Belva is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

and

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the count ...

in west Nicholas County and north Fayette County,

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the B ...

, United States; while the CDP only includes the Nicholas County portion, the Fayette County portion is considered part of the community. The town is situated at the bottomland surrounding the convergence of Bells Creek with Twentymile Creek and, subsequently, Twenty Mile Creek with the

Gauley River The Gauley River is a river in West Virginia. It merges with the New River to form the Kanawha River, a tributary of the Ohio River. The river features numerous recreational whitewater areas, including those in Gauley River National Recreation Ar ...

. Belva is also the location of the convergence of two state highways:

West Virginia Route 16 West Virginia Route 16 (WV 16) is a north–south route located in the U.S. State of West Virginia. The southern terminus of the route is at the Virginia state line in Bishop, McDowell County, where the route continues south as Virginia St ...

and

West Virginia Route 39 West Virginia Route 39 is an east–west state highway in West Virginia. The western terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 60 and West Virginia Route 16 in Gauley Bridge. The eastern terminus is at the Virginia Virginia, officially the ...

History

The community is named in honor of

Belva Ann Lockwood Belva Ann Bennett Lockwood (October 24, 1830 – May 19, 1917) was an American lawyer, politician, educator, and author who was active in the women's rights and women's suffrage movements. She was one of the first women lawyers in the United Sta ...

, a presidential candidate and early feminist. The Belva

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional ser ...

was established in 1885.

Climate

The climate in this area is characterized by hot, humid summers and generally mild to cool winters. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, Belva has a humid subtropical climate, abbreviated "Cfa" on climate maps.Climate Summary for Belva, West Virginia
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References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Nicholas County, West Virginia Census-designated places in Fayette County, West Virginia Census-designated places in West Virginia Unincorporated communities in West Virginia

History

Climate

See also

References