Roanoke ( ) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 100,011, making it the 8th most populous city in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the largest city in Virginia west of Richmond. It is located in the Roanoke Valley of the Roanoke Region of Virginia. Roanoke is the largest municipality in Southwest Virginia, and is the principal municipality of the Roanoke Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which had a 2020 population of 315,251. It is composed of the independent cities of Roanoke and Salem, and Botetourt, Craig, Franklin, and Roanoke counties. Bisected by the Roanoke River, Roanoke is the commercial and cultural hub of much of Southwest Virginia and portions of Southern West Virginia. History Timeline 1835 - Town of Gainesborough incorporated. 1838 - Roanoke County created. 1852 - Big Lick Depot built near Gainesborough; Virginia & Tennessee Railroad begins operating. 1865 - April: Big Lick settlement sacked by Federal forces during American Civil War. 1870 - Atlantic, Mississippi & Ohio Railroad begins operating. 1874 Town of Big Lick incorporated. John Trout becomes mayor. 1878 - Big Lick News begins publication. 1882 Big Lick and Old Lick renamed "Roanoke". Roanoke Machine Works in business. Population: 5,276. 1883 - YMCA branch founded. 1884 - City of Roanoke incorporated. 1885 - Municipal market established. 1886 - Roanoke Daily Times newspaper begins publication. 1889 - Evening World newspaper begins publication. 1890 Roanoke Hospital founded. Population: 16,159. 1891 - Roanoke Weekly Press newspaper begins publication. 1893 - September 20: "Lynch riot" occurs. 1902 - Beth Israel congregation formed. 1903 - Agricultural "Great Roanoke Fair" begins. 1904 - Chamber of Commerce founded. 1906 - Virginian Railway begins operating. 1910 City Health Department established. Mill Mountain Incline (funicular) begins operating. Population: 34,874. 1911 - Roanoke Theatre in business. 1913 - Bijou Theatre in business. 1914 - YWCA branch founded. 1919 - "Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court" established. 1920 - Population: 50,842. 1921 Public Library opens. Ku Klux Klan branch active (approximate date). 1924 - WDBJ radio begins broadcasting. 1925 - Patrick Henry Hotel in business. 1926 - Memorial Bridge opens. 1930 - Big Lick Garden Club formed. 1933 - Roanoke Municipal Airport begins operating. 1936 - First Dr. Pepper plant east of the Mississippi River opened by John William "Bill" Davis; Roanoke soon becomes the Dr. Pepper Capitol of the World 1939 - Roanoke Tribune newspaper begins