Spotsylvania County, Virginia

Spotsylvania County is a county in Virginia, United States, about 10 miles south of the
independent city of Fredericksburg. It had a population of 140,032 at the 2020 census, an
estimated 155,388 by 2025, and covers 414 square miles (1,070 km2) centred near 38°11′N 77°39′W.

Spotsylvania Courthouse is the county seat and largest community; its postal code is 22553.
Spotsylvania has no incorporated towns or cities — the county holds 2 census-designated
places and roughly three dozen named unincorporated communities, and it runs on Eastern Time.
Virginia counties have no civil-township layer of government, so places here answer directly to
the county Board of Supervisors.

Towns & Villages in Spotsylvania County

Spotsylvania County has 36 named places on record: 2 census-designated places (CDPs) with
their own Census Bureau population counts, and 34 unincorporated communities —
crossroads, mill sites and rural neighborhoods with no population figure or municipal
government of their own.

Massaponax and Chancellor are not incorporated but sit inside larger USPS delivery ZIPs
shared with the city of Fredericksburg. Thornburg’s ZIP, 22565, is a post-office-box-only code
— it has no residential delivery route of its own, unlike the county’s other ZIPs.

ZIP Codes

• 22553 — Spotsylvania (covers Spotsylvania Courthouse, the county seat)
• 22551 — Spotsylvania (covers Lake Wilderness and the Wilderness Battlefield area)
• 22407 — Fredericksburg-addressed (covers Chancellor and the county’s northeastern
  communities near the city)
• 22408 — Fredericksburg-addressed (covers Massaponax and the US 1/I-95 corridor)
• 22534 — Partlow
• 22508 — Locust Grove (shared with Orange County, reaching the county’s northwestern
  corner)
• 22580 — Woodford (shared with Caroline County, reaching the southeastern corner)
• 23024 — Bumpass (shared with Louisa County, serving the Lake Anna shoreline)

Most of the county’s other named places — Alsop, Arcadia, Brokenburg, Carters Store,
Cookstown and the rest — have no ZIP of their own; mail there is delivered under
whichever of the eight codes above covers that stretch of road.

Geography

Spotsylvania County sits in Virginia’s Piedmont, between the Blue Ridge foothills and the
Atlantic coastal plain. Of its 414 square miles, 401 are land and 13 are water, about 3.1
percent — most of that water is Lake Anna, the reservoir impounded on the North Anna
River that forms the county’s southern boundary. The Rappahannock and Rapidan rivers form the
county’s northern edge.

Culpeper County borders it to the north, Stafford County and the independent city of
Fredericksburg lie to the northeast, Caroline County is to the southeast, Hanover County lies
to the south, Louisa County is to the southwest, and Orange County lies to the west and
northwest. Culpeper County,
Stafford County,
Caroline County,
Hanover County,
Louisa County and
Orange County all border Spotsylvania
directly; the city of Fredericksburg, an independent city with no county government, has no
county-page equivalent on this site.

Demographics

Spotsylvania County had a population of 140,032 at the 2020 census, up 14.4 percent from
122,397 in 2010, and the latest Census Bureau estimate puts the county near 155,388 residents
by 2025. Spotsylvania Courthouse, at 5,610 residents, and Lake Wilderness, at 2,960, are the
county’s two largest named communities, though most residents live outside either CDP boundary
in unincorporated subdivisions with no place name of their own. The 2021 American Community
Survey put median household income at $98,973, well above Virginia’s 2023 statewide figure of
$89,931. Population density works out to 349 people per square mile of land — high for a
rural-sounding county, reflecting its position inside the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria
metropolitan area.

Economy & Local Life

Spotsylvania functions largely as a commuter county for Fredericksburg, Quantico and
Washington, D.C., with US 1 and Interstate 95 carrying the daily traffic north. Spotsylvania
Towne Centre, an enclosed shopping mall on the county’s northern edge near Fredericksburg,
anchors much of the county’s retail activity. Dominion Raceway, a motorsports complex south of
the courthouse area, hosts stock-car and drag racing events. The Central Rappahannock Regional
Library operates a branch serving the county, and Spotsylvania County Public Schools runs the
county’s public education system. Tourism tied to the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National
Military Park, which preserves parts of four Civil War battlefields inside the county, draws
visitors to Chancellorsville and the Wilderness year-round.

History

Virginia’s colonial government formed Spotsylvania County in 1721 out of parts of Essex,
King and Queen, and King William counties. It was named, in Latin form, for Alexander
Spotswood, the colony’s lieutenant governor and later a great-great-grandfather of Robert E.
Lee. Before European settlement, the area was home to the Manahoac, a Siouan-speaking people.

The county was the site of four major Civil War battles: Chancellorsville, the Wilderness,
Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania Court House. During the fighting, an estimated 10,000
enslaved people left plantations and households on both sides of the Rappahannock River to
reach Union lines and gain their freedom, an exodus now marked by historical markers along the
river. General Stonewall Jackson was wounded by friendly fire from his own Confederate troops
near Chancellorsville in May 1863 and died of pneumonia days later at Guinea Station, east of
the county.

Getting There

Interstate 95 crosses the county’s northern section. US 1, US 17 and US 522 also run through
Spotsylvania, along with state routes 2, 3 and 208.

• Fredericksburg — about 10 miles north
• Richmond — about 50 miles south
• Culpeper — about 25 miles northwest
• Bowling Green — about 20 miles east

Fredericksburg Regional Airport, just north of the county line, handles general aviation.
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, roughly 55 miles north, is the nearest major
commercial airport. Amtrak’s Northeast Regional trains stop at the Fredericksburg station,
just across the county line, connecting to Washington, D.C. and Richmond.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Spotsylvania County located?
It sits in Virginia’s Piedmont region, about 10 miles south of Fredericksburg, bordered by
Culpeper, Stafford, Caroline, Hanover, Louisa and Orange counties.

What is the population of Spotsylvania County?
140,032 at the 2020 census, with a 2025 estimate near 155,388.

How big is Spotsylvania County?
414 square miles (1,070 km2), of which 401 square miles are land.

What is the county seat of Spotsylvania County?
Spotsylvania Courthouse, a census-designated place of 5,610 people, is the county seat and
largest community.

How many towns are in Spotsylvania County?
None are incorporated. The county has two census-designated places, Spotsylvania Courthouse and
Lake Wilderness, plus roughly three dozen unincorporated communities such as Chancellorsville,
Massaponax and Thornburg.

What ZIP codes does Spotsylvania County use?
22553 and 22551 for Spotsylvania Courthouse and Lake Wilderness; 22407 and 22408 for
Fredericksburg-addressed areas including Chancellor and Massaponax; 22534 for Partlow; plus
22508, 22580 and 23024, which the county shares with Orange, Caroline and Louisa counties.

What is Spotsylvania County known for?
Four major Civil War battlefields — Chancellorsville, the Wilderness, Fredericksburg and
Spotsylvania Court House — now preserved together as the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania
National Military Park.

More counties in this state: Towns and villages in Virginia.