Mingo County

Administrative district in the far southwest of West Virginia; area 1,098 sq km/424 sq mi, population (1990) 33,700. To the southwest, the county is separated from Kentucky and Virginia by Tug Fork. Its seat is at Williamson.

Mingo County lies on the Appalachian Plateau, and is rich in bituminous coal. It was the scene of bitter labour disputes in the 1920s, and earned the name ‘Bloody Mingo’. In 1920 violence was rife in the town of Matewan, and the next year miners bound for Mingo to support a srike fought a pitched battle with coal company agents at Blair Mountain in neighbouring Logan County. The county's name derives from the American Indian people (under the leadership of Logan) who lived here up until the 18th century.