Wayne

Formed January 18, 1842 (30^th county)

Wayne County (38,983), Wayne (1,441), Kenova (3,035)

The Neo-Classical tan brick and stone building was erected in 1924 and remodeled and enlarged in 1940 and 1971.  The county was organized on January 18, 1842 from Cabell County as the 30^th county and Wayne has always been the county seat.  The county is located on a square at Hendrick, South Court, Cleveland, and North Court streets.  West Virginia State Highway 37 is six blocks to the southwest of the site.  Milburn Heister & Company provided the designs.  The building features a tower and veteran memorials are on the grounds.  The county and its county seat are named for American Revolutionary War General Anthony Wayne. 

Wayne County government consists of a sheriff and 3 Commissioners.  Two Circuit Court Judges, One Family Court Judge and Three Magistrate Court Judges serve Wayne County.  The county is on the southwest border with both Ohio and Kentucky.  Charleston, West Virginia is east and Cincinnati, Ohio is west of the county.  The county center is 5.1 miles Southwest of Wayne.  The county is surrounded clockwise by Ohio and Cabell, Lincoln, and Mingo counties and Kentucky. 

The area of the county is 506 square miles.  It is 15 out of 55 in the state.  It ranks 14 out of 55 in population in the state.  It has a density of 77.0 persons per square mile making it 18 out of 55 in the state.  Wayne County has 26.5% of its population in its incorporated areas.  Interstate Highway 64 crosses east to west in the northern part of the county from Cabell County to Kentucky.  United States Highway 52 is joined with Interstate Highway 64 from Cabell County, splits and continues south into Mingo County.  United States Highway 60 parallels Interstate Highway 64 from Cabell County to Kentucky.  The county resembles a Native American head arrow tip.  The City of Wayne is located near the center of the county.  Kenova is on the northwest border of the county.  Wayne is the county seat and Kenova is the largest city.  Wayne is 3.7% of the county population while Kenova is 7.8% of the county population.  The largest city is pronounced KE-NOE-VA.  This county is in the Huntington-Ashland Metropolitan Statistical Area.