Prince George County, Virginia

History

Prince George County was formed in 1703 in the Virginia Colony from a portion of Charles City County. It was named in honor of Prince George of Denmark, husband of Anne, Queen of Great Britain.

In 1619, "Charles Cittie" [sic] was one of four "boroughs" or "incorporations" created by the Virginia Company. The first Charles City County courthouses were located along the James River at Westover and City Point. The Virginia Company lost its charter in 1624, and Virginia became a royal colony.

Charles City Shire was formed in 1634 in the Virginia Colony by order of Charles I, King of England. It became Charles City County in 1643, and is considered one of the five shires in Virginia still extant in essentially the same political entity (county) as they were originally formed in 1634.

Charles Cittie, Charles City Shire, and Charles City County all extended to both sides of the James River, which was the major transportation thoroughfare of the Virginia Colony throughout the 17th century. The original central city of Charles City County was Charles City Point, which was in an area south of the James River at the confluence of the Appomattox River. The name was later shortened to City Point.

In 1703, all of the original area of Charles City County south of the James River was severed to form Prince George County and eventually, several other counties. City Point later became an incorporated town in Prince George County. Annexed by the independent city of Hopewell in 1923, it is no longer in the county.

Nearby the current bridges, this water-only section of the county at the Appomattox River was the site of a fatal bus accident at an open drawbridge on December 22, 1935 which killed 13 persons. [1]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 282 square miles (730 km²), of which 265 square miles (690 km²) is land and 17 square miles (44 km²) (5.9%) is water. The northwestern corner of the county near the cities of Hopewell and Petersburg, and the location of Fort Lee is exurban, but the rest of the county is rural with most land devoted to agriculture and timber production.

Adjacent counties / independent cities

National protected areas

Top employers

According to the County's 2009 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the county are:

Goya Foods has its Virginia offices south of the Prince George CDP.

Government

In modern times, there are no centralized cities or towns in the county. Prince George Court House, which uses the postal address Prince George, Virginia, is the focal point of government. The County Administrator answers to the elected Board of Supervisors.

Law enforcement

Prince George County is served primarily by the Prince George County Police Department and the Prince George County Sheriff's Office. The police department's responsibility is the enforcement of the laws of the Commonwealth and local ordinances. The primary responsibility of the Sheriff's Office is the security of the courts and service of court (criminal and civil) papers. The Sheriff's Office also assists the police department in the enforcement of the laws of the Commonwealth as a secondary responsibility.

Towns, communities, region

There are currently no incorporated towns within Prince George County. Unincorporated towns or communities in the county include:

Census-designated places

Transportation

Interstate Highways 95 and 295 pass through the county, as does north-south U.S. Route 301 and east-west U.S. Route 460. State Route 10 runs along the northern shore of the James River near several of the James River plantations located in the county. State Route 106 runs through Prince George, the county seat.

Freight railroad service for the county is provided by CSX Transportation, which interchanges with Norfolk Southern at Petersburg. The famous 52-mile long tangent rail line between Petersburg and Suffolk of the former Norfolk and Petersburg Railroad was built by William Mahone in the 1850s, and now forms a vital link of the Norfolk Southern system. A Norfolk Southern Railway automobile transloading facility is located nearby. There are future plans underway for a large Intermodal freight transport railroad-trucking transfer facility in Prince George County as well.

Major highways

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 33,047 people, 10,159 households, and 8,096 families residing in the county. The population density was 124 people per square mile (48/km²). There were 10,726 housing units at an average density of 40 per square mile (16/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 60.93% White, 32.54% Black or African American, 0.42% Native American, 1.73% Asian, 0.15% Pacific Islander, 2.19% from other races, and 2.03% from two or more races. 4.92% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 10,159 households out of which 41.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.50% were married couples living together, 12.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.30% were non-families. 17.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.76 and the average family size was 3.11.

In the county, the population was spread out with 25.10% under the age of 18, 13.60% from 18 to 24, 33.30% from 25 to 44, 20.80% from 45 to 64, and 7.30% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females there were 117.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 120.90 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $49,877, and the median income for a family was $53,750. Males had a median income of $37,363 versus $26,347 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,196. About 6.50% of families and 8.00% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.40% of those under age 18 and 8.30% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Prince George County Public Schools operates public schools in the county.

High school

Jr. high school

Middle school

Elementary schools

Notable residents