Putnam County
From West Virginia (WV) Cyclopedia
Among the most productive agricultural counties in West Virginia, Putnam was created in 1848 from parts of Mason, Cabell, and Kanawha counties and named in honor of New England patriot Gen. Israel Putnam. Union and Rebel forces collided in Putnam County in July 1861 at the Battle of Scary Creek, the first U.S. Civil War engagement in the Kanawha Valley. Many prehistoric mounds were located in the county. Its economy is tied to the Charleston and Huntington metropolitan areas. I-64 follows the Teays Valley through south-central Putnam County, linking either metro area.
County Seat: Winfield, WV
Population: 51,589 (2000 Census (http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/SAFFFacts?_event=Search&geo_id=05000US54039&_geoContext=01000US%7C04000US54%7C05000US54039&_street=&_county=putnam&_cityTown=&_state=04000US54&_zip=&_lang=en&_sse=on))
Putnam County Profile (http://www.wvbep.org/bep/lmi/CNTYPROF/CP99putn.htm)
Lodging: Putnam County Hotels (http://www.reservetravel.com/v4/redir.aspx?type=geo&rad=15&lbl=Putnam%20County&lat=38.491484&lon=-81.922069&siteid=7790)
Schools: Putnam County Schools (http://boe.putn.k12.wv.us/boe/index.html)
Libraries: Putnam County Libraries (http://putnam.lib.wv.us/)
Cities, Towns, and Villages
The largest incorporated communities in Putnam County are located amid the broad bottoms of the Kanawha Valley and in the rolling pastures of the Teays Valley. Most are situated along highways US-35 and WV-62 in the Teays Valley, and along US-60 and I-64 in the valley of the Kanawha.
Nitro, WV
Buffalo, WV
Winfield, WV
Red House, WV
Hurricane, WV
Many small villages are located atop and among the ridges beyond the valleys. Most were established during the timber-harvesting period in the region in the mid- to late 1800s:
Confidence, WV
Eleanor, WV
Bancroft, WV
Extra, WV
Poca, WV
Liberty, WV
Paradise, WV
Winter, WV
Points of Interest
Buffalo Indian Village
Amherst/Plymouth Wildlife Management Area
General Description
Much of Putnam County is in farmland and woodland. Particularly large farms have been worked in the broad bottoms along the Kanawha River and at the mouths of its major tributaries. Many smaller farms follow winding tributary streams through the ridges beyond; many more lay along the tableland regions above the valley, which rise 500 feet above the mean river level. The region is recognized for its pastoral beauty, far more sedate than the rugged mountainous beauty often associated with the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia. The county is entirely contained with the Allegheny Plateau region of Appalachia. The largest communities in Putnam County are located in the Kanawha Valley. Most are commercial centers a bedroom communities of the Charleston and Huntington metropolitan regions.
History
Created by the Virginia Assembly in 1848 from parts of Mason, Cabell, Kanawha counties, Putnam was named in honor of New England soldier and patriot Gen. Israel Putnam. Many examples of commercial, residential, and ecclesiastical architecture of early 1800s are extant. Buffalo, in central Putnam County, may be one of the oldest continuously inhabited communities in North America, having been settled relatively early by native Americans and still being inhabited when the first European settlers arrived. Excavations at the village in 1963-1964 uncovered a central plaza surrounded by ceremonial buildings and a semi-circle of houses, all enclosed in a stockade. Then as now, residents enjoyed the bounty of the river, its fertile bottoms, and the wooded hills that extend into the distance beyond.
Climate
Temperature Mean Annual Average: 54 (Degrees F)
January Averages: High 41 (Degrees F) -- Low 21 (Degrees F)
July Averages: High 86 (Degrees F) -- Low 64 (Degrees F)
Long Term Precipitation
January: 2.68 inches -- July: 4.67 (inches) -- Annual: 41.2 (inches)
Mean Annual Snowfall Range
25 - 30 inches
Putnam County Weather Forecast (http://www.wvwebsites.com/cgi-bin/weather/hamweather.cgi?theme=default&user=default&forecast=zandh&state=wv&zone=014)
