Bedford County | |
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Coordinates: 37°19′N 79°32′W / 37.31°N 79.53°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Virginia |
Founded | 1754 |
Named for | John Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford |
Seat | Bedford |
Largest town | Bedford |
Area | |
• Total | 769 sq mi (1,990 km2) |
• Land | 753 sq mi (1,950 km2) |
• Water | 16 sq mi (40 km2) 2.1% |
Population (2020) | |
• Total | 79,462 |
• Density | 100/sq mi (40/km2) |
Time zone | UTC−5 (Eastern) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
Congressional districts | 5th, 9th |
Website | www |
Bedford County is a United States county located in the Piedmont region of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Its county seat is the town of Bedford, which was an independent city from 1968 until rejoining the county in 2013.[1]
Bedford County was created in 1753 from parts of Lunenburg County, and several changes in alignment were made until the present borders were established in 1786. The county was named in honor of John Russell, an English statesman and fourth Duke of Bedford.
Bedford County is part of the Lynchburg Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2020 census, Bedford's population was 79,462.[2] The county population has more than doubled since 1980.[3]