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Big small town

Living in Princeton, WV

Princeton is a big small town of 5,736 people in Mercer County, West Virginia. It's about 28 miles from Beckley, WV and 150 miles from Charlotte, NC, the nearest major city. Summer highs average 82°F and winter highs 42°F, with about 25 inches of snow a year. The typical home is valued around $120k and rent runs about $747 a month.

5,736people
$120kTypical home
$747/moRent
82° / 42°Summer / winter
25"Snow
210Sunny days
142Rain/snow days

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Size & setting

  • Big small town of 5,736
  • Its own small hub, not a suburb
  • About 1,903 people per sq mi
  • 150 mi to Charlotte, NC
  • 28 mi to Beckley, WV
  • 28 mi to the nearest town of 10k+

Money

  • Typical home $120k (≈$759/mo)
  • Median rent $747/mo
  • Median household income $44k
  • Property tax about 0.6% of value
  • 2.0% unemployment

Weather

  • Summer highs around 82°F
  • Winter highs around 42°F
  • Somewhat humid summers (dew point 61°F)
  • 210 sunny days a year (66 totally clear)
  • 155 cloudy days a year
  • 54 of 90 winter days are gray
  • 142 days a year with rain or snow
  • 25" of snow a year
  • 9 days a year with 1"+ of snow
  • Rarely hits 100°F
  • 10 nights a year below 10°F
  • Usually calm

Safety

  • Low violent crime (244 per 100k), county-wide
  • Very low property crime (797 per 100k), county-wide

People

  • Median age 44
  • 26% of households have kids
  • 24% are 65 or older
  • 21% have a college degree
  • Not very diverse
  • 3% of residents are college students

Getting around & homes

  • Average commute 19 min
  • 5% walk or take transit to work
  • 29 mi to BKW airport
  • 109 mi to GSO (major hub)
  • 24 mi to the nearest Amtrak station
  • 67% single-family homes
  • Typical home built around 1953
  • 89% of homes have broadband

Outdoors

  • Gently rolling terrain
  • Elevation 2,435 ft
  • 210 mi to the ocean
  • 73 mi to a big lake
  • 14 mi to the nearest trailhead
  • 16 mi to the nearest ski area
  • 9 mi to the nearest campground
  • 13 golf courses within 25 mi

Things to do

  • 65 sit-down restaurants within 25 mi
  • 7 bars within 25 mi
  • 3 coffee shops within 25 mi
  • No music venues & clubs within 25 mi
  • 8 museums within 25 mi
  • No breweries & distilleries within 25 mi
  • 29 mi to the nearest farmers market

Everyday

  • Schools in the top 44% of West Virginia districts (reading)
  • Grocery store in town
  • 2 mi to the nearest ER hospital
  • 26 mi to a 4–5★ hospital
  • 9 mi to the nearest vet
  • 34 mi to the nearest dog park
  • 11 congregations per 10k people
  • 6 mi to the nearest college

Politics

  • Mercer County: R+57 in 2024
  • West Virginia: R+42 in 2024

Natural hazards

  • Very low hurricane risk
  • Very low tornado risk
  • Low wildfire risk
  • Very low earthquake risk
  • High flood risk
  • Very low drought risk
  • High winter storm risk
  • Very low heat wave risk
  • Very low volcano risk

Places near Princeton

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