Belle, West Virginia

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Belle, West Virginia
Location of Belle, West Virginia
Location of Belle, West Virginia
Coordinates: 38°14′2″N 81°32′30″W / 38.23389, -81.54167
Country United States
State West Virginia
County Kanawha
Area
 - Total 0.8 sq mi (2.0 km²)
 - Land 0.7 sq mi (1.8 km²)
 - Water 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²)
Elevation 600 ft (183 m)
Population (2000)
 - Total 1,259
 - Density 1,766.2/sq mi (681.9/km²)
Time zone Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
 - Summer (DST) EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code 25015
Area code(s) 304
FIPS code 54-05836[1]
GNIS feature ID 1553846[2]

Belle is a town in Kanawha County, West Virginia, along the Kanawha River. The population was 1,259 at the 2000 census. Belle was incorporated on December 13, 1958 by the Kanawha County Circuit Court. It is the home of the Belle Bulldogs Elementary School.

Contents

[edit] Geography

Belle is located at 38°14′2″N, 81°32′30″W (38.233853, -81.541606)[3].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 2.0 km² (0.8 mi²). 1.8 km² (0.7 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it (8.86%) is water.

The water around Belle is said to be severely polluted by the chemical company Du Pont, which operates a chemical plant there. According to Scorecard, a pollution watchdog site, water releases of chemicals have increased, from the Du Pont Belle Plant, by 385%, from 1988 to 2002. Scorecard

[edit] Demographics

As of the census[1] of 2000, there were 1,259 people, 569 households, and 364 families residing in the town. The population density was 684.7/km² (1,766.2/mi²). There were 647 housing units at an average density of 351.8/km² (907.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 95.31% White, 0.87% African American, 0.24% Native American, 0.87% from other races, and 2.70% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.27% of the population.

There were 569 households out of which 24.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.7% were married couples living together, 14.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.9% were non-families. 32.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.79.

In the town the population was spread out with 20.8% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 19.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 84.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.0 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $34,118, and the median income for a family was $43,203. Males had a median income of $27,500 versus $22,969 for females. The per capita income for the town was $18,636. About 8.6% of families and 11.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.7% of those under age 18 and 5.6% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] Famous people from Belle

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b American FactFinder. United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  2. ^ US Board on Geographic Names. United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
  3. ^ US Gazetteer files: 2000 and 1990. United States Census Bureau (2005-05-03). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.

[edit] External links