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History · Pineville

Pineville dates to 1853, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

Most of Pineville was built recently: 2% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1955. Its Register listing is the Wyoming County Courthouse and Jail. Below: maps from 1910 on and the census since 1910.

1853founded
1on the National Register
2%homes built before 1940
1famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
Quick answers

How Pineville began

When was Pineville founded?

1853

Pineville dates its founding to 1853 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1910.

First census: 334 in 19102020 census: 645173 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1876.The full story ↓

What stands out about Pineville’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Pineville are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Boom and bustPeaked at 1,187 in 1970; 645 people lived here in 2020.On the map since 19105 editions of the USGS map, 1910 to 1996. Watch Pineville change.Old housesHalf of Pineville’s homes were built before 1955.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Pineville’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Pineville’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
People over time

Pineville, census by census

02004006008001,0001,200192019401960198020002020Peak: 1,187

Peaked at 1,187 in 1970; 645 people lived here in 2020.

12 censuses, 1910–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Pineville’s Wikipedia page.

On the map

Pineville on the map, 1910 to 1996

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Pineville. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Pineville on the 1910 USGS mapPineville on the 1927 USGS mapPineville on the 1967 USGS mapPineville on the 1976 USGS mapPineville on the 1996 USGS map1910Pineville sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Pineville.

The story

How Pineville came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Pineville.

Read it all →

In 1863, Hiram Clay first settled near the site of present Pineville. The community was once called Castlerock, and the post office there was once named Rock Castle. The town was renamed Pineville for the local pine forest and incorporated as a town under that name in 1907. It was named because it was built on the site of a black or pitch pine forest.

Pineville became the county seat in 1907, replacing Oceana after a series of disputed elections. Castle Rock, the towering sandstone formation for which Rockcastle Creek is named, is located at Pineville and is the major local landmark. The Wyoming County Courthouse (1916) is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Pineville, 1853 to 1983

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1853
    FoundingPineville is established
  3. 1876Post officeThe Pineville post office opens
  4. 20th century
  5. 1910On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  6. 1970CensusPopulation peaks at 1,187
  7. 1983Born hereHeath Slater is born here
By decade

Pineville, decade by decade

Today12 recent
Kwik-N-Kleen2016Kwik-N-KleenHoly Cross Catholic Church2016Holy Cross Catholic ChurchDowntown2016Downtown2, WV, USA - panoramio - Idawriter (3)20162, WV, USA - panoramio - Idawriter (3)2, WV, USA - panoramio - Idawriter (2)20162, WV, USA - panoramio - Idawriter (2)Pineville West Virginia2007Pineville West VirginiaPineville Middle School, West Virginia (11)2007Pineville Middle School, West Virginia (11)Laxton's Automotive Repair, Pineville - panoramio - Idawriter (13)2007Laxton's Automotive Repair, Pineville - panoramio - I…panoramio - Idawriter (9)2007panoramio - Idawriter (9)panoramio - Idawriter (8)2007panoramio - Idawriter (8)panoramio - Idawriter (12)2007panoramio - Idawriter (12)WVMap-doton-Pineville2004WVMap-doton-Pineville
On the National Register

1 historic place in Pineville

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1979
Wyoming County Courthouse and Jail
Wyoming County Courthouse and Jail
Buildings
Wyoming County Courthouse and JailBuilding

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Places that used to be

Places now gone

Pineville’s post office has been open since 1876.

Gone or out of use
Pineville High Schoolschool

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Questions about Pineville’s history

What year was Pineville founded?

In 1853, according to Wikidata. Pineville’s post office opened in 1876, and the census of 1910 counted 334 people here.

What is on the National Register in Pineville?

One place: the Wyoming County Courthouse and Jail (listed 1979).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (12), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.