Shenandoah County (formerly Dunmore County) is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 44,186. Its county seat is Woodstock. It is part of the Shenandoah Valley region of Virginia.
History
George Washington named the river, valley and county Shenandoah in honor of John Skenandoa, a Christian Oneida chief from New York who helped gain the support of Oneida and Tuscarora warriors to aid the Americans during the American Revolutionary War. This included helping the Americans survive at Valley Forge.
Colonial Governor Gooch formally purchased the entire Shenandoah Valley from the Six Nations of the Iroquois by the Treaty of Lancaster in 1744. The Iroquois had controlled the valley as a hunting ground, but European settlement had begun by that time. During Pontiac's War (1763–1766), Shawnee efforts to repel the Europeans reached as far east as the current county.
The county was established in 1772 as 'Dunmore County' for Virginia Colonial Governor John Murray, 4th Earl of Dunmore. Woodstock was designated the county seat. Dunmore was Virginia's last royal governor, and was forced from office during the American Revolution. During the war (1778), the county was renamed 'Shenandoah.'
George Washington was a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses representing Frederick County, Virginia from 1758 to 1765 which included the Woodstock area until 1772. The new village of Woodstock was established by law in 1761. Washington sponsored the act, and named the town Woodstock at that time. George Washington also named Shenandoah Valley, the Shenandoah River, and Shenandoah County. He named these places after the Christian Oneida chief John Skenandoa who helped Americans survive during the American Revolution including at Valley Forge.
The Town of Woodstock's website notes that it was established by charter in March 1761 as a part of what was then Frederick County. The town was originally formed by a land grant from Lord Fairfax, and named after its founder, Jacob Miller as Muellerstadt (Miller Town) in 1752. It was renamed Woodstock when the town's charter was sponsored by George Washington in Virginia's House of Burgesses. The Town of Woodstock has been the County Seat of Shenandoah County since the county's formation in 1772.
During the Civil War, the Battle of New Market took place in the county on May 15, 1864.
Geography
According to the US Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.7%) is water. Fort Valley and the western slopes of the Massanutten Mountain are located within the county boundary.
Adjacent counties
- Hardy County, West Virginia – northwest
- Frederick County – northeast
- Warren County – east
- Page County – southeast
- Rockingham County – southwest
National protected areas
- Cedar Creek and Belle Grove National Historical Park (part)
- George Washington National Forest (part)
Transportation
- Shenandoah Valley Commuter Bus Service offers weekday commuter bus service from the Northern Shenandoah Valley including Shenandoah County and Warren County to Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C., including Arlington County and Fairfax County. Origination points in Shenandoah County include Woodstock. Origination points in Warren County include Front Royal and Linden.
thumb|left|I-81 southbound in Shenandoah County