Virginia Independent Cities: US Rarity With Three Outside of Virginia

Summary: Virginia independent cities number 38 in 2015, accounting for 95% of US total of 41. Only three are outside of Virginia: Baltimore, Carson City, St. Louis.

sunrise at the independent city of Virginia Beach: Rae Karen Hauck, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons

An independent city constitutes a primary form of local government below the state level. An independent city is a governmental entity responsible for its own administration. An independent city incorporates as a jurisdictional unit that, despite geographic proximity, is separate and distinct from any counties.

The number of independent cities in the United States currently totals 41. Thirty-eight are located in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Three independent cities are located outside of Virginia: Baltimore, Maryland; Carson City, Nevada; and St. Louis, Missouri.

Of this non-Virginia trio, Baltimore is the largest in population, with a 2014 U.S. Census Bureau estimate at 622,793, but is the second largest in size, estimated at 80.94 square miles in 2010.

St. Louis is the second largest in population, with a 2014 estimate of 318,416, but is the smallest in size, estimated at 61.91 square miles in 2010.

Carson City has the smallest population of the trio, with a 2014 U.S. Census Bureau estimated population of 54,522, but has the largest size, estimated at 144.66 square miles in 2010.

Virginia’s independent cities, which numbered 41 by the late 20th century, total 38 in 2015.

Three independent cities relinquished their unique status and reverted to town status to rejoin the counties in which they are sited. In 1995, South Boston in the commonwealth’s south central region rejoined Halifax County. In 2001, Clifton Forge in the southwest rejoined Alleghany County. In 2013, Bedford, also in the southwest, rejoined Bedford County.

Located on the Atlantic Ocean in America’s First Region in the southeast, Virginia Beach is the independent city with the largest population, estimated in 2014 at 450,980, and also is the commonwealth’s most populous city.

Located in the Appalachians of southwestern Virginia, Norton ranks as the least populous independent city, estimated in 2014 at 4,031.

Located on the Great Dismal Swamp shared by southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina, Suffolk encompasses the largest area, estimated in 2010 at 400.17 square miles. Drained by two watersheds, Cameron Run and Four Mile Run, in Northern Virginia, Falls Church represents the smallest area, estimated in 2010 at 2.0 square miles.

From the commonwealth’s first incorporated city of Williamsburg in 1722 to cosmopolitan Richmond in 1842 and peninsular Poquoson (pəˈkoʊsən) in 1975, Virginia’s independent cities present a fascinating array of history and landscapes. Checking each unique independent city off a list of must-see places is one of many rewarding ways to organize sightseeing and travel in the Old Dominion.

Virginia’s independent cities
Alexandria;
Bristol; Buena Vista;
Charlottesville; Chesapeake; Colonial Heights; Covington;
Danville;
Emporia;
Fairfax; Falls Church; Franklin; Fredericksburg;
Galax;
Hampton; Harrisonburg; Hopewell;
Lexington; Lynchburg;
Manassas; Manassas Park; Martinsville;
Newport News; Norfolk; Norton;
Petersburg; Poquoson; Portsmouth;
Radford; Richmond; Roanoke;
Salem; Staunton; Suffolk;
Virginia Beach;
Waynesboro; Williamsburg; Winchester

Appalachian beauty ~ Norton, Virginia: Eli Christman (Gamma Man), CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Sunrise at Virginia Beach: Rae Karen Hauck, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sunrise_Virginia_Beach.jpg

Appalachian beauty ~ Norton, Virginia: Eli Christman (Gamma Man), CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Norton,_Virginia.jpg

For further informaation:

“Baltimore city, Maryland.” United States Census Bureau > State & County QuickFacts.
Available @ http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/24/24510.html

Baumgarten, Linda, and Kimberly Smith Ivey. Four Centuries of Quilts: The Colonial Williamsburg Collection. Williamsburg VA: The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, 2014.

“Carson City, Nevada.” United States Census Bureau > State & County QuickFacts.
Available @ http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/32/32510.html

“Falls Church city, Virginia.” United States Census Bureau > State & County QuickFacts.
Available @ http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/51/51610.html

Grundset, Eric G. Historical Boundary Atlas of Virginia’s Tidewater and Chesapeake Counties. Fairfax VA: Eric G. Grundset, 1999.

The Hornbook of Virginia History. “Cities of Virginia.” Encyclopedia Virginia. Virginia Foundation for the Humanities. 22 Jan. 2014.
Available @ http://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/Cities_of_Virginia#start_entry

“Norton city, Virginia.” United States Census Bureau > State & County QuickFacts.
Available @ http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/51/51720.html

“St. Louis (city), Missouri.” United States Census Bureau > State & County QuickFacts.
Available @ http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/29/2965000.html

“Suffolk city, Virginia.” United States Census Bureau > State & County QuickFacts.
Available @ http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/51/51800.html

“Virginia Cities and Towns.” Virginia Places.
Available @ http://www.virginiaplaces.org/vacities/