Barboursville is a part of the Huntington-Ashland, WV-KY-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). As of the 2000 census, the MSA had a population of 288,649.
Barboursville, WV, was established in 1813. The town was named for James Barbour, Governor of Virginia, 1812-1814. Barboursville became the county seat of Cabell County in 1814, retaining this honor until 1887, when the county seat was moved to Huntington. Barboursville today, on Interstate 64 (I-64), is a suburb of Huntington.
As of the census of 2000, there were 3,183 people, 1,365 households, and 877 families residing in the village. The population density was 864.1 people per square mile (334.0/km²). There were 1,465 housing units at an average density of 397.7/sq mi (153.7/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 97.77% White, 0.82% African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.60% Asian, 0.06% Pacific Islander, 0.06% from other races, and 0.53% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.72% of the population.
There were 1,365 households out of which 25.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 51.1% were married couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.7% were non-families. 31.2% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25 and the average family size was 2.82.
In the village the population was spread out with 19.4% under the age of 18, 9.9% from 18 to 24, 26.1% from 25 to 44, 27.2% from 45 to 64, and 17.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 94.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 90.7 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $35,139, and the median income for a family was $45,167. Males had a median income of $32,952 versus $26,469 for females. The per capita income for the village was $19,848. About 5.4% of families and 10.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.5% of those under age 18 and 7.1% of those age 65 or over.