Lewisburg, West Virginia

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Downtown Lewisburg (©2004 A.E. Crane, courtesy of byways.org)

Lewisburg is a city in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 3,624 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Greenbrier County^GR6.

1 Geography
2 Demographics
3 History
4 Notable people from Lewisburg
5 External links

[edit] Geography

Lewisburg is located at 37°48′15″N, 80°26′25″W (37.804076, -80.440408)^GR1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 9.9 km² (3.8 mi²), all land.

[edit] Demographics

As of the census^GR2 of 2000, there were 3,624 people, 1,746 households, and 1,000 families residing in the city. The population density was 367.3/km² (951.0/mi²). There were 1,929 housing units at an average density of 195.5/km² (506.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 90.73% White, 6.68% African American, 0.44% Native American, 0.52% Asian, 0.36% from other races, and 1.27% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.66% of the population.

There were 1,746 households out of which 20.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.6% were married couples living together, 8.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.7% were non-families. 38.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 19.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.04 and the average family size was 2.69.

In the city the population was spread out with 17.8% under the age of 18, 6.8% from 18 to 24, 22.8% from 25 to 44, 28.3% from 45 to 64, and 24.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 47 years. For every 100 females there were 79.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 74.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $27,857, and the median income for a family was $42,940. Males had a median income of $38,056 versus $21,386 for females. The per capita income for the city was $22,139. About 12.4% of families and 19.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21.2% of those under age 18 and 16.6% of those age 65 or over.

[edit] History

Civil War cemetery, Lewisburg

Lewisburg is named after Andrew Lewis. In 1751 Lewis, as a young surveyor, established a camp near the spring behind the present courthouse. This spring has been known as the Lewis Spring since that time. During Pontiac's Rebellion in 1763, American Indians completely destroyed two of the early European settlements in Greenbrier County, killing the men and carrying off the women and children. This raid virtually eliminated all of the earliest settlers in the county. The American Indians were primarily Shawnees, and (according to undocumented tradition) were led by the famous leader Hokoleskwa, or Cornstalk.

By 1770 a fortified encampment called Fort Savannah was established at the Lewis Spring. In 1774, Governor Dunmore of Virginia instructed then-Colonel Andrew Lewis to gather "willing and able men" to go to the great Kanawha River and stand against the native American forces that were attacking the Greenbrier Valley. In what became known as Lord Dunmore's War, over 1,490 men were assembled, some at Fort Pitt at present-day Pittsburgh, and others at Fort Union, on the site of present-day Lewisburg. These recruits included Lewis’s brother Charles, and others which history books refer to as one of the most remarkable assemblages of frontier leaders in American history. Thirteen were men of political and military distinction. Lewis's army marched down the New and Kanawha Rivers to the Ohio River, where they intended to cross over and invade the Ohio Country, which was the home of the Shawnees. The native Americans, led by Cornstalk, attempted to cut them off at the mouth of the Kanawha, where they fought an inconclusive battle that came to be known as the Battle of Point Pleasant. (Allan W. Eckert (2001). The frontiersmen: a narrative. Ashland, Ky: Jesse Stuart Foundation. ISBN 0-945084-90-0. Pages 78, 98-99).

Lewisburg was formally established in 1782 by an act of the Virginia General Assembly.

To accommodate Virginians west of the mountains, several Virginia courts sat in Lewisburg, where Patrick Henry once successfully defended a client accused of murder. The town and the surrounding farms prospered and a number of spas and resort hotels were established at some of the outlying mineral springs.

During the Civil War a number of engagements were fought in and around Lewisburg. Several of the present buildings in town were used as a hospitals and barracks by both sides in this conflict, and bullet marks can still be seen in some today. The Virginia Supreme Court library, located in Lewisburg and now the Greenbrier County Library, was used as a hospital and has preserved a section of wall with soldiers' graffiti.

Today Lewisburg is home to the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine, one of 19 osteopathic medical schools in the United States.

In 1978, a 236-acre area in the heart of Lewisburg was designated a National Register Historic District.

Carnegie Hall, Inc., Lewisburg

In 1902, steel baron and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie built Carnegie Hall as a classroom building for the Lewisburg Female Institute, later the Greenbrier College for Women. Carnegie Hall, Inc. was incorporated in 1983 as a regional not-for-profit arts and education center. Today, the cultural center annually serves more than 75,000 patrons with live performances by artists from around the world, arts in education programming, classes, workshops, fine art exhibits, an independent film series and more. Carnegie Hall, Inc. is one of only four Carnegie Halls still in continuous use in the world.