Martinsville, Virginia

Martinsville is an independent city surrounded by and the county seat of Henry County, Virginia, United States.^[3] The population was 15,416 at the 2000 census. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Martinsville with Henry county for statistical purposes. Martinsville is home to the paper clip-shaped Martinsville Speedway, the shortest track in NASCAR stock car racing (0.526 mi) and also one of the first paved "speedways", being built in 1947.

1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 Notable residents
5 References
6 External links

[edit] History

Martinsville was founded by American Revolutionary War General Joseph Martin, born in Albemarle County, whose plantation "Scuffle Hill" was located on the banks of the Smith River near the present-day southern city limits. The city's main industry for a century was furniture construction, and today Virginia furniture makers still reside in the region. Shortly after World War II, DuPont built a chemical manufacturing plant. The booming chemical industry led to Martinsville declaring itself an independent city in 1928, while still retaining its status as county seat.

DuPont later built a large manufacturing plant for producing nylon, a vital war material, which made the city a target for strategic bombing during the Cold War. This nylon production jump-started the growth of the textiles industry in the area. For several years Martinsville was known as the "Sweatshirt Capital of the World." In the early 1990s, changing global economic conditions and new trade treaties made Martinsville textiles and furniture manufacturing economically unsustainable. Many firms closed shop and laid off thousands of workers. Currently, the city is repositioning itself long-term as a center for technology development and manufacturing. Due to the local government's inability to fund certain services, in the near future the city of Martinsville may decide to legally convert into the town of Martinsville.

Recently, MZM, inc. opened a facility in Martinsville as part of the Cunningham Scandal. Illegal contributions were made to US Representative Virgil Goode's campaign for the purpose of securing government funding to open the facility.

The lone high school within the Martinsville City School District is Martinsville High School which averages about 900 students. Its mascot is the bulldog and the school colors are red and white. The school's varsity men's basketball team competes in the Virginia AA High School division and won its most recent state championship in March 2006. This victory makes Martinsville High School the only high school in the Commonwealth of Virginia to win 13 state titles. The Martinsville City Public Schools system has 1 high school, 1 middle school, 2 elementary schools, and 1 preschool.

Additionally, there is a private PS-12 school in Martinsville, Carlisle School. The school serves approximately 600 students, about 130 of them high school students.

Martinsville is also home to the Virginia Museum of Natural History, an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, and Piedmont Arts Association, an affiliate of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts.

[edit] Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.0 square miles (28.5 km²), of which, 11.0 square miles (28.4 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.1 km²) of it (0.45%) is water. The north side of the city has the highest average elevation. The east side elevation slopes gradually down to the Smith River on the south side. The west side is quite hilly, full of ups and downs.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^[1] of 2000, there were 15,416 people, 6,498 households, and 4,022 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,407.1 people per square mile (543.1/km²). There were 7,249 housing units at an average density of 661.7/sq mi (255.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 55.38% White, 42.55% African American, 0.10% Native American, 0.47% Asian, 0.69% from other races, and 0.81% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.32% of the population.

There were 6,498 households out of which 26.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.0% were married couples living together, 19.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.1% were non-families. 34.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.27 and the average family size was 2.89.

In the city the population was spread out with 22.6% under the age of 18, 7.0% from 18 to 24, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 23.2% from 45 to 64, and 20.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 82.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 78.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $27,441, and the median income for a family was $35,321. Males had a median income of $28,530 versus $21,367 for females. The per capita income for the city was $17,251. About 14.0% of families and 19.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 25.6% of those under age 18 and 16.9% of those age 65 or over.

Recently the U.S. Census Bureau designated Martinsville and Henry County as a micropolitan area, with a population of over 79,000 people. Martinsville and Henry County are part of the Greater Southern Virginia Area, which includes the city of Danville, the town of South Boston, Pittsylvania County, and Halifax County. The city of Danville has a population of 49,000, and Pittsylvania County has a population of over 55,000 people.