Dickenson County lies in the Appalachian Plateau, along the crest of the Cumberland Mountains. It is located in the north-central section of Southwest Virginia. Dickenson County contains 335 square miles covering some of the richest coal fields in the United States.
Dickenson County was formed in 1880 from portions of Russell, Wise & Buchanan counties and named for W.J. Dickenson, a prominent citizen. The county seat is Clintwood, Virginia. Dickenson County is bordered in the north by Pike County,
Kentucky; in the south by Russell County, Virginia; in the west by Wise county, Virginia, and in the east by Buchanan County, Virginia.
The rough mountainous terrain, characteristic of that found in the Appalachian Plateau, forced the early settlers to locate along the county's stream beds. The best farm
land was to be found along the flat bottom lands, and the streams provided a good water supply. The first settlements in Dickenson County were Sand Lick, Holly Creek (Clintwood) and Nora all located along the streams of the area. Other major settlements in the county, including Haysi, Clinchco, McClure and Trammel are also located near streams.
As the bottom lands of the county became occupied, more settlers began locating on the numerous ridges in the county. The settlers built homes on the broad ridge tops and began to farm the fertile land. Some of the ridge communities include Big Ridge, Omaha, Herald & Caney Ridge.
Prior to the 1900's, the people of Dickenson County lived under pioneer conditions, with self- sufficiency type farming being the chief occupation. In the late 1800's when
attention focused on the county's valuable coal & timber reserves, several companies moved into the county. These companies bought timber and mineral rights, but the resources were not developed because of a lack of any means of transporting the end products to Eastem markets. Upon completion of the Carolina, Chinchfield & Ohio Railroad, the coal mines and hardwood forests became accessible to the markets of the nation and the world. The population of the county nearly doubled between 1910 & 1920, as young men came with their families to live and work.
The county continued to grow until the 1950's. By this time most of the lumber companies had exhausted their timber, and the mines began to increase mechanization, thus requiring fewer workers. As the coal industry continued to decline during the 1960's, so did Dickenson County's population. Since the county's economy is so closely tied to the coal industry, it the coal industry, the "energy crisis" and Arab oil embargo of the early seventies signaled the beginning of prosperity once again for Dickenson County, but the 1977 Federal Mine Reclamation Act dampened this renewed vigor of the coal industry, and out-of-state as well as international competition has had a negative
effect.
In the 1980's a "bust" period was again upon the area, as the boom of the 1970's quickly dwindled. The 1980's also saw a "second generation" of mechanization in the coal industry, increasing coal production but further reducing the man power needs.
Population declined once again, and the county is still recovering from that loss.
In addition to the valuable beds of high-grade coal, the county also has one of the largest natural gas reserves in the region. In Virginia in 1989, natural gas provided about 10 percent of the primary energy and 14 percent of the end- use energy. Because of concerns about oil imports and the air emissions from coal burning, many look to natural gas as an increasing source of energy for Virginia and throughout the nation. Natural gas has been produced from the natural gas fields in southwest Virginia since the 1930's. Production doubled in the mid-to-late eighties and the development of unconventional coal seam gas improved the prospects for a continued increase in natural gas production through the 1990's.
It is important to distinguish between reserves and resources. Reserves include those known deposits that are recoverable at today's prices using today's technology. In addition to reserves, resources also include unknown deposits, as well as those that are known but cannot be developed profitably at today's prices. According to recent government estimates, the nation's natural gas reserve and resource base is weak. This weakness could increase the importance of southwestern Virginia and is one of Dickenson County's strengths.
In Virginia in 1990, Dickenson County ranked number one in natural gas production and contains the second largest reserve in the state, closely following Wise County, which currently has the largest natural gas reserve in the state. Reserve additions are expected with further discoveries, improved economic conditions (higher prices), and new technology.
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