Neighborhoods

Aerial view of downtown Morgantown.

Morgantown is made up of several neighborhoods, some of which had been independent towns that were annexed by the city as it continued to grow. Neighborhoods include First Ward, Woodburn, South Park, Jerome Park, South Hills, Second Ward, Greenmont, Suncrest, Evansdale, Wiles Hill, Sunnyside, Sabraton, the Mileground, and North Hills. While some of these, such as the Mileground, Easton, and Sabraton, are in part or entirely outside the city limits, they are still considered part of Morgantown. The City of Morgantown contained just over 30,000 permanent residents in 2020.^[8] The city is host to about 30,000 students at West Virginia University.^[12]

Sunnyside, just north of downtown Morgantown, is an older neighborhood adjacent to West Virginia University's downtown campus. The neighborhood is bounded by University Avenue to the east and Campus Drive to the south. Close to the downtown campus of West Virginia University and for decades known as a neighborhood of student housing, is also the scene of many off-campus parties and post-game celebrations including, until 1995, the unsanctioned annual back-to-school block party that would annually draw upward of 10,000 revelers to celebrate the start of fall classes.^[13][14] The university and city put an end to the tradition that year after two students were shot the previous year.^[13][15] The City of Morgantown and West Virginia University jointly established the Sunnyside Up Project: Campus Neighborhoods Revitalization Corporation, dedicated to the redevelopment of this area. The first step was to create a comprehensive revitalization plan, which was published in fall 2004.^[16] The university's Summit Hall Dormitory and the Honors Hall Dormitory are in the southern part of the neighborhood.

Woodburn used to be farmland on the hills to the east of downtown Morgantown. The area saw a rapid growth in population at the beginning of the 20th century as home to tinsmiths from Wales who came to work in the tinplate mill that later became the Sterling Faucet Company plant in Sabraton. A trolley line ran the length of Richwood Avenue and originally connected downtown with Sabraton. The Welsh community was active in the Methodist Church at the intersection of High Street and Willey Street, and held picnics in Whitemoore Park, the main green space in Woodburn.^[17] Many of these immigrants retained the Welsh language, and as late as the 1930s it was common to hear Welsh spoken on the streets of Woodburn and the community was known for carrying on a traditional eisteddfod every year.

Located in the southeastern part of Morgantown, Sabraton is a former coal town and was previously known as Sturgiss City and Sabraton Station. The community was named after Sabra Vance Sturgiss, the wife of a local judge.^[18] Part of Sabraton was home to a tin plate mill, which later become a manufacturing plant for Sterling Faucet. In its early days, Sabraton was connected to downtown Morgantown by a trolley line that ran the length of Richwood Avenue. Its amenities include Marilla Park.^[19]

Terrain

Morgantown lies in the Appalachian Region. The city is hilly with several sections rising over 1,200 feet (370 m) in elevation. The highest point is 1,398 feet (426 m) on Sky Rock in Dorsey Knob Park. The lowest point is on the banks of the Monongahela River at 800 feet (240 m). The area surrounding Morgantown is mountainous. Coopers Rock State Forest, 12 miles (19 km) east of Morgantown, has elevations between 2,000 feet (610 m) and 2,400 feet (730 m) above sea level.

Climate

Morgantown lies on the border between a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa) and a humid continental climate (Köppen Dfa), with four distinct seasons. Winters are cool to cold with a January daily mean temperature of 32.0 °F (0.0 °C), an average annual snowfall of 27.6 inches (70 cm) and 1.3 nights of sub-0 °F (−18 °C) readings.^[20] Summers are hot and humid with a July daily mean temperature of 74.1 °F (23.4 °C) and 13.2 days of 90 °F (32 °C)+ highs annually.^[20] Precipitation is generous, with winter being the driest period and May through July the wettest. Extreme temperatures range from −25 °F (−32 °C) on February 10, 1899, up to 105 °F (41 °C) on August 26, 1893.

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, there were 30,347 people and 11,673 households residing in the city. There were 13,887 housing units in Morgantown. The racial makeup of the city was 83% White, 4.6% African American, 3.7% Asian, 0.2% Native American, 1.3% from other races, and 7.1% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 4.1% of the population.

Of the 11,673 households, 28.3% were married couples living together, 34.6% had a male householder with no spouse present, 28.3% had a female householder with no spouse present. The average household and family size was 2.71. The median age in the city was 24.4 years. Which is 43% less than the state average of 42.8.^[25]

2010 census

As of the census^[26] of 2010, there were 29,660 people, 11,701 households, and 3,827 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,916.4 inhabitants per square mile (1,126.0/km²). There were 12,664 housing units at an average density of 1,245.2 per square mile (480.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 89.7% White, 4.1% African American, 0.1% Native American, 3.4% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.6% from other races, and 2.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 2.6% of the population.

There were 11,701 households, of which 12.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 23.1% were married couples living together, 6.5% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.1% had a male householder with no wife present, and 67.3% were non-families. 36.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.05 and the average family size was 2.71.

The median age in the city was 22.6 years. 8.2% of residents were under the age of 18; 52.1% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 18.4% were from 25 to 44; 13.1% were from 45 to 64; and 8.1% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the city was 53.5% male and 46.5% female.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 26,809 people, 10,782 households, and 4,183 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,736.0 people per square mile (1,056.2/km²). There were 11,721 housing units at an average density of 1,196.2 per square mile (461.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 89.48% White, 4.15% African American, 0.17% Native American, 4.15% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 0.51% from other races, and 1.48% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.54% of the population.

There were 10,782 households, out of which 15.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 29.1% were married couples living together, 7.0% had a female householder with no husband present, and 61.2% were non-families. 37.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 9.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.08 and the average family size was 2.76.

Morgantown's age distribution, which is heavily influenced by the presence of West Virginia University, is: 11.1% under the age of 18, 44.7% from 18 to 24, 20.4% from 25 to 44, 13.5% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 23 years. For every 100 females, there were 104.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 105.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $20,649, and the median income for a family was $44,622. Males had a median income of $33,268 versus $24,944 for females. The per capita income for the city was $14,459. About 15.0% of families and 38.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.3% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.

West Virginia University

Woodburn Circle on the campus of West Virginia University

West Virginia University (WVU) is a public land-grant university, founded in 1867. With an operating budget of approximately $1.2 billion as of 2022,^[35] it also has $150 million annually in sponsored contracts and research grants conducted by faculty members.

Fall 2021 enrollment was 28,267, with students from all 55 West Virginia counties, 49 states plus the District of Columbia, and 112 countries. Some basic 2021 figures regarding the student body are:

• 46% residents, 54% nonresidents
• 21,086 undergraduates
• 5,753 graduate and professional students
• 53% female, 47% male
• 18% minorities

The 2022–2023 curriculum is supported by 13 colleges and schools offering 350 bachelor's, master's, doctoral, and professional degree programs in the arts and sciences; business and economics; creative arts; engineering and mineral resources; human resources and education; journalism; law; agriculture, forestry, and consumer sciences; dentistry; medicine; nursing; pharmacy; physical education; plus programs at Potomac State College and WVU Tech.^[36][37]

Public schools

The main entrance of Morgantown High School, established in 1883

The city is served by Monongalia County Schools. Public elementary schools in Morgantown and its surrounding area include Cheat Lake, North, Brookhaven, Ridgedale, Mountainview, Mylan Park, Skyview, Suncrest Elementary, and Eastwood. There are four middle schools: Mountaineer Middle, South, Westwood, and Suncrest Middle.^[38] The city's two high schools are University High School, the mascot of which is the Hawks, and Morgantown High School, whose mascot is the Mohigans. The latter's name is that of a non-existent Native American tribe whose name is a combination of the words Morgantown (MO) High (HIG) Annual (AN), which was the school's yearbook. The Native American mascot and logo were adopted because of the close relation to the name Mohican, a real Native American tribe.^[39] Notable Morgantown High School alumni include screenwriter–film director Lawrence Kasdan (class of 1966), actor Don Knotts (class of 1942), college football coach Tommy Bowden (class of 1972), and TV college football analyst Terry Bowden (class of 1974).

As of April 2005, Monongalia County Schools employed 897 professional personnel and 490 service personnel, and carries an enrollment of 10,076 students, including 156 adult students at the Monongalia County Technical Education Center. Three of Monongalia County's 23 schools have earned Exemplary Achievement status, according to the West Virginia Office of Educational Performance Audits' (OEPA) report issued November 2004. In 2004, Suncrest Middle became a National Blue Ribbon School for the No Child Left Behind Act.

Private schools

A Roman Catholic elementary school, Saint Francis de Sales, began sometime prior to 1915 as a two-room school in a house on McLane Avenue in the Seneca neighborhood, and run by lay teacher Miss Sterbutsal, who became Sister M. Isabelle of the Sisters of St. Joseph. In October 1915, the pastorate of Father Peter Flynn arranged for Ursuline nuns from Louisville, Kentucky, and in 1918, under principal Sister M. Isadore, the school moved to a new building on Beechurst Avenue, adjacent to St. Theresa's Church. On June 9, 1990, the grade school moved into the former St. Francis Central High School building,^[40] and eventually into newly built facility at 41 Guthrie Lane.^[41] Its mascot is the Trojan.^[40]

St. Francis Central High School existed for several decades on Birch Street in the Evansdale neighborhood until that campus was taken over by the elementary school on June 9, 1990.^[40] The West Virginia University Foundation purchased its building and land in July 2003, formally selling it to WVU for $11 million in August 2004, with the university then announcing it intended to use the football and adjacent baseball fields as intramural recreation area.^[42]

Other private schools include: Morgantown Christian Academy, Maranatha Christian Academy, Covenant Christian School, Trinity Christian School, St. Francis Elementary/Middle School, and the alternative, non-religious Morgantown Learning Academy.

Early schools

While informal schools existed from Morgantown's earliest days,^[43] the town established a one-story, coeducational, Virginia common school in July 1803, that students attended on a tuition basis.^[44] On November 29, 1814, the Virginia General Assembly incorporated Monongalia Academy, the county's first public school.^[45] Supported by obligatory surveyors' fees, the male-only institution was the equivalent of a modern-day high school.^[46] The Academy moved to a new two-story building in 1830, with principal Jonathan Haddock offering courses in geography, surveying, and navigation in addition to traditional subjects. Presbyterian minister Reverend James Robertson Moore was principal during the Academy's 1852–1864 heyday, when its enrollment included students from 14 states.^[47] In 1867, the Academy closed, and donated its land toward the establishment of West Virginia University.

The Virginia Assembly in March 1831 authorized the creation of the Morgantown Female Academy. Proceeds from the sale of the original Monongalia Academy building funded construction of a two-story school at Bumbo Lane (the modern-day Fayette Street) and Long Alley (the modern-day Chestnut Street). This school opened April 1, 1834.^[48] After the Assembly approved a charter change in 1838, the school became known as the Methodist Academy.^[49] This prompted local Presbyterians to create the Woodburn Female Seminary, for which the Monongalia Academy's Rev. Moore also served as principal. The seminary closed in 1866, and its assets, like those of the Monongalia Academy, were donated toward the future university.

Following the 1863 creation of West Virginia, the new state's first legislature created a public-school system. The act provided for the education of "free colored children", and was adapted three years later to mandate education for all African-American children. However, a two-tier system was created: White children attended a regular term (at the second former Monongalia Academy building, purchased in 1867 from West Virginia Agricultural College, the future West Virginia University), only a short term was provided for African-Americans, who met at St. Paul's African Methodist Episcopal Church, on Beechurst Avenue.^[50] In the late 19th and early 20th century, rural educational reformer Alexander Wade lived in Morgantown and was involved in establishing a system of graded education for country schools that was later adopted across the rest of the United States.^[51]

Print

Morgantown has two newspapers. The Dominion Post is a privately owned newspaper which is published daily. The university-owned and student-run college newspaper, The Daily Athenaeum, is published on weekdays while classes are in session, and is provided free of charge on campus and to many businesses around Morgantown.

There are also other local quasi-newspapers such as the Post Extra and the Morgantown Times, which typically feature a few local news stories and an abundance of advertisements. Both are free of charge and mass-mailed throughout the Morgantown area.

Television

Morgantown is part of the Pittsburgh television market, though stations in the Clarksburg/Weston market claim Morgantown as part of their primary coverage area.

Radio

Transportation

Morgantown Personal Rapid Transit (PRT)

Utilities

Electric service is provided by Mon Power, natural gas services by Dominion Resources, and water and sewage by the Morgantown Utility Board.

Cable television and cable Internet are provided by Comcast Communications. Landline telephone and DSL services are offered by Frontier Communications, with West Side Telecommunications telephone and DSL service available in some areas.

Trash pickup in the Morgantown area is provided by Republic Services. The City of Morgantown has adopted a weekly recycling program, as part of the Clean Community Concept,^[54] an initiative by the city government.