Farmville is the home of Longwood University and is the town nearest to Hampden-Sydney College.
Historical Notes
Civil war history
Farmville was the object of the Confederate Army's desperate push to get rations to feed its soldiers. The rations had originally been destined for Danville, but an alert quartermaster ordered the train back to Farmville. Despite a desperate advance of the cavalry commanded by Fitzhugh Lee, the Confederate army was checked by the arrival of Union cavalry commanded by Gen. Philip Sheridan, and 2 divisions of infantry. General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia found itself surrounded soon thereafter, and surrender was affected at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865.Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County
Farmville was the source of Davis v. County School Board of Prince Edward County, a case incorporated into Brown v. Board of Education, the landmark case which overturned school segregation in the US. Moton High School, an all-black school in Farmville suffered from terrible conditions due to underfunding. The school did not have a gymansium, cafeteria, or teachers' restrooms. Teachers and students did not have desks or blackboards, and due to overcrowding, some students had to take classes in an immobile school bus parked outside. The school's requests for additional funds were denied by the all-white school board.As a result of the Brown decision, in 1959, the Board of Supervisors for Prince Edward County refused to appropriate any funds for the County School Board at all, effectively closing all public schools rather than integrate them. White students often attended all-white private schools that formed in response. Black students had to go to school elsewhere or forgo their education altogether. Prince Edward County schools remained closed for five years.
Farmville Geography
Farmville is located at 37°17'52" North, 78°23'45" West (37.297639, -78.395712).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 18.2 km2 (7.0 mi2). 18.1 km2 (7.0 mi2) of it is land and 0.2 km2 (0.1 mi2) of it is water. The total area is 0.99% water.
Farmville Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there are 6,845 people, 2,050 households, and 1,074 families residing in the town. The population density is 379.2/km2 (982.5/mi2). There are 2,294 housing units at an average density of 127.1/km2 (329.3/mi2). The racial makeup of the town is 71.07% White, 25.68% African American, 0.20% Native American, 1.05% Asian, 0.26% Pacific Islander, 0.48% from other races, and 1.24% from two or more races. 1.26% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.There are 2,050 households out of which 24.0% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 32.5% are married couples living together, 17.4% have a female householder with no husband present, and 47.6% are non-families. 38.6% of all households are made up of individuals and 16.4% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.15 and the average family size is 2.84.
The age distribution, strongly influenced by the presence of Longwood University, is: 14.7% under the age of 18, 40.7% from 18 to 24, 16.5% from 25 to 44, 13.6% from 45 to 64, and 14.6% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 22 years. For every 100 females there are 67.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 63.8 males.
The median income for a household in the town is $26,343, and the median income for a family is $33,000. Males have a median income of $30,974 versus $20,764 for females. The per capita income for the town is $13,552. 22.0% of the population and 19.9% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 25.8% of those under the age of 18 and 11.7% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
External links
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Farmville,_Virginia".