The New River Valley is a region along the
New River in
Southwest Virginia
Southwest Virginia, often abbreviated as SWVA, is a mountainous region of Virginia in the westernmost part of the commonwealth. Located within the broader region of western Virginia, Southwest Virginia has been defined alternatively as all Vir ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
.
It is usually defined as the counties of
Montgomery (including the towns of
Blacksburg and
Christiansburg),
Pulaski,
Floyd, and
Giles and the independent city of
Radford, which are all located in the New River watershed. However, in Virginia, the New River also flows through
Wythe
A wythe is a continuous vertical section of masonry one unit in thickness. A wythe may be independent of, or interlocked with, the adjoining wythe(s). A single wythe of brick that is not structural in nature is referred to as a masonry veneer
...
,
Carroll, and
Grayson Counties, and its physical watershed includes parts of
Tazewell and
Bland Counties, and small portions of
Smyth
Smyth is an early variant of the common surname Smith commonly found in Ireland.Citation: Bardsley, 1901 Shown below are notable people who share the surname "Smyth".
Notable people sharing the Smyth surname
Listed here are people who share the ...
and
Craig Counties. Outside of Virginia, the New River continues upstream into
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
and downstream into
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 Bur ...
.
Part of the
Great Appalachian Valley
The Great Appalachian Valley, also called The Great Valley or Great Valley Region, is one of the major landform features of eastern North America. It is a gigantic trough—a chain of valley lowlands—and the central feature of the Appalachian M ...
, it became a contested frontier area in colonial times, and continued during the westward expansion of the United States. The first
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
an to explore the valley was
Abraham Wood
Abraham Wood (1610–1682), sometimes referred to as "General" or "Colonel" Wood, was an English fur trader, militia officer, politician and explorer of 17th century colonial Virginia. Wood helped build and maintained Fort Henry at the falls of ...
of
Fort Henry in 1671 and settlements began to develop in the 18th century. A branch of the
Great Wagon Road
Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements
* Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size
* Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent
People
* List of people known as "the Great"
*Artel Great (born ...
led through the New River Valley. The valley was the location of several small American Civil War battles.
According to the 2000 census, the New River Valley is home to approximately 165,145 residents. The New River Valley is also home to several institutions of higher learning including
Virginia Tech
Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...
,
Radford University
Radford University is a public university in Radford, Virginia. It is one of the state's eight doctorate-granting public universities. Founded in 1910, Radford offers curricula for undergraduates in more than 100 fields, graduate programs inclu ...
,
Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine
The Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM) is a private medical school on the campus of Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia (VCOM-Virginia), with branch campuses in Spartanburg, South Carolina (VCOM-Carolinas), Auburn, Alabama (VCOM ...
and
New River Community College
New River Community College (NRCC) is a public community college in Dublin, Virginia, in the New River Valley of southwestern Virginia. It is one of the 23 colleges in the Virginia Community College System. NRCC's service region covers the coun ...
.
External links
New River Valley Web Portal
Valleys of Virginia
River valleys of the United States
Landforms of Montgomery County, Virginia
Landforms of Pulaski County, Virginia
Landforms of Floyd County, Virginia
Landforms of Giles County, Virginia
Radford, Virginia
Southwest Virginia
Western Virginia
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