Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
A town of 1,139, settled in 1885.
Washington’s best subject grade is an A− for schools; its weakest is a D− for walkability. On the outdoors, just 14 of West Virginia’s 141 towns do worse. Meldahl House is on the National Register of Historic Places. Washington has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.
In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within West Virginia), ordered by how far Washington is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Census counts: 1,170 in 2000, 1,151 in 2020. The archive holds 4 old photos and papers going back to 2004 and 4 maps from 1904 on.
1 place on the National Register of Historic Places.
Washington is unincorporated, so Wood County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Aug 3, 2026.
Ordered by what stands out in Washington.
The risk rating from FEMA in Washington is 79 of 100. Households in the town have drawn federal disaster aid in 3 declared disasters, most recently in 2024. Of the losses FEMA expects locally, 88% come from inland flooding.
FEMA disaster declarations and aid · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The median commute is under 8 miles. Among 62 West Virginia towns, just 2 have a higher typical journey to work than Washington. Also worth knowing: in Washington, 6.9% of residents live below the poverty line, against 16% in West Virginia’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. The top destinations are Parkersburg (34%), Vienna (5%) and Marietta (4%).
| Washington | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average trip to work | 35 minutes | 21 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Working residents who work in town | 0.6% | 14% | 8% |
| Below the poverty line | 6.9% | 16% | 9.6% |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Washington’s rent at the middle of the market stands at $859 a month, near the West Virginia town median ($878 a month) and below the median of U.S. towns ($1,185 a month). Values rose 1.4% in the 12 months to September 2026. 72% of households are owner-occupiers locally.
| Washington | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median rent | $859 a month | $878 a month | $1,185 a month |
| Households that own their home | 72% | 68% | 73% |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
A third of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 24% across West Virginia. People 65 and older are 30% of residents (21% statewide); children under 18 are 12% of residents (20% statewide).
| Washington | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median age | 55.8 years | 42.2 years | 40.5 years |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 33% | 29% | 29% |
Somewhere between 27% and 54% women
The Census survey reached too few of Washington’s residents to say more: its margin here is ±13.6 points. Across West Virginia, 50.1% of residents are women.
| Washington | WV | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 5.4% | 10.3% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 6.4% | 9.7% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 7.6% | 8.8% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.9% | 12% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 11.1% | 12% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 6% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 21.4% | 13.6% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 20.4% | 12.6% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 9.9% | 8.4% | 7% |
| No diploma | 0% | 10.7% | 10.4% |
| High school | 23.4% | 39.3% | 26% |
| Some college | 28.6% | 17.5% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 14.6% | 8.4% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 24.6% | 14.4% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 8.7% | 9.7% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates · in a town of 1,100, single groups can be off by several points
A winter brings about 11 inches of snow, with January nights at 23° and July afternoons at 85°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
Only 2 of the 62 West Virginia towns we compare have a lower share of adults 18 to 64 who have no health insurance than Washington. The town beats the West Virginia average on 17 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. In Washington, 84% of adults had a checkup this year.
| Washington | West Virginia towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yearly checkup (CDC PLACES) | 84% | 81% | 79% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 30% | 34% | 33% |
| Food insecurity (CDC PLACES) | 8.7% | 17% | 14% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 29% | 31% | 23% |
| What stands out | Washington | WV |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer adults facing food insecurity | 8.7% | 16.2% |
| Fewer adults facing a utility shut-off | 6.5% | 11% |
| More adults who have had cancer | 11.9% | 9.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Washington. Close and well known come first.
31 mi Park & preserveMcClintic Wildlife Management Area
16 mi MuseumCampus Martius Museum
16 mi MuseumOhio River Museum
18 mi MuseumOld Meigs County Courthouse
16 mi MuseumThe Castle
19 mi MuseumBeauchamp-Newman HouseMcClintic Wildlife Management Area: Steve from Washington, DC, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0 · Campus Martius Museum: Snoopywv, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ohio River Museum: Wolfgang8741, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Old Meigs County Courthouse: Nyttend, Public domain · The Castle: Chrispainter1966, CC BY-SA 3.0 · Beauchamp-Newman House: mjswisher79, CC BY-SA 3.0
1 within 15 miles of the center of Washington
About 3 of every 100 Washington residents are enrolled in college, against 5 across West Virginia.
Where Washington’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
CDP in West Virginia, United States
Washington is a census-designated place (CDP) in Wood County, West Virginia, United States, situated along the Ohio River. It is part of the Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna, WV-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,151 at the 2020 census. The community was named after George Washington. The CDP is home to the Washington Works, one of the largest single facilities of chemicals manufacturing giant Chemours. Also home to Sabic Plastics Washington Works (previously GE Plastics, acquired from Borg Warner Plastics, née Marbon), Kuraray Washington Works, Dupont Washington Works and a Linde air separation plant. Dupont polluted Washington with Perfluorooctanoic acid or PFOA, which it u…
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
That is 3.8 years of the area's median household income ($57,391 across the Parkersburg-Vienna, WV metro area). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B−.
