Jefferson

Formed January 8, 1801 (14^th county)

Jefferson County (57,707), Charles Town (6,530)

The pleasant red brick Greek Revival structure was constructed in 1836 and restored in 1872.  It is located on Washington Street at George Street.  West Virginia State Highway 51 is Washington Street in this part of the town.  S. N. Lackland, T. N. Douglas and Andrew Kennedy combined on the designs.  The building was enlarged in 1910 and 1919.  The facility has columns and a tower with a working clock.  A Judicial Center was added in 1999.  The county was founded on January 8, 1801 from Berkeley County as the 14^th county.  Charles Town was the original county seat until 1866 when Shepherdstown assumed the seat.  Charles Town became the seat again in 1871.  Jefferson County is named for United States President Thomas Jefferson.  The county seat was named for Charles Washington, brother of George Washington.  Jefferson County is the birthplace of 1 West Virginia Governor, Emanuel W. Wilson. 

Jefferson County government consists of a sheriff and 5 Commissioners.  Five Circuit Court Judges serve Jefferson, Berkeley, and Morgan counties and Three Family Court Judges and Three Magistrate Court Judges serve Jefferson and Berkeley counties.  The county is on the tip of the eastern panhandle.  Baltimore, Maryland is southeast and Charleston, West Virginia is southwest of the county.  The county center is 1.5 miles North of Charles Town in Ranson.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Maryland and Virginia and Berkeley County.  The county is an overall triangle.  Charles Town is located in the southern third of the county.  Charles Town is the county seat and the largest city.  It is 11.3% of the county population. 

The area of the county is 210 square miles.  It is 50 out of 55 in the state.  It ranks 9 out of 55 in population in the state.  It has a density of 274.8 persons per square mile making it 6 out of 55 in the state.  Jefferson County has 25.7% of its population in its incorporated areas.  United States Highway 340 enters the county from the northeast, Virginia, and exits to the southwest, Virginia.  This county is in the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria Metropolitan Statistical Area.