Luke

History

The town of Luke was settled in the early 1770s after the organization of Hampshire County, West Virginia (at that time part of Virginia) in 1757. Among the first settlers to arrive were the Davis brothers (Henry and Thomas), who established a saw mill where the town of Luke now stands. The mill provided cross-ties to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad as it pushed its rails westward through the Piedmont area of what is now West Virginia. When the railroad needed a name for the stop it established near the site, it used the name "Luke". Over the next several decades, Luke prospered with the operation of the paper mill, the influx of other "heavy" industrial concerns, and the establishment of the usual supporting mom-and-pop businesses. Nearby, along the Savage River, there was a gun factory that provided muskets with bayonets for the United States Army at Harpers Ferry. Luke was also home of an automobile manufacturing plant where the Maryland Steamer was produced, as well as a post card factory.

Geography

Luke sits on the inside of a bend in the Potomac between Westernport and Bloomington, Maryland. According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , of which is land and is water.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• George's Creek Elementary
  Elementary · Lonaconing · 268 students · 13.4:1 ratio
• Westernport Elementary
  Elementary · Westernport · 261 students · 15.4:1 ratio
• Westmar Middle
  Middle · Lonaconing · 232 students · 9.3:1 ratio