Roane County, West Virginia
Historic newspapers, landmarks, and county history layers for genealogists and local historians.
At a glance
SummaryThe National Register of Historic Places includes 7 listed properties in the county, first listed in 1989. Most listings are in or near Spencer.
Summary generated automatically from the source data on this page.
Newspapers
Library of CongressNewspaper directory data for West Virginia is not yet loaded on this site. Browse Roane titles at the Library of Congress.
National Register of Historic Places
NPS NRHP4 of 7 listings mapped; some locations are restricted by NPS to protect sensitive sites.
7 listed properties
| Property | City | Listed |
|---|---|---|
| Chrystal Water and Power Company-Spencer Water and Ice Company | Spencer | 2007 |
| Heck, Albert S., Mansion | Spencer | 1999 |
| Laurel Hill District School | Spencer | 2019 |
| McWhorter, Honorable Joseph Marcellus, House | Spencer | 2020 |
| Robey Theatre | Spencer | 1989 |
| Spencer Commercial Historic District (Additional Documentation) | Spencer | 2025 |
| Spencer Presbyterian Church | Spencer | 2016 |
Source: National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Property links open NRHP nomination files at the National Archives.
County formation
Newberry AHCBRoane was formed in 1856 (1856-03-11) from Gilmer, Jackson, Kanawha.
ROANE created by Virginia from GILMER , JACKSON , and KANAWHA; on 20 June 1863 became a county in the state of West Virginia.
Source: Newberry Library, Atlas of Historical County Boundaries.
Population by decade
CensusRoane County population from 1860 to 2020 (Census historical series).
| 1860 | 1880 | 1900 | 1920 | 1940 | 1950 | 1960 | 1980 | 2000 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5,381 | 12,184 | 19,852 | 20,129 | 20,787 | 18,408 | 15,720 | 15,952 | 15,446 | 14,028 |
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau historical county population (Forstall 1790–1990) and public-domain / CC0 county population series through 2020.
Cemeteries & historical places
USGS GNIS158 cemeteries and 13 historical populated places (ghost towns / former settlements) recorded in USGS GNIS for this county.
Cemeteries — 80 of 158 listed
| Name |
|---|
| Abbott Cemetery |
| Amma Cemetery |
| Anderson Cemetery |
| Armstead Cemetery |
| Ashley Cemetery |
| Barnhouse Cemetery |
| Bays Cemetery |
| Bays Cemetery |
| Beckley Cemetery |
| Billy Hunt Cemetery |
| Bird Cemetery |
| Board Cemetery |
| Board Cemetery |
| Bower Cemetery |
| Brannon Cemetery |
| Callow Cemetery |
| Canterbury Cemetery |
| Carpenter Cemetery |
| Carper Cemetery |
| Carper Cemetery |
| Casey Cemetery |
| Chewning Cemetery |
| Chrislip Cemetery |
| Clover Cemetery |
| Coe - Holland Cemetery |
| Cook Cemetery |
| Cox Cemetery |
| Craig Hill Cemetery |
| Criner Cemetery |
| Cromwell Cemetery |
| Curtis Cemetery |
| Depue Cemetery |
| Deverick Cemetery |
| Droddy Cemetery |
| Dry Hill Cemetery |
| Eplin Chapel Cemetery |
| Eventide Cemetery |
| Ferrell Cemetery |
| Ferrell Cemetery |
| Ferrell Cemetery |
| Fox Cemetery |
| Galahoe Cemetery |
| Gandee Cemetery |
| Gandee Cemetery |
| Gandee Cemetery |
| Gandeeville Cemetery |
| Good Hope Cemetery |
| Green Cemetery |
| Groves Cemetery |
| Hall Cemetery |
| Harold Cemetery |
| Harper Cemetery |
| Harper Cemetery |
| Harper Cemetery |
| Hascue Cemetery |
| Helmic Cemetery |
| Hershberger Cemetery |
| Hershberger Cemetery |
| Hill Cemetery |
| Hively Cemetery |
| Hively Cemetery |
| Hodam Cemetery |
| Holbert Cemetery |
| Hubbard Cemetery |
| Hunt Cemetery |
| Hunt Cemetery |
| J Herbert Smith Cemetery |
| Jackson Cemetery |
| Jackson Cemetery |
| Jarvis Cemetery |
| Jarvis Cemetery |
| Jones Cemetery |
| Keffer Cemetery |
| Kelley Cemetery |
| Kelley Cemetery |
| Kincaid Cemetery |
| King Cemetery |
| Larch Cemetery |
| Laurel Point Cemetery |
| Looney Cemetery |
Historical populated places — 13 of 13
| Name |
|---|
| Bloomington |
| Buffalolick |
| Higby |
| Jingo |
| July |
| Kester |
| Leo |
| Mattie |
| Pad |
| Patsey |
| Shad |
| Virgil |
| Woodyard |
Source: USGS Geographic Names Information System (public domain). Cemeteries from the 2021 NationalFile archive; historical places from GNIS HistoricalFeatures topical extract.
Historical markers
HMdb linkMarker text and photos from the Historical Marker Database (HMdb) are not embedded here. HMdb allows non-commercial reuse with attribution, but commercial/compensated use needs written permission; this is a commercial site, so we only link out.
Search HMdb for Roane County, West Virginia
Terms: hmdb.org/copyright.asp. Linking is encouraged by HMdb.