Amherst County, Virginia

Amherst County is a located in the  &mdash; officially, "" &mdash; of. As of the, the population was 31,894. Its is.

History
Amherst County was formed in, from parts of. The county was named for Sir, known as the "Conqueror of ". Jeffrey Amherst was named, although he never came to the colony. Native Americans were the first humans to populate the area. They hunted and fished mainly along the countless rivers and streams in the county. With the establishment of the Virginia Colony in 1607, English emigrants arrived in North America. By the late 1600's English explorers and traders traveled up the James River to this area. Early trading posts formed between 1710 and 1720. By 1730, many new families moved into the land currently known as Amherst County drawn by the desire for land and the good tobacco-growing soil.

In 1761, Amherst County was formed from the southern half of Albemarle County. The original county seat had been in Cabelsville, now Colleen in what would later become Nelson County. The county was named for Sir Jeffrey Amherst who commanded the British forces that successfully secured Canada from the French. In 1806 the county assumed its present proportions when Nelson County was formed from its northern half. At that point, the county seat was moved to the village of Five Oaks, later renamed Amherst. The present county courthouse was built in 1870 and has served the county ever since.

In the early days the major crop raised in Amherst County was tobacco with apple orchards becoming popular in the late 19th century. Timber, mining and milling were also important industries. The introduction of the railroad in the late 19th century greatly influenced the county's growth. The county contains many good examples of 18th, 19th and early 20th century rural and small town architecture. The downtown area of Amherst is a classic example of early 20th century commercial architecture.

Geography
According to the, the county has a total area of 1,240 (479 ). 1,231 km² (475 mi²) of it is land and 9 km² (4 mi²) of it (0.75%) is water.

Demographics
As of the of 2000, there were 31,894 people, 11,941 households, and 8,645 families residing in the county. The was 26/km² (67/mi²). There were 12,958 housing units at an average density of 11/km² (27/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 77.67%, 19.79% or , 0.81% , 0.35% , 0.02% , 0.41% from , and 0.94% from two or more races. 0.96% of the population were or  of any race.

There were 11,941 households out of which 31.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.00% were living together, 12.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 27.60% were non-families. 24.00% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 2.95.

In the county, the population was spread out with 23.50% under the age of 18, 9.70% from 18 to 24, 27.70% from 25 to 44, 25.30% from 45 to 64, and 13.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 91.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.10 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $37,393, and the median income for a family was $42,876. Males had a median income of $31,493 versus $22,155 for females. The for the county was $16,952. About 8.00% of families and 10.70% of the population were below the, including 13.20% of those under age 18 and 11.60% of those age 65 or over.

Notable residents

 * (1761-1834), born in Amherst County,
 * , born in Amherst County, first white man to open what would become the
 * (1756-1818), born in Amherst County, United States Congressman
 * (1785-1872), born in Amherst County, noted "hellfire and brimstone" preacher
 * , (1790-1863), born in Amherst County, justice of the, from Mississippi, and minister to Mexico.  , is named in his honor.
 * , (1982- ), born in Amherst County, Auburn University Grad (2006), 2LT United States Army