Pittsylvania County, Virginia | |
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 Seal | |
 Location within the U.S. state ofVirginia | |
 Virginia's location within theU.S. | |
| Coordinates:36°49′N79°24′W / 36.82°N 79.4°W /36.82; -79.4 | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Virginia |
| Founded | 1767 |
| Named after | William Pitt |
| Seat | Chatham |
| Largest town | Chatham |
| Area | |
• Total | 978 sq mi (2,530 km2) |
| • Land | 969 sq mi (2,510 km2) |
| • Water | 9 sq mi (23 km2) 0.9% |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 60,501 |
| • Density | 62/sq mi (24/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| Congressional district | 5th |
| Website | www |
Pittsylvania County is acounty located in theCommonwealth ofVirginia, United States. At the2020 census, the population was 60,501.[1] Thecounty seat isChatham.
Pittsylvania County is included in theDanville, VAMicropolitan Statistical Area.[2]
The largest undevelopeduranium deposit in the United States (seventh largest in the world) is located in Pittsylvania County.[3] (seeUranium mining in Virginia.)
Originally "Pittsylvania" was a name suggested for an unrealized British colony to be located primarily in what is nowWest Virginia. Pittsylvania County would not have been within this proposed colony, which subsequently was namedVandalia.
Pittsylvania County was formed in 1767 with territory annexed fromHalifax County. It was named forWilliam Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, who served asPrime Minister of Great Britain from 1766 to 1768, and who opposed some harsh colonial policies of the period.
In 1777 the western part of Pittsylvania County was partitioned off to becamePatrick Henry County.
Maud Clement'sHistory 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 fromplantation 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 theStaunton River in Campbell County. (Clement 15)
"Its economy was tobacco-dominated and reliant on a growingslave 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 ofDanville. (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.
According to theUnited States 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.[4] It is the largest county in Virginia by land area and second-largest by total area. The county is bounded on the north by theRoanoke River (this stretch of the river is known as theStaunton River), bisected by theBanister River running eastward through the center, and is drained on the south by theDan River, flowing eastward.[5]
The county is divided into seven districts:
In Virginia:
In North Carolina:
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1790 | 11,579 | — | |
| 1800 | 12,697 | 9.7% | |
| 1810 | 17,172 | 35.2% | |
| 1820 | 21,323 | 24.2% | |
| 1830 | 26,034 | 22.1% | |
| 1840 | 26,398 | 1.4% | |
| 1850 | 28,796 | 9.1% | |
| 1860 | 32,104 | 11.5% | |
| 1870 | 31,343 | −2.4% | |
| 1880 | 52,589 | 67.8% | |
| 1890 | 59,941 | 14.0% | |
| 1900 | 46,894 | −21.8% | |
| 1910 | 50,709 | 8.1% | |
| 1920 | 56,493 | 11.4% | |
| 1930 | 61,424 | 8.7% | |
| 1940 | 61,697 | 0.4% | |
| 1950 | 66,096 | 7.1% | |
| 1960 | 58,296 | −11.8% | |
| 1970 | 58,789 | 0.8% | |
| 1980 | 66,147 | 12.5% | |
| 1990 | 55,655 | −15.9% | |
| 2000 | 61,745 | 10.9% | |
| 2010 | 63,506 | 2.9% | |
| 2020 | 60,501 | −4.7% | |
| US Decennial Census[6] 1790-1960[7] 1900-1990[8] 1990-2000[9] 2010[10] 2020[11] | |||
| Race / Ethnicity | Pop 2010[10] | Pop 2020[11] | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 47,250 | 44,277 | 74.40% | 73.18% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 13,963 | 12,354 | 21.99% | 20.42% |
| Native American orAlaska Native alone (NH) | 124 | 93 | 0.20% | 0.15% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 176 | 289 | 0.28% | 0.48% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 17 | 17 | 0.03% | 0.03% |
| Some Other Race alone (NH) | 42 | 128 | 0.07% | 0.21% |
| Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH) | 602 | 1,631 | 0.95% | 2.70% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 1,332 | 1,712 | 2.10% | 2.83% |
| Total | 63,506 | 60,501 | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.
According to the2010 United States census, there are 60,949 people, and 26,687 households in the county. Thepopulation density was 65.5 people per square mile (25.3 people/km2). There were 31,656 housing units at an average density of 32 units per square mile (12 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 76.20%White, 21.50%Black orAfrican American, 0.30%Native American, 0.50%Asian, 0.37% fromother races, and 1.40% from two or more races. 2.70% of the population wereHispanic orLatino 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. Theper capita income for the county was $23,597. About 12.60% of the population were below thepoverty line.
Pittsylvania County is governed by an elected seven-member Board of Supervisors. Management of the county is vested in a Board-appointedCounty Administrator.
| Name | Party | First Election | District | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ken Bowman | Rep | 2023 | Chatham-Blairs | |
| Darrell Dalton (Chair) | Ind | 2021 | Callands-Gretna | |
| Robert M. Tucker Jr. (Vice Chair) | Ind | 2022 | Banister | |
| Eddie Hite | Ind | 2023 | Dan River | |
| Tim Dudley | Rep | 2019 | Staunton River | |
| William 'Vic' Ingram | Ind | 2019 | Tunstall | |
| Murray Whittle | Ind | 2023 | Westover | |
There are also five elected Constitutional Officers:
Pittsylvania County is a Republican stronghold. The last Democrat to carry the county wasJohn F. Kennedy in 1960 (although Independent candidateGeorge Wallace won it in 1968).[13]
| Year | Republican | Democratic | Third party(ies) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | % | No. | % | No. | % | |
| 1912 | 527 | 21.72% | 1,558 | 64.22% | 341 | 14.06% |
| 1916 | 801 | 28.08% | 2,012 | 70.52% | 40 | 1.40% |
| 1920 | 1,162 | 29.83% | 2,715 | 69.69% | 19 | 0.49% |
| 1924 | 880 | 24.75% | 2,563 | 72.08% | 113 | 3.18% |
| 1928 | 2,598 | 60.62% | 1,688 | 39.38% | 0 | 0.00% |
| 1932 | 656 | 17.08% | 3,124 | 81.35% | 60 | 1.56% |
| 1936 | 556 | 13.07% | 3,694 | 86.82% | 5 | 0.12% |
| 1940 | 728 | 16.34% | 3,710 | 83.28% | 17 | 0.38% |
| 1944 | 1,224 | 25.91% | 3,492 | 73.92% | 8 | 0.17% |
| 1948 | 1,164 | 20.54% | 3,149 | 55.58% | 1,353 | 23.88% |
| 1952 | 2,893 | 41.93% | 3,976 | 57.62% | 31 | 0.45% |
| 1956 | 2,870 | 36.82% | 4,136 | 53.07% | 788 | 10.11% |
| 1960 | 3,788 | 47.62% | 4,089 | 51.41% | 77 | 0.97% |
| 1964 | 7,120 | 57.54% | 5,228 | 42.25% | 25 | 0.20% |
| 1968 | 5,096 | 25.62% | 5,427 | 27.29% | 9,367 | 47.09% |
| 1972 | 12,108 | 72.34% | 4,429 | 26.46% | 200 | 1.19% |
| 1976 | 9,173 | 51.21% | 7,929 | 44.26% | 811 | 4.53% |
| 1980 | 12,022 | 59.28% | 7,653 | 37.74% | 605 | 2.98% |
| 1984 | 15,743 | 66.08% | 7,791 | 32.70% | 290 | 1.22% |
| 1988 | 12,229 | 63.69% | 6,612 | 34.44% | 360 | 1.87% |
| 1992 | 11,467 | 52.38% | 7,675 | 35.06% | 2,752 | 12.57% |
| 1996 | 12,127 | 55.85% | 7,681 | 35.37% | 1,906 | 8.78% |
| 2000 | 15,760 | 64.98% | 7,834 | 32.30% | 661 | 2.73% |
| 2004 | 17,673 | 64.46% | 9,274 | 33.83% | 470 | 1.71% |
| 2008 | 18,730 | 61.55% | 11,415 | 37.51% | 288 | 0.95% |
| 2012 | 19,263 | 62.78% | 10,858 | 35.39% | 560 | 1.83% |
| 2016 | 21,554 | 68.21% | 9,199 | 29.11% | 845 | 2.67% |
| 2020 | 23,751 | 69.39% | 10,115 | 29.55% | 361 | 1.05% |
| 2024 | 24,310 | 71.17% | 9,599 | 28.10% | 247 | 0.72% |
Places adjacent to Pittsylvania County, Virginia | |
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| Geographic | |
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