Charleston, West Virginia
From Freepedia
Image:Charleston WV skyline.jpg Image:Capitolbuilding.jpg Image:Charlestonpic1.jpg Image:Charlestonpic2.jpg Image:Elk River Charleston.jpg Charleston is the capital of West Virginia, a state of the United States of America. It is located at the confluence of the Elk and Kanawha Rivers in Kanawha County. As of the 2000 census, it has a population of 53,421. Currently, Charleston is the largest city in the state. It is the county seat of Kanawha County.
Early industry important to Charleston included salt and the first natural gas well.[1] Later, coal became central to economic prosperity in the city and the surrounding area.
The first permanant settlement, Ft. Lee, was built in 1788. In 1791, Daniel Boone was a member of the Kanawha County Assembly.
Charleston is the home of the West Virginia Power minor league baseball team, and the annual 15-mile Charleston Distance Run. Yeager Airport and the University of Charleston are also located in the city.
Some say the area is under a curse from Chief Cornstalk, although that has never been proven.
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People from Charleston (and vicinity)
- The classical composer George Crumb was born in Charleston.
- Alias star Jennifer Garner was born in Houston, but moved with her family to Charleston as a young child and grew up there, graduating from the city's George Washington High School.
- For a time, Booker T. Washington, the writer, educator, and early civil rights leader, lived in Malden, just upriver from Charleston.
- NFL superstar Randy Moss grew up in Rand, adjacent to Malden.
- Former Major League Baseball player and current sportscaster John Kruk was born in Charleston, but grew up in Keyser in the state's Eastern Panhandle.
Education
Charleston hosts a branch campus of West Virginia University which serves as a clinical campus for WVU's medical and dental schools. Students at either school complete their class work at the main campus in Morgantown, but may do their clinical rotations either in Morgantown or Charleston. The city is also home to a small private college, the University of Charleston.
In the immediate area are West Virginia State University in Institute and the Marshall University Graduate College, a postgraduate-only branch of Marshall University located in South Charleston.
The city proper hosts three high schools:
- Capital High School, a public school located near Yeager Airport
- George Washington High School, a public school in the South Hills neighborhood
- Charleston Catholic High School, a Catholic school at the eastern edge of the city's downtown
Geography
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| Image:WVMap-doton-Charleston.PNG {{{2 }|1{{{1|}}}={{{3|}}}}}} | }} | |||||
| Founded Incorporated | Unknown | |||||
| County | Kanawha County | |||||
| Mayor | Danny Jones | |||||
| Area - Total - Water | 84.7 km² (32.7 mi²) 2.8 km² (1.1 mi²) 3.36% | |||||
| Population - City (2000) - Density - Metropolitan | 53,421 652.7/km² 421,312 | |||||
| Time zone | Eastern (UTC –5) | |||||
| Coordinates WGS-84 (GPS) | 38.3495° N 81.6333° W | |||||
Charleston is located at 38° 20′ 58″ N, 81° 37′ 60″ W (38.349497, -81.633294)1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 84.7 km² (32.7 mi²). 81.8 km² (31.6 mi²) of it is land and 2.8 km² (1.1 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 3.36% water.
Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there are 53,421 people, 24,505 households, and 13,624 families residing in the city. The population density is 652.7/km² (1,690.4/mi²). There are 27,131 housing units at an average density of 331.5/km² (858.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 80.63% White, 15.07% Black or African American, 0.24% Native American, 1.83% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.30% from other races, and 1.91% from two or more races. 0.81% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There are 24,505 households out of which 23.7% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.9% are married couples living together, 13.5% have a female householder with no husband present, and 44.4% are non-families. 38.9% of all households are made up of individuals and 14.5% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.11 and the average family size is 2.82.
The age distribution is 20.7% under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 27.9% from 25 to 44, 25.3% from 45 to 64, and 17.6% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 41 years. For every 100 females there are 87.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 83.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $34,009, and the median income for a family is $47,975. Males have a median income of $38,257 versus $26,671 for females. The per capita income for the city is $26,017. 16.7% of the population and 12.7% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 24.5% of those under the age of 18 and 11.3% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
External links
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Local or Yahoo! Maps
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
- Satellite image from Google Local or Microsoft Virtual Earth
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