Preston County, West Virginia

Founding: 1818
Parent county: Monongalia

Namesake: James Preston, Virginia governor
Seat: Kingwood (1818–)

Land area: 649 square miles

Population (2020): 34,216

Population (historic): 3,422 (1820); 11,708 (1850); 14,555 (1870); 22,727 (1900); 29,043 (1930)

Periods of population growth: pre-1820–1950; 1970s; 1990–2020

Subdivisions: One city; nine towns; one CDP

Pre-1940 residences (estimated): 3,295 (21.8%)
Pre-1940 housing survival rate: 40.6%
Pre-1860 housing survival rate (1940): 10.7%

Farm housing in disrepair (1950): 21.2%

Nonfarm housing in disrepair (1950): 16%

Average farmhouse value (1930): $909
Average outbuilding value (1930): $641
Average farmhouse size (1940): 5.7 rooms
Number of farms (1920): 2,406
Average farm size (1920): 63.1 acres
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Kingwood

Namesake: Unclear—perhaps a reference to the region's forests

Founding: 1807 (platting); 1811 (post office); 1853 (incorporation)

Population (2020): 2,980

Population (historic): 365 (1880); 700 (1900); 1,709 (1930)

Periods of population growth: pre-1880–1930; 1940–1990; 2010s
Pre-1940 residences (estimated): 259 (19%)
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Outstanding Buildings

1. Log House (c. 1782). 17098 Brandonville Pike.
2. Thomas Brown House (1837). 1012 Dogtown Road.
3. Red Horse Tavern / Henry Grimes House (1827). 25395 George Washington Highway.
4. Archibald Gribble Farm (1842). 2503 Pisgah Road.
5. Farm (1818). 1358 North Preston Highway.

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