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Mercer County, West Virginia

Mercer County is a county located in the U.S. state of West Virginia. As of 2000, the population was 62,980. It is part of the Bluefield, WV-VA micropolitan area which has a population of 107,578. The micropolitan area is the 350th largest statistical population area and the thirty-third largest micropolitan in the United States. Its county seat is Princeton.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 421 square miles (1,090 km²), of which, 420 square miles (1,089 km²) of it is land and 0 square miles (1 km²) of it (0.06%) is water.

Major highways

West Virginia Route 10

West Virginia Route 20

West Virginia Route 44

West Virginia Route 71

The West Virginia Turnpike, now part of Interstate 77, begins in Princeton.

Adjacent counties

National protected area

Bluestone National Scenic River

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 62,980 people, 26,509 households, and 17,946 families residing in the county. The population density was 150 people per square mile (58/km²). There were 30,143 housing units at an average density of 72 per square mile (28/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 92.56% White, 5.82% Black or African American, 0.19% Native American, 0.46% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.10% from other races, and 0.85% from two or more races. 0.45% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 26,509 households out of which 26.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.00% were married couples living together, 11.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.30% were non-families. 28.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 13.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.33 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the county, the population was spread out with 21.10% under the age of 18, 9.80% from 18 to 24, 26.20% from 25 to 44, 25.50% from 45 to 64, and 17.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 91.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $26,628, and the median income for a family was $33,524. Males had a median income of $29,243 versus $19,013 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,564. About 14.70% of families and 19.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 28.90% of those under age 18 and 12.70% of those age 65 or over.

Education

The Mercer County Public School System has nineteen elementary school facilities, two middle school facilities and four high school facilities. There is also the Mercer County Technical Education Center.

Higher educational institutions include Bluefield State College, located in Bluefield, and Concord University, located in Athens.

Law Enforcement

Mercer County is protected by 7 agencies. 5 agencies protect the incorporated area of the county but the non-incorporated area is the primary responsibility of the Mercer County Sheriff's Department. The Mercer County Sheriff's Department consists of 30 sworn law enforcement officers and a number of civilian employess. Within the Mercer County Sheriff's Department are several specialized units to better serve the citizens.

K-9 Unit: Capt. Beasley (Ruckus), Deputy Ballard (Quando), Deputy Parks (Arrow), Deputy Rose (Mitis), & Deputy Ellsion (Max).

Detective Bureau: Capt. Gills, Cpl. Murphy, Detective Sparks, & Detective Furches

SWAT: Sgt. G. W. Woods, Cpl. J. J. Ruble, Cpl. S. A. Sommers, & Deputy Combs; The rest of the team is compromised from other agencies within the County, excluding the WV State Police.

The Sheriff's Department also has one dedicated Deputy that serves on the Southern Regional Drug and Violent Crime Task Force.

Mercer County is also home to the Princeton Detachment of the West Virginia State Police and a Turnpike Detachment (Highway Patrol).