Population, Race and Ethnicity

Harpers Ferry is a town in Jefferson County, West Virginia, with a population of 283. According to the most recent estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau, 92.90% of residents identify as white, 2.10% as Black or African American, 0.00% as American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.00% as Asian, 0.00% as Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, 1.80% as Hispanic or Latino, and 3.20% as some other race or combination of races.

Nationally, some 61.1% of Americans identify as white, 12.3% as Black or African American, 0.7% as American Indian or Alaska Native, 5.4% as Asian, 0.2% as Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, 17.8% as Hispanic or Latino, and 2.6% as some other race or combination of races.

Ancestry

Census respondents are also asked to report ancestry. Some of the most commonly reported ancestries in Harpers Ferry include German, Irish, English, Russian, and Italian. Measured by location quotient — comparing the town share to the national share — some of the most highly concentrated ancestries in town are Russian, British, and Scotch-Irish.

Native and foreign-born population

An estimated 96.80% of Harpers Ferry residents are native-born, meaning they were born in the United States, Puerto Rico, a U.S. Island Area, or abroad to a U.S. citizen. Of the 3.20% of the population that is foreign-born, 33.30% have become naturalized U.S. citizens. Nationwide, 86.5% of Americans are native-born. And of the 13.5% of Americans who are foreign-born, 48.5% have become naturalized U.S. citizens.

Age

The population of Harpers Ferry is older than the United States as a whole. The median age is 41.9 years, 4.0 years more than the national median age of 37.9 years. An estimated 17.70% of the population is 65 years and over, compared to 15.2% of the U.S. population.

Family and household composition

Family and household composition also varies heavily across the United States. In Harpers Ferry, 48.80% of households are occupied by married-couple families, compared to the 48.3% national figure. Some 4.80% of households are occupied by single male householders, 6.40% by single female householders, and 40.00% by non-family occupants. Nationwide, 4.9% of households are occupied by single male householders, 12.6% by single female householders, and 34.3% by non-family occupants. An estimated 84.00% of heads of household own their homes, compared to the national homeownership rate of 63.8%.

Language spoken

English is by far the most commonly spoken language in West Virginia and across the U.S. as a whole. Similarly, in Harpers Ferry, 99.6% of local residents aged 5 and up speak English exclusively, or, if they are multilingual, speak English very well. For context, 99.3% of the 5 and older population across West Virginia only speaks English, or speak it very well, and 91.5% of the same age group nationwide do.

Marital status

Residents of Harpers Ferry are more likely than the typical American to be married. Of all local residents aged 15 and older, 56% are currently married, compared to 48.1% of Americans nationwide in the same age group. Across West Virginia as a whole, 50% of residents 15 and older are married.

Divorce is slightly more common in Harpers Ferry than it is across the U.S. as a whole. According to Census estimates, 11.2% of residents 15 and older are divorced — compared to 10.8% of the U.S. population in the same age group. In West Virginia, 13.3% of the 15 and older population is divorced.

An estimated 30.6% of Harpers Ferry residents 15 and older have never married, compared to one-third of all Americans in the same age group.

Veterans

In Harpers Ferry, 9.9% of the 18 and older civilian population are veterans — compared to 7.5% of adult civilians nationwide and 9.2% of the civilian population in all of West Virginia.

Educational attainment

In Harpers Ferry, adults are more likely to have a high school education than the typical American adult, and are also more likely to have a four-year college education. Among Harpers Ferry residents 25 and older, 97.00% have a high school diploma or equivalent, and 62.70% have a bachelor's degree or higher, compared to 87.7% and 31.5% of adults nationwide, respectively. Across West Virginia, 86.5% of adults have graduated high school, and 20.3 have a bachelor’s degree.

Income

The typical household in Harpers Ferry earns $92,292 a year, about $32,000 more than the national median of $60,293 and $47,400 more than the median household income across the state of $44,921.

Poverty

Serious financial hardship is less common in Harpers Ferry than it is nationwide. The local poverty rate stands at 11.30%, while the national poverty rate is 14.1%. Across the state as a whole, 17.8% of the population lives below the poverty line.

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