Craig County, Virginia

Craig County is a rural, mountainous county located on the western border of the Commonwealth of Virginia that forms part of the Roanoke metropolitan area. Its county seat is New Castle,<ref name="GR6">Template:Cite web</ref> which is also the only town in the county. As of the 2020 census, the Craig County population was only 4,892,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> making it one of the least populated counties in Virginia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Craig County was formed in 1851 from parts of several adjacent counties, and was named in honor of Robert Craig, a longtime congressman from Southwest Virginia. More than half of the county remains federally protected land, forming a major part of the Jefferson National Forest.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

History

Nestled in the mountains of Southwest Virginia, Craig County was named for Robert Craig, a 19th-century Virginia congressman.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The initial outpost in the area was called "Craig's Camp," and it is claimed that George Washington visited it in 1756 during his travels to the frontier.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Formed from parts of Botetourt, Roanoke, Giles, and Monroe (in present-day West Virginia) counties in 1851, Craig was later enlarged with several subsequent additions from neighboring counties.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

The secluded, mountainous town of New Castle, the county seat, has one of the commonwealth's antebellum court complexes, including a porticoed courthouse built in 1852.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Craig Healing Springs, a collection of well-preserved early-20th-century resort buildings representative of the architecture of Virginia's more modest mountain spas, is located here.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of Template:Convert, of which Template:Convert is land and Template:Convert (0.3%) is water.<ref name="GR1">Template:Cite web</ref> More than 112,000 acres of the county is national forest<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> . Craig County is one of the 423 counties served by the Appalachian Regional Commission,<ref name="ARC">Template:Cite web</ref> and it is identified as part of "Greater Appalachia" by Colin Woodard in his book American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America.<ref name="NYT_CW">Template:Cite web</ref>

Adjacent counties

• Alleghany County – north
• Botetourt County – east
• Roanoke County – southeast
• Montgomery County – south
• Giles County – southwest
• Monroe County, West Virginia – west

National protected area

• Jefferson National Forest (part)

Major highways

• Template:Jct
• Template:Jct
• Template:Jct

Demographics

2020 census

Craig County, Virginia – Racial and ethnic composition
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Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)	Pop 2010<ref name=2010CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref>	Pop 2020<ref name=2020CensusP2>Template:Cite web</ref>	% 2010	% 2020
White alone (NH)	5,103	4,631	98.32%	94.66%
Black or African American alone (NH)	5	11	0.10%	0.22%
Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)	6	5	0.12%	0.10%
Asian alone (NH)	8	11	0.15%	0.22%
Pacific Islander alone (NH)	0	3	0.00%	0.06%
Some Other Race alone (NH)	1	12	0.02%	0.25%
Mixed Race or Multi-Racial (NH)	31	166	0.60%	3.39%
Hispanic or Latino (any race)	36	53	0.69%	1.08%
Total	5,190	4,892	100.00%	100.00%

2000 Census

As of the census<ref name="GR8">Template:Cite web</ref> of 2000, there were 5,091 people, 2,060 households, and 1,507 families residing in the county. The population density was Template:Convert. There were 2,554 housing units at an average density of Template:Convert. The racial makeup of the county was 98.94% White, 0.20% Black or African American, 0.22% Native American, 0.16% Asian, 0.14% from other races, and 0.35% from two or more races. 0.33% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 2,060 households, out of which 30.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.90% were married couples living together, 7.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 26.80% were non-families. 23.90% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.88.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.60% under the age of 18, 6.40% from 18 to 24, 29.70% from 25 to 44, 26.70% from 45 to 64, and 13.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 103.40 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.50 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $37,314, and the median income for a family was $41,750. Males had a median income of $26,713 versus $21,337 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,322. About 6.60% of families and 10.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.90% of those under age 18 and 10.50% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Board of Supervisors

• Craig City District: Rusty Zimmerman (Vice Chair)
• Craig Creek District: Lindsey Dunne
• New Castle District: Jesse Spence (chair)
• Potts Mountain District: Carl Bailey
• Simmonsville District: Kathi Toelke<ref name="CountyBoS">Template:Cite web</ref>

Constitutional officers

• Clerk of the Circuit Court: Sharon P. Oliver (I)
• Commissioner of the Revenue: Elizabeth Huffman (I)
• Commonwealth's Attorney: Matthew Dunne (R)
• Sheriff: Trevor Craddock (R)
• Treasurer: Jackie Parsons (I)<ref name="CountyOffs">Template:Cite web</ref>

Craig County is represented by Republican Stephen D. "Steve" Newman in the Virginia Senate, Republican Joe McNamara in the Virginia House of Delegates, and Republican H. Morgan Griffith in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Communities

Town

• New Castle

Unincorporated communities

• Abbott
• Maggie
• Paint Bank
• Simmonsville

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Craig County, Virginia

References

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