Fort Gay, West Virginia Explained

Official Name:Fort Gay, West Virginia
Settlement Type:Town
Mapsize:250px
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:United States
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Name1:West Virginia
Subdivision Type2:County
Subdivision Name2:Wayne
Leader Title:Mayor
Leader Name:Joetta Hatfield
Leader Title1:Judge
Leader Name1:Larry Britt
Established Title:Chartered
Established Date:1875
Area Footnotes:[1]
Area Total Km2:2.26
Area Land Km2:2.14
Area Water Km2:0.13
Area Total Sq Mi:0.87
Area Land Sq Mi:0.82
Area Water Sq Mi:0.05
Population As Of:2020
Population Est:671
Pop Est As Of:2021
Population Footnotes:[2]
Population Total:677
Population Density Km2:322.62
Population Density Sq Mi:835.15
Timezone:Eastern (EST)
Utc Offset:-5
Timezone Dst:EDT
Utc Offset Dst:-4
Elevation M:177
Elevation Ft:580
Coordinates:38.1175°N -82.5947°W
Postal Code Type:ZIP code
Postal Code:25514
Area Code:304
Blank Name:FIPS code
Blank Info:54-28516[3]
Blank1 Name:GNIS feature ID
Blank1 Info:1554491[4]
Website:https://local.wv.gov/FortGay/Pages/default.aspx
Unit Pref:Imperial

Fort Gay is a town in Wayne County, West Virginia, United States, situated along the Tug Fork and Big Sandy rivers. The town adjoins Louisa, Kentucky. The population was 677 at the 2020 census.[2]

History

The Fort Gay community traces back to 1789, when 11 people established a settlement at the junction of the Tug and Big Sandy rivers, across from what is now Louisa, Kentucky.[5] In 1875, it was chartered as Cassville; though it was simultaneously known as Fort Gay. In 1932, the town's name was officially changed to Fort Gay. There is no evidence as to why the name was changed, there are several prevalent theories: that either the railroad company or post office did not want two Cassvilles on the same route/state (there is another Cassville, West Virginia), or that a Civil War nurse named Gay became synonymous with the town.[5]

Fort Gay is a part of the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2000 census, the MSA had a population of 288,649.

The Norfolk Southern Railway's Kenova District goes through the western edge of town.

In 2010, Fort Gay hit the news when Microsoft suspended an Xbox Live account that belonged to a Fort Gay resident for writing "fort gay WV" as his location, as Microsoft has language policies that prohibit references to homosexuality. Microsoft customer service representatives refused to acknowledge that Fort Gay existed, and it took an appeal from Mayor David Thompson and media coverage for the issue to be corrected.[5]

Geography

Fort Gay is located at 38.1175°N -82.5947°W (38.117528, -82.594620).[6]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.89sqmi, of which 0.84sqmi is land and 0.05sqmi is water.[7]

Demographics

2010 census

As of the census[8] of 2010, there were 705 people, 323 households, and 197 families living in the town. The population density was 839.3PD/sqmi. There were 380 housing units at an average density of 452.4/sqmi. The racial makeup of the town was 96.6% White, 0.6% Native American, 0.3% Asian, 0.1% from other races, and 2.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.6% of the population.

There were 323 households, of which 27.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.0% were married couples living together, 14.2% had a female householder with no husband present, 3.7% had a male householder with no wife present, and 39.0% were non-families. 35.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.18 and the average family size was 2.79.

The median age in the town was 43.2 years. 19.7% of residents were under the age of 18; 7.8% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 25% were from 25 to 44; 29.6% were from 45 to 64; and 17.9% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the town was 46.1% male and 53.9% female.

2000 census

As of the census of 2000, there were 819 people, 345 households, and 240 families living in the town. The population density was 1,034.5 inhabitants per square mile (400.3/km2). There were 394 housing units at an average density of 497.7 per square mile (192.6/km2). The racial makeup of the town was 98.66% White, 0.49% Asian, and 0.85% from two or more races.

There were 345 households, out of which 33.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.1% were married couples living together, 18.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.4% were non-families. 28.1% of all households were made up of individuals, and 13.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.37 and the average family size was 2.90.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 24.7% under the age of 18, 12.7% from 18 to 24, 27.0% from 25 to 44, 21.7% from 45 to 64, and 13.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 82.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 73.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $14,565, and the median income for a family was $20,882. Males had a median income of $29,063 versus $16,442 for females. The per capita income for the town was $9,125. About 33.9% of families and 37.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 53.1% of those under age 18 and 19.4% of those age 65 or over.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files. United States Census Bureau. August 7, 2020.
  2. Web site: City and Town Population Totals: 2020-2021 . Census.gov . US Census Bureau . July 3, 2022.
  3. Web site: U.S. Census website . . January 31, 2008 .
  4. Web site: US Board on Geographic Names. January 31, 2008. United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007.
  5. Vicky Smith, Xbox Live shuts down 'Fort Gay' gamer - oops, it's real!, Associated Press, September 8, 2010 (Archived April 14, 2021)
  6. Web site: US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990. United States Census Bureau. April 23, 2011. February 12, 2011.
  7. Web site: US Gazetteer files 2010 . . January 24, 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120702145235/http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/files/Gaz_places_national.txt . July 2, 2012 .
  8. Web site: U.S. Census website. United States Census Bureau. January 24, 2013.