About Madison County

By The Madison Eagle Staff
Published: February 29, 2008

Established in 1792 by an act of the Virginia General Assembly, Madison County was named for prominent statesman James Madison, whose family had extensive land holdings and business interests in the area and who would later become the fourth president of the United States.

The county contains 327 square miles of land mass, about one sixth of which falls in Shenandoah National Park. There are 13,828 residents according to the most recent report available from the University of Virginia’s Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service. There are also more than a thousand part-time (recreational) residents. There are 304 miles of secondary roads and 63 miles of primary roads, according to the Virginia Department of Transportation.