Morgantown, West Virginia
Encyclopedia : M : MO : MOR : Morgantown, West Virginia
The population was 26,809 at the 2000 census. Morgantown is home to West Virginia University, which constitues 913 acres (3.7 km²) of the city and vicinity, and with the fall 2005 enrollment added an additional population of 26,051 students from every state, the District of Columbia, and 89 other nations. Morgantown is the county seat of Monongalia County[Geographic references#6GR6]. The city was founded by Zackquill Morgan.
During the 1970s, the U.S. Department of Transportation built an experimental personal rapid transit system in the city, citing the area's variety of seasonal climates and geographic elevations as factors in testing the technology's viability. The Morgantown Personal Rapid Transit (PRT) has been in use since 1975.
Geography
Morgantown is located at (39.633696, -79.950670)[Geographic references#1GR1].According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 26.2 km² (10.1 mi²). 25.4 km² (9.8 mi²) of it is land and 0.8 km² (0.3 mi²) of it (3.16%) is water.
Demographics
As of the census[Geographic references#2GR2] of 2000, there were 26,809 people, 10,782 households, and 4,183 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,056.2/km² (2,736.0/mi²). There were 11,721 housing units at an average density of 461.8/km² (1,196.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 89.48% White, 4.15% African American, 0.17% Native American, 4.15% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.51% from other races, and 1.48% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.54% of the population.There were 10,782 households out of which 15.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 29.1% were married couples living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 61.2% were non-families. 37.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.08 and the average family size was 2.76.
Morgantown's age distribution, which is heavily influenced by the presence of West Virginia University, is: 11.1% under the age of 18, 44.7% from 18 to 24, 20.4% from 25 to 44, 13.5% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23 years. For every 100 females there were 104.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.0 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $20,649, and the median income for a family was $44,622. Males had a median income of $33,268 versus $24,944 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,459. About 15.0% of families and 38.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.3% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over. Note, however, that traditional poverty statistics can be misleading when applied to communities with large student populations, such as Morgantown.
Following Census 2000, Monongalia County (with county seat Morgantown) and neighboring Preston County were acknowledged as a metropolitan statistical area (MSA) by the United States government. Estimates from 2004 put the metropolitan population at 113,500.
History
Morgantown is closely tied to the Anglo-French struggle for this territory. Until the Treaty of Paris in 1763, what is now known as Morgantown was greatly contested among settlers and Native Americans, as well as the English and the French. The treaty decided the issue in favor of the English, but Indian fighting continued almost to the beginning of the American Revolution.Several forts were built in the area after this conflict. Fort Pierpont was constructed towards the Cheat River, in 1769. Fort Coburn was built in 1770, near Dorsey's Knob. Fort Morgan was established in 1772 at the present site of Morgantown. Fort Dinwiddle, north several miles at Stewartstown was built in 1772. Fort Martin was established in 1773, several miles north on the Monongahela River. Fort Burris was erected in 1774 in the Suncrest area of Morgantown. Fort Kern was built in the Greenmont area of Morgantown in 1774, as well as other small forts that served the purpose at the time.
Morgantown was settled in 1772 by Zackquill Morgan. The Virginia General Assembly chartered the territory in 1785, and the first lot sale was held. Morgan received the charter for the establishment of Morgan's Town, Virginia, the future Morgantown. The town became part of the newly created state of West Virginia following the 1863 secession of slave-free counties from the slave state of Virginia.
Notable early structures that remaing standing in Morgantown in the mid-2000s include The Old Stone House, built in 1795 by Jacob Nuce on Long Alley, the modern-day Chestnut Street; and the John Rogers family home on Foundry Street, built in 1840 and occupied into the mid-2000s by the Dering Funeral Home.
Education
History
While informal schools existed from Morgantown's earliest days Core, Earl L. The Monongalia Story: A Bicentennial History, Vol. 3: Discord (Parsons, W.Va., McClain Printing Co., 1979), p. 97, the town established a one-story, coeducational, Virginia common school in July 1803. Students attended on a tuition basis. Ambler, Charles Henry. A History of Education in West Virginia from Early Colonial Times to 1949 (Huntington, W.Va., Standard Printing and Publishign Co., 1951), p. 2. On Nov. 29, 1814, the Virginia General Assembly incorporated Monongalia Academy, the the county's first public school.Core, Ibid., pp. 26-27 Supported by obligatory surveyors' fees, the male-only institution was the equivalent of a modern-day high school.Ibid., p. 45 It moved to a new two-story building in 1830, with principal Jonathan Haddock offering courses in geography, surveying and navigation in addition to traditional subjects. Presbyterian minister Reverend James Robertson Moore was principal during the Academy's 1852-1864 heyday, when its enrollment included students from 14 states.Ibid., p. 384 In 1867, the Academy closed, and donated its land toward the establishment West Virginia University.The Assembly in March 1831 authorized the creation of the Morgantown Female Academy. Proceeds from the sale of the original Monongalia Academy building funded construction of a two-story building at Bumbo Lane (the modern-day Fayette Street) and Long Alley (the modern-day Chestnut Street). This school opened April 1, 1834.Ibid., p. 114 After the Assembly approved a charter change in 1838, the school became known as the Methodist Academy.Ibid., p. 230 This prompted local Presbyterians to incorporate the Woodburn Female Seminary Company, for which the Monongalia Academy's Rev. Moore also served as principal. The seminary closed in 1866, and its assets, like those of the Monongalia Academy, donated toward the future university.
Following the 1863 creation of West Virginia, the new state's first legislature created a public-school system. The act provided for the education of "free colored children", and was adapted three years later to mandate education for all African-American children. However, a two-tier system was created: White children attended a regular term (at the second former Monongalia Academy building, purchased in 1867 from West Virginia Agricultural College, the future WVU), and a short term for African Americans, who met at St. Paul's African Methodist Episcopal Church, on Beechurst Avenue.Ibid., pp. 54, 632
Elementary and secondary schools
The city is served by Monongalia County Schools, up through Morgantown High School and University High School. Notable alumni of MHS include screenwriter-film director Lawrence Kasdan (class of 1966), actor Don Knotts (class of 1942), and TV college football analyst Terry Bowden.A Catholic high school, St. Francis Central, existed for several years into the 1990s, located between WVU's Towers dormitory complex and Patteson Drive. Its school mascot was the Trojans.
As of April 2005, Monongalia County Schools employs 897 professional personnel and 490 service personnel, and carries an enrollment of 10,076 students, including 156 adult students at the Monongalia County Technical Education Center. Three of Monongalia County's 23 schools have earned Exemplary Achievement status, according to the West Virginia Office of Educational Performance Audits' (OEPA) report issued November 2004.
West Virginia University
This is a public, land-grant institution, founded in 1867. With an operating budget of approximately $654 million as of the mid-2000s, it also has $150 million annually in sponsored contracts and research grants conducted by faculty members.Fall 2005 enrollment was 26,051, with students from all 55 state counties, 50 states plus the District of Columbia, and 89 other nations. Basic figures regarding the student body:
- 59 % residents, 41 % nonresidents
- 19,510 undergraduates
- 6,541 graduate and professional students
- 51 % male, 49 % female
- 7 % minorities
- Students residing in University housing: approximately 5,535
Famous people from Morgantown
- Ret. General Earl E. Anderson, youngest active-duty Marine to become General
- Terry Bowden, TV college football analyst
- Necro Butcher, professional wrestler
- Linda Goodman, writer and astrologer
- Lawrence Kasdan, screenwriter/director
- Don Knotts, actor
- David Selby, actor
- WVU student Asra Q. Nomani, former Wall Street Journal reporter, author and activist
- WVU student Sam Huff, New York Giants and Washington Redskins player and Pro Football Hall of Famer
- WVU student Jerry West, professional basketball player Los Angeles Lakers, professional basketball owner Memphis Grizzlies
- Several Miss West Virginias - Kimberly Goodwin (2005), Allison Williams (2003), Danae DeMasi (2001), Amy Townsend (1998)