Northampton County, Virginia

Northampton County Education, Geography, and History

Northampton County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 12,389. Its county seat is Eastville.

Northampton and Accomack Counties comprise the Eastern Shore of Virginia.

Etymology - Origin of Northampton County Name

Northampton is probably named for the English county of Northampton.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Northampton County History

Northampton County, Virginia formed from Accawmack (Accomack) County (name change only). Legislative enactment in 1642. Organized in 1643. [Virginia Counties: Those Resulting from Virginia Legislation, by Morgan Poitiaux Robinson, originally published as Bulletin of the Virginia State Library, Volume 9, January, April, July 1916, reprinted 1992 by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., Baltimore, MD.]

Northampton County probably was named for the English county, of which Obedience Robins, a prominent early resident of the Eastern Shore, was a native. The county, which originally included all of the peninsula south of Maryland and which was one of the eight shires established in 1694, was first called Accawmack. The name was changed by legislative action in 1643. The area is 357 square miles, and the county seat is Eastville.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 795 square miles (2,060 km²), of which, 207 square miles (537 km²) of it is land and 588 square miles (1,523 km²) of it (73.93%) is water.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• Accomack County - north
• Virginia Beach, Virginia - south

Education

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