Webster County

Adam Stroud, who came to the region in about 1769, is believed to be the first white settler in the Webster area.

Considered rugged and remote, it would be 91 years, in 1860, before the area was made into a county. Webster County came from parts of Nicholas, Braxton and Randolph counties and was named for Daniel Webster. The county was the last one made by the Virginia government before the state split during the Civil War.

The war interrupted the organization of the county and for a short period of time neither state government had control. It was not until 1865 that the formation of the county was complete.

Early lumbering operations floated the logs down river to a mill in Charleston. Rail lines later carried both the timber and coal out of the region.

The county seat is located in Webster Springs.

Source: The 55 West Virginias: A guide to the State's Counties, by E. Lee North, Published by The West Virginia University Press.

Population: 9,719
Land in square miles: 556
Number of people per square mile: 17.5
More facts from the 2000 Census