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Harrison County

Harrison County lies in north-central West Virginia, at the juncture of Interstate 79 and U.S. 50. The county covers 416.6 square miles, with a 2010 population of 69,099. Clarksburg is the county seat. The rolling hills of Harrison County are drained by the West Fork River and its tributaries.

Mapped Points

• Clarksburg

  Clarksburg is the county seat of Harrison County and one of the state’s oldest cities. The Italian Heritage Festival is held every summer in Clarksburg. Clarksburg is home to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Criminal Justice Information Services Division complex.
  

  
  Aerial view of FBI complex

• Bridgeport

  Bridgeport is one of the fastest-growing cities in West Virginia. The city is home of the North Central West Virginia Airport.
  

  
  Route 50/Main Street through Bridgeport, 1953

• Shinnston

  Shinnston was settled during the Revolutionary War period by members of the Quaker Shinn family. Levi Shinn’s 1778 log house is now the oldest house in Harrison County. Shinnston became famous for the Shinnston Tornado of June 23, 1944, a freak storm which left 66 people dead in the town and surrounding area.
  

  

• Salem International University

  Salem International University (formerly Salem College) was established in 1888 with the help of the Seventh Day Baptists.

• Watters Smith Memorial State Park

  Watters Smith Memorial State Park is a 532-acre historical park established through the generosity of the descendants of Watters Smith, a pioneer who settled there in the 1790s.
  

  

• West Virginia Industrial Home for Youth

  The West Virginia Industrial Home for Youth, located at Industrial, has served as a maximum-security facility for girls and boys but will be converted to a facility for adults.