Hurley, Virginia

Hurley is an unincorporated community in Buchanan County, Virginia located at the convergence of County Routes 643, 646, 650, and 697, a short distance from the Kentucky and West Virginia state lines.

Hurley
Unincorporated community
State Route 643 in Hurley
Hurley
Location within the Commonwealth of Virginia
Hurley
Hurley (the United States)
Coordinates: 37°25′8″N 82°1′19″W
CountryUnited States
StateVirginia
CountyBuchanan
Time zoneUTC−5 (Eastern (EST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC−4 (EDT)

History

The Hurley post office was established in 1893.[1] The community was probably named for Samuel Robert Hurley, a pioneer settler.[2] Located at the mouth of Lester's Fork and along Knox Creek, it became a timbering center in Buchanan County and was the headquarters for the William M. Ritter Lumber Company as well as a station on the narrow-gauge BS&C (Big Sandy and Cumberland) railroad. Ritter ran Shay engines on the line for his large lumber mill there and a few passenger cars along with his freight cars until the Norfolk and Western railroad took it over in 1923, converting the rails to standard gauge and replacing the Shays with big non-geared steam engines to serve the emerging coal industry in the area.[3]

Hurley suffered devastating floods in 2002 which nearly wiped out the town.[4] The recovery efforts resulted in an FBI and IRS investigation into alleged corruption surrounding the use of government funds.[5]

Schools

References
  1. "Buchanan County". Jim Forte Postal History. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
  2. Tennis, Joe (2004). Southwest Virginia Crossroads: An Almanac of Place Names and Places to See. The Overmountain Press. p. 4. ISBN 978-1-57072-256-1.
  3. Lawrence, Bob. "W. M. Ritter Lumber Company". Blogging the Railroad Tunnels. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  4. Hurley flood response hits high water mark. Emergency Management Update. Virginia Department of Emergency Management, June 2002. Retrieved on 2009-03-18.
  5. Big Coon Dog lawsuit trees little cash Archived 2012-09-14 at Archive.today. Hammack, Laurence. Roanoke Times. June 7, 2008.
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