Brooke

Formed November 30, 1797 (11^th county)

Brooke County (22,551), Wellsburg (2,450), Follansbee (2,848)

The 1849 Greek Revival building is located on Main Street between 6^th and 7^th streets.  West Virginia State Highway 2 passes three blocks to the east of the location.  J. W. Kerr provided the red brick designs.  The building was enlarged with an Annex in 1977.  The structure features columns and a tower.  The first courthouse was built in 1799.  The county was organized on November 30, 1797 from Ohio County as the 11^th county and Wellsburg has always been the county seat.  Brooke County is named for Virginia Governor Robert Brooke.  The county seat was named for Alexander Wells, son-in-law of a settler. 

Brooke County government consists of a sheriff and 3 Commissioners.  Three Circuit Court Judges, Two Family Court Judges and Two Magistrate Court Judges serve Brooke, Hancock, and Ohio counties.  The county is in the northern panhandle of West Virginia.  Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is east and Charleston, West Virginia is south of the county.  The county looks like a laboratory flask.  Wellsburg is located on the western border of the county.  Follansbee is on the northwest border of the county.  Wellsburg is the county seat and Follansbee is the largest city.  Wellsburg is 10.9% of the county population while Follansbee is 12.6% of the county population.  The largest city is pronounced FOL-LANS-BEE. 

The area of the county is 89 square miles.  It is 54 out of 55 in the state.  It ranks 28 out of 55 in population in the state.  It has a density of 253.4 persons per square mile making it 7 out of 55 in the state.  Brooke County has 48.2% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 22 crosses the county from east to west from Pennsylvania to Ohio.  The county center is 4.2 miles Northeast of Wellsburg nearer Arnold.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Hancock County and Pennsylvania and Ohio County and Ohio.  This county is in the Weirton-Steubenville Metropolitan Statistical Area.