Southwest Virginia, often abbreviated as SWVA, is a mountainous region of Virginia in the westernmost part of the commonwealth. The Commonwealth of Virginia ( is an American state Four of the constituent states of the United States officially designate themselves Commonwealths: Kentucky, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania Southwest Virginia has been defined alternatively as all Virginia counties on the Appalachian Plateau, all Virginia counties west of the Eastern Continental Divide, or at its greatest expanse, as far east as Blacksburg and Roanoke. The Appalachian Plateau is the western part of the Appalachian mountains, stretching from New York to Georgia and Alabama. The Eastern Divide or Eastern Continental Divide (ECD is a Continental divide in the United States that separates the Gulf of Mexico and WELCOME TO WIKIPEDIA **** Please read before you edit or add info about the shootings For the metropolitan area see Roanoke Metropolitan Area. Roanoke is an Independent city located in the Roanoke Metropolitan Area in Another geographic categorization of the region places it as those counties within the Tennessee River watershed. The Tennessee River is the largest tributary of the Ohio River. A drainage basin is an extent of Land where Water from Rain or Snow melt drains downhill into a body of water such as a River, Regardless of how borders are drawn, southwest Virginia differs from the rest of the commonwealth in that its culture is more closely associated to Appalachia than to the other regions of Virginia. Appalachia is a term used to describe a region in the eastern United States that stretches from southern New York state to northern Alabama, Historically, the region has been and remains rural, but in the 20th Century, coal mining became an important part of its economy up until the second half of the century. The twentieth century of the Common Era began on Coal mining is the extraction or removal of Coal from the Earth by Mining.
Counties that have been included in the definition of southwest Virginia include: Alleghany County, Bedford County, Bland County, Botetourt County, Buchanan County, Carroll County, Craig County, Dickenson County, Floyd County, Franklin County, Giles County, Grayson County, Henry County, Lee County, Montgomery County, Patrick County, Pulaski County, Roanoke County, Rockbridge County, Russell County, Scott County, Smyth County, Tazewell County, Washington County, Wise County, and Wythe County. Alleghany County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Bedford County is a county located in the US state of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Bland County is a county located in the southwestern portion of the U Botetourt County (ˈbɒtətɒt "Bot-uh-tot" is a county located in the U Buchanan County is a county located in the US state of Virginia. Carroll County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U Craig County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Dickenson County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Floyd County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Franklin County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Giles County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Grayson County is a county located in the southwestern part of the Commonwealth of Virginia of the United States. Henry County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Lee County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Montgomery County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Patrick County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Pulaski County is a country located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Roanoke County is a county located in the US state of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Rockbridge County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Russell County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Scott County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Smyth County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Tazewell County is a county located in the southwestern portion of the U Washington County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Wise County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. Wythe County is a county located in the US state &mdash officially " Commonwealth " &mdash of Virginia. It is often humorously noted by some residents of southwest Virginia that they live closer to eight other state capitals than to their own.
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History
The southwestern region of Virginia was among the last parts of the state to be settled by Europeans, in a flow of mirgrations that consisted mainly of the English, Germans, and the Scots-Irish. The English people (from the adjective in Englisc) are a Nation and Ethnic group native to England who predominantly speak English The German people (Deutsche are an Ethnic group, in the sense of sharing a common German culture, descent and speaking the German language as A major route of migration to the region was the Great Wagon Road through the Great Appalachian Valley. The Great Wagon Road was a Colonial American thoroughfare from Pennsylvania to North Carolina and from there to Georgia. The Great Valley, also called the Great Appalachian Valley or Great Valley Region, is one of the major landform features of eastern North America. At present-day Roanoke there was an important fork in the wagon road, with one branch passing through the Blue Ridge and into the Piedmont region, the other branch, called the Wilderness Road continuing southwest to Tennessee and Kentucky. Piedmont is a plateau region located in the eastern United States between the Atlantic Coastal Plain and the main Appalachian Mountains, stretching The Wilderness Road was the principal route used by settlers to reach Kentucky for more than fifty years Much of the area was formally protected by a series of forts constructed around the time of Lord Dunmore's War, some of which later became the seats of future counties. Dunmore's War (or Lord Dunmore's War) was a war from 1773 to 1774 between the Colony of Virginia and the Indian nations of the Shawnee and Mingo Many of the present day counties were formed from larger counties which were broken up as the populations in the region continued to grow. Southwestern Virginia is also the result of parts of Virginia which broke off or revolted, such as Kentucky and West Virginia. The Commonwealth of Kentucky ( is a state located in the East Central United States of America. West Virginia ( is a state in the Appalachian Upland South, and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States, bordered by During the American Revolution, residents from southwest Virginia were among those who participated in the Battle of King's Mountain. In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" The Battle of Kings Mountain, October 7, 1780, was an important Patriot victory in the Southern campaign of the American Revolutionary In the Civil War, southwest Virginia was deeply divided between sentiment for the Union and the Confederacy and was subject to guerilla warfare. Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty-three The Confederate States of America (also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States, and CSA) formed as the government set up from 1861 Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc The only major battle to occur in the area was the Battle of Saltville, while many skirmishes occurred through much of the region. In 1864, Union General George Stoneman, led a devastating raid into southwest Virginia, destroying the saltworks in Saltville and burning all that he thought useful to the Confederates. George Stoneman Jr ( August 22, 1822 – September 5, 1894) was a career United States Army officer a Union cavalry general Saltern is a word with a number of differing (but interrelated meanings Saltville is a town in Smyth and Washington counties in the U
Geography
The Appalachian Mountains have the most direct impact upon the geography of southwest Virginia and are often credited for isolating its residents from the rest of the commonwealth. The Appalachian Mountains ( often called the Appalachians, are a vast system of mountains in eastern North America. Southwest Virginia falls into the ridge and valley and the Blue Ridge Mountains portions of the Appalachia mountains. The Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, also called the Ridge and Valley Province or the Valley and Ridge Appalachians, are a physiographic province of The Blue Ridge, or Blue Ridge Mountains, is a physiographic province of the larger Appalachian division Within the mountains, coal fields have been one of the sources of the significant economic booms in the region. Coal mining is the extraction or removal of Coal from the Earth by Mining. The major river of the region is the New River, one of the oldest in North America. The New River, a tributary of the Kanawha River, is approximately 320 mi (515 km long flowing through the states of North Carolina, Virginia, and Flooding has been epidemic to the more mountainous areas with major floods occurring usually once every other decade with great loss of life and property. Such disasters have encouraged local precautions to prevent future problems, such as the Grundy Flood Control and Redevelopment Project, in Grundy, Virginia, a multi-million dollar effort to protect the city from future flooding. Grundy is a town in Buchanan County, Virginia, United States. [1]
Cities
Political representation
Like the rest of the commonwealth, southwest Virginia is represented by the Senators John Warner and Jim Webb in the United States Senate. Bedford is an Independent city located within the confines of Bedford County in the U Bristol is an Independent city in Virginia, bounded by Washington County Virginia, and Sullivan County Tennessee. Covington is an Independent city within the confines of Alleghany County in the state of Virginia. Galax (ˈgeɪlæks is an Independent city located in the southwestern part of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Martinsville is an Independent city surrounded by and the County seat of Henry County, Virginia, United States. Norton, formerly Prince's Flats is an Independent city within the confines of Wise County in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Radford is an Independent city in Virginia, United States. The population was 15859 at the 2000 census. For the metropolitan area see Roanoke Metropolitan Area. Roanoke is an Independent city located in the Roanoke Metropolitan Area in Salem is an Independent city in Virginia, USA, bordered by the city of Roanoke to the east but otherwise adjacent to Roanoke County John William Warner (born February 18 1927 is an American Politician, who served as Secretary of the Navy from 1972 to 1974 and has served as the James Henry "Jim" Webb Jr (born February 9 1946 is the Junior Senator from Virginia. The United States Senate is the Upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the Lower house being the House of Representatives In the House of Representatives, by the narrowest and almost to the largest definition of southwest Virginia, representation falls largely under Representative Rick Boucher of the 9th Congressional District. The United States House of Representatives is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress; the other is the Senate. For the similarly named State Department spokesman and former Ambassador and diplomat see Richard A A congressional district is an electoral Constituency that elects a single member of a Congress. Boucher has been a long term representative of the region in Congress, spending more than twenty-four years in office as a Democrat. The United States Congress is the bicameral Legislature of the federal government of the United States of America, consisting of two houses The Democratic Party is one of two major Political parties in the United States, the other being the Republican Party. His predecessor was William C. Wampler, a Republican, who had served a nearly equally long term of over eighteen years prior to his political defeat by Boucher. William Creed Wampler (born April 21, 1926) is a former United States Representative from Virginia. However, two other congressional representatives reside in southwest Virginia. Republican Robert Goodlatte of Roanoke represents the 6th Congressional District which also covers Lynchburg and much of the Shenandoah Valley, and Republican Virgil Goode of Franklin County represents the 5th Congressional District which covers the western part of Southside Virginia but also stretches north to Charlottesville. Robert William "Bob" Goodlatte (born September 22, 1952) ] is a Republican U Lynchburg is an Independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The Shenandoah Valley region of western Virginia and West Virginia is bounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains to the east and the Appalachian Virgil Hamlin Goode Jr (surname rhymes with mood, not would) born October 17, 1946, is an American politician and a Republican Traditionally the term Southside refers to the portion of Virginia east of the Blue Ridge Mountains and south of the James River, the geographic feature Charlottesville is an Independent city located within the confines of Albemarle County in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States Since most of southwest Virginia has experienced little to no population growth in recent decades, the 9th district has begun to encroach into areas previously in the 5th and 6th districts. Given the relatively rapid growth in the northern parts of the 5th and 6th districts, significant redrawing of the districts is likely when Goode and/or Goodlatte leave Congress or Democrats gain control of redistricting.
Education
Southwest Virginia is the location of several universities and colleges. The largest, located in Blacksburg, is Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, better known as Virginia Tech. WELCOME TO WIKIPEDIA **** Please read before you edit or add info about the shootings Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, better known as Virginia Tech, is a public land grant polytechnic University in
List of Colleges and Universities
- Appalachian School of Law
- Bluefield College
- Emory and Henry College
- Ferrum College
- Roanoke College
- Hollins University
- Jefferson College of Health Sciences
- Radford University
- Mountain Empire Community College
- Southwest Virginia Community College
- University of Appalachia College of Pharmacy
- University of Virginia's College at Wise
- Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine
- Virginia Intermont College
- Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
- Wytheville Community College
- Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine
See also
Notes
External links
- Southwest Virginia Heritage site
- Geography of Southwest Virginia
- http://www.buchanancounty.info/ Buchanan County, Virginia
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