18,632 people (2024 Census estimate, −8.0% since 2020)
503 square miles of land · 37 people per square mile
“Highest” and “lowest” are just order, not grades: a high rank for poverty or hazard losses means more of it. Each figure's source is in its section below.
6 active community water systems list Buchanan County in the area they serve, reporting 19,949 people served in all (a system that crosses county lines counts its whole population).
| BUCHANAN CO PSA buys surface water · local government · VA1027061 | 19,326 served |
| GRASSY CREEK-BCPSA buys surface water · local government · VA1027065 | 440 served |
| OSBORNE MOUNTAIN - BCPSA buys surface water · local government · VA1027067 | 69 served |
| SHORTT GAP - BCPSA buys surface water · local government · VA1027069 | 64 served |
| PAGE - BCPSA buys surface water · local government · VA1027068 | 50 served |
| BCPSA - KENNEL GAP groundwater (surface-influenced) · local government · VA1027500 | 0 served |
Source: U.S. EPA Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), active community systems, . Look up any system's violations and test results with EPA's search using its ID.
About 125 people were held in Buchanan County's jail, in Vera's latest figure (2024), or 1,068 per 100,000 residents ages 15–64. In 2019 it was about 175.
Source: Vera Institute of Justice, Incarceration Trends (built from federal Bureau of Justice Statistics jail surveys). Counties without their own jail, or that share one, may show no figure.
1 school district has its office in Buchanan County. School taxes are usually the largest part of a property tax bill.
Spent $40.6 million — $37.4 million to run schools, about $15,191 per student, plus $3 million on buildings and equipment. Money in: $8.5 million local (mostly property tax), $25 million state, $10.1 million federal. Long-term debt: $3.1 million.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2023 Annual Survey of School System Finances. Districts are listed by the county of their main office; some serve neighboring counties too.
Source: County Health Rankings & Roadmaps 2025 (University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute), which gathers federal data (CDC, Census, and others); measures cover different recent years. Blank lines aren't reported for small counties.
Overall risk: Relatively Low compared with other U.S. counties. FEMA estimates natural hazards cost Buchanan County about $10.7 million a year on average in buildings, crops and lives. Ability to bounce back (community resilience): Very Low; social vulnerability: Very High.
Source: FEMA National Risk Index (December 2025), expected annual loss. Ratings compare counties nationwide; they're estimates, not predictions.
278 bridges in Buchanan County: 36 in good condition, 231 fair, and 11 poor (4.0%). “Poor” means a main part — the deck, the beams, or the supports — is rated 4 or lower on the federal 0–9 scale. It doesn't mean unsafe to drive; unsafe bridges are closed.
| OLD ROCKLICK RD. over LEVISA RIVER · built 1966 | 2,000 vehicles a day |
| LESTERS FORK ROAD over LESTERS FORK · built 1970 | 1,061 vehicles a day |
| Brown Mtn. Road over DISMAL RIVER · built 1972 | 639 vehicles a day |
| OLD LESTERS FK RD. over LESTERS FORK · built 1989 | 311 vehicles a day |
| Booth Branch Rd. over Slate Creek · built 1932 | 260 vehicles a day |
| Wellmore Hollow Rd over Levisa Fork · built 1932 | 100 vehicles a day |
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory (2025 submission). Includes state, county and city bridges.
Federal grants paid for $70.9 million of work in Buchanan County in fiscal 2025, about $3,485 per resident — to the county, cities, schools, hospitals, nonprofits and others.
Source: USAspending.gov, grants by place of performance, fiscal 2025 (Oct. 2024 to Sept. 2025). Search it by county to see each award.
From Grants.gov: posted grants listing county governments as eligible, soonest deadline first; research-only and overseas programs left out; list updated 2026-10-13, refreshed weekly. 62 are open in all. Cities, towns, school districts and nonprofits have their own lists there.
General election: Tuesday, November 3, 2026. Early voting: 2026-09-18 to 2026-10-31. Last day to register to vote: 2026-10-23. Mail ballot request deadline: 2026-10-23. Election Day: 2026-11-03.
Source: Virginia Department of Elections: upcoming elections · Virginia Department of Elections: voter FAQ · Virginia Department of Elections: absentee voting
The budget, property tax rates, audits, local officials and offices for Buchanan County come from the county's own records, which we haven't gathered — not gathered, never hidden. See what a full county site looks like, or ask to have Buchanan County built: brayden.ozark@gmail.com.
More of Virginia: the state government and every county in Virginia.
Nearby counties: Dickenson County (19 mi) · McDowell County, WV (22 mi) · Russell County (23 mi) · Pike County, KY (25 mi) · Tazewell County (28 mi) · Mingo County, WV (32 mi).