Staunton, VA

Staunton is an independent city within the confines of Augusta County in the commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 23,853 as of the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Augusta County. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines the city of Staunton (along with nearby Waynesboro) with Augusta county for statistical purposes. The city was originally named Augusta Courthouse and was the westernmost courthouse in British North America prior to the American Revolution.The city was re-named Staunton after Lady Rebecca Staunton, the wife of the popular Colonial Governor William Gooch (for whom Goochland County, Virginia is named). It is known for being the birthplace of the 28th U.S. President, Woodrow Wilson and the home of Mary Baldwin College, a women's college that features a number of unique programs, including the Virginia Women's Institute for Leadership and the Program for the Exceptionally Gifted. Staunton is also home to the older of the two campuses of the Virginia School for the Deaf and Blind. (The newer campus is in Hampton, Virginia.)

Staunton is the larger of the two principal cities of the Staunton-Waynesboro Micropolitan Statistical Area, a micropolitan area that covers Augusta County and the cities of Staunton and Waynesboro. The micropolitan area had a combined population of 108,988 at the 2000 census.