Coeburn is a town in Wise County,

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

, United States, along the

Guest River The Guest River is a short tributary of the Clinch River in southwestern Virginia in the United States. It is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River by way of the Clinch, Tennessee and Ohio Rivers. According to the Geographic Names Inf ...

. The population was 2,139 at the 2010 census.

History

The Town of Coeburn was originally named Guest Station after explorer and surveyor Christopher Gist. Gist writes about the area of Coeburn in his trip journals of making camp in the area with his son, Tom. Incorporated in 1894, the Town changed its name from Guest Station to Coeburn after W. W. Coe, Chief Engineer of the N&W Railroad, and Judge W. E. Burns. The Tacoma School was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1997.

Geography

Coeburn is located at (36.943872, −82.466069). The town lies along

U.S. Route 58 Alternate U.S. Route 58 Alternate (US 58 Alt.) is a alternate route to US 58 in western Virginia. The route is a northern bypass to US 58 which stays closer to the Tennessee border and serves Gate City and Bristol. Route description Jonesville to Norto ...

east of

Norton Norton may refer to: Places Norton, meaning 'north settlement' in Old English, is a common place name. Places named Norton include: Canada * Rural Municipality of Norton No. 69, Saskatchewan *Norton Parish, New Brunswick **Norton, New Brunswick, a ...

and west of

St. Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

. Virginia State Route 72 passes through the downtown area. The community of Riverview is located across the Guest River to the south. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...

, the town has a total area of 2.0 square miles (5.3 km²), all of it land. Coeburn has many mountains and hills.

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2000, there were 1,996 people, 810 households, and 575 families living in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

was 973.8 people per square mile (375.9/km²). There were 923 housing units at an average density of 450.3 per square mile (173.8/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 95.29%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 2.81%

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.20% Native American, 0.10%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 0.05%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 0.05% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 1.50% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 0.60% of the population. There were 810 households, out of which 29.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.2% were married couples living together, 16.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 28.9% were non-families. 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 2.92. In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.5% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 23.9% from 45 to 64, and 15.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.5 males. The median income for a household in the town was $25,025, and the median income for a family was $28,929. The per capita income for the town was $12,802. About 17.0% of families and 20.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.9% of those under age 18 and 7.8% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Coeburn is home to three public schools: Coeburn Primary, Coeburn Middle, and Eastside High.

Government

The Town of Coeburn is governed under a Manager/Council form of government with 5 elected Council members elected at large in May.

Notable people

Holly Kiser Holly Kiser (born 1986) is an American fashion model. She was the first winner of '' Make Me a Supermodel''. Career Holly is currently signed with L.A Model Management in Los Angeles, Connected Models in Hong Kong and Red eleven in Auckland, ...

– first ''Make Me a Supermodel'' winner *

Jesse McReynolds Jesse Lester McReynolds (born July 9, 1929) is an American bluegrass musician. He is best known for his innovative crosspicking and split-string styles of mandolin playing. Biography McReynolds was born in Coeburn, Virginia. He and his brothe ...

– bluegrass musician * Danny O'Quinn Jr. – professional stock car racer * Tracy Stallard – professional baseball player *

Ralph Stanley Ralph Edmund Stanley (February 25, 1927 – June 23, 2016) was an American bluegrass artist, known for his distinctive singing and banjo playing. Stanley began playing music in 1946, originally with his older brother Carter Stanley as part of ...

– bluegrass musician

Recreation

Camping is available nearby at Bark Camp Lake in the

Jefferson National Forest The George Washington and Jefferson National Forests is an administrative entity combining two U.S. National Forests into one of the largest areas of public land in the Eastern United States. The forests cover of land in the Appalachian Mountai ...

with other activities including boating and fishing. The Guest River Gorge Trail, built along the

on what was formerly the

Interstate Railroad The Interstate Railroad was a railroad in the southwest part of the U.S. state of Virginia. It extended from the Clinchfield Railroad at Miller Yard in northeastern Scott County north and west to Appalachia and north to the main yard at Andover ...

, is also located in the Jefferson National Forest and is a popular place to walk or ride a bicycle. Recently Coeburn joined with neighboring

on the Mountain View Trail System for ATVs.

References

External links

Coeburn Official Website
{{authority control Towns in Virginia Towns in Wise County, Virginia