Pittsylvania County, Virginia

Pittsylvania County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2010 census, the population was 63,506.[2] Chatham is the county seat.

Pittsylvania County
U.S. county
Pittsylvania County Courthouse
Seal
Location within the U.S. state of Virginia
Virginia's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 36°49′N 79°24′W
Country United States
State Virginia
Founded1767
Named forWilliam Pitt
SeatChatham
Largest townChatham
Area
 • Total978 sq mi (2,530 km2)
 • Land969 sq mi (2,510 km2)
 • Water9 sq mi (20 km2)  0.9%
Population
 (2010)
 • Total63,506
 • Estimate 
(2018)[1]
60,949
 • Density65/sq mi (25/km2)
Time zoneUTC−5 (Eastern)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)
Congressional district5th
Websitewww.pittsylvaniacountyva.gov

Pittsylvania County is included in the Danville, VA Micropolitan Statistical Area.[3]

The largest undeveloped uranium deposit in the United States (7th largest in the world) is located in Pittsylvania County[4] (see Uranium mining in Virginia.)

History

Originally "Pittsylvania" was a name suggested for an unrealized British colony to be located primarily in what is now West Virginia. Pittsylvania County would not have been within this proposed colony, subsequently known as Vandalia.

The county was formed in 1767 from Halifax County. It was named for William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, who served as Prime Minister of Great Britain from 1766 to 1768 and opposed harsh colonial policies.

In 1777 the western part of Pittsylvania County became Patrick Henry County.

Maud Clement's History of Pittsylvania County notes the following: "Despite the settlers' intentions, towns failed to develop for two reasons: the generally low level of economic activity in the area and the competition from plantation settlements already providing the kind of marketing and purchasing services typically offered by a town. Plantation settlements along the rivers, particularly at ferrying points, became commercial centers. The most important for early Pittsylvania was that of Sam Pannill, a Scots-Irishman, who at the end of the eighteenth century, while still a young man, set up a plantation town at Green Hill on the north side of the Staunton River in Campbell County. (Clement 15)"

"Its economy was tobacco-dominated and reliant on a growing slave labor force. It was a county without towns or a commercial center. Plantation villages on the major river thoroughfares were the only centers of trade, until the emergence of Danville. (Clement 23)"

The city of Danville's history up through the antebellum period overall is an expression of the relationship between the town and the planters who influenced its development.

Geography
Loading hay, Blairs, Pittsylvania County, 1939. Marion Post Wolcott

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 978 square miles (2,530 km2), of which 969 square miles (2,510 km2) is land and 9 square miles (23 km2) (0.9%) is water.[5] It is the largest county in Virginia by land area and second-largest by total area. The county is bounded on the north by the Roanoke River (Staunton River), intersected by the Banister River through the center, and drained by the Dan River on the south.[6]

Districts

The county is divided into seven districts:

Adjacent counties and cities

Virginia Counties

Main Street, Chatham, Pittsylvania County, circa 1922

Virginia Cities

North Carolina Counties

Major highways

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.%±
179011,579—
180012,6979.7%
181017,17235.2%
182021,32324.2%
183026,03422.1%
184026,3981.4%
185028,7969.1%
186032,10411.5%
187031,343−2.4%
188052,58967.8%
189059,94114.0%
190046,894−21.8%
191050,7098.1%
192056,49311.4%
193061,4248.7%
194061,6970.4%
195066,0967.1%
196058,296−11.8%
197058,7890.8%
198066,14712.5%
199055,655−15.9%
200061,74510.9%
201063,5062.9%
Est. 201860,949[1]−4.0%
U.S. Decennial Census[7]
1790-1960[8] 1900-1990[9]
1990-2000[10] 2010-2013[2]

According to the most recent census[11] records, there are 60,949 people, and 26,687 households residing in the county. The population density was 65.5 people per square mile (25/km²). There were 31,656 housing units at an average density of 32 per square mile (12/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 76.20% White, 21.50% Black or African American, 0.30% Native American, 0.50% Asian, 0.37% from other races, and 1.40% from two or more races. 2.70% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 26,687 households out of which 30.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.93.

The median income for a household in the county was $44,356. The per capita income for the county was $23,597. About 12.60% of the population were below the poverty line.

Government

Pittsylvania County is governed by an elected seven-member Board of Supervisors. Management of the County is vested in a Board-appointed County Administrator.

Pittsylvania County Board of Supervisors[12]
Name Party First Election District
  Robert Warren (Chair) Rep 2015 Chatham-Blairs
  Ronald Scearce (Vice Chair) Rep 2015 Westover
  Joe Davis Rep 2015 Dan River
  Tim Dudley Rep 2019 Staunton River
  Ben Farmer Ind 2017 Callands-Gretna
  Vic Ingram Ind 2019 Tunstall
  Dr. Charles Miller Ind 2017 Banister

There are also five elected Constitutional Officers:

  • Clerk of the Circuit Court: Mark Scarce (I)
  • Commonwealth's Attorney: Robert Bryan Haskins (R)
  • Sheriff: Michael "Mike" Taylor (I)
  • Commissioner of Revenue: Robin Coles-Goard (I)
  • Treasurer: Vincent Shorter (I)
Presidential elections results
Presidential elections results[13]
Year Republican Democratic Third parties
2016 68.2% 21,554 29.1% 9,199 2.7% 845
2012 62.8% 19,263 35.4% 10,858 1.8% 560
2008 61.6% 18,730 37.5% 11,415 1.0% 288
2004 64.5% 17,673 33.8% 9,274 1.7% 470
2000 65.0% 15,760 32.3% 7,834 2.7% 661
1996 55.9% 12,127 35.4% 7,681 8.8% 1,906
1992 52.4% 11,467 35.1% 7,675 12.6% 2,752
1988 63.7% 12,229 34.4% 6,612 1.9% 360
1984 66.1% 15,743 32.7% 7,791 1.2% 290
1980 59.3% 12,022 37.7% 7,653 3.0% 605
1976 51.2% 9,173 44.3% 7,929 4.5% 811
1972 72.3% 12,108 26.5% 4,429 1.2% 200
1968 25.6% 5,096 27.3% 5,427 47.1% 9,367
1964 57.5% 7,120 42.3% 5,228 0.2% 25
1960 47.6% 3,788 51.4% 4,089 1.0% 77
1956 36.8% 2,870 53.1% 4,136 10.1% 788
1952 41.9% 2,893 57.6% 3,976 0.5% 31
1948 20.5% 1,164 55.6% 3,149 23.9% 1,353
1944 25.9% 1,224 73.9% 3,492 0.2% 8
1940 16.3% 728 83.3% 3,710 0.4% 17
1936 13.1% 556 86.8% 3,694 0.1% 5
1932 17.1% 656 81.4% 3,124 1.6% 60
1928 60.6% 2,598 39.4% 1,688
1924 24.8% 880 72.1% 2,563 3.2% 113
1920 29.8% 1,162 69.7% 2,715 0.5% 19
1916 28.1% 801 70.5% 2,012 1.4% 40
1912 21.7% 527 64.2% 1,558 14.1% 341

Communities

Incorporated Towns

Census-designated places

Other unincorporated communities

Unincorporated neighborhoods within incorporated towns
  • Chatham
    • Whittletown
    • Woodlawn
    • Woodlawn Heights
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See also

References
  1. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved July 14, 2019.
  2. "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  3. "Revised Delineations of Metropolitan Statistical Areas, Micropolitan Statistical Areas, and Combined Statistical Areas, and Guidance on Uses of the Delineations of These Areas" (PDF). Office Of Management and Budget. February 28, 2013. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  4. Shulz, Max (2008, July 26). Virginia Is Sitting on the Energy Mother Lode. The Wall Street Journal. Accessed 27 July 2008.
  5. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  6.  Ripley, George; Dana, Charles A., eds. (1879). "Pittsylvania" . The American Cyclopædia.
  7. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  8. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  9. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  10. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  11. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2011-05-14.
  12. "Elected Officials - Pittsylvania County, VA - Official Website". www.pittsylvaniacountyva.gov. Retrieved 20 August 2019.
  13. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved 2 April 2018.

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