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Jefferson County, West Virginia, was officially established on October 26, 1801, from a portion of Berkeley County by an act of the Virginia General Assembly. It was named after Thomas Jefferson, vice-president of the United States and president elect. Years earlier, Jefferson had stood on a rock high above the confluence of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers at Harpers Ferry. In his Notes on the State of Virginia, he remarked that this view was "worth a trip across the Atlantic." The view is still breathtaking, and Jefferson County is still worth the trip.
Located in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia, Jefferson is the easternmost county in the state, bounded by the Potomac River and Maryland on the north, the Blue Ridge Mountains and Loudoun County, Virginia, on the east, Clarke County, Virginia, on the south, and Opecquon Creek and Berkeley County, West Virginia, on the West. The county occupies 212.41 square miles. It is 24 miles from north to south, and 12 miles from east to west.
Charles Town, the Jefferson county seat, was chartered by the Virginia General Assembly in October 1786. It was named in honor of Charles Washington, George Washington's youngest brother. Other major municipalities within the county include Shepherdstown (1762), Bolivar (1825), Harpers Ferry (1851), and Ranson (1910). Other towns in the county include Middleway, Kearneysville, Leetown, Summit Point, and Shenandoah Junction.
Jefferson County Courthouse
For most of its history, Jefferson County’s economy has been primarily agricultural, producing grain and other crops in the 18th and 19th centuries. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, orchard fruit became a major part of the agricultural economy. Limestone quarrying was also an important part of the economy, along with the development of an iron industry after iron ore deposits were discovered in the county back in the 1700's. With manufacturing, tourism, recreation, higher education, federal government facilities, housing, and agriculture, Jefferson County's thriving economy is much more vibrant and diverse than it has ever been.
Between 1970 and 2000, the number of residents doubled from 21,280 to 42,190. The rapid rate of growth is continuing, with the 2010 census figures showing the county now has 53,498 residents.Today, the county is considered part of the metropolitan Washington area. As it enters the 21st century, Jefferson County faces the challenge of balancing population growth with the need to preserve the environmental and historic resources that make it so attractive.
The Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah River that John Denver sang about in the song entitled "Take Me Home, Country Roads" only come together in Jefferson County, West Virginia.
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* Check on the population, demographics, statistics and more about Jefferson County, West Virginia, using CensusViewer.
** Also, visit Envision Jefferson 2035, a web site & comprehensive planning process designed to guide future development of the county.
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