Williamson, West Virginia

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Aerial view of Williamson, West Virginia, during construction of its current floodwall, completed in 1991. The Tug Fork river is the border between West Virginia and Kentucky and the highway on the left (US-119) is in Kentucky.

Williamson is a city in Mingo County, West Virginia, USA, along the Tug Fork River. The population was 3,414 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Mingo County^GR6, and is the county's largest and most populous city. Williamson is home to Southern West Virginia Community College. The Tug Fork River separates Williamson from South Williamson, Kentucky.

Williamson is the site of a large rail yard built by the former Norfolk and Western Railroad (now Norfolk Southern Railway), which was built to service the many coal mines of the region. The city is protected by a floodwall, completed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1991^[1] in response to a devastating flood along the Tug Fork River in 1977. Floodgates were also built on the river's main entrance to Williamson, to completely close the city from floodwaters. The only use of the gates thus far occurred in 2002 during a major flood in the region.

Notably, Williamson was the setting for a 1987 episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show concerning AIDS, in which Oprah Winfrey confronted locals over misconceptions about the AIDS epidemic and the plight of HIV-positive residents.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 People From Williamson, West Virginia
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Geography

The Tug Fork River at Williamson

Williamson is located at 37°40′26″N, 82°16′47″W (37.673936, -82.279613)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 8.7 km² (3.3 mi²), all land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 3,414 people, 1,566 households, and 903 families residing in the city. The population density was 394.7/km² (1,022.6/mi²). There were 1,892 housing units at an average density of 218.7/km² (566.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 83.51% White, 13.65% African American, 0.38% Native American, 1.00% Asian, 0.29% from other races, and 1.17% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.91% of the population.

There were 1,566 households out of which 24.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.0% were married couples living together, 15.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.3% were non-families. 40.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 18.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.11 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the city the population was spread out with 20.0% under the age of 18, 8.2% from 18 to 24, 24.0% from 25 to 44, 26.2% from 45 to 64, and 21.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 82.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 75.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $19,635, and the median income for a family was $35,893. Males had a median income of $36,250 versus $20,291 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,303. About 22.1% of families and 28.8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 39.5% of those under age 18 and 18.2% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] People From Williamson, West Virginia

Ulvert M. Moore - Decorated Naval aviator, Deceased
S.U.G. Rhodes - Attorney, Politician, Deceased
Don Blankenship Chairman/CEO/President of Massey Energy
Robert H. "Doc" Foglesong - Current President of Mississippi State Univ./ Retired 4 Star General from the U.S. Air Force.
H. Truman Chafin - Democratic State Senator (Majority Leader), Attorney

[edit] References

^ (2006) "Williamson", in Ken Sullivan (ed.): The West Virginia Encyclopedia. Charleston, W.Va.: West Virginia Humanities Council, p. 798. ISBN 0-9778498-0-5.