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Blacksburg Virginia
Home of the Virginia Tech Hokies

In 1797 William Black donated thirty-eight acres of land which was divided into a grid now referred to as the Sixteen Squares. A year later the Town of Blacksburg was incorporated with little more than two dozen families. The population of Blacksburg in 1850 totaled 333 people 63 of whom were slaves. Today, Blacksburg is the largest town in Virginia with a healthy, culturally diverse population of approximately 39,700 citizens living on just over 12,000 acres of land at the foot of the Washington Jefferson National Forest.

The 2000 census reported Blacksburg's population as 39,573 approximately 14.4 percent higher than reported in the 1990 census. Virginia Tech, the Town's major employer and university, has exceeded its goal of 25,000 students. With the graduate student population projected to increase, population will grow at almost two percent a year at a decreasing rate over the next ten years with growth leveling off to around one percent per year. At this rate, the population will be approximately 46,660 in the year 2010 is expected to grow to 57,800 by 2046.

Community Profile

Burruss Hall by Artist Robert Tuckwiller

Hokies at home in Blacksburg
By Juliet Crichton Assistant Editor, Virginia Tech Magazine
105 Media Building (0109), Blacksburg, VA  24061
phone: (540) 231-8538 fax: (540) 231-8032
email: crichton@vt.edu
www.vtmagazine.vt.edu

Ask any Tech alumni about Blacksburg, and the typical response is a variation on one theme: Blacksburg is a great place to live.

And this isn't just sentiment--over the years, "outsiders" have begun to agree.

In the early 1990s, Blacksburg was ranked first in Virginia and 20th in the country for its quality of services, cost of living, safety, housing, climate, and leisure by David Savageau and Richard Boyer in Retirement Places Rated.

With a population hovering around 40,000 and moderate seasonal temperatures, Blacksburg was last year named a top 20 retirement town by Blue Ridge County Magazine, and the eighth best place to live in the nation and the very best in the mid-Atlantic by Men's Journal Magazine.

But Blacksburg refuses to simply rest on its laurels. This past year, as part of the National Citizens Survey--a nationwide endeavor to understand residents' concerns at the local level--respondents in Blacksburg gave the highest ratings to their town's appearance, openness, and acceptance, as well as its many cultural opportunities. Blacksburg also fulfills one of the most important community characteristics that retirees consider before relocating to an area: its low crime rate. Indeed, 91 percent of town residents reported they feel safe in their neighborhoods, and Blacksburg overall received a rating of 75 (out of 100) as a good place to live.

Without a doubt, Blacksburg is a friendly town--especially downtown among its more than 160 businesses and restaurants--and residents like that it's so easy to meet people and to see these people out and about, one of the reasons Blacksburg was cited last year in Gerald Sweitzer and Kathy Field's 50 Best Small Southern Towns. The surrounding countryside is equally exciting and naturally beautiful, prompting Outside Magazine to name Blacksburg a top 10 "dream town" for outdoors enthusiasts.

The university's presence, which brings approximately 26,000 students to town, guarantees a variety of cultural activities and sporting events; in fact, The Sporting News ranked Blacksburg 61 out of 375 as a "best sports city." And even with many of the attractions of a larger city, Blacksburg can still boast of low taxes, relatively low humidity, and low stress traffic. Add to all of this the number of services that directly target the town's increasing number of retirement age residents, such as accessible health care, enhanced public care services, and convenient public transportation, and Blacksburg tops many a list of favorite destinations, even among non-Hokies.

Link to Article:  http://www.vtmagazine.vt.edu/fall03/feature3.html