
(2010)
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| • Total | 7,141 |
| • Estimate
(2019)
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6,839 |
| • Density | 16.962/sq mi (6.549/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 1st |
Tucker County is a county in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 7,141, making it West Virginia's second-least populous county. Its county seat is Parsons. 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. The county was named after Henry St. George Tucker, Sr., a judge and Congressman from Williamsburg, Virginia.
Contents
History
Tucker county was created in 1856 from a part of Randolph County, then part of Virginia. In 1861, as a result of the Wheeling Convention, Tucker County joined the rest of West Virginia in breaking away from Virginia to remain a part of the Union.
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.
Beginning in 1907, the Babcock Lumber Company of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, while operating out of Davis, West Virginia, clear cut mountain ranges in Tucker country. The clear cutting caused timberbox fires that burned continuously, sometimes for years on end, leaving thin mineral soil and bare rock. As a result, top soils that once produced huge timbers on the mountainside (including the largest tree ever harvested in West Virginia) washed down to valleys of "bottom land." The valleys the fertile soil washed into was in most cases too narrow for harvesting productive crops or livestock. To this day Tucker County, and surrounding regions, show thinner topsoil in the higher altitudes.
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.
Major highways
U.S. Highway 219
West Virginia Route 32
West Virginia Route 38
West Virginia Route 72
West Virginia Route 90
West Virginia Route 93
Adjacent counties
- Preston County (north)
- Garrett County, Maryland (northeast)
- Grant County (east)
- Randolph County (south)
- Barbour County (west)
State protected areas
National protected areas
- Big Run Bog
- Canaan Valley
- Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service web site
- Dolly Sods Wilderness U.S. Forest Service web site
- Fernow Experimental Forest U.S. Department of Agriculture web site
- Fisher Spring Run Bog
- Monongahela National Forest U.S. Forest Service web site
Demographics
| Historical population | |||
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| 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% | |
| 2019 (est.) | 6,839 | −4.2% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census 1790–1960 1900–1990 1990–2000 2010–2019 |
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2010 census
As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 7,141 people, 3,057 households, and 2,052 families living in the county. The population density was 17.0 inhabitants per square mile (6.6/km2). There were 5,346 housing units at an average density of 12.8 per square mile (4.9/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 98.7% white, 0.2% American Indian, 0.2% black or African American, 0.1% Asian, 0.1% from other races, and 0.6% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.6% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 30.3% were German, 15.7% were Irish, 8.1% were American, 7.9% were English, and 5.8% were Dutch.
Of the 3,057 households, 25.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.1% were married couples living together, 7.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 32.9% were non-families, and 28.3% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.77. The median age was 46.3 years.
The median income for a household in the county was $32,712 and the median income for a family was $43,307. Males had a median income of $34,321 versus $22,938 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,020. About 12.9% of families and 17.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.3% of those under age 18 and 20.7% of those age 65 or over.
Communities
Cities
Towns
Census-designated place
Unincorporated communities
Notable residents
Tony Tonelli - Shunned because of his Italian heritage by the WVU football program Tonelli became a three-time letterman for the USC Trojans. In his final season Tonelli blocked a punt deep in Duke territory that led to the winning touchdown in the 1939 Rose Bowl. The first player ever to be drafted into the NFL from USC Tonelli completed one season as a Detroit Lions in 1939. Picked up nickname, “Two Ton” Tonelli, while growing up in Thomas, West Virginia.
See also
In Spanish: Condado de Tucker para niños
