Harrisonburg, Virginia Harrisonburg, Virginia City of Harrisonburg Rockingham County Courthouse in Court Square in downtown Harrisonburg Rockingham County Courthouse in Court Square in downtown Harrisonburg Official seal of Harrisonburg, Virginia Harrisonburg is positioned in Shenandoah Valley Harrisonburg - Harrisonburg Website Harrisonburg, Virginia Harrisonburg is an autonomous town/city in the Shenandoah Valley region of Virginia.
As of the 2010 census, the populace was 48,914, with a census-estimated 2016 populace of 53,078. Harrisonburg is the governmental center of county of Rockingham County, although the two are separate jurisdictions.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the town/city of Harrisonburg with Rockingham County for statistical purposes.
Harrisonburg is home to James Madison University and Eastern Mennonite University.
Harrisonburg is the core town/city of the Harrisonburg, Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a 2011 estimated populace of 126,562. Harrisonburg was titled for Thomas Harrison (1704 1785), an early settler. Harrisonburg, previously known as "Rocktown", was titled for Thomas Harrison, a son of English settlers. In 1737, Harrison settled in the Shenandoah Valley, eventually laying claim to over 12,000 acres (4,900 ha) situated at the intersection of the Spotswood Trail and the chief Native American road through the valley. In 1849, trustees chartered a mayor council form of government, although Harrisonburg was not officially incorporated as an autonomous town/city until 1916.
On June 6, 1862, an American Civil War skirmish took place at Good's Farm, Chestnut Ridge near Harrisonburg between the forces of the Union and the forces of the Confederacy at which the C.S.
Interstate 81, a chief roadway in Harrisonburg When the slaves of the Shenandoah Valley were freed in 1865, they set up near modern-day Harrisonburg a town called Newtown. This settlement was eventually took in by the autonomous town/city of Harrisonburg some years later, probably around 1892.
Today, the old town/city of Newtown is still the home of the majority of Harrisonburg's dominantly black churches, such as First Baptist and Bethel AME.
The undivided Boys and Girls Club of Harrisonburg is positioned in the old Lucy Simms schoolhouse used for the black pupils in the days of segregation. A large portion of this black neighborhood was dismantled in the 1960s when in the name of urban renewal the town/city government used federal redevelopment funds from the Housing Act of 1949 to force black families out of their homes and then bulldozed the neighborhood.
According to Bob Sullivan, an intern working in the town/city planner's office in 1958, the town/city planner at the time, David Clark had to convince the town/city council that Harrisonburg even had slums.
After the vote, the Harrisonburg Redevelopment and Housing Authority was formed.
In early 2002, the Harrisonburg improve discussed the possibility of creating a pedestrian mall downtown.
On July 1, 2003, Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance was incorporated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with the mission of rejuvenating the downtown district. In 2004, downtown was designated as the Harrisonburg Downtown Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places and a designated Virginia Main Street Community, with the neighboring Old Town Historic District residentiary improve gaining historic precinct status in 2007.
Several vacant buildings have been renovated and repurposed for new uses, such as the Hardesty-Higgins House and City Exchange, used for the Harrisonburg Tourist Center and high-end loft apartements, in the order given.
In 2008, downtown Harrisonburg spent over $1 million in cosmetic and sidewalk transit framework improvements (also called streetscaping and wayfinding projects).
The City Council appropriated $500,000 for custom street signs to be used as "wayfinding signs" directing visitors to areas of interest around the city.
In 2014, Harrisonburg Downtown Renaissance was titled a Great American Main Street by the National Main Street Association and downtown was designated the first culinary precinct in the commonwealth of Virginia.
Harrisonburg has won a several awards in recent years, including "#6 Favorite Town in America" by Travel + Leisure in 2016, the "#15 Best City to Raise an Outdoor Kid" by Backpacker in 2009, and the "#3 Happiest Mountain Town" by Blue Ridge Country Magazine in 2016. The creative class of Harrisonburg has grown alongside the revitalization of the downtown district.
Contributing to Harrisonburg's cultural capital are a compilation of education and art centers, residencies, studios, and artist-facilitated businesses, programs, and collectives.
Some of these programs include: Larkin Arts, a improve art center that opened in 2012 and has four symbiotic components: an art supply store, a fine arts loggia, a school with three classrooms, and five private studio spaces. In addition to the Thomas Harrison House, Harrisonburg Downtown Historic District, and Old Town Historic District, the Anthony Hockman House, Rockingham County Courthouse, Lucy F.
Simms School, Whitesel Brothers, and Joshua Wilton House are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. According to the United States Enumeration Bureau, the town/city has a total region of 17.4 square miles (45.1 km2), of which 17.3 square miles (44.8 km2) is territory and 0.1 square miles (0.3 km2) (0.3%) is water. This graph, using knowledge from the 2000 federal census, illustrates the uneven distribution of age due to the two universities in Harrisonburg In the city, the populace was distributed as 15.0% under the age of 18, 48.9% from 18 to 24, 21.2% from 25 to 44, 13.2% from 45 to 64, and 9.3% who were 65 years of age or older.
Serving about 4,400 pupils (K 12), Harrisonburg City Public Schools consists five elementary schools, two middle schools, and a high school.
Eastern Mennonite School, a private school, serves grades K 12 with an enrollment of about 386 pupils.
Harrisonburg High School (public) Blue Ridge Community College Harrisonburg Center (main ground is in Weyers Cave) Downtown Harrisonburg Harrisonburg's Old Post Office Mural (Now US Bankruptcy Court) Virginia Quilt Museum - positioned downtown and dedicated to preserving, celebrating, and nurturing Virginia's quilting heritage.
The annual Harrisonburg International Festival jubilates global foods, dance, music, and folk art. Valley Fourth - Downtown Harrisonburg's 4 July celebrations that bring in over 12,000 citizens .
Harrisonburg Turks (Valley Baseball League) Harrisonburg Department of Public Transportation National Register of Historic Places listings in Harrisonburg, Virginia City Manager Kurt Hodgen "Harrisonburg Populated Place".
"State & County Quick - Facts".
"State & County Quick - Facts". Population Division.
Julian Smith, 2007, Moon Virginia p.
A Brief History of Harrisonburg Government Structure of Harrisonburg Stephens City, Virginia was also called Newtown at this time.
Daily News-Record (Harrisonburg, VA).
"Harrisonburg Downtown Historic District".
Virginia Main Street Community: A National Register of Historic Places Travel Itinerary.
City of Harrisonburg, VA.
"The Best Cities to Raise an Outdoor Kid: The Winning 25 - Page 3 of 6 - Backpacker".
"Virginia Quilt Museum".
"United States Enumeration Bureau Quick - Facts".
"Historical Enumeration Browser".
"Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990".
"Enumeration 2000 PHC-T-4.
Eastern Mennonite School profile.
"Harrisonburg International Festival".
Climate Summary for Harrisonburg, Virginia Wikimedia Commons has media related to Harrisonburg, Virginia.
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