St. Paul is a town in Russell and Wise counties in 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 ...

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 ...

. The population was 970 at the 2010 census.

Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center The Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center (VCHEC) is a power station located in St. Paul, Virginia, St. Paul, in Wise County, Virginia. It is operated by Dominion Energy, Dominion Virginia Power, Dominion Resources Inc.'s electric distribution compan ...

, which powers 150,000 homes, is located in St. Paul.

History

St. Paul, Virginia is a town located in the Appalachian Mountains along the

Clinch River The Clinch River is a river that flows southwest for more than through the Great Appalachian Valley in the U.S. states of Virginia and Tennessee, gathering various tributaries, including the Powell River, before joining the Tennessee River in ...

. It began as a French Huguenot settlement overlooking the river in 1791, during the Cherokee-American wars. Since the creation of Wise County in 1858, it has been located partially in Wise and partly in the older Russell County. It was formerly incorporated as a town in 1911. The St. Paul Historic District and Virginia City Church are listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. Since the 1990s, the Nature Conservancy has worked to preserve the great biodiversity in and along the Clinch River. In 2021, Virginia governor Ralph Northam dedicated Clinch River State Park, still in development but which was designed as Virginia's first blueway state park, with multiple river multiple access points over 135 miles (217 km) of the Clinch River. Early sections include Sugar Hill (2 miles of river access and 400 acres of land including the remains of the Huguenot settlement), and the Artrip Bent Unit (232 undeveloped acres in Russell county). St. Paul has several annual historical celebrations. One is the Santa Train. The Santa Train travels from Eastern Kentucky and Southwest Virginia, ending in Kingsport, Tennessee. The Santa Train makes 14 stops along the way while Santa Claus throws out gifts to children.

Geography

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 1.0 square mile (2.6 km²), of which 1.0 square mile (2.5 km²) is land and 0.04 square mile (0.1 km²) (3.92%) is water.

Demographics

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 1,000 people, 464 households, and 302 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 1,023.2 people per square mile (394.0/km²). There were 496 housing units at an average density of 507.5 per square mile (195.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 95.70%

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 ...

, 1.80%

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 ...

, 0.60% Native American, 0.50% Asian, 0.10% from other races, and 1.30% 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 0.50% of the population. There were 464 households, out of which 28.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 48.5% 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, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.9% were non-families. 33.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 17.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.16 and the average family size was 2.72. In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.6% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 24.1% from 25 to 44, 25.0% from 45 to 64, and 19.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 82.8 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 81.1 males. The median income for a household in the town was $24,833, and the median income for a family was $39,125. Males had a median income of $31,563 versus $25,313 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 $17,735. About 15.1% of families and 19.3% 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 27.4% of those under age 18 and 15.2% of those age 65 or over.

Education

St. Paul is home to one public school, St. Paul Elementary School. The school features unique programs such as the Wetlands Estonoa Project.

Attractions

Natural and outdoor recreation

* Matthews Park *

Oxbow Lake An oxbow lake is a U-shaped lake or stream pool, pool that forms when a wide meander of a river is meander cutoff, cut off, creating a free-standing body of water. The word "oxbow" can also refer to a U-shaped bend in a river or stream, whether ...

* Sugar Hill Loop Trail * Wetlands Estonoa and the Wetlands Estonoa Project * Spearhead Trail * Ridge Runner Campground

Historical

* Railroad Museum

Festivals and celebrations

* Clinch River Days * Fourth of July Celebration

Media

St. Paul is home to an online newspaper, the '' Clinch Valley Times''. WHNQ (AM) previously broadcast from St. Paul.

Notable person

Steven Jason Williams, better known by his alias Boogie2988, an American YouTube personality born in

Abingdon, Virginia Abingdon is a town in and the county seat of Washington County, Virginia, United States, southwest of Roanoke. The population was 8,376 at the 2020 census. The town encompasses several historically significant sites and features a fine arts a ...

. He was raised in St. Paul.

References

External links

St. Paul Official Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Paul, Virginia Towns in Russell County, Virginia Towns in Virginia Towns in Wise County, Virginia