Barbour County is a county in north central West Virginia, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 15,465. The county seat is Philippi, which was chartered in 1844. Both county and city were named for Philip P. Barbour (1783–1841), a U.S. Congressman from Virginia and Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. The county was formed in 1843 when the region was still part of the state of Virginia. In 1871, a small part of Barbour County was transferred to Tucker County, West Virginia.

The Battle of Philippi, also known as the "Philippi Races", was fought in Barbour County on June 3, 1861. Although a minor action, it is generally considered the first land engagement of the American Civil War.

For 114 years (1909-2023), Barbour County was home to Alderson-Broaddus College (later Alderson Broaddus University), an American Baptist institution. Its four-year Physician Assistant (PA) baccalaureate program was the first such anywhere.

History Settlement and formation The first white settlement in present-day Barbour County was established in 1780 by Richard Talbott – along with his brother Cotteral and sister Charity – about downriver from the future site of Philippi.The Talbotts settled at the mouth of Hacker's Creek. Maxwell, Hu (1899), The History of Barbour County, From its Earliest Exploration and Settlement to the Present Time, The Acme Publishing Company, Morgantown, W.Va. (Reprinted, McClain Printing Company, Parsons, W.Va., 1968.), pg 473. At this time the region was still a part of Monongalia County, Virginia. The region had had no permanent Indian settlements and so conflicts with Native Americans were relatively infrequent in the early days. Nevertheless, the Talbotts were obliged to leave their homestead several times for safety and twice found it necessary to retreat back east of the Alleghenies, returning each time. No member of this eventually large family was ever killed by Indian attacks.Maxwell, Op. cit., pg 474.

Over time, parts of the future Barbour County were included in the newly created Harrison (1784), Randolph (1787), and Lewis (1816) Counties. Barbour County itself was created in 1843 and named for the late Virginia politician and jurist Philip P. Barbour (1783–1841). (Barbour had served as a U.S. Congressman from Virginia, Speaker of the House, and Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court.) The settlement of Philippi – formerly "Anglin's Ford" and "Booth's Ferry" – was platted, named, and made the county seat in the same year; it was chartered in 1844. By the 1850s, when a major covered bridge was constructed at Philippi to service travellers on the Beverly-Fairmont Turnpike, the county's population was approaching 10,000 people.

The first newspaper in the county was the Barbour Jeffersonian, published starting in August 1857 and running only to about June 1861. It was put out by Thompson Surghnor (1820-1864).Barbour County Historical Society (1979), Barbour County, West Virginia...Another Look; Taylor Publishing Company, pg 30.

Civil War In April 1861, an Ordinance of Secession from the United States of America was approved throughout the state of Virginia in a referendum. Delegates from 25 western counties, however, assembled at Wheeling on 13 May for the first of a two meetings (see Wheeling Convention) called to repeal the Ordinance. The delegates from Barbour County for the first convention were Spencer Dayton, John H. Shuttleworth, and E.H. Manafee. Barbour County had voted in favor of Virginia's secession, though, and a palmetto secession flag had been flying above the courthouse since January, 1861.

On 3 June 1861, Philippi was the scene of one of the first battles of the American Civil War. The battle was later lampooned as the "Philippi Races" because of the hurried retreat by the Confederate troops encamped in the town. (The skirmish is reenacted every June during the town's "Blue and Gray Reunion".) At daylight on June 3, two columns of Union forces under the command of Col. Benjamin Franklin Kelley and Col. Ebenezer Dumont, with perhaps 3,000 men, arrived from Grafton and attacked about 800 poorly armed Confederate recruits under the command of Col. George A. Porterfield. The Union troops had marched all night through a heavy rain storm to arrive just before daylight. The surprise attack awakened the sleeping Confederates. After firing a few shots at the advancing Union troops, the Southerners broke lines and began running frantically to the south, some still in their bed clothes.

The Union victory in a relatively bloodless battle propelled the young Major General George B. McClellan into the national spotlight, and he would soon be given command of all Union armies. The battle also inspired more vocal protests in the Western part of Virginia against secession. On 11 June, the second Wheeling Convention met in that city and Barbour County was again represented by Dayton and Shuttleworth, who were this time joined by N.H. Taft. The Convention nullified the Virginia Ordinance of Secession and named Francis H. Pierpont governor. These events would eventually result in the separate statehood of West Virginia.

Later history The economy and infrastructure in Barbour grew steadily, but slowly, through the late 19th century. Although the first railroad had reached nearby Grafton in 1852, a narrow-gauge railroad was not laid through the county until the early 1880s; a standard gauge line followed in the 1890s.

In 1990, private developers offered Barbour County citizens $4M to $6M annually in host fees to accept out-of-state garbage into a County landfill over the following three decades. Up to 200,000 tons of garbage per month would be delivered."Landfill Controversy Divides Barbour County" (1990), Charleston Gazette (Oct 28 issue). (At the time, the county's annual budget was only about $1M.) County voters rejected the offer."Barbour Rejecting Landfill" (1990), Charleston Gazette, (Nov 7 issue).

In 2023, Barbour County lost its major employer when Alderson-Broaddus University's board of trustees voted to close the institution some 152 years after its founding.

Registered Historic Places

Belington Bernard E. Wilmoth House Berryburg Adaland, restored home of a 19th-century lawyer Carrollton Carrollton Covered Bridge Clemtown Ida L. Reed Homestead

Elk City J. N. B. Crim House Philippi Barbour County Courthouse Peck-Crim-Chesser House Philippi B & O Railroad Station Philippi Covered Bridge Philippi Historic District Whitescarver Hall

Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.5%) is water.

Barbour County is situated on the Allegheny Plateau at the western edge of the Allegheny Mountains (represented by Laurel Mountain at the county's eastern boundary). Most of the county is drained by the Tygart Valley River which traverses it from south to north and on which its three largest settlements – Philippi, Belington, and Junior – are sited. Tributaries of the Tygart in the County include Teter Creek, Laurel Creek, Hacker's Creek, the Buckhannon River and the West Fork River. A portion of the County in the west drains into the Middle Fork River, principally through Elk Creek. Audra State Park – the county's only state park – is situated on the Middle Fork in the southwest corner. Teter Creek Lake Wildlife Management Area – the county's only WMA – is located on that stream and lake in the eastern portion. All of the mentioned streams are part of the greater Monongahela River watershed.

Major highways U.S. Highway 119 U.S. Highway 250 West Virginia Route 20 West Virginia Route 38 West Virginia Route 57 West Virginia Route 76 West Virginia Route 92

Adjacent counties Taylor County (north) Tucker County (east) Randolph County (southeast) Upshur County (southwest) Harrison County (west) Preston County (northeast)

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 15,465 people residing in the county. There were 6,168 households in the county.

The racial makeup of the county was 93.5% White, 1.8% Black or African American, 0.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% Asian, 0.3% from some other race, and 4.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 1.2% of the population.

Of the 6,168 households, 27.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 24.8% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 27.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 7,114 housing units, of which 13.3% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 77.4% were owner-occupied and 22.6% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.5% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.7%.

As of the 2020 census, 20.3% of residents were under the age of 18 and 21.1% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 44.0 years. For every 100 females there were 99.8 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 99.6 males.

+Barbour County, West Virginia – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 2000Pop 2010% 2000% 2010White alone (NH)15,09516,00514,37997.03%96.47%92.97%Black or African American alone (NH)771202590.49%0.72%1.67%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)11191370.71%0.54%0.23%Asian alone (NH)4034320.25%0.20%0.20%Pacific Islander alone (NH)2300.01%0.01%0.00%Other race alone (NH)26100.01%0.03%0.06%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)1572345561.00%1.41%3.59%Hispanic or Latino (any race)73961920.46%0.57%1.24%Total15,55716,58915,465100.00%100.00%100.00%

2010 census As of the 2010 United States census, there were 16,589 people, 6,548 households, and 4,643 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 7,849 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 96.8% white, 0.7% black or African American, 0.6% American Indian, 0.2% Asian, 0.2% from other races, and 1.5% from two or more races. Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.6% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 23.4% were German, 22.3% were American, 13.6% were Irish, and 11.0% were English.

Of the 6,548 households, 30.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.8% were married couples living together, 10.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 29.1% were non-families, and 24.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 2.46 and the average family size was 2.89. The median age was 41.5 years.

The median income for a household in the county was $31,212 and the median income for a family was $39,434. Males had a median income of $34,573 versus $21,797 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,304. About 14.3% of families and 18.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 27.5% of those under age 18 and 13.6% of those age 65 or over.

2000 census As of the census of 2000, there were 15,557 people, 6,123 households, and 4,365 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 7,348 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 97.36% White, 0.49% Black or African American, 0.71% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.12% from other races, and 1.03% from two or more races. 0.47% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. In addition, the area has a significant population of racially mixed (though often light-skinned and blue-eyed) people, known locally as 'the Chestnut Ridge people', whose specific origins are uncertain. They are categorized by many scholars among the Melungeons found scattered throughout Appalachia.