Berkeley

Formed May 15, 1772 (2^nd county)

Berkeley County (122,078), Martinsburg (18,781)

The red brick Beaux Arts facility was constructed in 1850 and remodeled in 1908 and renovated in 2000.  It is located on King Street at Queen Avenue.  United States Highway 11 is four blocks to the northwest of the site.  Albert Fink was the original architect.  A Judicial Center was added in 2006 and an Administration Building has been recently added.  The courthouse features a dome.  There was a previous courthouse also in Martinsburg.  The county was formed on May 15, 1772 from Frederick County, Virginia as the 2^nd county with Martinsburg as the only county seat.  Berkeley County is named for Virginia Colonial Governor Norborne Berkeley.  The county seat was named for Virginia Legislator Thomas Bryan Martin. 

Berkeley County government consists of a sheriff and 5 Council Members.  Five Circuit Court Judges serve Berkeley, Jefferson, and Morgan counties and Three Family Court Judges and Five Magistrate Court Judges serve Berkeley and Jefferson counties.  The county is located in the northeast panhandle of West Virginia.  Charleston, West Virginia is southwest and Baltimore, Maryland is east of the county. 

The area of the county is 321 square miles.  It is 41 out of 55 in the state.  It ranks 2 out of 55 in population in the state.  It has a density of 380.3 persons per square mile making it 2 out of 55 in the state.  Berkeley County has 15.6% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 81 crosses the county north to south from Maryland to Virginia.  United States Highway 11 parallels Interstate Highway 81 from Maryland to Virginia.  The county center is 4.5 miles West-Northwest of Martinsburg nearer Nollville.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Maryland and Jefferson County and Virginia and Morgan County.  The county is an overall diamond shape.  Martinsburg is located slightly east of center in the county.  Martinsburg is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 15.4% of the county population.  This county is in the Hagerstown-Martinsburg Metropolitan Statistical Area.