Piedmont is a town in Mineral County,

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

, United States. It is part of the Cumberland, MD- WV metropolitan statistical area. The population was 716 at the 2020 census. Piedmont was chartered in 1856 and the town is the subject of ''Colored People: A Memoir'' by Piedmont native Henry Louis Gates Jr.

Geography

As its name suggests, Piedmont is located at the base of a mountain, in this instance the foot of the Allegheny Front, the eastern edge of the Allegheny Mountains or Appalachian Plateau, on the south (West Virginia) side of the North Branch of the Potomac River. Piedmont is located at (39.480232, -79.048086). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , all land.

Transportation

The only significant highway directly serving Piedmont is West Virginia Route 46. Route 46 continues west across the North Branch Potomac River into Westernport,

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. To the east, Route 46 heads to Keyser, where it has a junction with U.S. Route 220.

History

The Town of Piedmont is situated in the Allegheny Front mountain range along the North Branch of the Potomac River. A century prior to the chartering of Piedmont, the area was opened for European settlement with the creation of Hampshire County in 1754 by the colonial government in Virginia. The region was the scene of hostile interactions between European settlers and pro- French Native Americans during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

. Owing to its location and natural resources, the Piedmont area attracted German, Scotch-Irish, Swiss, English, and Italian immigrants, making the region more diverse than the primarily English-American Hampshire County. These cultural differences within the county, as well as growing population in the years leading up to the Civil War would later contribute to the formation of a new county. The village of Piedmont was settled by people seeking to extract coal from the Allegheny Front mountain range which extends for several miles to the south of the town. Its strategic location at the intersection of George's Creek Valley, an industrial center in neighboring Maryland, made Piedmont a desirable location for a depot on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad as it pushed west on its route to Wheeling and the Ohio River. The original main line of the B&O railroad reached the site of Piedmont on July 21, 1851. Two years later in 1853, the railroad reached the

Ohio River The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...

at Wheeling, connecting

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the List of United States ...

with a direct route leading to the rapidly-growing

Northwest Territory The Northwest Territory, also known as the Old Northwest and formally known as the Territory Northwest of the River Ohio, was formed from part of the unorganized western territory of the United States after the American Revolution. Established ...

states. The line through Piedmont remains a segment of the B&O system, now part of CSX Transportation. With the arrival of the B&O and the building of a roundhouse and rail yard, the Town of Piedmont was chartered in 1856. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

(1861–1865), the town of Piedmont was frequently raided by the McNeill's Rangers in an effort by the Confederates to disrupt B&O train service. Despite the interruption of the war, the region continued to develop new industrial and commercial institutions, leading to the creation of Mineral County in 1866 (separated from Hampshire County). Along with neighboring Grant County, these two new counties were the first created in the state of West Virginia which itself was separated from Virginia in 1863. In 1888, William Luke established the West Virginia Paper Company (now Verso Luke Mill) on of

land known as West Piedmont (now Luke, Maryland, adjacent to the larger town of Westernport, Maryland), fueling further development of the region. Notable residents of Piedmont have included U.S. Senator Henry Gassaway Davis who worked as a storekeeper and railroad agent before opening the region's largest coal mines on the "Big Vein" on the Allegheny Front. Leslie Thrasher, a noted illustrator whose work was featured on the covers of

Liberty Liberty is the state of being free within society from oppressive restrictions imposed by authority on one's way of life, behavior, or political views. The concept of liberty can vary depending on perspective and context. In the Constitutional ...

magazine and the

Saturday Evening Post ''The Saturday Evening Post'' is an American magazine published six times a year. It was published weekly from 1897 until 1963, and then every other week until 1969. From the 1920s to the 1960s, it was one of the most widely circulated and influ ...

was born in Piedmont on September 15, 1889.

Jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

musician and composer Don Redman was born in Piedmont on July 29, 1900. Henry Louis Gates, a professor of African-American history at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

, was raised in Piedmont, an experience he described in his 1994 book ''Colored People''. Steve Whiteman, lead singer for the glam/rock band Kix was raised in Piedmont and graduated from Piedmont High School.

Demographics

2010 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 2010, there were 876 people, 385 households, and 225 families living in the town. 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 480 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 77.3%

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 ...

, 17.9%

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 ...

, 0.1% Native American, 0.1% Asian, 0.6% from other races, and 4.0% from two or more races.

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 were 2.1% of the population. There were 385 households, of which 33.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 29.9% were married couples living together, 21.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 6.8% had a male householder with no wife present, and 41.6% were non-families. 36.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.28 and the average family size was 2.91. The median age in the town was 37.1 years. 25.9% of residents were under the age of 18; 10.6% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 22.3% were from 25 to 44; 26.8% were from 45 to 64; and 14.4% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 47.3% male and 52.7% female.

2000 census

As of the

of 2000, there were 1,094 people, 423 households, and 266 families living in the town. The population density was . There were 499 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 74.36%

, 21.79%

, 0.20% Native American, 1.78% from other races, and 1.87% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 2.07% of the population. There were 423 households, out of which 29.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.1% were married couples living together, 20.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.1% were non-families. 32.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 3.00. In the town, the population was spread out, with 26.8% under the age of 18, 8.9% from 18 to 24, 28.6% from 25 to 44, 20.8% from 45 to 64, and 14.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.8 males. The median income for a household in the town was $21,190, and the median income for a family was $26,964. Males had a median income of $21,938 versus $18,250 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 town was $11,678. About 24.7% of families and 30.7% 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 41.3% of those under age 18 and 23.5% of those age 65 or over.

High schools

Piedmont has not had a high school in town since 1976. Piedmont High School was consolidated with Keyser High School in 1977. Although, at one time, there were three high schools in Piedmont; Davis Free School, 1890–1938, Howard High School, 1877–1955 and Piedmont High School, 1939–1976. These schools were recently memorialized by erecting a monument in front of the Piedmont city building on September 2, 2017. This was a vision of the Piedmont Back Street Community Festival Committee, led by President Chuck Green.

Climate

The climate in this area has mild differences between highs and lows, and there is adequate rainfall year-round. According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Piedmont has a marine west coast climate, abbreviated "Cfb" on climate maps.Climate Summary for Piedmont, West Virginia
/ref>

References

External links

Town of Piedmont website

West Virginia Cyclopedia article
(wiki) {{authority control Towns in Mineral County, West Virginia Towns in West Virginia Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Populated places in the Cumberland, MD-WV MSA Mineral County, West Virginia, in the American Civil War Former county seats in West Virginia Populated places on the North Branch Potomac River