Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
Affiliate disclosure: This page contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission if you use them, at no extra cost to you. Our editorial recommendations are independent of these relationships.
What do you need to do?
Tell us your goal and we'll guide you step-by-step to the right office, forms, and official resources.
Office: Ritchie County Office of Emergency Management – operates via the joint Doddridge/Ritchie 911 Center, 4317 Lamberton Road, Pennsboro, WV
Notes: The county’s Emergency Operations Plan follows WV Code Chapter 15, Article 5, with the County Commission holding authority to declare a state of emergency and invoke necessary emergency powers. Ritchie County does NOT have a hospital within its own borders – Ritchie Regional Health Center, (304) 643-4005, is the primary local facility; more extensive care requires travel to nearby counties. Ritchie County Sheriff’s Department, (304) 643-2262; Ritchie County Ambulance Authority, 1610 East Main Street, Harrisville, WV 26362, (304) 643-2369.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: SH-31 and SH-16 converge at Harrisville, 5 miles south of US-50
Transit: No dedicated fixed-route county transit identified; confirm current regional options directly with the county
Note: The North Bend Rail Trail, a 72-mile hiking/biking corridor managed as part of North Bend State Park, runs through the county along a former railroad grade.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Ritchie County Assessor’s Office – 115 East Main Street, Harrisville, WV 26362 | (304) 643-2164
Notes: Confirm current county-level building permit process directly, as detailed information beyond the Assessor’s contact was limited in available sources.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
State VSO: West Virginia Department of Veterans Assistance – veterans.wv.gov (statewide office locator for the nearest County Veteran Service Officer)
Notes: Confirm current local point of contact directly with veterans.wv.gov.
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Ritchie County Public Library – 608 East Main Street, Harrisville, WV 26362 | (304) 643-2717 | ritchielibrary.org
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Ritchie County, formed in 1843 and named for Virginia journalist and politician Thomas Ritchie, is genuinely and deeply tied to the EARLY HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN PETROLEUM INDUSTRY – the county was home for 50 years to George Lemon (1788-1866), a documented pioneer of the petroleum industry, and the western part of the county prospered enormously during a real oil boom in the late 1800s, giving rise to the unincorporated community still named “Petroleum, WV” today; the Ritchie Mines were genuinely the ONLY commercial asphalt mine in the United States at the time, with the specially built “Calico Road” constructed specifically to transport this unique product; Harrisville, the county seat, was laid out in 1822 by Thomas Harris and later named for General Thomas M. Harris, a Union officer and physician who genuinely served on the military commission that tried the conspirators responsible for the assassination of Abraham Lincoln; the elaborate 1923 Ritchie County Courthouse (Neoclassical Revival, architects Holmboe & Pogue) is listed on the National Register of Historic Places within the Harrisville Historic District; North Bend State Park (2,459 acres, established 1951), featuring a 30-room lodge, eight cabins, riverside campgrounds, and a 305-acre lake, sits along the North Fork of the Hughes River near Harrisville and anchors the North Bend Rail Trail; Cliff’s Museum of Car Memorabilia (“The Building”) in Harrisville houses over 13,000 square feet of West Virginia automotive history, including what is described as the most complete known collection of WV license plates
Notes: Ritchie County’s documented role in the birth of the American petroleum industry and its status as home to the nation’s only historical asphalt mine are both genuinely distinctive, verifiable facts.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
GIS Portal: Ritchie County GIS – accessible via ritchie.wvassessor.com
Parcel Search: Ritchie County Assessor’s records
Addressing/911: Coordinated through the joint Doddridge/Ritchie 911 Center
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Ritchie County Humane Society – 2220 Pullman Road, Harrisville, WV | (304) 643-4721
Notes: Confirm current hours and intake process directly, as detailed operational information was limited in available sources.
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Environmental Complaints: West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection – dep.wv.gov
Notes: Contact Ritchie County directly for current refuse collection and recycling program details.
NOTES
Ritchie County holds a genuinely significant, well-documented place in the early history of the American petroleum industry, including the nation’s only commercial asphalt mine at the time – history still visible in the community name “Petroleum, WV” today. The county’s emergency 911 dispatch is jointly shared with neighboring Doddridge County, and Ritchie itself lacks a hospital within its borders, worth knowing for residents planning ahead. All contact information above was sourced from official county, tourism, and shelter pages as of this writing; phone numbers and hours should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit.
About Ritchie County County
Ritchie County is north-central West Virginia’s early oil heritage and Hughes River agricultural county – one of the first West Virginia counties to produce commercial petroleum and a persistently rural community of rolling hills and creek-bottom farms where Harrisville serves the county’s governmental needs in a quietly Appalachian landscape.
Harrisville (the county seat, population ~1,500) is Ritchie County’s governmental hub, a small north-central West Virginia community on WV-16 serving the county’s oil heritage and agricultural communities in the rolling hills between Parkersburg and Clarksburg.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Ritchie County Assessor at 115 E. Main Street, Harrisville, WV 26362, phone 304-643-2164. WV residential assessed at 60% of market value. Appeal to Board of Equalization and Review.
Courts & Legal
Ritchie County Circuit Court at 115 E. Main Street, Harrisville, WV 26362, phone 304-643-2164, handles probate.
Marriage & Vital Records
Marriage licenses, divorce records, and birth & death certificates are handled by the following office(s):
COUNTY CLERK
115 E Main St, Harrisville, WV 26362
(304) 643-2164
CIRCUIT CLERK
115 E Main St, Harrisville, WV 26362
(304) 643-2164
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Ritchie County Clerk’s Office, Harrisville (probate/estate case files – see Probate section above). The Ritchie County Courthouse (1923, Neoclassical Revival, designed by Ernest C.S. Holmboe) serves as a notable local landmark.
Local societies
No dedicated Ritchie County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Ritchie County Clerk’s Office (Probate/Fiduciary Supervisor) 115 East Main Street, Room 201, Harrisville, WV 26362 (304) 643-2164
Ritchie County is in North Central West Virginia, county seat Harrisville. West Virginia has NO separate probate court and has NOT adopted the Uniform Probate Code. Probate is handled administratively through the COUNTY COMMISSION, via the elected COUNTY CLERK (clerk of the county commission) and that office’s FIDUCIARY SUPERVISOR – not through the Circuit Court, which handles only contested or referred matters.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
West Virginia’s probate framework runs under Chapter 44 of the West Virginia Code, administered locally at the county commission level rather than in a court of record.
West Virginia Small Estate Act (W. Va. Code §44-1A) – available when the decedent’s ENTIRE personal probate estate does not exceed $50,000 in “small assets,” AND the decedent owned no interest in real property at all. As of a July 9, 2025 change in the law, real estate provisions were removed from the Small Estate Act entirely – any estate involving real property, of any value, can no longer use this affidavit process. If the affiant is the nominated personal representative under a will, the affidavit can be filed 30 days after death; otherwise, 60 days must pass. No personal representative may be pending or appointed in any jurisdiction.
Full/Standard Administration – required whenever real property is involved, or the estate exceeds $50,000 in personal property. The executor (with a will) or administrator (without one) qualifies before the County Clerk, receives Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, files an appraisement within 90 days of qualification, and settles the estate through the Fiduciary Supervisor or, for complex or contested matters, a court-appointed Fiduciary Commissioner.
Only if a genuine dispute arises – a will contest, or disagreement over appointment – does the matter go before the County Commission for a hearing, or in some cases the Circuit Court.
Step 2: filing for administration
The person seeking to serve as executor or administrator brings the original will (if any) and a certified death certificate to the Ritchie County Clerk’s Office to qualify.
The Clerk issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration; a corporate surety bond is typically required unless waived by the will or by agreement of all beneficiaries (with no debts).
The personal representative files an appraisement of the estate’s assets, generally within 90 days of qualification.
Notice to creditors must be published; once an appraisement is filed, the County Clerk must publish notice within 30 days (or within 120 days of qualification if no appraisement is filed).
The estate is settled through the Fiduciary Supervisor’s review, or referred to a Fiduciary Commissioner if complex or contested, culminating in a final settlement and accounting.
What it costs
Court filing fees to qualify as executor or administrator generally range from about $44 to $56, depending on whether there is a will.
West Virginia sets statutory executor commissions based on estate value: 5% on the first $100,000, 4% on the next $300,000, 3% on the next $400,000, and 2% on amounts above that.
Attorney fees for straightforward estates commonly range from $2,500-$5,000, and $5,000-$10,000+ for complex or contested cases; add bond premiums, newspaper publication fees, and appraisal/recording fees.
West Virginia does NOT impose a state estate tax or inheritance tax. Only the federal estate tax may apply, and only to estates above the federal exemption (roughly $15 million for a 2026 death).
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
115 E Main St, Harrisville, WV 26362
(304) 643-2934
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
ELECTIONS
(304) 643-2164
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Health Department
Ritchie County Health Department, 210 S Court St, Harrisville, WV 26362
(304) 643-2971
DHHR Office
Ritchie County DHHR Office, 210 S Court St, Harrisville, WV 26362
(304) 643-2934
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Ritchie County Health Department
Services: Immunizations, WIC, environmental health, vital records
Notes: Confirm current hours directly.
Editorial independence: CountyOffices maintains strict editorial independence from our affiliate partners. Our content is researched from official government sources. Affiliate relationships do not influence our recommendations or the information we publish.
Editorial Trust
5 official sources cited
Reviewed by CountyOffices Editorial Team
Last verified June 2026
County Facts
County Seat: Harrisville
Population: 9,700
Public Records
TruthFinder
Search public records for Ritchie County County residents.
