Halifax County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

located in the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 34,022. Its

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

is Halifax.

History

Occupied by varying cultures of

indigenous peoples There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

for thousands of years, in historic times English colonists encountered

Siouan language Siouan ( ), also known as Siouan–Catawban ( ), is a language family of North America located primarily in the Great Plains, Ohio and Mississippi valleys and southeastern North America with a few other languages in the east. Name Authors who ...

Native Americans. Halifax County was established in 1752 by English colonists from Lunenburg County. The county was named for

George Montagu-Dunk, 2nd Earl of Halifax George Montagu-Dunk, 2nd Earl of Halifax (6 October 1716 – 8 June 1771) was a British statesman of the Georgian era. Due to his success in extending commerce in the Americas, he became known as the "father of the colonies". President of the B ...

. Through the 1990 Census, South Boston was an

independent city An independent city or independent town is a city or town that does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity (such as a province). Historical precursors In the Holy Roman Empire, and to a degree in its successor states ...

, but it became a town again and rejoined Halifax County in 1995.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (1.4%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* Campbell County - northwest * Charlotte County - northeast * Mecklenburg County - east *

Granville County, North Carolina Granville County is a county located on the northern border of the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 60,992. Its county seat is Oxford. The county has access to Kerr Lake and Falls Lake and is part of t ...

- southeast *

Person County, North Carolina Person County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. The population was 39,097 as of the 2020 census. The county seat is Roxboro. Person County is included in the Durham- Chapel Hill, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area, wh ...

- south *

Caswell County, North Carolina Caswell County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is located in the Piedmont Triad region of the state. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 22,736. Its county seat is Yancey ...

- southwest *

Pittsylvania County Pittsylvania County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 60,501. The county seat is Chatham. Pittsylvania County is included in the Danville, VA Micropolitan Statistical ...

- west

Major highways

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Demographics

Hog killing Halifax County Marion Post Wolcott 1939

2020 census

2000 Census

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 37,355 people, 15,018 households, and 10,512 families residing in the county. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing 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 geog ...

was . There were 16,953 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 60.32%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 38.02%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.20% Native American, 0.24% Asian, 0.01%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 0.44% from other races, and 0.77% from two or more races. 1.23% of the population were

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race. There were 15,018 households, out of which 28.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.20% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 14.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.00% were non-families. 27.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.94. In the county, the population was spread out, with 23.40% under the age of 18, 6.90% from 18 to 24, 26.40% from 25 to 44, 26.30% from 45 to 64, and 17.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41 years. For every 100 females there were 90.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 86.70 males. The median income for a household in the county was $29,929, and the median income for a family was $37,845. Males had a median income of $27,498 versus $20,684 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the county was $16,353. About 11.50% of families and 15.70% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 18.90% of those under age 18 and 19.60% of those age 65 or over.

Government

Board of Supervisors

* District 1: Ricky Short * District 2: Larry D Roller * District 3: Hubert Pannell * District 4: Ronnie E Duffey * District 5: Dean E Throckmorton * District 6: Stanley Brandon * District 7: Garland B Ricketts * District 8: William Bryant Claiborne * Tie Breaker: Wayne Smith

Constitutional officers

* Clerk of the Circuit Court: Cathy M. Cosby (I) * Commissioner of the Revenue: Brenda P. Powell (I) * Commonwealth's Attorney: Tracy Quackenbush Martin (I) * Sheriff: Fred S. Clark (I) * Treasurer: Ruth Ann Oakes (I) Halifax is represented by Republicans Frank Ruff and Bill Stanley in the Virginia Senate, Republican James E. Edmunds in the Virginia House of Delegates, and Republican Bob Good in the U.S. House of Representatives. Halifax is represented in the United States Senate by Democrats

Mark Warner Mark Robert Warner (born December 15, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Virginia, a seat he has held since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, Warner served as the 69th gove ...

and

Tim Kaine Timothy Michael Kaine ( ; born February 26, 1958) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States senator from Virginia since 2013. A member of the Democratic Party (United States ...

Communities

Towns

* Halifax * Scottsburg *

South Boston South Boston (colloquially known as Southie) is a densely populated neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, located south and east of the Fort Point Channel and abutting Dorchester Bay (Boston Harbor), Dorchester Bay. It has under ...

* Virgilina

Census-designated places

Clover Clovers, also called trefoils, are plants of the genus ''Trifolium'' (), consisting of about 300 species of flowering plants in the legume family Fabaceae originating in Europe. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution with the highest diversit ...

* Cluster Springs * Mountain Road * Nathalie * Riverdale

Other unincorporated communities

* Alton * Cody * Crystal Hill * Delila * Ingram * Midway (near Scottsburg) * Turbeville * Vernon Hill

Notable people

* Clement Comer Clay,

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, U.S. House of Representatives, and the

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

* Adam Page, professional wrestler known for tenure in

All Elite Wrestling All Elite Wrestling (AEW) is an American professional wrestling promotion headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. It is owned and operated by Shahid Khan, Shahid and Tony Khan, with the latter serving as President (corporate title), president an ...

* Carrie Sutherlin, college president

References

External links

Official site of Halifax County & South Boston, Virginia

Official site of Town of South Boston - largest town within the County

Official site of the County Museum

Halifax County South Boston Public Library System
{{authority control Virginia counties 1752 establishments in the Colony of Virginia