Kingwood, West Virginia

The county seat of Preston County, Kingwood, WV (map (http://www.wvamaps.com/index.php/?place=Kingwood&state=wv&lat=39.4717&lon=-79.6836&elev=1863&pop=2944)) was established in 1811, but not chartered until 1853. The town's name was selected because of the location near the site of the court house of a forest of unusually tall trees -- forest kings, i.e., "kings wood." The town was built around a spring, from which is streets climb steeply. The town is located amid the broad tablelands known widely as the "Buckwheat Belt." Kingwood is the site of the annual Preston County Buckwheat Festival. See also: Kingwood Tunnel

Elevation: 1863 feet
Population: 2,944 (2000 Census)
Longitude: -79.6836
Latitude: 39.4717

Early Settlement of Kingwood, WV

Near the union of the Morgantown and Clarksburg branches of the state road leading to Winchester in 1800 was a wooded site well known as a camping place on the route so much used by early settlers of Kentucky who reached the Ohio at the fort opposite Marietta. The cluster of houses there in 1807 was named Kingwood which was established as a town in 1811. The perceptible progress of settlement around the town after 1813, and other changes of conditions resulted in the formation of Preston County in 1818 without objection of Monongahela. Kingwood, the oldest town, because the county seat. By 1845 Kingwood had about thirty dwellings and several stores.

Variant Name(s) for Kingwood, WV

The Kings Woods

(http://www.wvamaps.com/maps/index.php?place=Kingwood&state=WV&pop=2944&county=Preston&lat=39.4717&lon=-79.6836&elev=1863) Map of Kingwood, WV (http://www.wvamaps.com/maps/index.php?place=Kingwood&state=WV&pop=2944&county=Preston&lat=39.4717&lon=-79.6836&elev=1863) showing streets and highways, and nearby airports, parks, hospitals, buildings, churches, cemeteries, trails and more; with link to driving directions.

Topo map (http://www.topozone.com/map.asp?lat=39.4717&lon=-79.6836) of Kingwood, WV and vicinity