Formed January 1, 1858 (98th county)
Buchanan County (20,348), Grundy (888)
The gray stone and masonry Renaissance Revival courthouse was built in 1906 and remodeled in 1917 and 1984. The courthouse is on Main Street at Walnut Street. Main Street is United States Highway 460. The building was enlarged in 1951. Frank Pierce Milburn is the architect. The courthouse features a tower with a working clock. Veteran memorials are on the grounds. There were 1858, 1862, 1866, and 1886 courthouses previously all in Grundy, the only county seat. Buchanan County was formed on January 1, 1858 from parts of Russell and Tazewell counties as the 98th county. It is named for United States President James Buchanan. The county seat is named for United States Attorney General Felix Grundy. Accomack County is the birthplace to 1 Virginia Governor, Henry A. Wise.
Buchanan County government consists of a sheriff and 7 Supervisors. Four Circuit Court Judges and Four District Court Judges serve Buchanan, Dickenson, Russell, and Tazewell counties and Fifty-three Magistrate Court Judges serve Buchanan, Bland, Carroll, Dickenson, Floyd, Giles, Grayson, Lee, Montgomery, Pulaski, Russell, Scott, Smyth, Tazewell, Washington, Wise, and Wythe counties and Bristol, Galax, Norton, and Radford cities. The county is in the southwest part of Virginia on the border with both West Virginia and Kentucky. Knoxville, Tennessee is southwest and Charleston, West Virginia is northeast of the county. The county center is 10.4 miles Southeast of Grundy nearer Oakwood. The county is surrounded clockwise by West Virginia and Tazewell, Russell, and Dickenson counties and Kentucky.
The area of the county is 504 square miles. It is 22 out of 133 in the state. It ranks 81 out of 133 in population in the state. It has a density of 40.4 persons per square mile making it 110 out of 133 in the state. Buchanan County has 4.4% of its population in its incorporated areas. United States Highway 460 enters the county from the northwest, Kentucky, and exits to the southeast, Tazewell County. The county looks like a paper sack tipping toward the east. Grundy is located in the western third of the county. Grundy is the county seat and the largest city since it is the only incorporated city. It is 4.4% of the county population. The county seat is pronounced GRUN-DEE.
Grundy
