Editing Pound, Virginia

{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2024}}
{{about|the town in Wise County, Virginia, USA|the river in Virginia|Pound River|the actress|Virginia Pound|the obsolete currency|Virginia pound}}
{{Infobox settlement
|name                     = Pound, Virginia
|settlement_type          = [[Town]]

<!-- Images -->
|image_skyline            = Main Street (Pound, VA).jpg
|image_caption            = Main Street (2017)
|image_flag               =
|image_seal               =

<!-- Maps -->
|image_map                = VAMap-doton-Pound.PNG
|map_caption              = Location in the Commonwealth of [[Virginia]]
|image_map1               =
|map_caption1             =

<!-- Location -->
|coordinates_footnotes    = <ref name="GNIS"/>
|coordinates              = {{coord|37|7|26|N|82|36|28|W|region:US_type:city|display=inline,title}}
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Virginia|County]]
|subdivision_name         = United States
|subdivision_name1        = [[Virginia]]
|subdivision_name2        = [[Wise County, Virginia|Wise]]

<!-- Established -->
|established_title        = Founded
|established_date         =
|established_title1       = [[Platted]]
|established_date1        =
|established_title2       = [[Municipal corporation|Incorporated]]
|established_date2        =
|named_for                =

<!-- Government -->
|government_footnotes     =
|government_type          =
|leader_title             = [[Mayor]]
|leader_name              = John Cauthorne
|leader age               = 19

<!-- Area -->
|area_footnotes           = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2019">{{cite web|title=2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2019_Gazetteer/2019_gaz_place_51.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=August 7, 2020|archive-date=October 16, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201016234816/https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2019_Gazetteer/2019_gaz_place_51.txt|url-status=live}}</ref>
|area_total_sq_mi         = 2.61
|area_land_sq_mi          = 2.60
|area_water_sq_mi         = 0.00
|area_total_km2           = 6.75
|area_land_km2            = 6.75
|area_water_km2           = 0.01
|unit_pref                = Imperial

<!-- Elevation -->
|elevation_footnotes      = <ref name="GNIS"/>
|elevation_ft             = 1565

<!-- Population -->
|population_footnotes     =
|population_as_of         = [[2010 United States census|2010]]
|population_total         = 1037
|pop_est_footnotes        = <ref name="USCensusEst2019CenPopScriptOnlyDirtyFixDoNotUse"/>
|pop_est_as_of            = 2019
|population_est           = 918
|population_density_sq_mi = 352.40
|population_density_km2   = 136.04

<!-- General information -->
|timezone                 = [[Eastern Standard Time Zone|EST]]
|utc_offset               = -5
|timezone_DST             = [[Eastern Daylight Time|EDT]]
|utc_offset_DST           = -4
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]
|postal_code              = 24279
|area_code_type           = [[North American Numbering Plan|Area code]]
|area_code                = [[Area code 276|276]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standards|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 51-64272 <ref name="GNIS"/>
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS ID]]
|blank1_info              = 1499906 <ref name="GNIS">{{cite gnis2|1499906|Pound, Virginia}}</ref>
|website                  = {{URL|http://www.poundva.gov/|poundva.gov}}
}}

'''Pound''' is a town in [[Wise County, Virginia|Wise County]], [[Virginia]], United States.<ref name="GNIS"/>  The population was recorded as 1,037 in the [[2010 United States Census]].

==History==
The Pound area was explored in 1751 by [[Christopher Gist]], and it is traditionally said to be the oldest settlement in Wise County.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Pound, Virginia Historical Marker |url=https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=90779 |access-date=May 24, 2022 |website=www.hmdb.org |language=en}}</ref> Also known as "The Pound," the name may derive from a family name, or from a pounding mill built in the area in 1815. The county's first [[post office]] was established there in 1848. Pound was not [[Incorporated town|incorporated]] until 1950, the last town in Wise County to do so.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Schneider |first=Gregory S. |date=May 23, 2022 |title=Va. lawmakers voted to dissolve a troubled town. Can residents save it? |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/05/23/pound-virginia-town-disappear/ |access-date=May 24, 2022}}</ref><ref name=":0" />

Historically, the town's economy benefited from the area's [[coal mining]] industry. In the 1940s, the town had nearly a dozen bars catering to miners from nearby [[Kentucky]]. As mining declined in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, Pound—like much of [[Southwest Virginia]]—saw its economy and tax base collapse.<ref name=":1" /> Over the following decades, fiscal and political difficulties led the [[Virginia General Assembly]] to pass a law in 2022 that would revoke the town's [[charter]] in 2023 unless improvements were made.<ref name=":1" /> Its charter was restored on February 2, 2023.<ref name="wp"/>

The [[Flat Gap High School]] and [[Sunnydale Farm]] are listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|version=2010a}}</ref>

=== Notable crimes ===
On November 30, 1927, Leonard Woods, a black coal miner and resident of [[Jenkins, Kentucky]], was lynched on the Virginia-Kentucky border in Pound. Woods had been jailed in Kentucky for the murder of 29-year-old Herschel Deaton of [[Coeburn, Virginia]], following an altercation on November 27.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://sites.jmu.edu/valynchings/va1927113001/|title=Leonard Woods in Wise Racial Terror: Lynching in Virginia, 1877-1927|language=en-US|access-date=June 22, 2019|archive-date=June 22, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190622191349/https://sites.jmu.edu/valynchings/va1927113001/|url-status=live}}</ref> On the night of the lynching, a crowd estimated between 400-500 surrounded the Kentucky jail Woods was held in and demanded he be released to their custody. The crowd then transported Woods to a wooden structure located in Pound adjacent to the recently constructed [[U.S. Route 23|US 23]] highway. By this time the mob, estimated at 1,500, oversaw the hanging of Woods, followed by the firing of over 500 shots at his body, according to a local reporter. Both Virginia and Kentucky authorities claimed they were not responsible for investigating the crime, and no one was prosecuted for the death of Leonard Woods.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Leidholdy|first=Alexander|title="Never Thot This Could Happen in the South!" the|date=Winter 2011|journal=Appalachian Journal|volume=38|issue=2/3|pages=198–232|jstor=41320297}}</ref>

In 1935, Pound gained national attention for the case of [[Edith Maxwell]], who was convicted in 1935 of murdering her father, Trigg Maxwell. She was pardoned in 1941 after appeals from [[Eleanor Roosevelt]] and the ''[[Washington Post]]'' raised funds for her legal defense.

==Geography==
Pound is located at {{coord|37|7|26|N|82|36|28|W|type:city}} (37.123820, -82.607859).<ref name="GR1">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=April 23, 2011|date=February 12, 2011|title=US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990|archive-date=August 24, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190824085937/https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of 2.6&nbsp;square miles (6.8&nbsp;km{{sup|2}}), all land.

===Climate===
The climate in this area is characterized by relatively high temperatures and evenly distributed precipitation throughout the year.  The [[Köppen Climate Classification|Köppen Climate System]] describes the weather as [[Humid subtropical climate|humid subtropical]], and uses the abbreviation ''Cfa''.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather-summary.php3?s=371644&cityname=Pound%2C+Virginia%2C+United+States+of+America&units= |title=Climate Summary for Pound, Virginia |access-date=September 6, 2013 |archive-date=September 10, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150910182359/http://www.weatherbase.com/weather/weather-summary.php3?s=371644&cityname=Pound%2C+Virginia%2C+United+States+of+America&units= |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1950= 1193
|1960= 1135
|1970= 995
|1980= 1086
|1990= 995
|2000= 1089
|2010= 1037
|estyear=2019
|estimate=918
|estref=<ref name="USCensusEst2019CenPopScriptOnlyDirtyFixDoNotUse">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/data/tables.2019.html|date=May 24, 2020|title=Population and Housing Unit Estimates|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=May 27, 2020|archive-date=April 21, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190421033121/https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/data/tables.2018.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|access-date=June 4, 2015|archive-date=October 3, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141003185009/https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|url-status=live}}</ref>
}}
At the [[2000 United States Census|2000 census]] there were 1,089 people, 455 households and 322 families in the town. The population density was 417.6 per square mile (161.1/km{{sup|2}}). There were 516 housing units at an average density of 197.9 per square mile (76.3/km{{sup|2}}).  The [[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census#2000 census|racial makeup]] of the town was 98.71% White, 0.09% Native American, 0.09% from other races, and 1.10% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.18%.<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=January 31, 2008|title=U.S. Census website|archive-date=December 27, 1996|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19961227012639/http://www.census.gov/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Of the 455 households 31.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 52.5% were married couples living together, 15.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.2% were non-families. 25.9% of households were one person and 14.3% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.88.

The age distribution was 24.0% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 29.8% from 25 to 44, 21.5% from 45 to 64, and 16.0% 65 or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 87.8 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 80.8 males.

The [[median income]] for a household in the town was $29,107, and the median family income was $33,688. Males had a median income of $32,065 versus $22,143 for females. The per capita income for the town was $14,375. About 19.4% of families and 23.0% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 37.9% of those under age 18 and 9.8% of those age 65 or over.

==Government==
The town is governed by an elected mayor and council. It employs a paid town manager, who has often been the same person as the mayor.<ref name=":1" />

The town council adopted an ordinance forbidding dancing without a permit (Section 127-138). When the town turned down a dance application, the ordinance was challenged and overturned by the federal District Court in 1999 as "unconstitutional on its face", 18 years after ordinance was created.<ref name="Weirdest Local Laws: Dancing in Pound, Virginia">{{Cite web|url=http://www.grunge.com/26819/weirdest-local-laws-us/s/dancing-in-pound-virginia/|title=Grunge - the world is weirder than you think|access-date=February 4, 2017|archive-date=February 5, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170205100056/http://www.grunge.com/26819/weirdest-local-laws-us/s/dancing-in-pound-virginia/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In the 2020s, financial and political issues plagued the town government. The town failed to pass a budget by its deadline, closed its police department, and was required by the state government to turn over its wastewater treatment facility to Wise County.<ref name=":1" /> Resignations and attendance problems deprived the town council of a [[quorum]], resulting in a judge appointing replacement members. In 2021, the county board of supervisors requested that the [[Virginia General Assembly]] revoke the town's [[charter]].<ref name=":1" /> In 2022, the General Assembly passed, and the [[Governor of Virginia|Governor]] signed into law, a bill to revoke the charter without a local [[referendum]], as of November 1, 2023, unless the town government sufficiently improved before then.<ref name=":1" /> On February 2, 2023, the General Assembly passed, and the Governor signed into law, a bill to restore the town's charter.<ref name="wp">{{cite web |title=Town of Pound emerges from death sentence in Virginia Assembly |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2023/02/02/virginia-town-pound-general-assembly/ |website=The Washington Post |access-date=February 4, 2023}}</ref>

==Education==
{{main|Wise County Public Schools (Virginia)}}
Pound has one public school: [[James Woodrow Adams Combined School]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wise.k12.va.us/schools.htm |title=School Information |access-date=November 12, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130518035055/http://www.wise.k12.va.us/schools.htm |archive-date=May 18, 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==Infrastructure==
===Highways===
[[U.S. Route 23 in Virginia|US 23]] runs through Pound and crosses into Kentucky at [[Pound Gap]]. Pound is also the proposed connection to US 23 for the planned [[U.S. Route 121|Coalfield Expressway]].

==Places of interest==
* [[Jefferson National Forest]]
* [[North Fork Pound Reservoir]]
* [[Pound Gap]]

==Notable people==
* [[Sean Brock]] - Chef
* [[Napoleon Hill]] - Author and motivational speaker, born in Pound in 1883<ref>{{Cite web |title=Pound Virginia - Birthplace of Napoleon Hill Author of Think and Grow Rich |url=http://www.tom2tall.com/Pound-Virginia.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141207232527/http://www.tom2tall.com/Pound-Virginia.html |archive-date=December 7, 2014 |access-date=December 1, 2014}}</ref>
* [[Edith Maxwell]] - American woman convicted and later pardoned of murder
* [[Tony Mullins]] - Songwriter
* [[Glenn Roberts (basketball)|Glenn Roberts]] - Professional Basketball Player
* [[Francis Gary Powers]] - [[Central Intelligence Agency|CIA]] pilot best known for his role in the [[1960 U-2 incident]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/05/23/pound-virginia-town-disappear/ ''Va. lawmakers voted to dissolve a troubled town. Can residents save it?''] - Washington Post - May 23, 2022

{{Wise County, Virginia}}
{{Virginia towns}}
{{Virginia}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Towns in Wise County, Virginia]]
[[Category:Towns in Virginia]]