Shinnston Case Study Geography
The town of Shinnston, West Virginia is a former coal town located in Harrison County, near the West Fork River. In 1778 Levi Shinn constructed his log home along what is now Route 19, today it is the oldest standing structure in North Central West Virginia (Wikipedia, 2016). The Shinnston Historical Association maintains it and it is open for tours by the general public. In 1815, the town was laid out with three streets, running parallel with the river, and with four crossing streets running at right angles to them. The town was incorporated in 1852 as Shinn's Town by an act of the Virginia legislature, as West Virginia did not yet exist as an independent state. In Shinnstons’ early years, it saw the development of mercantile interests, wagon
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wakers, an undertaker, a tannery, a pottery, and a local newspaper. Residents have been challenged through natural disasters, such as the Shinnston tornado, which hit on June 23, 1944. Shinnston is a very historic, small, country town with several amazing qualities.
Demographics
Shinnston is a very small community located in the North Central region of the state of West Virginia with a population of 2,201 people (Appendix A, table 1). The biggest age population is between 46-64 years old which makes up 29.3% of the population (Appendix A, table 1). The second largest age population is 25-44 which is 28.8% (Appendix A, table 1). The population of people less than 25 years of age is 27.9% (Appendix A, table 1). The senior citizens in the area contribute to 17.9% of the total population age 65 and older (Appendix A, table 1). The gender makeup of the city was 48.1% male and 51.9% female (Appendix A, table 2). The racial makeup of the city was 97.7% White, 0.3% African American, 0.4% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.1% from other races, and 1.3% from two or more races (Appendix A, table 3). Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.1% of the population (Appendix A, table 3).
The average income level earnings by the white race is 22,038 and zero dollars by all other races (Appendix A, table 4). Other types of income that contribute to the community are 12, 914 from social security, 12,378 from retirement income, 3,698 from public assistance income, and 6,500 from interest, dividends, or net rental income (Appendix A, table 5).
The percentage of people who have completed high school or higher is 87.4%, 12% have bachelor’s degree or higher, and 4.1% have professional degrees (Appendix A, table 6).
There are 1,668 households of which 24.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.3% were married couples both husband and wife living together with 17.4% of their own children under 18 living in the household , 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present and 5.2% of children under 18 lived with the female, 4.2% had a male householder with no wife present and 1.9% of children under 18 living in the same house, and 33.1% were non-family member households (Appendix A, table 8). The households made up of individuals living alone was 28.2% with 12.1% being males and 16.1% females (Appendix A, table 8). 3.2% of males and 8.9% of females had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older (Appendix A, table 8). The percentage of households with individuals under 18 years of age is 28.3%, and the households with individuals 65 years and over are 30.0% (Appendix A, table 8). The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.91 (Appendix A, table 8).
There are 2,767 total housing units, 2,493 occupied housing units, 274 vacant housing units, 66 for rent, 0 rented, not occupied, 35 for sale, 9 sold but not occupied, 14 for seasonal or recreational use, and 150 vacancies for all other reasons (Appendix A, table 9). The owner vacancy rate is 1.8% and the rental vacancy rate is 10.3% (Appendix A, table 9). There is a total of 1,919 owner-occupied housing units with a population of 4,700 (Appendix A, table 10). The average household size of owner-occupied units is 2.45 (Appendix A, table 10). There are 574 renter-occupied housing units with a population of 1,250 (Appendix A, table 10). The average household size of renter-occupied unit is 2.18 (Appendix A, table 10).
The housing in the community is mostly older style craftsman houses built early to mid-1900’s with stone or block basements. Houses do have similar structures which tells the story that many of the same builders built them. Many early 1900’s houses need roofing, siding, window, and structural repairs. Newer houses from 1980’s to present day have central air and heat, while the older houses before 1950 have fireplaces or electric baseboard heat. Most houses have lawns and lot sizes that average close to an acre for housing owners outside of town. However, housing in town do not offer much lawn space or trees due to the fact that the placement of the houses are close in proximity.
The West Fork river runs through Shinnston and separates East Shinnston and West Shinnston. The Ferguson Memorial Park on North Street is home to the Shinnston Pool. The pool is open seven days a week during the summer season from noon until 6:00 p.m. It's also available for rentals for parties for up to three hours. Season passes are available for individuals as well as families. During the summer patrons also enjoy Family Nights in the Park, featuring one dollar swimming followed a free movie in the performance center. These events are held once a month during the summer. Ferguson Park also has four pavilions available for rental. When you rent a pavilion, you can also check out sports equipment to use, including corn hole, horse shoes, bocce and more. This equipment is also available daily to anyone using the park. The American Legions and Moose are hangout places in town and they host parties and receptions. Women’s Club and Community Center in town are hangouts for town folk as well as the Lowe public library.
Transportation consists of automobiles and the public transportation bus. A public transit bus runs through Shinnston to take people to other parts of Harrison County. There is a train that runs through for the local coal mines and power plants but it does not have any passengers. Roads are in mostly good condition with some needed patching in the springtime after the winter season. Route 19 runs directly through Shinnston, running as far North as Morgantown and as far South as Weston. Interstate 79 is located approximately 15 minutes from Shinnston either on route 131 Saltwell road or route 24 Meadowbrook Road taking you to Bridgeport.
The lord’s pantry is a social agency located in the heart of downtown Shinnston to serve members of the community. The three schools that serve the community are: Lincoln High School, Lincoln Middle School, and Big Elm Elementary school. The schools are where most of the recreational activities are held. However, for those who enjoy the outdoors, the West Fork River Rail Trail spans 16 miles and connects Shinnston to Fairmont. The trail runs along the West Fork River. It is ideally used for hiking and bike riding. It can also be used by horse riders. There are two banking offices available to serve the community.
Most of the community members do their grocery shopping at the local Shop n’ Save located in town. There are many other stores located in downtown to meet the community’s needs and they are as listed: Family Dollar, Dollar General, Rite-Aid, Ace Hardware, Home Style, Demarco’s Meat Market, Hammers Market, and Go Mart.
Informant Interview
Assistant Chief Matt Shingleton, with the Spelter Volunteer Fire Department, was the chosen interviewee. He has been with the department for 25 years. The fire department services northern Harrison County and includes, Shinnston, Spelter, Meadowbrook Road, Hepzibah, Gore, Lambert’s Run, Maulsby Cove, Edgewood, Eerie, and Pete Dye Country Club. The department and its’ members serve on both rescue and EMT calls, providing patient stabilization as first responders. They also work closely with other community organizations, such as, the Harrison County Health Department, the Summit Center for Behavioral Health, and the area schools. The department offers educational workshops and community meetings to keep the area educated and aware of issues going on in the area, as well as preventative measures. For example, last year, the department applied for a grant that allowed the purchase of smoke and carbon monoxide detectors people in the community could get for their homes, free of charge, as an effort to help reduce the amount of injuries and fatalities in structure fires.
Matt Shingleton stated that overdoses are an urgent issue at the moment (Informant Interview, 2016).
There has been a large spike in Heroin related health concerns, accidents, and overdoses. In one day last year, the department had three Heroin related overdose calls, with one resulting in death. Cardiac issues are the second largest concern. There are multiple calls for strokes, heart attacks, and/or heart related health problems, such as, chest pain, fainting, and shortness of breath. He also said that this spike has not been seen in just the elderly population; younger adults are now presenting with early onset cardiac issues (Informant Interview, 2016). He feels it is a result of lifestyle choices more than anything and therefore, the average age of the cardiac patient is getting younger. There is also an increase in motor vehicle accidents this time of year due to heavy traffic, considering the holidays and winter weather. Shingleton also stated they do a community awareness for safe driving, especially during the holiday season, in an attempt to draw attention and help prevent accidents. With colder weather conditions coming, an increase in structure fires due to heating systems (chimneys, poor ventilation), is also becoming an
issue.
The areas affected by the issues stated by Shingleton do not have boundaries. They are spread throughout the entire community. At this point in time, there is no one area affected more than another.
The town of Shinnston is trying to increase the level of community awareness with the problems identified. They are doing this by having the Sheriff's’ Department SCAD unit give a class on drug education for the firefighters and rescue workers due to the high rise in those type of calls and rescues. They were shown different drugs, as well as how Meth is made from household products and the danger of them, (explosions are very common and may also cause third-degree burns). Along with the different drugs they were shown, treatments that can be given were also taught. The department promotes education and prevention by partnering with the community and raising awareness.
The problems in the community are considered high priority. They are affecting the community drastically. Within the past year, seven overdose deaths were recorded. Over 50 calls for overdose related issues also occurred.
There are not a lot of community resources to help alleviate these identified problems in the area. Due to this, they are dependent on the larger areas of the county for support and refer their residents. The areas of referral include the Halfway house in Clarksburg, the Summit Center for Substance Abuse, and needle exchange programs.
Resources are limited because the area is unincorporated. They are usually filtered through to the county health department. Some state and city funding available is in the form of grants. They have also started working with the Harrison County Sheriff’s Department along with Street Crime Task Force to offer community educational courses for drug awareness.
wakers, an undertaker, a tannery, a pottery, and a local newspaper. Residents have been challenged through natural disasters, such as the Shinnston tornado, which hit on June 23, 1944. Shinnston is a very historic, small, country town with several amazing qualities.
Demographics
Shinnston is a very small community located in the North Central region of the state of West Virginia with a population of 2,201 people (Appendix A, table 1). The biggest age population is between 46-64 years old which makes up 29.3% of the population (Appendix A, table 1). The second largest age population is 25-44 which is 28.8% (Appendix A, table 1). The population of people less than 25 years of age is 27.9% (Appendix A, table 1). The senior citizens in the area contribute to 17.9% of the total population age 65 and older (Appendix A, table 1). The gender makeup of the city was 48.1% male and 51.9% female (Appendix A, table 2). The racial makeup of the city was 97.7% White, 0.3% African American, 0.4% Native American, 0.2% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 0.1% from other races, and 1.3% from two or more races (Appendix A, table 3). Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.1% of the population (Appendix A, table 3).
The average income level earnings by the white race is 22,038 and zero dollars by all other races (Appendix A, table 4). Other types of income that contribute to the community are 12, 914 from social security, 12,378 from retirement income, 3,698 from public assistance income, and 6,500 from interest, dividends, or net rental income (Appendix A, table 5).
The percentage of people who have completed high school or higher is 87.4%, 12% have bachelor’s degree or higher, and 4.1% have professional degrees (Appendix A, table 6).
There are 1,668 households of which 24.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.3% were married couples both husband and wife living together with 17.4% of their own children under 18 living in the household , 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present and 5.2% of children under 18 lived with the female, 4.2% had a male householder with no wife present and 1.9% of children under 18 living in the same house, and 33.1% were non-family member households (Appendix A, table 8). The households made up of individuals living alone was 28.2% with 12.1% being males and 16.1% females (Appendix A, table 8). 3.2% of males and 8.9% of females had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older (Appendix A, table 8). The percentage of households with individuals under 18 years of age is 28.3%, and the households with individuals 65 years and over are 30.0% (Appendix A, table 8). The average household size was 2.39 and the average family size was 2.91 (Appendix A, table 8).
There are 2,767 total housing units, 2,493 occupied housing units, 274 vacant housing units, 66 for rent, 0 rented, not occupied, 35 for sale, 9 sold but not occupied, 14 for seasonal or recreational use, and 150 vacancies for all other reasons (Appendix A, table 9). The owner vacancy rate is 1.8% and the rental vacancy rate is 10.3% (Appendix A, table 9). There is a total of 1,919 owner-occupied housing units with a population of 4,700 (Appendix A, table 10). The average household size of owner-occupied units is 2.45 (Appendix A, table 10). There are 574 renter-occupied housing units with a population of 1,250 (Appendix A, table 10). The average household size of renter-occupied unit is 2.18 (Appendix A, table 10).
The housing in the community is mostly older style craftsman houses built early to mid-1900’s with stone or block basements. Houses do have similar structures which tells the story that many of the same builders built them. Many early 1900’s houses need roofing, siding, window, and structural repairs. Newer houses from 1980’s to present day have central air and heat, while the older houses before 1950 have fireplaces or electric baseboard heat. Most houses have lawns and lot sizes that average close to an acre for housing owners outside of town. However, housing in town do not offer much lawn space or trees due to the fact that the placement of the houses are close in proximity.
The West Fork river runs through Shinnston and separates East Shinnston and West Shinnston. The Ferguson Memorial Park on North Street is home to the Shinnston Pool. The pool is open seven days a week during the summer season from noon until 6:00 p.m. It's also available for rentals for parties for up to three hours. Season passes are available for individuals as well as families. During the summer patrons also enjoy Family Nights in the Park, featuring one dollar swimming followed a free movie in the performance center. These events are held once a month during the summer. Ferguson Park also has four pavilions available for rental. When you rent a pavilion, you can also check out sports equipment to use, including corn hole, horse shoes, bocce and more. This equipment is also available daily to anyone using the park. The American Legions and Moose are hangout places in town and they host parties and receptions. Women’s Club and Community Center in town are hangouts for town folk as well as the Lowe public library.
Transportation consists of automobiles and the public transportation bus. A public transit bus runs through Shinnston to take people to other parts of Harrison County. There is a train that runs through for the local coal mines and power plants but it does not have any passengers. Roads are in mostly good condition with some needed patching in the springtime after the winter season. Route 19 runs directly through Shinnston, running as far North as Morgantown and as far South as Weston. Interstate 79 is located approximately 15 minutes from Shinnston either on route 131 Saltwell road or route 24 Meadowbrook Road taking you to Bridgeport.
The lord’s pantry is a social agency located in the heart of downtown Shinnston to serve members of the community. The three schools that serve the community are: Lincoln High School, Lincoln Middle School, and Big Elm Elementary school. The schools are where most of the recreational activities are held. However, for those who enjoy the outdoors, the West Fork River Rail Trail spans 16 miles and connects Shinnston to Fairmont. The trail runs along the West Fork River. It is ideally used for hiking and bike riding. It can also be used by horse riders. There are two banking offices available to serve the community.
Most of the community members do their grocery shopping at the local Shop n’ Save located in town. There are many other stores located in downtown to meet the community’s needs and they are as listed: Family Dollar, Dollar General, Rite-Aid, Ace Hardware, Home Style, Demarco’s Meat Market, Hammers Market, and Go Mart.
Informant Interview
Assistant Chief Matt Shingleton, with the Spelter Volunteer Fire Department, was the chosen interviewee. He has been with the department for 25 years. The fire department services northern Harrison County and includes, Shinnston, Spelter, Meadowbrook Road, Hepzibah, Gore, Lambert’s Run, Maulsby Cove, Edgewood, Eerie, and Pete Dye Country Club. The department and its’ members serve on both rescue and EMT calls, providing patient stabilization as first responders. They also work closely with other community organizations, such as, the Harrison County Health Department, the Summit Center for Behavioral Health, and the area schools. The department offers educational workshops and community meetings to keep the area educated and aware of issues going on in the area, as well as preventative measures. For example, last year, the department applied for a grant that allowed the purchase of smoke and carbon monoxide detectors people in the community could get for their homes, free of charge, as an effort to help reduce the amount of injuries and fatalities in structure fires.
Matt Shingleton stated that overdoses are an urgent issue at the moment (Informant Interview, 2016).
There has been a large spike in Heroin related health concerns, accidents, and overdoses. In one day last year, the department had three Heroin related overdose calls, with one resulting in death. Cardiac issues are the second largest concern. There are multiple calls for strokes, heart attacks, and/or heart related health problems, such as, chest pain, fainting, and shortness of breath. He also said that this spike has not been seen in just the elderly population; younger adults are now presenting with early onset cardiac issues (Informant Interview, 2016). He feels it is a result of lifestyle choices more than anything and therefore, the average age of the cardiac patient is getting younger. There is also an increase in motor vehicle accidents this time of year due to heavy traffic, considering the holidays and winter weather. Shingleton also stated they do a community awareness for safe driving, especially during the holiday season, in an attempt to draw attention and help prevent accidents. With colder weather conditions coming, an increase in structure fires due to heating systems (chimneys, poor ventilation), is also becoming an
issue.
The areas affected by the issues stated by Shingleton do not have boundaries. They are spread throughout the entire community. At this point in time, there is no one area affected more than another.
The town of Shinnston is trying to increase the level of community awareness with the problems identified. They are doing this by having the Sheriff's’ Department SCAD unit give a class on drug education for the firefighters and rescue workers due to the high rise in those type of calls and rescues. They were shown different drugs, as well as how Meth is made from household products and the danger of them, (explosions are very common and may also cause third-degree burns). Along with the different drugs they were shown, treatments that can be given were also taught. The department promotes education and prevention by partnering with the community and raising awareness.
The problems in the community are considered high priority. They are affecting the community drastically. Within the past year, seven overdose deaths were recorded. Over 50 calls for overdose related issues also occurred.
There are not a lot of community resources to help alleviate these identified problems in the area. Due to this, they are dependent on the larger areas of the county for support and refer their residents. The areas of referral include the Halfway house in Clarksburg, the Summit Center for Substance Abuse, and needle exchange programs.
Resources are limited because the area is unincorporated. They are usually filtered through to the county health department. Some state and city funding available is in the form of grants. They have also started working with the Harrison County Sheriff’s Department along with Street Crime Task Force to offer community educational courses for drug awareness.