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Piedmont, West Virginia facts for kids

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Town of Piedmont, West Virginia
Downtown Piedmont in January 2014
Downtown Piedmont in January 2014
Location of Piedmont in Mineral County, West Virginia.
Location of Piedmont in Mineral County, West Virginia.
Country United States
State West Virginia
County Mineral
Area
 • Total 0.38 sq mi (0.99 km2)
 • Land 0.38 sq mi (0.99 km2)
 • Water 0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2)
Elevation
928 ft (283 m)
Population
 (2010)
 • Total 876
 • Estimate 
(2019)
802
 • Density 2,104.99/sq mi (812.16/km2)
Time zone UTC-5 (EST)
 • Summer (DST) UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP code
26750
Area code(s) 304
FIPS code 54-63604
GNIS feature ID 1555341

Piedmont is a town in Mineral County, West Virginia, United States. It is part of the Cumberland, MD-WV metropolitan statistical area. The population was 876 at the 2010 census. Piedmont was chartered in 1856 and the town is the subject of Colored People: A Memoir by Piedmont native Henry Louis Gates Jr.

Geography

As its name suggests, Piedmont is located at the base of a mountain, in this instance the foot of the Allegheny Front, the eastern edge of the Allegheny Mountains or Appalachian Plateau, on the south (West Virginia) side of the North Branch of the Potomac River.

Piedmont is located at 39°28′49″N 79°2′53″W / 39.48028°N 79.04806°W / 39.48028; -79.04806 (39.480232, -79.048086). According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.38 square miles (0.98 km2), all of it land.

History

The original main line of the Baltimore and Ohio (B&O) Railroad reached the site of Piedmont on July 21, 1851, and in 1853 connected Baltimore, Maryland, and the Ohio River at Wheeling, then (like Piedmont) in Virginia, and now in West Virginia. The line through Piedmont is still a major segment of the B&O system, now part of CSX Transportation.

The Town of Piedmont was chartered in 1856. During the American Civil War (1861-1865), the town of Piedmont was frequently raided by the McNeill's Rangers in an effort by the Confederates to disrupt B&O train service. In 1888, William Luke established the West Virginia Paper Company (now NewPage Corporation) on 50 acres (20 ha) of Maryland land known as West Piedmont (now Luke, Maryland, adjacent to the larger town of Westernport, Maryland).

Jazz great Don Redman was born in Piedmont on July 29, 1900. Henry Louis Gates, a professor of African-American history at Harvard University, was raised in Piedmont, an experience he described in his 1994 book Colored People.

Demographics

Historical population
Census Pop.
1870 1,366
1900 2,115
1910 2,054 −2.9%
1920 2,835 38.0%
1930 2,241 −21.0%
1940 2,677 19.5%
1950 2,565 −4.2%
1960 2,307 −10.1%
1970 1,763 −23.6%
1980 1,491 −15.4%
1990 1,094 −26.6%
2000 1,014 −7.3%
2010 876 −13.6%
2019 (est.) 802 −8.4%
U.S. Decennial Census

2010 census

As of the census of 2010, there were 876 people, 385 households, and 225 families living in the town. The population density was 2,305.3 inhabitants per square mile (890.1/km2). There were 480 housing units at an average density of 1,263.2 per square mile (487.7/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 77.3% White, 17.9% African American, 0.1% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.6% from other races, and 4.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.1% of the population.

There were 385 households, of which 33.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 29.9% were married couples living together, 21.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.8% had a male householder with no wife present, and 41.6% were non-families. 36.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.91.

The median age in the town was 37.1 years. 25.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 10.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.3% were from 25 to 44; 26.8% were from 45 to 64; and 14.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 47.3% male and 52.7% female.

Climate

The climate in this area has mild differences between highs and lows, and there is adequate rainfall year-round. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Piedmont has a marine west coast climate, abbreviated "Cfb" on climate maps.



Transportation

2016-06-18 07 24 07 View east along West Virginia State Route 46 (Ashfield Street) just south of the North Branch Potomac River in Piedmont, Mineral County, West Virginia
Route 46 eastbound in Piedmont

The only significant highway directly serving Piedmont is West Virginia Route 46. Route 46 continues west across the North Branch Potomac River into Westernport, Maryland. To the east, Route 46 heads to Keyser, where it has a junction with U.S. Route 220.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Piedmont (Virginia Occidental) para niños

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