Hampshire County is a county in West Virginia, United States, in the state’s Eastern Panhandle about 20 miles west of Winchester, Virginia. It had a population of 23,093 at the 2020 census, an estimated 24,105 by 2025, and covers 645 square miles (1,670 km2) centred near 39°19′N 78°37′W.
Romney is the county seat, West Virginia’s oldest incorporated town; its postal code is 26757. The county holds 1 city, 1 incorporated town, 2 census-designated places and 56 unincorporated communities, and it runs on Eastern Time. Its FIPS code is 54027.
Towns & Villages in Hampshire County
Hampshire County has 60 named places on record: one incorporated city, one incorporated town, two census-designated places (CDPs) and 56 unincorporated communities with no local government of their own. CDP stands for census designated place; Unincorp. covers crossroads and rural communities with no formal boundary.
| Place | Type | Pop. | ZIP |
|---|---|---|---|
| Romney | City · seat | 1,722 | 26757 |
| Capon Bridge | Town | 420 | 26711 |
| Springfield | CDP | 455 | 26763 |
| Green Spring | CDP | 250 | 26722 |
| Augusta | Unincorp. | — | 26704 |
| Barnes Mill | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Bloomery | Unincorp. | — | 26817 |
| Blues Beach | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Bubbling Spring | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Cacapehon | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Capon Lake | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Capon Springs | Unincorp. | — | 26823 |
| Cold Stream | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Creekvale | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Davis Ford | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Delray | Unincorp. | — | 26714 |
| Donaldson | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Frenchburg | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Good | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Grace | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Higginsville | Unincorp. | — | — |
| High View | Unincorp. | — | 26808 |
| Hooks Mills | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Hoy | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Intermont | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Johnson | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Junction | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Kirby | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Largent | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Lehew | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Levels | Unincorp. | — | 25431 |
| Little Cacapon | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Loom | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Mechanicsburg | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Millbrook | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Millen | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Milleson | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Millesons Mill | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Neals Run | Unincorp. | — | — |
| North River Mills | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Okonoko | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Pancake | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Pleasantdale | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Points | Unincorp. | — | 25437 |
| Purgitsville | Unincorp. | — | 26852 |
| Rada | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Raven Rocks | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Ridgedale | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Rio | Unincorp. | — | 26755 |
| Ritters | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Ruckman | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Sector | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Sedan | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Shanks | Unincorp. | — | 26761 |
| Slanesville | Unincorp. | — | 25444 |
| Three Churches | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Vance | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Wapocomo | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Wickham | Unincorp. | — | — |
| Yellow Spring | Unincorp. | — | 26865 |
Three names on this list trace to the same river and are easy to confuse. Cacapehon, Capon Lake, Capon Springs and Little Cacapon all take their names from the Cacapon River, a Shawnee word for “river of medicine waters” that later mapmakers respelled several ways — Cacapehon is the older spelling, Capon the modern one. Millen, Milleson and Millesons Mill are three separate hamlets in the county’s Mill Creek area, not variant spellings of one place.
ZIP Codes
- 26757 — Romney
- 26711 — Capon Bridge
- 26763 — Springfield
- 26722 — Green Spring
- 26704 — Augusta
- 26852 — Purgitsville
- 26808 — High View
- 25444 — Slanesville
- 26755 — Rio
- 26714 — Delray
- 26761 — Shanks
- 26817 — Bloomery
- 25431 — Levels
- 26865 — Yellow Spring
- 25437 — Points
- 26823 — Capon Springs
The other 44 communities on this list have no ZIP code of their own; mail there is delivered under the nearest post office’s code above — most of the cluster around Kirby, Junction and Ridgedale is served through Romney’s 26757.
Geography
Hampshire County sits in the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians, straddling West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle and Potomac Highlands, a landscape of long parallel ridges separated by narrow farming valleys. Of its 645 square miles, 640 are land and 4.4 are water, about 0.7 percent — the South Branch Potomac River crosses the county’s north end near Green Spring, and the Cacapon River, the county’s largest waterway entirely within its borders, runs the length of the county from south to north before joining the Potomac near Capon Lake.
Allegany County, Maryland, lies to the north; Morgan County, West Virginia, to the northeast; Frederick County, Virginia, to the east; Hardy County, West Virginia, to the south; and Mineral County, West Virginia, to the west. Allegany County, Morgan County, Frederick County, Hardy County and Mineral County all border Hampshire directly.
Demographics
Hampshire County had a population of 23,093 at the 2020 census, and the latest estimate puts the county near 24,105 residents by 2025. Romney and Springfield are the two largest named communities on this list, though most residents live scattered across the county’s rural valleys rather than inside any incorporated place. Median household income runs $63,116, above West Virginia’s statewide figure of $55,948. Population density works out to roughly 36 people per square mile of land, low even for a rural Appalachian county, reflecting the terrain’s steep ridges and limited flat farmland.
Economy & Local Life
Health care and social assistance employs the most workers in the county, about 1,491 people, followed by manufacturing at 1,298 and educational services at 1,287. The West Virginia Schools for the Deaf and Blind, founded in Romney in 1870, remains one of the town’s largest employers and draws students from across the state. Capon Springs & Farms, a resort built around the community’s historic mineral springs and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, anchors tourism and hospitality employment in the county’s east end. The Potomac Eagle Scenic Railroad runs excursion trains out of Romney along the South Branch Potomac, a seasonal draw named for the bald eagles nesting along its route through The Trough, a narrow gorge south of town.
History
The Virginia General Assembly formed Hampshire County on 13 December 1754 from parts of Frederick and Augusta counties, making it the oldest county in present-day West Virginia — it predates statehood, which came in 1863, by more than a century. It was named for Hampshire, England. Romney, chartered in 1762, shares the title of West Virginia’s oldest town with Shepherdstown; it was originally settled around 1725 as Pearsall’s Flats.
Romney changed hands between Union and Confederate forces more than 50 times during the Civil War, more than any other town in the country by most local accounts. Stonewall Jackson led a January 1862 winter expedition to retake the town, and Indian Mound Cemetery in Romney holds what local historians describe as the first Confederate memorial raised after the war, dedicated in 1867.
Getting There
No interstate highway crosses Hampshire County. US Route 50 runs east-west through Romney, and US Route 220 runs north-south along the South Branch Potomac; West Virginia Routes 9, 28, 29, 127 and 259 fill in the rest of the network.
- Winchester, Virginia — about 22 miles east
- Cumberland, Maryland — about 25 miles northwest
- Moorefield, West Virginia — about 25 miles south
- Martinsburg, West Virginia — about 35 miles northeast
Washington Dulles International Airport, roughly 100 miles east of Romney, is the nearest major commercial airport; Eastern WV Regional Airport near Martinsburg offers general aviation and limited commercial service closer to the county. Amtrak’s Capitol Limited stops at Cumberland, Maryland, about 25 miles northwest of Romney.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is Hampshire County located?
It sits in West Virginia’s Eastern Panhandle, about 22 miles west of Winchester, Virginia, bordered by Allegany, Morgan, Frederick, Hardy and Mineral counties.
What is the population of Hampshire County?
23,093 at the 2020 census, with a 2025 estimate near 24,105.
How big is Hampshire County?
645 square miles (1,670 km2), of which 640 square miles are land.
What is the county seat of Hampshire County?
Romney is the county seat and West Virginia’s oldest incorporated town, chartered in 1762.
How many towns and communities are in Hampshire County?
Two incorporated places — Romney and Capon Bridge — plus two census-designated places, Springfield and Green Spring, and 56 unincorporated communities.
What ZIP codes does Hampshire County use?
16 ZIP codes in all, led by 26757 for Romney, 26711 for Capon Bridge and 26763 for Springfield; most of the county’s smaller hamlets share a neighboring town’s code.
What is Hampshire County known for?
Being West Virginia’s oldest county, Romney’s repeated changes of hands during the Civil War, and the Potomac Eagle Scenic Railroad’s excursions through The Trough gorge.
More counties in this state: Towns and villages in West Virginia.