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Blacksburg, Virginia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Blacksburg, Virginia | |
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| Coordinates: | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | Virginia |
| County | Montgomery |
| Founded | 1798 |
| Government | |
| - Mayor | Ron Rordam |
| Area | |
| - Total | 19.4 sq mi (50.2 km²) |
| - Land | 19.4 sq mi (50.1 km²) |
| - Water | 0.04 sq mi (0.0 km²) 0.10% |
| Elevation | 2,080 ft (633 m) |
| Population (2000)[1] | |
| - Total | 39,573 |
| - Density | 2,044.2/sq mi (789.3/km²) |
| Time zone | EST (UTC-5) |
| - Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP codes | 24060-24063 |
| Area code(s) | 540 |
| FIPS code | 51-07784[2] |
| GNIS feature ID | 1498405[3] |
| Website: http://www.blacksburg.gov/ | |
Blacksburg is an incorporated town located in Montgomery County, Virginia, United States. The population was 39,573 at the 2000 census. Blacksburg, Christiansburg, and Radford are the three principal jurisdictions of the Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses those jurisdictions and all of Montgomery County for statistical purposes. It is dominated economically and demographically by the presence of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (better known as Virginia Tech), a Virginia land-grant university.
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When European explorers led by Abraham Wood reached the present-day location of Blacksburg, Virginia in 1671, there were no longer any Native Americans that lived in the area. They followed Stroubles Creek, through the current locations of the town and campus of Virginia Tech to what they named Wood's River. The Wood party claimed all the lands drained by the river for King Charles II on September 17, 1671. It was renamed New River shortly afterward. During the 1740s, the Wood's River Land Company, which was represented by Col. James Patton, attained a large tract of land within present-day southwest Virginia. Part of the tract became Montgomery County and Pulaski County and was sold to settlers entering the region. The Draper and Ingles families were among those that built their homes somewhere between present locations of the campus and the subdivision of Hethwood. The settlement came to be called Draper's Meadow by 1748. Seven years later, the settlement was amongst the brutality of the French and Indian War. Sometime around July 30, 1755, the event now known as the Draper's Meadow massacre occurred. There is a bridge located near the Duck Pond today that is dedicated to the massacre. By the end of the war, Draper's Meadow was deserted.[4][5]
Samuel Black, whose family settled in Staunton, Virginia, bought 600 acres of land in the Draper’s Meadow area for his sons John and William in 1772. Smithfield Plantation, built in approximately 1774 by Col. William Preston,[5] sits on the original Draper's Meadow site, which is near the Duck Pond on the Virginia Tech campus. When Samuel Black died in 1792, the land was evenly divided into two sections by his sons. The road now known as Draper's Road is the dividing line between the sections. John Black's property covered the majority of today's central campus and William Black's property became most of central downtown area of present-day Blacksburg. In 1797, William laid out a small grid of streets and lots—16 blocks in all—on a portion of his land. The original town was limited to the area bounded by present-day Draper Road, Jackson Street, Wharton Street, and Clay Street.[4] The city logo contains 16 small squares that create a larger square, representing the original 16 square blocks that were a part of Black's design.
After he petitioned the state legislature to establish a town at the site, the official establishment and the founding of Blacksburg, Virginia was made on January 13, 1798 on the thirty-eight and three-quarter acre tract laid out by William Black, for whom the town was named. The following August 4, he signed over the deed to the land to the town trustees.[4] In the 1970s, Blacksburg's population more than tripled as Virginia Tech was annexed into the town and other land area was also brought in. The population grew from 9,000 people in 1970 to 30,000 in 1980.
Blacksburg is the site of the Blacksburg Electronic Village or BEV, conceived as a computer networking project of Virginia Tech in 1991 and officially born in 1993 as a way to link the town together using the Internet.
The Virginia Tech massacre was a school shooting comprising two separate attacks about two hours apart on April 16, 2007, on the Virginia Tech campus in Blacksburg. The perpetrator, Seung-Hui Cho, killed 32 people and wounded many more,[6] before committing suicide, making it the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history.[7]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 19.4 square miles (50.2 km²) of which 19.4 square miles (50.1 km²) is land and 0.04 square miles (0.1 km²), or 0.10%, is water. Blacksburg is 2,080 feet (634 m) above sea level. It is the 15th largest municipality[8] and the largest town in the state of Virginia.[9]
The tallest building in Blacksburg is Slusher Tower, a twelve story residence hall on the Virginia Tech campus. The building with the highest elevation is actually Lee Hall, another residence hall, home to the transmitter of campus radio station WUVT.
Normal Temperatures
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Max °F | 41.1 | 44.8 | 53.3 | 62.9 | 71.5 | 78.6 | 82.5 | 81.3 | 75.3 | 65.3 | 55.0 | 44.9 | 63.0 |
| Mean °F | 30.9 | 33.5 | 41.4 | 50.0 | 58.9 | 66.9 | 71.1 | 69.6 | 63.0 | 51.7 | 42.8 | 34.1 | 51.2 |
| Min °F | 20.6 | 22.1 | 29.4 | 37.0 | 46.3 | 55.2 | 59.7 | 57.8 | 50.7 | 38.0 | 30.6 | 23.2 | 39.2 |
Normal Precipitation
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Annual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inch | 3.37 | 3.02 | 3.83 | 3.83 | 4.39 | 3.93 | 4.17 | 3.68 | 3.39 | 3.19 | 2.96 | 2.87 | 42.63 |
As of the census[2] of 2000, there were 39,573 people, 13,162 households, and 4,777 families residing in the town, of which 23,895, or 60%, were college students.[10] The population density was 2,044.2 people per square mile (789.2/km²). There were 13,732 housing units at an average density of 709.4/sq mi (273.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 84.39% White, 7.80% Asian, 4.39% African American, 0.11% Native American 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.90% from other races, and 2.36% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.32% of the population.
There were 13,162 households out of which 16.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 28.7% were married couples living together, 5.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 63.7% were non-families. 26.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 3.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.79.
In the town the population was spread out with 9.7% under the age of 18, 57.4% from 18 to 24, 18.9% from 25 to 44, 9.2% from 45 to 64, and 4.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 22 years. For every 100 females there are 127.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 129.7 males.
The median household income was $22,513 and the median income for a family was $51,810. Males had a median income of $37,129 versus $24,321 for females. The per capita income for the town was $13,946. About 15.9% of families and 43.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.7% of those under the age of 18 and 6.1% of those 65 and older.
About 87% of the town's residents has in-home Internet access with 65% using a broadband connection.[8]
Not surprisingly, there are a lot of people that live in Blacksburg with an education beyond high school. Eighty-five percent of the community has a college education.[8]
The Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center is home to several companies of varying sizes including VTLS, Honeywell, Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Mailtrust (formerly Webmail.us), and the National Weather Service which maintains its Southwestern Virginia headquarters there.
- Bob Roop, American heavyweight Greco-Roman wrestler
- Brandon Stokley, NFL wide receiver for the Denver Broncos
- Thomas M. Price, American architect
- Henry Lee Lucas, serial killer, claimed to have killed 350+ victims
- Armory Art Gallery
- Caboose Park Recreation
- Kent Square
- Hahn Horticulture Garden
- Lyric Theatre
- Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech)
- The International Street Fair & Parade held in Blacksburg takes place on the first Saturday of every April. Over 110 countries are represented by the student body of Virginia Tech and individuals from the community during the festival. College Avenue is closed for food and craft booths and the stage features an eclectic mix of melodies and musical performances from around the world.[11]
- Steppin' Out, the town's annual street festival which has taken place on the first Friday and Saturday of every August since 1980, features over 150 artists and crafts people from around the United States selling unique handcrafted items, local merchants holding final clearance sidewalk sales, local restaurants selling food through outdoor vending, up to three stages of live performances, and fun for the entire family. The area from North Main Street and Alumni Mall (sometimes even more to the north) to South Main Street and Roanoke Street and Draper Road and Lee Street is designated for the festival. The Draper Mile Run, which was started in 1982, is a one-mile road race for runners of all ages that is held annually during the first evening of the festival.[12]
- The Roanoke Outdoor and Social Club
- Blacksburg United for Responsible Growth (BURG)
- The Downtown Merchants of Blacksburg
- ^ U.S. Census Bureau, State & County QuickFacts: Blacksburg (town), Virginia
- ^ a b "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey (2007-10-25). Retrieved on 2008-01-31.
- ^ a b c Blacksburg: A Brief Early History | Virginia Tech
- ^ a b Historic Smithfield: History and Research Resources
- ^ "Report of the Virginia Tech Review Panel" (pdf). Commonwealth of Virginia. Retrieved on 2007-08-31. Cho shot and wounded a further 17 people and caused injury to 6 others as they tried to flee.
- ^ "Fact File: Deadliest shootings in the U.S.". MSNBC. Retrieved on 2007-04-28.There have been several deadlier shootings in U.S. history, but not by a single gunman, and not on a school campus.
- ^ a b c Campus & Town Guide: Virginia Tech and the Town of Blacksburg.
- ^ Welcome to Blacksburg! | Virginia Tech
- ^ U.S. Census Bureau, American FactFinder: DP-2. Profile of Selected Social Characteristics: 2000
- ^ downtownBLACKSBURG.COM Events
- ^ downtownBLACKSBURG.COM Steppin' Out
| Virginia Tech massacre |
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| Articles |
| Timeline |
| Perpetrator |
| Media coverage |
- Town of Blacksburg
- Blacksburg Electronic Village
- The Roanoke Times
- New River Valley
- Virginia Tech
- Collegiate Times
- WUVT 90.7 FM
- Planet Blacksburg
- A Guide to Resources for the History of Blacksburg, Virginia
- Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce
- The Lyric Theatre
- Blacksburg, Virginia is at coordinates Coordinates:
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