Huntington, West Virginia

Huntington
City
Downtown Huntington Ritter Park Heritage Station Pullman Square Marshall University
Flag Seal Logo
Nickname(s):  The Jewel City, The River City, The River & Rail City, Train City
Interactive map of Huntington
Huntington Show map of West Virginia Huntington Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 38°25′9.30″N 82°26′42.55″W / 38.4192500°N 82.4451528°W / 38.4192500; -82.4451528
Country	United States
State	West Virginia
Counties	Cabell, Wayne
First Settled	1775 (Holderby's Landing)
Founded	1871
Incorporated	1799 (Guyandotte)
Incorporated	February 27, 1871 (Huntington)
Founded by	Collis P. Huntington, Delos W. Emmons
Government [1]
• Type	Mayor-Council
• Mayor	Steve Williams (D)
• City Council	Members list District 1: Tyler Bowen (R) District 2: Todd Sweeney (R) District 3: Tia "Fix" Rumbaugh (D) District 4: Sarah Walling (D) (Vice Chair) District 5: Teresa Johnson (D) District 6: Holly Smith Mount (D) (Chair) District 7: Mike Shockley (D) District 8: Patrick D. Jones (D) District 9: Ally Layman (D) District At-Large Rep.: DuRon Jackson (D) District At-Large Rep.: Bob Bailey (D)
Area [2]
• City	18.461 sq mi (47.814 km2)
• Land	16.219 sq mi (42.008 km2)
• Water	2.242 sq mi (5.808 km2)
Elevation [4]	564 ft (172 m)
Population  (2020)[5]
• City	46,842
• Estimate  (2023)[6]	45,325
• Rank	US: 886th WV: 2nd
• Density	2,794.6/sq mi (1,079.0/km2)
• Urban	200,157 (US: 191st)[3]
• Metro	368,261 (US: 152nd)
• Combined	643,394 (US: 81st)
Demonym	Huntingtonian
Time zone	UTC−5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC−4 (EDT)
ZIP Codes	25701–25729, 25755, 25770–25779[7]
Area code(s)	304 and 681
FIPS code	54-39460
GNIS feature ID	1540605[4]
Highways	US-60, I-64, SR-101, SR-106, SR-152, and SR-527
Sales tax	7.0%[8]
Website	cityofhuntington.com

Huntington is a city in Cabell and Wayne counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia.^[9] The seat of Cabell County, the city is located at the confluence of the Ohio and Guyandotte rivers in the state's southwestern region. The population was 46,842 at the 2020 census,^[5] and was estimated to be 45,325 in 2023.^[6] Huntington is the second-most populous city in West Virginia. The Huntington–Ashland metropolitan area, spanning seven counties across West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio, had an estimated population of 368,262 in 2023.

Surrounded by extensive natural resources, the area was first settled in 1775 as Holderby's Landing. Its location was selected as ideal for the western terminus of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, which founded Huntington as one of the nation's first planned communities to facilitate transportation industries. The city quickly developed after the railroad's completion in 1871 and is eponymously named for the railroad company's founder, Collis Potter Huntington. The city became a hub for manufacturing, transportation, and industrialization, with an industrial sector based in coal, oil, chemicals and steel. After World War II, due to the shutdown of these industries, the city lost nearly 46% of its population, from a peak of 86,353 in 1950 to 54,844 in 1990.^[10]

Huntington is a vital rail-to-river transfer point for the marine transportation industry. It is home to the Port of Huntington Tri-State, the second-busiest inland port in the United States.^[11] Also, it is considered a scenic locale in the western foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. The city is the home of Marshall University as well as the Huntington Museum of Art, Mountain Health Arena, Camden Park, one of the world's oldest amusement parks; and the headquarters of the CSX Transportation-Huntington Division.^[12]