Clarke County, Virginia | |
|---|---|
County | |
 Old Clarke County Courthouse and Confederate monument | |
 Flag  Seal | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofVirginia | |
| Coordinates:39°07′N78°00′W / 39.12°N 78°W /39.12; -78 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Virginia |
| Founded | 1836 |
| Named after | George Rogers Clark |
| Seat | Berryville |
| Largest town | Berryville |
| Area | |
• Total | 178 sq mi (460 km2) |
| • Land | 176 sq mi (460 km2) |
| • Water | 2.2 sq mi (5.7 km2) 1.2% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 14,783 |
| • Density | 84.0/sq mi (32.4/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 6th |
| Website | clarkecounty |
Clarke County is a United Statescounty located along the northern border of theCommonwealth of Virginia. BorderingWest Virginia, Clarke County forms part of theWashington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 14,783.[1] Itscounty seat is the historic town ofBerryville.[2]
The county was established in 1836 from part ofFrederick County, and was named for VirginiaRevolutionary War heroGeorge Rogers Clark. Historically agrarian, Clarke County is one of the most sparsely populated areas of Northern Virginia.
The first settlement of theVirginia Colony in the future Clarke County was in 1736 byThomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron who built a home, Greenway Court, on part of his 5 million acres (20,000 km2) property, near what is now the village ofWhite Post. White Post was named for the large signpost pointing the way to Lord Fairfax's home.
As it lay just west of the Blue Ridge border demarcated under Governor Spotswood at Albany in 1722, the area was claimed along with the rest of the Shenandoah Valley by the Six Nations Iroquois (who had overrun it during the laterBeaver Wars in around 1672), until theTreaty of Lancaster in 1744, when it was purchased from them by Governor Gooch.
Many of the early settlers of what became Clarke County were children of Tidewater planters, who settled on large land grants from Lord Fairfax. Two thirds of the county was settled by the plantation group, and the plantation lifestyle thrived until the Civil War. The new county was formed from Frederick County in 1836, and was named forGeorge Rogers Clark (despite the difference in spelling).[3] Clarke County was known for its large crops of wheat.
During theAmerican Civil War,John S. Mosby, "the Gray Ghost" of theConfederacy, raidedGeneralPhilip Sheridan's supply train in the summer of 1864, inBerryville. TheBattle of Cool Spring was fought in Clarke County on July 17 and 18, 1864, followed by the Battle of Berryville on September 3, 1864.
In 1881 was founded theBank of Clarke County, a still-functionalregional bank with headquarters inBerryville.[4]
Early in the 20th century, the future Virginia politicianHarry F. Byrd Sr. and his wife established their first home near Berryville, where he undertook extensive agricultural activity growing peaches and apples. Byrd became a state senator in the upper house of theVirginia General Assembly, served a term as aGovernor of Virginia, and was aUnited States senator for over 30 years. He headed the powerfulByrd Organization, which dominated state politics between the mid-1920s and the 1960s.
In 1996,Forrest Pritchard revitalizedSmithfield Farm by starting a grass-fed, sustainable livestock operation. Renamed 'Smith Meadows', it is currently one of the oldest fully grass-finished farms in the United States, and its story was chronicled in the New York Times bestseller Gaining Ground.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 178 square miles (460 km2), of which 176 square miles (460 km2) is land and 2.2 square miles (5.7 km2) (1.2%) is water.[5] It is the third-smallest county in Virginia by total area.
Clarke County is represented by RepublicanTimmy French in the Virginia Senate, RepublicanDelores Riley Oates in the Virginia House of Delegates, and RepublicanBen Cline in the U.S. House of Representatives.
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 39 | 6.19% | 576 | 91.43% | 15 | 2.38% |
| 1916 | 49 | 7.66% | 590 | 92.19% | 1 | 0.16% |
| 1920 | 154 | 15.78% | 774 | 79.30% | 48 | 4.92% |
| 1924 | 76 | 9.76% | 687 | 88.19% | 16 | 2.05% |
| 1928 | 248 | 25.10% | 740 | 74.90% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 124 | 12.74% | 841 | 86.43% | 8 | 0.82% |
| 1936 | 198 | 17.35% | 940 | 82.38% | 3 | 0.26% |
| 1940 | 333 | 24.13% | 1,043 | 75.58% | 4 | 0.29% |
| 1944 | 415 | 33.58% | 816 | 66.02% | 5 | 0.40% |
| 1948 | 384 | 33.16% | 482 | 41.62% | 292 | 25.22% |
| 1952 | 809 | 52.88% | 716 | 46.80% | 5 | 0.33% |
| 1956 | 785 | 48.91% | 725 | 45.17% | 95 | 5.92% |
| 1960 | 804 | 46.31% | 923 | 53.17% | 9 | 0.52% |
| 1964 | 1,068 | 48.41% | 1,136 | 51.50% | 2 | 0.09% |
| 1968 | 1,127 | 42.62% | 768 | 29.05% | 749 | 28.33% |
| 1972 | 1,816 | 69.13% | 715 | 27.22% | 96 | 3.65% |
| 1976 | 1,440 | 51.54% | 1,276 | 45.67% | 78 | 2.79% |
| 1980 | 1,876 | 57.44% | 1,156 | 35.39% | 234 | 7.16% |
| 1984 | 2,529 | 67.21% | 1,215 | 32.29% | 19 | 0.50% |
| 1988 | 2,502 | 62.24% | 1,478 | 36.77% | 40 | 1.00% |
| 1992 | 1,994 | 42.90% | 1,811 | 38.96% | 843 | 18.14% |
| 1996 | 2,201 | 48.17% | 1,906 | 41.72% | 462 | 10.11% |
| 2000 | 2,883 | 54.56% | 2,166 | 40.99% | 235 | 4.45% |
| 2004 | 3,741 | 57.51% | 2,699 | 41.49% | 65 | 1.00% |
| 2008 | 3,840 | 51.68% | 3,457 | 46.52% | 134 | 1.80% |
| 2012 | 4,296 | 55.35% | 3,239 | 41.73% | 227 | 2.92% |
| 2016 | 4,661 | 56.75% | 3,051 | 37.15% | 501 | 6.10% |
| 2020 | 5,192 | 55.61% | 3,920 | 41.98% | 225 | 2.41% |
| 2024 | 5,641 | 57.33% | 3,993 | 40.58% | 205 | 2.08% |
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1840 | 6,353 | — | |
| 1850 | 7,352 | 15.7% | |
| 1860 | 7,146 | −2.8% | |
| 1870 | 6,670 | −6.7% | |
| 1880 | 7,682 | 15.2% | |
| 1890 | 8,071 | 5.1% | |
| 1900 | 7,927 | −1.8% | |
| 1910 | 7,468 | −5.8% | |
| 1920 | 7,165 | −4.1% | |
| 1930 | 7,167 | 0.0% | |
| 1940 | 7,159 | −0.1% | |
| 1950 | 7,074 | −1.2% | |
| 1960 | 7,942 | 12.3% | |
| 1970 | 8,102 | 2.0% | |
| 1980 | 9,965 | 23.0% | |
| 1990 | 12,101 | 21.4% | |
| 2000 | 12,652 | 4.6% | |
| 2010 | 14,034 | 10.9% | |
| 2020 | 14,783 | 5.3% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[7] 1790–1960[8] 1900–1990[9] 1990–2000[10] 2010[11] 2020[12] | |||
| Race / Ethnicity(NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 2010[11] | Pop 2020[12] | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 12,387 | 12,309 | 88.26% | 83.26% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 742 | 564 | 5.29% | 3.82% |
| Native American orAlaska Native alone (NH) | 35 | 33 | 0.25% | 0.22% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 121 | 210 | 0.86% | 1.42% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 5 | 15 | 0.04% | 0.10% |
| Some Other Race alone (NH) | 15 | 89 | 0.11% | 0.60% |
| Mixed Race or Multi-Racial (NH) | 239 | 676 | 1.70% | 4.57% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 490 | 887 | 3.49% | 6.00% |
| Total | 14,034 | 14,783 | 100.00% | 100.00% |
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 14,783. The median age was 48.3 years. 19.5% of residents were under the age of 18 and 22.0% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 96.2 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 95.0 males age 18 and over.[13][14]
The racial makeup of the county was 84.4% White, 3.9%Black or African American, 0.3%American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%Asian, 0.1%Native Hawaiian andPacific Islander, 3.0% from some other race, and 6.8% fromtwo or more races.Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 6.0% of the population.[14]
0.0% of residents lived in urban areas, while 100.0% lived in rural areas.[15]
There were 5,847 households in the county, of which 27.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 23.2% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 25.1% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[13]
There were 6,371 housing units, of which 8.2% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 77.3% were owner-occupied and 22.7% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 4.8%.[13]
As of thecensus[16] of 2000, there were 12,652 people, 4,942 households, and 3,513 families residing in the county. The population density was 72 inhabitants per square mile (28/km2). There were 5,388 housing units at an average density of 30 units per square mile (12 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 91.15%White, 6.73%Black orAfrican American, 0.19%Native American, 0.49%Asian, 0.03%Pacific Islander, 0.55% fromother races, and 0.85% from two or more races. 1.46% of the population wasHispanic orLatino of any race.
By 2005 90.1% of Clarke County's population was non-Hispanic whites. 6.3% were African-American. 0.2% Native American. 0.6% Asian. 2.6% were Latino.
There were 4,942 households, out of which 29.40% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.20% weremarried couples living together, 8.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.90% were non-families. 24.10% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.40% under the age of 18, 5.80% from 18 to 24, 29.10% from 25 to 44, 27.10% from 45 to 64, and 14.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.60 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $51,601, and the median income for a family was $59,750. Males had a median income of $40,254 versus $30,165 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $24,844. About 4.20% of families and 6.60% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 7.10% of those under age 18 and 11.10% of those age 65 or over.
_from_the_overpass_for_Virginia_State_Route_7_(Harry_Byrd_Highway-Berryville_Bypass)_in_Stringtown%2c_Clarke_County%2c_Virginia.jpg)
TheNorfolk Southern Railway's H-Line runs the perimeter of Clarke County.
Places adjacent to Clarke County, Virginia | ||||||||||||||||
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Municipalities and communities ofClarke County, Virginia,United States | ||
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| Towns |  | |
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| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
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