VIRGINIA, a State in the South At lantic Division of the North American Union; bounded by Maryland, North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, and the Atlantic Ocean; one of the original 13 States; counties, 1u0; area 42,627 square miles; pop. (1890) 1,655, 980; (1900) 1,854,184; (1910) 2,061,612; (1920) 2,309,187. Capital, Richmond.
Topography.—The surface of the State is diversified, rising in a series of ter races from the coast to the mountains in the N. W. Tide-water Virginia is penetrated by the Chesapeake Bay and has a shore line of 1,500 miles. The mid dle section of the State is an undulating plain with an elevation of from 200 to 500 feet and extends to the foot hills of the Appalachian range. The W. part of the State is mountainous, the Blue Ridge and Piedmont ranges crossing the State in a S. W. direction, and the Alleghenies forming the boundary of West Virginia. The valley section is a broad belt of rolling country diversified by hills, ridges, and river valleys, lying between the Blue Ridge and Allegheny Mountains. This region contains the valleys of the Shenan doah, Roanoke, James, Kanawha, and Holston rivers. The most important rivers are the Potomac, separating Vir ginia from Maryland, navigable as far as Alexandria; and the James, with its extensive network of tributaries, navi gable to Richmond. Both of these rivers empty into Chesapeake Bay.
Geology and Mineralogy.—The coast is of Tertiary formation, consisting of sands, clays and marls, while further in land Miocene strata occur and abut against granite, gneiss and other meta morphic rocks. This metamorphic belt contains deposits of gold and iron. Two secondary belts cross the State parallel to the Blue Ridge and contain extensive coal measures. The valley is of Lower Silurian formation. The coal production in 1919 was 9,500,000 tons, which was 790,000 less than that of the previous year. Other important mineral products are granite, lime, clay, pig iron, man ganese, talc, and soapstone.
Soil and Agriculture.—The soil in the tide-water region is light and sandy and though nearly worn out by superficial cultivation still yields large crops of vegetables. The soils of the Piedmont,
Blue Ridge, and Valley regions are espe cially fertile, and together with the abun dant rainfall, short, mild winters, and long summers make Virginia a great agricultural State. The acreage, value and production of the principal crops in 1919 were as follows: Corn, 1,600,000 acres, production 44,800,000 bushels, value $75,712,000; oats, 240,000 acres, production 5,280,000 bushels, value $5, 280,000; wheat, 1,060,000 acres, produc tion 12,508,000 bushels, value $28,018, 000; rye, 72,000 acres, production 828,000 bushels, value $1,408,000; tobacco, 230,000 acres, production 131,130,000 pounds, value $62,141,000;' hay, 1,000,000 acres, production 1,650,000 tons, value $39, 105,000; peanuts, 139,000 acres, pro duction 5,282,000 bushels, value $14,420, 000; potatoes, 121,001 acres, production 11,495,000 bushels, value $18,047,000; sweet potatoes, 38,000 acres, production 4,750,000 bushels, value $7,362,000; cot ton, 42,000 acres, production 22,000 bales, value $3,850,000.
Manufactures.—There were in 1914 5,508 manufacturing establishments, em ploying 102,820 wage earners. The capi tal invested amounted to $261,501,000; wages paid, to $44,874,000; value of materials used, $155,319,000; and value of finished product, $264,039,000.
Education.—The school population in 1918 was 658,926, of which 222,413 were negroes. The enrollment of white pupils was 348,918; and of negroes, 132,316. The average daily attendance of white pupils was 234,725; and of negroes, 82,631. There were 10,994 white teach ers and 2,910 negro teachers. The total expenditure for education during that year amounted to $9,155,363. Educa tion is free and compulsory for illiterate children between the ages of 8 and 12. There are seven normal schools, and the following colleges: William and Mary, at Williamsburg; Washington and Lee, at Lexington; University of Virginia, at Charlottesville; Virginia Union Univer sity, at Richmond; Virginia Polytechnic Institute, at Blacksburg; Virginia Mili tary Institute, at Lexington; and the Hampton-Sidney College, at Hampton Sidney.